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Iraq: Cabinet Expected To Be Announced

By Charles Recknagel

PRAGUE, May 19, 2006 (RFE/RL) -- Expectations are high in Baghdad that a new Iraqi government is about to be unveiled, with parliament speaker Mahmud Mashhadani having said on May 17 that the legislature would receive and vote on a full list of names in a special session on May 20.

Since that announcement, media speculation over who will get what post has run high. But the speculation has often been contradictory, offering few certainties as to the final nominees.

Power Ministries

Much speculation centers on who will lead the three most powerful ministries, Interior, Defense, and Oil.

One name frequently mentioned as a top contender to lead the Interior Ministry is Ahmad Chalabi, who is currently oil minister. Chalabi, a secular politician, was a key U.S. ally until Washington accused him two years ago of selling secrets to Iran. If Chalabi becomes interior minister, he would replace another controversial figure, Bayan Jabr, who heads that ministry now.

RFE/RL regional analyst Kathleen Ridolfo says Sunni parties frequently accuse Jabr of letting groups in the Interior Ministry carry out kidnappings and assassinations of Sunnis:

"Bayan Jabr is a former high-ranking official in the Badr Brigades, which is the former armed wing of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI). Sunni Arabs have claimed that Interior Ministry forces under his command are linked to the Badr militia and they have said that this militia is responsible for carrying out armed attacks, kidnappings, and assassinations against the Sunni Arab community. For his part, Jabr has denied the claims against him."

Meanwhile, there is much speculation that the Defense Ministry could go to a Sunni. There are several Sunni names in contention, as well as some Shi'ite politicians.

The Oil Ministry could go to independent politician Husayn al-Shahristani, a nuclear physicist. He is widely esteemed for his years of resistance to Saddam Hussein while remaining in the country.

Copyright (c) 2006. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org