Barzani calls for coalition government in Iraq

By Ali Mohamed

ERBIL, Iraq (AA) – Head of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) in northern Iraq, Nechirvan Barzani, on Saturday called for the formation of a coalition government.

"We should form a new coalition government in Iraq based on the principle of consensus and effective partnership with the Kurds," he said in a statement.

Iraqi governments are usually formed according to quotas divided among Iraq’s Shias, Sunnis and Kurds.

"The Kurdish blocs have to work together to obtain the rights of their constituency," Barzani said.

According to the final results of Iraq’s parliamentary election, Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s Sairoon coalition won 54 seats in parliament, followed by the Hashd al-Shaabi-led coalition with 47 seats and Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi’s Nasr (Victory) coalition with 42 seats.

The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) also won 25 seats, up from 19 in the 2014 election.

“The KDP has achieved a great democratic gain under the current sensitive circumstances, which carries a lot of implications,” Barzani said.

The poll results were announced one week after Iraqis cast their ballot in the first parliamentary election since the country announced the defeat of the Daesh terrorist group after a three-year war.

Preliminary results were announced earlier this week, but allegations of fraud and irregularities delayed the complete count.