Baghdad, Iraq – Iraqi leaders have five days to choose a prime minister and end a bitter political crisis that continues more than five months after parliamentary elections were held.A decision to declare a prime minister on Tuesday was once again postponed for further consultations within the Coordination Framework, the largest bloc of Shia parties, which commands 185 of 329 seats in parliament.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listAccording to the Iraqi Constitution, the bloc must choose a prime minister by Sunday. Under Article 76 of the constitution, the president must ask the nominee of the largest parliamentary bloc to form a government within 15 days of being elected, and Nizar Amedi was elected president on April 11.But the Coordination Framework has been beset by internal power struggles as Iraq balances relations with two powers competing for influence in the country: neighbouring Iran and the United States. The war between the two has further complicated those ties.In January, the bloc chose two-time Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who has close links with Iran, as its nominee. The move triggered an angry reaction from US President Donald Trump, who threatened to stop supporting Iraq if al-Maliki returned to the post.Meanwhile, internal differences have emerged within the bloc, mainly between the Hikma Movement, led by Ammar al-Hakim, and the Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq Movement, led by Qais al-Khazali, further delaying the nomination of a candidate.Balance ‘tipping’ in favour of al-BadryIn a meeting on Monday, the State of Law Coalition, a Shia bloc, nominated Bassem al-Badry …
