On the impact of demonstrations .. Iraq's parliament ends the work of provincial councils and fails in the law of legislative elections

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's parliament passed a provincial election law on Tuesday, but differences prevented the passage of a new legislative election law, while three demonstrators were killed and six others were killed in bombings in Baghdad.

Members of the House of Representatives voted in favor of a legal amendment to terminate the work of the provincial councils that are not organized in the territory and councils of districts and the current areas of its affiliates, and assigns members of parliament to monitor the work of the governor and his deputies in each province separately.

Under the amendment, elections for new councils will not be held, but only for the election of local governments, consisting of governors and their deputies. Previously, the provincial councils served as a mini-legislative authority to elect governors and their deputies, issue decisions and monitor performance, which protesters saw as transforming provincial councils into Closed rooms to share money and cover up corruption.

Despite the adoption of this amendment in response to the demands of the protests, differences prevented the passage of the draft legislative elections law in its second reading, where some parties support a proposal to give priority to those with the most votes to win membership in parliament, while others believe that this is limited to 50% of the seats in parliament, That the rest of the seats remain won under the old system.

Political meetings
Also in the political context, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi and Iraqi Defense Minister Najah al-Shammari met with US Undersecretary of Defense John Rudd in Baghdad, where the Pentagon said Rudd assured Iraqis of the United States' commitment to Iraq's security, sovereignty, and support for its people.

Rudd discussed with Shammari joint efforts to eliminate the Islamic State, and praised the operations of the Iraqi security forces aimed at dismantling the networks of the group and prevent his return.

In Erbil, John Rudd met with the President of the Kurdistan Region, Nechirvan Barzani, and the President of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Mansour Barzani. He assured them of the Pentagon's support for the Peshmerga forces and praised their role in eliminating IS.

The President of the Kurdistan Region renewed the region's support for the government of Abdul-Mahdi and his support for any amendment of the Constitution is in the interest of Iraqis, pointing out that an upcoming meeting will be held between the three presidencies in the region to discuss the development of a constitution for the region. Other political.

Negervan added that "a Kurdish delegation visited the capital Baghdad twice, and there is a third visit next week in order to reach an agreement on oil and public budget," stressing that the meetings are positive.

Demonstrations and killed
In the field, security sources and witnesses said that three people were killed yesterday in demonstrations in central Baghdad and in the province of Karbala, and dozens of cases of suffocation due to the use of tear gas canisters, some of them seriously.

Iraqi security and medical sources said six people were killed and 15 wounded in three simultaneous explosions in Baghdad. No one has claimed responsibility for what happened.

On the other hand, appealed to Iraqi tribes in central and southern Iraq, the top Shiite cleric Ali al-Sistani to intervene to stop the bloodshed and avoid civil war, and prevent the collapse of the state, and release the hand of "gangs" under the cover of demonstrations.

"We, the tribesmen, our weapons are ready and our souls are ready to testify. If necessary, we face the parties and the corrupt, and deport all those who use the demonstrations to get money and positions," Sistani's statement said.

Government sources said that the provinces of Karbala, Dhi Qar and Muthanna officially announced the suspension of official working hours from Wednesday to Sunday in order to preserve civil peace, against the backdrop of security unrest and the spread of violence.

The governor of Dhi Qar, Adel al-Dakhili, yesterday ordered the removal of riot police outside the center of the city of Nasiriyah (the governorate center) "to preserve the lives of citizens and prevent any kind of collision", after the protesters cut roads and bridges and burned the houses of two former parliamentarians.