After months of political bickering in Baghdad, on Monday Iraq’s President asked Haidar Al-Abadi, the Shia coalition’s nominee for prime minister, to form a government. Right after the decision of Mr. President Nouri al Maliki who has rejected calls to drop his bid for a third term as prime Minister. Previously Iraq’s highest court earlier issued a ruling suggesting Maliki’s State of Law Shia bloc is the biggest in parliament and therefore was entitled to nominate a candidate for prime minister. But after the decision of Mr. President, the court somehow took its word back and said that any coalition having highest number of seats in parliament was entitled to form the government.
During last years, Mr. al-Maliki has been changed into a polarizing figure. He could not attract the attention of both Sunni sect and also Kurds. Both communities almost have similar stance against him and asked him to step down and leave the Premiership post to somebody else. As the Islamic State militants started advancing rapidly, the call went beyond the border and political parties of Iraq. The country’s supporters and alliances, including his Shia fellows have joined the campaign to make him stay away from the power in order to pave way for a national united government.
He is criticized on account of alienating Sunnis, prompting them to support Islamic State militants who have seized a large chunk of northern Iraq and have threatened to march on Baghdad, posing the biggest threat to Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003. Last Friday, Ayatollah Sistani a highly popular religious figure whose word is law for his followers indirectly asked Mr. Maliki to step down and save the country from an utter collapse. Though he did not mention Maliki by name, he said politicians who cling to posts were making a "grave mistake", and leaders must choose a prime minister to end the security crisis.
Despite Ariel military support from the US, the advance of Islamic State fighters has not been halted. Last Thursday, insurgents had raised their black flag over a checkpoint just 45 km (28 miles) from Arbil, a city of 1.5 million which became an oil boom town when the rest of Iraq was often too dangerous for foreign staff. Though during past few days, they are pushed back by US air support, but there is not sign that they are weak because they captured other cities.
No doubt, they are taking advantage of bickering Baghdad but let’s see will Mr. Ebad form the government and bring the dissent Sunnis and Kurds back to the political stream?