Al Monitor | Ali Mamouri: Iraq�s parliament�elected�Mohammed al-Halbousi as its new speaker on Sept. 15, opening the door for the formation of a new government following months of political uncertainty. Efforts to establish a government stalled following the May 12 parliamentary elections, as the major winning parties have been unable to agree on a coalition to form the new government.


Lawmakers also elected Hassan Karim al-Kaabi as Halbousi�s first deputy on the same day, followed by the election of Bashir al-Haddad as second deputy on Sept. 16.

Halbousi, 37, is the youngest parliament speaker in the country�s history. He is an influential Sunni politician from Anbar province. He became known as a businessman after 2003, and was involved in many contracts with the US forces during the occupation that ended in 2011.

Halbousi�was first elected�to the Iraqi parliament in the 2014 elections,�and quickly progressed in his new career. He was on the parliamentary human rights and finance committees until 2017 � serving as the head of the latter from 2016-2017 � when he quit parliament to become the governor of Anbar province after the dismissal of Suhaib Ismail al-Rawi�from the position for alleged�corruption.

Halbousi maintains a good relationship with US forces, as a large number of them are located at the Ain al-Asad military base in Anbar province.

 

Read More Here