Iraq’s election results have drawn a mixed response from political parties, casting doubt on their ability to reach an agreement to form the new government.
After weeks of dealing with about 1,500 complaints and recounting some of the ballots, Iraq’s Independent High Elections Commission confirmed the final results of October's poll on Tuesday.
The political bloc sponsored by prominent Shiite cleric Moqtada Al Sadr won 73 seats in the 329-seat parliament, followed by Taqadum party, led by Sunni Parliament Speaker Mohammed Al Halbousi, with 37 seats, and former prime minister Nouri Al Maliki’s State of Law bloc was third with 33 seats.
Al Fatah bloc, made up mainly of pro-Iran Shiite militias, lost out, with only 17 seats, compared to the 45 seats it won in 2018.
The recounts of contested ballot boxes have only affected five seats, in five provinces – Baghdad, Nineveh, Erbil, Basra and Kirkuk.
Al Fatah and the Kurdistan Alliance got two new seats each, while Sunni Azim coalition, led by tycoon Khamis Al Khanjar got one seat.
Shortly after announcing the results, Mr Al Sadr launched the hashtag #ThankYouElectionCommisson on Twitter, which trended mainly among his followers.
Despite emerging as the clear winner, Mr Al Sadr faces a rough road ahead to form a functioning government.
The Shiite Co-ordination Framework, made up of Al Fatah, State of Law and other parties renewed their rejection of the results, accusing the IHEC of manipulation, despite the EU and UN saying the poll was well-managed.
“We categorically reject the current election results,” the group said. “It is clear now and without any doubt that the Elections Commission had prepared these results before against the will of the Iraqi people,” it added.
Their demands are now beyond recounting the votes.
“We reiterate our firm stance, which is based on documents and proof that there has been widespread manipulation in the elections results,” it said.
“We are committed to continue our lawsuit, which we have filed at the Federal Court to annul the elections,” the group added.
How will the new Iraqi government be formed?
The results have been sent to the Supreme Federal Court for ratification.
Once they are approved, Iraqi President Barham Salih will call on the new parliament to convene. The largest political bloc will be declared in the first session to have the right to nominate a prime minister and start negotiations to form the government.
It is still unclear whether the Co-ordination Framework, which has more than 50 seats, can form an alliance inside the parliament or ally with other parties given the differences among its leaders.
Since no party won a majority of seats in parliament, negotiations to choose a prime minister and form the new government are expected to take weeks or even months.
The new parliament will have a set of newcomers. More independent candidates have won seats, including the prominent activist party, Imtidad Movement with nine seats.
For Riyadh Ashour, a resident of the southern city of Nasiriyah, the elections have failed to ease the grip of the political parties.
“The same political parties are still controlling the country,” Mr Ashour, 59, told The National. “They play it in a way that allows them to stay in power and maintain full control,” he added.
But the presence of independent candidates brings some hope.
“Although they can’t do anything significant now, their presence is a seed that we will water and support to bring change in the future,” he said.
Company%20Profile
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Lowest Test scores
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30 - South Africa v England at Port Elizabeth, Feb 1896
30 - South Africa v England at Birmingham, June 1924
35 - South Africa v England at Cape Town, April 1899
36 - South Africa v Australia at Melbourne, Feb. 1932
36 - Australia v England at Birmingham, May 1902
36 - India v Australia at Adelaide, Dec. 2020
38 - Ireland v England at Lord's, July 2019
42 - New Zealand v Australia in Wellington, March 1946
42 - Australia v England in Sydney, Feb. 1888
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
Australia squads
ODI: Tim Paine (capt), Aaron Finch (vice-capt), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye.
T20: Aaron Finch (capt), Alex Carey (vice-capt), Ashton Agar, Travis Head, Nic Maddinson, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Andrew Tye, Jack Wildermuth.
Also on December 7 to 9, the third edition of the Gulf Car Festival (www.gulfcarfestival.com) will take over Dubai Festival City Mall, a new venue for the event. Last year's festival brought together about 900 cars worth more than Dh300 million from across the Emirates and wider Gulf region – and that first figure is set to swell by several hundred this time around, with between 1,000 and 1,200 cars expected. The first day is themed around American muscle; the second centres on supercars, exotics, European cars and classics; and the final day will major in JDM (Japanese domestic market) cars, tuned vehicles and trucks. Individuals and car clubs can register their vehicles, although the festival isn’t all static displays, with stunt drifting, a rev battle, car pulls and a burnout competition.
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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New process leads to panic among jobseekers
As a UAE-based travel agent who processes tourist visas from the Philippines, Jennifer Pacia Gado is fielding a lot of calls from concerned travellers just now. And they are all asking the same question.
“My clients are mostly Filipinos, and they [all want to know] about good conduct certificates,” says the 34-year-old Filipina, who has lived in the UAE for five years.
Ms Gado contacted the Philippines Embassy to get more information on the certificate so she can share it with her clients. She says many are worried about the process and associated costs – which could be as high as Dh500 to obtain and attest a good conduct certificate from the Philippines for jobseekers already living in the UAE.
“They are worried about this because when they arrive here without the NBI [National Bureau of Investigation] clearance, it is a hassle because it takes time,” she says.
“They need to go first to the embassy to apply for the application of the NBI clearance. After that they have go to the police station [in the UAE] for the fingerprints. And then they will apply for the special power of attorney so that someone can finish the process in the Philippines. So it is a long process and more expensive if you are doing it from here.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
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- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Match info
Karnataka Tuskers 110-3
J Charles 35, M Pretorius 1-19, Z Khan 0-16
Deccan Gladiators 111-5 in 8.3 overs
K Pollard 45*, S Zadran 2-18
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
Result
Crystal Palace 0 Manchester City 2
Man City: Jesus (39), David Silva (41)
