Shafaq News/ On Saturday, Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani and the head of the Azm Alliance, Muthanna al-Samarrai, discussed the efforts to elect a new Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament and the latest developments in the region.
Discussions took place during Barzani's reception of Al-Samarrai and his accompanying delegation at the Saladin resort in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region.
During the meeting, they exchanged views and opinions regarding the political situation and developments in Iraq, and discussed recent efforts to elect a new Speaker.
The Speaker position has been vacant since November 14, 2023, when the Federal Supreme Court ended Mohammed al-Halbousi’s tenure due to "fraud" allegations brought by MP Laith al-Dulaimi.
The ongoing deadlock in electing a new Speaker stems from disagreements among Sunni blocs over the position.
Despite several parliamentary sessions, the crisis remains unresolved. The "Taqaddum" bloc, led by former Speaker al-Halbousi, insists on retaining the position as its right, while the "Sovereignty" bloc, led by Khamis al-Khanjar, and other Sunni groups argues that the role should be allocated to the Sunni community as a whole rather than a specific party or bloc.
The Coordination Framework had set a deadline for the Sunni blocs to elect a new speaker, but this effort did not resolve the disputes.
Recently, Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani, during his first visit to Baghdad in six years on July 3, stepped in to mediate among Sunni factions, meeting with key political leaders and officials. His efforts focused on facilitating an agreement on a candidate for the speaker role, including bringing together al-Halbousi and al-Khanjar to help resolve the ongoing crisis.