Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government supports PM al-Abadi

By Idris Okuducu

ERBIL, Iraq

Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Nechervan Barzani expressed his support for Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi, who is aiming to get a new cabinet approved by parliament.

Barzani said on Thursday that “Iraq’s priority is fighting the Daesh terrorist group and stabilizing the financial situation.”

He also said that all sides should support al-Abadi and must put an end to the crisis through dialogue.

The Iraqi parliament on Tuesday approved six nominees proposed by al-Abadi for a major cabinet reshuffle.

In a tense assembly session, MPs endorsed six candidates for the ministries of electricity, culture, higher education, labor, health and water resources. Lawmakers in attendance, however, did not approve al-Abadi’s candidates for the justice and foreign affairs portfolios.

Iraq has been embroiled in a deepening political crisis since March, when supporters of firebrand Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr staged a series of protests outside Baghdad’s Green Zone to pressure al-Abadi to appoint a government of “technocrats” untainted by corruption or sectarian affiliations.