DUBAI, August 12 (RIA Novosti) – Iran has urged Iraqis to unite in their support for their country’s new prime minister Haider Abbadi, who will form Iraq's government, Al Hayat newspaper reported Tuesday, citing officials in Tehran.
According to the media, Iran hopes that “Iraqi politicians, including those from the Shiite faction, will stand behind Abbadi,” the source said.
The official added that Iran “will not interfere with the domestic political disputes in Iraq and is ready to cooperate with anyone, who will manage to unite Iraq and Iraqi people.”
Earlier Monday, the recently elected Iraqi President Fuad Masum ordered a candidate from the largest Shiite parliamentary coalition National Alliance, Haider Abbadi, to form a new government. The former Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, whose State of Law coalition won the parliamentary elections but did not get a majority of votes, accused the president of violating the country’s constitution and refused to acknowledge Abbadi’s appointment as legitimate.
Maliki, as a leader of the winning coalition, was expecting to take up the post of prime minister for the third time in a row. The Sunni and Kurdish opposition that has repeatedly accused Maliki of dictatorship opposed his nomination, so did the leadership of National Alliance, which their support Maliki’s party won the parliamentary elections.
Abbadi’s appointment has already been welcomed by the United States and the European Union.
