UNITED NATIONS, August 11 (RIA Novosti) – UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon commended Iraqi President Fuad Massoum on Monday for having charged Haider Abadi, who has just been selected as a nominee for the prime minister position, with the formation of a new government.
[I encourage] “Dr. al-Abbadi, Prime Minister-designate, to form a broad-based government acceptable to all components of Iraqi society, in accordance with the constitutional time-frame,” Ban said in a statement.
Ban called for peace in the country, which has recently faced sharp heat up of tensions.
[I urge] “all political parties and their supporters to remain calm and to respect the political process, governed by the Constitution,” Ban stressed.
“The people of Iraq deserve to live in a safe, prosperous and stable country – one that all groups in Iraq, including religious and ethnic minorities, can meaningfully contribute to and feel as their own,” he added.
Earlier on Monday, Iraq's President asked Abadi to set up a new government, despite opposition from incumbent Iraqi leader Nuri al-Maliki.
Iraq is currently facing a serious threat from the Sunni extremist group Islamic State (IS). In early June IS militants seized large parts of the northern Iraq territories and later announced the establishment of a caliphate on the occupied land.
