Seeker Blog

Reports from the past two days indicate that Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani made it clear to Jaafari on Wednesday that he must step aside. Today the Shia nomination has gone to another Dawa party pol, deputy leader Jawad al-Maliki. And it looks like the nomination will get the Kurd, Sunni support required for parliament confirmation. President Talabani has just been elected by the newly elected parliament, and has backed al-Maliki:

Iraq’s reelected President Jalal Talabani called upon Maliki Saturday to form the cabinet, signaling an end to the deadlock that coincided with a surge in sectarian violence across the country that has left hundreds dead.

“On this occasion, I call upon my brother Jawad al-Maliki to form the next Iraqi government,” Talabani said in the landmark parliament session, only the second one since the body was elected in December.

“We think he has all the qualities required to head the government.”

Other positive news, as one of al-Maliki’s first statements recognized the urgency of suppressing the militias:

Following his nomination, Maliki vowed to rein in militias by incorporating them into Iraq’s security forces, while working with all the country’s ethnic groups to tackle the insurgency.

“I intend to form a national unity government that will face the challenges of terrorism and corruption,” he said.

“Arms must be in the hands of the government. There is a law to integrate militias into the security forces,” he said.

All very positive developments. With a hopeful outlook, we await concrete progress on security and the economy…

UPDATE: Lots of good coverage at Gateway Pundit and Pajamas Media.

UPDATE: some perspective on political progress from John Hinderaker

…For reasons that are not clear to me, both the Kurds and the Sunni Arabs find al-Maliki more acceptable, and have approved his selection. This clears the way for al-Maliki to form a government.

I was not surprised, by the way, at the length of time it took Iraq’s politicians to get to this point. It is human nature to hold out and bargain until the last posslble moment. Here in America, it is unusual to settle even the most pedestrian civil litigation until the eve of trial, and legislation is often passed at the latest possible moment in a legislative session. I’m not clear on what deadline, if any, the Iraqis are up against; but with regard to something as important as the formation of that country’s initial elected government, it is hardly surprising that, as in prior phases of the process, the bargaining went on for what seemed like forever.