Bloomberg, 15 July 2014 – Iraqi lawmakers today elected a speaker of parliament, completing the first step in forming a new government after a two-week deadlock as the nation seeks to counter an Islamist insurgency that has seized major cities.
Saleem Al-Jibouri, a member of the legislature’s largest Sunni Muslim bloc and former head of the human-rights committee, won 194 votes in the 328-member house, according to state-sponsored Iraqiya television. He replaces Usama al-Nujaifi, speaker since 2010 and a leading critic of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Following Jibouri’s appointment, parliament must elect a president by the end of July, who then has 15 days to invite the largest alliance in the legislature to name a prime minister-elect.