Iraqi parliament approves new government headed by Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani

Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani shakes hands with Iraqi speaker of Parliament Mohammed Al-Halbousi, before a vote on Sudani’s cabinet at the parliament in Baghdad on Thursday. (Reuters)

• Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani,52, will head the new government
• Sundai’s picks for 21 ministries passed during a parliament vote on the Cabinet

BAGHDAD: Iraqi lawmakers approved a new government on Thursday ending over a year of deadlock, but still faces many challenges.
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani,52, who previously served as Iraq’s human rights minister as well as minister of labor and social affairs, will head the new government.
Sundai’s picks for 21 ministries passed during a parliament vote on the Cabinet. He named the head of state-run South Gas Co. (SGC) Hayan Abdul Ghani as oil minister.
Thursday’s parliament session comes a year after an election in which populist Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada Al-Sadr was the biggest winner but failed to rally support to form a government.
Sadr withdrew his 73 lawmakers in August and said he would quit politics, prompting the worst violence in Baghdad for years when his loyalists stormed a government palace and fought rival Shiite groups, most of them backed by Iran and with armed wings.