Iraqi Parliament firm on ending presence of foreign troops

BAGHDAD, 14 January — The media office of the Iraqi Parliament issued a statement on the meeting that failed to elect a Speaker as no candidate received 158 votes and the session was adjourned. The deputy Speaker who chaired the meeting stressed that ending the presence of foreign forces in Iraq “is a principal and firm decision”.

Statement:

The Iraqi Parliament held its first session of the first legislative term of the third legislative year of the fifth electoral cycle today, Saturday, chaired by the First Deputy Speaker of the Council, Mr. Mohsen al-Mandlawi, and attended by 314 deputies. The session was dedicated to electing a president for the Council of Representatives.

At the beginning of the session, Mr. Mohsen al-Mandlawi pointed out that the Iraqi Parliament’s decision to end the presence of foreign forces in Iraq is a principal and firm decision, which has been accepted by the Iraqi people and government. He called on Prime Minister Mr. Mohammed al-Sudani to implement the decision to end any presence of foreign forces in Iraq, in addition to developing the capabilities of the Iraqi security forces.

Then the council recited Al-Fatiha in memory of the martyrs of Iraq, the leaders of victory, and the martyr of the altar, Mr. Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, on the anniversary of his martyrdom.

Mr. Mohsen al-Mandlawi congratulated the conduct of provincial council elections within the constitutional entitlement, thanking the High Electoral Commission for its role in managing the electoral process and the political blocs for their active participation.

Mr. al-Mandlawi announced the receipt of requests from deputies Salem al-Essaoui, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, Shalan al-Kraim, Talal al-Zobaie, and Amer Abdul Jabbar to run for the presidency of the council, while Deputy Abdul Rahim al-Shammari withdrew his candidacy.

The results of the first round of voting showed that Deputy Shalan al-Kraim received 152 votes, Deputy Salem al-Essaoui 97 votes, Deputy Mahmoud al-Mashhadani 48 votes, Deputy Amer Abdul Jabbar 6 votes, and Deputy Talal al-Zobaie one vote, while the number of invalid papers was ten.

After that, the First Deputy Speaker of the Council decided to adjourn the session.