(Baghdad) The deputy who presided over the inaugural session of the new Iraqi parliament on Sunday was hospitalized after scuffles broke out during the session, we learned from public television and deputies.
Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, who chaired the meeting as the dean of the assembly, was “hospitalized”, Iraqiya state television reported. Iraqi news agency INA then claimed his condition was “stable”.
According to the Kurdish deputy Muthana Amin, the inaugural session “started normally with the taking of the oath” of the 329 deputies elected during the legislative elections of October 10.
Then, the Coordination Framework – a coalition of several Shiite parties – claimed to be the most important parliamentary alliance with 88 deputies, according to him.
Mr. Machhadani “then asked that this information be verified, after which he was insulted and deputies attacked him,” Mr. Amin told AFP without specifying the identity of the attackers, nor if his hospitalization was directly linked to this assault.
According to a parliamentary source who requested anonymity, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani “lost consciousness”.
Videos obviously filmed by deputies showed elected officials revicting each other.
According to several parliamentary sources, the controversy is between the Coordination Framework and their rivals from the Sadrist current, named after the Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr.
His current took away 73 of the 329 seats. Galvanized by this score, the Shiite leader has said on several occasions that he wants to constitute a “majority government”. In short: its current and its partners intend to be in the majority in Parliament and to have the upper hand over the ministries and the appointment of the Prime Minister.
The Coordination Framework – to which several Shiite parties belong, including the Conquest Alliance, the political showcase of Hachd al-Chaabi – does not understand it that way. He claims the prerogative of appointing the prime minister thanks to the 88 elected officials he says he counts, or 15 more than the Sadrist current.
Temporary suspension of the session
The meeting was suspended for over an hour, before resuming.
MPs must get down to electing a Speaker of Parliament, a role traditionally assigned to a Sunni. Within 30 days of its inaugural session, Parliament must elect the President of the Republic.
The latter will then have to appoint a prime minister, chosen by the largest coalition. Once appointed, the Prime Minister has 30 days to form a government.
Some experts and politicians expect a new team by March.
Moqtada Sadr hinted that his preference was for an alliance with two Sunni formations, Azm and Taqadom, and a Kurdish party, the PDK.
Majority in the House, this coalition could then appoint a prime minister, a post which historically goes to a Shiite Muslim.
Also in the Shiite camp, the Alliance of Conquest, the political showcase of the ex-pro-Iran paramilitaries of Hachd al-Chaabi, won only 17 seats against 48 in the outgoing Parliament.
Party officials say the ballot was marred by “fraud,” but their appeal to overturn the elections was rejected by the courts.
The post-election period was marked by instability tinged with armed violence.
Hachd al-Chaabi supporters have expressed their anger at Baghdad’s ultra-secure Green Zone, which notably houses government buildings and the American embassy.
And on November 7, an unclaimed assassination attempt by drone bombs against Prime Minister Moustafa al-Kazimi at his home further exacerbated tensions.