Monday, Apr 04, 2005
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By Atul Aneja
MANAMA, APRIL 3. After weeks of squabbling, Iraq's Parliament has finally elected a Speaker, setting the stage for the formation of an interim government over the next two weeks. However, hours before the lawmakers went into a huddle behind closed doors, guerillas launched a bold attack at the notorious Abu Ghraib prison. At least 44 U.S. troops and 12 prisoners inside were injured in the attack. Iraqi fighters targeted an outbuilding after dark with a car bomb and backed it with a hail of gunfire, rocket-propelled grenades, and mortars. American officials said at least 40 guerillas were involved. The attack came soon after the U.S. and Iraqi officials claimed that the level of violence had tapered after the elections. The prison, on the outskirts of Baghdad, has more than 3,000 inmates. It had made international headlines last year after it became the centre of a scandal involving the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. guards.
Secret ballot
Elected members of the Transitional National Assembly chose through secret ballot Hajim al-Hassani, a Sunni, as the Speaker. Voting became necessary, as the Shias who have the largest number of seats in Parliament, and Kurds failed to agree on a suitable candidate. Both sides however had decided that the post would go to a Sunni. Analysts point out that the Shias and the Kurds have sought to reach out to the second-largest community, which had mostly stayed away from the controversial January 30 elections. Mr. Hassani, who is the interim Industry Minister, received 215 votes in the 275-member Assembly, while his nearest rival, Hussain al-Shahristani, a Shia, polled 157 votes. The Assembly chose Mr. Shahristani, a former nuclear scientist, as the Deputy Speaker, while Aref Taifour, a Kurd, who won 96 votes, has been named as the second Deputy Speaker. Parliament, on Wednesday, is also expected to choose the Kurdish leader, Jalal Talabani, as the next President. Iraq, under the interim law, would have a Presidency council, comprising the President, two Vice-Presidents and an executive Prime Minister, who will head a Cabinet. The United Iraqi Alliance — the key Shia umbrella organisation that won 146 seats in the Assembly — has put up Ibrahim Jaafari as its prime ministerial candidate. The newly elected Speaker has been an outspoken critic of the recent U.S.-led military offensive in Fallujah, but is otherwise known to be close to the pro-U.S. interim Prime Minister, Iyad Allawi. Once a President and the Vice-Presidents are chosen, they have to form a government within two weeks. The interim Parliament is slated to write a new constitution by mid-August, leading to fresh elections in December.
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