| CNN | - |
Irbil,
Iraq (CNN) -- Iraqi President Fuad Masum nominated a new Prime Minister
on Monday, further complicating the country's intense power struggle
amid a dire humanitarian crisis and a militant threat strong enough to
draw U.S.
Iraq's Nuri al-Maliki digs in as President nominates new Prime Minister
updated 9:22 PM EDT, Mon August 11, 2014
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STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: United States carries out airstrikes on ISIS checkpoints, vehicles
- U.S. President Barack Obama calls for an inclusive government
- Nuri al-Maliki slams the political appointment as "null and void"
- Iraqi President nominates Haider al-Abadi to replace the defiant al-Maliki
In a ceremony attended by
key members of the main Shiite bloc in Parliament, Masum nominated
Haider al-Abadi to succeed a defiant Nuri al-Maliki, who had earlier
vowed to hang on to power.
It wasn't clear what
impact the situation would have on the country, which is already torn by
a threat from Islamist militants so brutal that they crucify people and
brag about it online.
But in a sign that
al-Maliki wouldn't go quietly, he later appeared with mostly junior
members of his party who announced that they would contest Masum's
decision in court.
"I've never seen Iraq so
bad -- ever," CNN national security analyst and former CIA operative Bob
Baer said Monday, before the latest political developments.
Here's where things stand after a few days of dizzying developments:
Photos: Iraq under siege
al-Maliki defiant as successor is appointed
President tries to push out al-Maliki
New rounds of airstrikes in Mt. Sinjar
Tension in Baghdad
The new Prime Minister-designate, Abadi, is the deputy speaker of the Iraqi Parliament and a former aide to al-Maliki.
Masum nominated the
prominent Shiite politician for the prime minister's job on Monday
despite al-Maliki's pronouncement earlier in the day that he intends to
stay in office for a third term.
Abadi will have 30 days to form a new government before he can formally take office.
Abadi appears to be
backed by leading members of the leading parliamentary coalition,
including Iraq's foreign minister and the Dawa party's spokesman, who
appeared with him at the ceremony formalizing his nomination.
Whether al-Maliki would use force to retain power remains unknown.
He spoke out against the nomination Monday, describing the appointment as "null and void."
"I say to all of you
fighters on the front lines ... the army ... the police ... remain in
your places and do not worry or be shaken over the constitutional
violation," al-Maliki said. "We will repair the mistake."
More directly, he added: "No one has the right to do anything ... without my permission."
On Sunday, Iraqi forces
and tanks surged into some Baghdad neighborhoods as a wave of troops
swarmed Baghdad's green zone, the secure area where many government
buildings and the U.S. Embassy are located, two Iraqi police officials
said.
Exactly what led to the
surge remains unclear. But some believe the beefed-up military presence
was part of a power struggle between al-Maliki and Masum.
Kirk Sowell, author of "Inside Iraqi Politics," said the end of al-Maliki's eight-year rule appears near.
"Potentially, I wouldn't
exclude the possibility that Maliki would try some sort of coup,"
Sowell said. "I would exclude the possibility that it might succeed."
U.S. airstrikes push back ISIS
Is Iraq's government falling apart?
Analyst: Political moves in Iraq
Al-Abadi welcomed
Abadi's appointment met with international approval.
British Foreign Minister
Philip Hammond welcomed the move, as did Nikolay Mladenov, the special
representative of the United Nations secretary-general for Iraq.
Mladenov urged swift movement toward appointment of a new government.
"It is important now for
all political groups in Parliament to cooperate in forming an inclusive
government that reflects the wishes of the Iraqi people for security,
prosperity and democracy," Mladenov said.
U.S. President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden called Abadi to congratulate him.
Obama praised his Iraqi
counterpart for naming a new prime minister-designate, calling it an
important step to unite Iraq's communities and urging Abadi to create a
new Cabinet as quickly as possible.
"The only lasting solution is for Iraqis to come together and form an inclusive government," Obama told reporters.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry similarly cheered the nomination in a statement.
"The United States
applauds President Masum's fulfillment of his constitutional duties and
urges the Prime Minister-designate to form a government that is
representative of the Iraqi people and inclusive of Iraq's religious and
ethnic identities," it read.
