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Iraqi president calls on parliament to convene on January 9



BAGHDAD, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) –Iraqi President Barham Salih on Thursday called on the new Iraqi parliament to hold its first session on January 9, 2022.

In a republican decree posted on his official Twitter page, Salih said that his call came after the Iraqi federal court ratified on Monday the final results of the Oct. 10 elections.

Salih stressed that he hopes the new parliament will form a “capable and effective government to protect the interests of the country and enhance sovereignty, protecting and serving the Iraqis.”

According to the Iraqi constitution, the ratification of the results entails President Barham Salih to call on the new parliament to hold its first session under the chairmanship of the eldest parliament member within 15 days from the court’s ratification, to elect a president of the parliament and then the president of the country, who will ask the largest alliance to form a government within 30 days.

The Iraqi parliamentary elections, originally scheduled for 2022, were held in advance in response to months of protests against corruption, poor governance, and a lack of public services. A total of 3,249 candidates within 167 parties and coalitions competed for 329 parliamentary seats in the elections.