(Reuters) – Iraq’s parliament held its first session since October’s nationwide election on Sunday however failed to elect a speaker, in what ought to have been the first step towards forming a brand new authorities.
The speaker choice course of was disrupted as competing political blocs every claimed to maintain a parliamentary majority. After heated debates and shouting amongst lawmakers, the short-term chief of the meeting, Mahmoud al-Mashahadani, determined to adjourn the session and it shouldn’t be identified when parliament will resume.
In an extra complication, Mashahadani, who at 73 is the oldest member of parliament, was immediately taken in poor health and transported to hospital by ambulance. A brand new short-term speaker will want to be appointed earlier than parliament can resume, parliament’s media workplace mentioned. It didn’t give additional particulars about Mashahadani’s situation besides to say that his blood stress was being checked.
Parliament had been due to elect a speaker and two deputies throughout its first assembly.
Parliament additionally has 30 days from the first session to elect the nation’s new president, who will then ask the biggest bloc in parliament to kind a authorities.
(Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed; Writing by Ahmad Elhamy; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle and Susan Fenton)
