In Iraq, Shia bloc struggles to choose prime minister by constitutional deadline

Iraqi leaders have five days to choose a prime minister and end a bitter political crisis that continues more than five months after parliamentary elections were held. A decision to declare a prime minister on Tuesday was once again postponed for further consultations within the Coordination Framework, the largest bloc of Shia parties, which commands 185 of 329 seats in parliament. According to the Iraqi Constitution, the bloc must choose a prime minister by Sunday. Under Article 76 of the constitution, the president must ask the nominee of the largest parliamentary bloc to form a government within 15 days of being elected, and Nizar Amedi was elected president on April 11. But the Coordination Framework has been beset by internal power struggles as Iraq balances relations with two powers competing for influence in the country: neighbouring Iran and the United States. The war between the two has further complicated those ties.
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