"The United States will
continue to support Iraq's democratic process and stand with the Iraqi
people in their fight against terrorism."
Airstrikes against ISIS
The U.S. military
conducted airstrikes on four ISIS checkpoints and multiple ISIS vehicles
near Mount Sinjar to help protect the Yazidi civilians in the area,
U.S. Central Command said in a news release Monday.
U.S. airstrikes against
ISIS targets have dispersed the group's fighters and forced them to
travel more discreetly, a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak
publicly told CNN the same day.
The airstrikes --
authorized by President Obama last week to protect Iraqi minorities as
well as U.S. personnel aiding the Iraqi army -- also appear to have at
least temporarily stopped the militant advance on Irbil, the official
said.
"They had been acting
with impunity," the official said. "Now they realize they cannot travel
up and down the roads in large groups."
U.S. and Iraqi aircraft struck ISIS targets over the weekend, killing dozens of ISIS fighters, according to officials.
Also on Monday, U.S.
officials confirmed the United Stats is shipping weapons directly to
Kurdish forces fighting ISIS in northern Iraq. So far, the shipments
have come from the CIA, two U.S. officials said.
Accused ISIS sympathizer arrested
Dramatic rescue mission of Iraqi Yazidis
Heartbreaking task of rescuing refugees
Humanitarian nightmare
In their effort to
create a caliphate across parts of Iraq and Syria, ISIS fighters have
slaughtered civilians as they take over cities in both countries.
In Iraq, one of the most
dire humanitarian nightmares is unfolding on Mount Sinjar, where tens
of thousands of Yazidis have been trapped by ISIS fighters.
Dozens of people,
including 60 children, have died on the mountain, where the Yazidis are
battling extreme temperatures, hunger and thirst.
About 20,000 were reportedly able to escape overland to Syria over the weekend.
Iraqi Ministry of Human Rights spokesman Kamil Amin said Kurdish forces were able to break the siege by ISIS
and help stranded Yazidis board trucks, which drove them to the Syrian
border town of Hasaka. They were then driven north along the
Syrian-Iraqi border to Dohuk in northern Iraq's Kurdish region.
Iraqi security forces
also have been able to airlift about 100 to 150 people to safety each
day, said Marzio Babille of UNICEF, the United Nations' children's
agency.
On Monday, CNN's Ivan
Watson went to the mountain with Kurdish peshmerga fighters on an Iraqi
air force helicopter that had to pass over ISIS fighting positions, guns
blazing, to reach the Yazidis.
"They flew in shooting; they flew out shooting," he said.
They dropped off food and supplies and carried about 20 people away to safety, hauling them aboard in a chaotic scene.
"These people were weeping," Watson said. "There was not a dry eye on the aircraft."
Yazidis are part of one
the world's oldest monotheistic religious minorities and have been
targeted by ISIS. Their religion is considered a pre-Islamic sect that
draws from Christianity, Judaism and the ancient monotheistic religion
of Zoroastrianism.
"We're working with
international partners to develop options to bring them to safety,"
Obama said Monday. "Our aircraft remain positioned to strike any
terrorist forces around the mountain who threaten the safety of these
families."
On Sunday, Iraqi
Ministry of Human Rights spokesman Kamil Amin said it was possible that
as many as 500 Yazidis had been killed. The ministry had also heard
reports -- but had not confirmed -- that some had been buried alive.
"It's difficult to be
accurate about these numbers, but initially we have reported 500 Iraqi
Yazidis have died from either ISIS direct killings or from starvation
and dehydration," Amin said. "We have heard some reports from activists
and local journalists that some families were buried alive."
CNN is unable to authenticate reports about the Yazidi death toll or the allegation that some were buried alive.
On Sunday night, the
U.S. military made a fourth airdrop of food and water to Iraqis stranded
on Mount Sinjar, according to U.S. Central Command. In total, U.S.
military aircraft have delivered more than 74,000 meals and more than
15,000 gallons of fresh drinking water, Centcom said.
Britain and France have
said they will join the United States in the airdrops. A British C-130
cargo plane delivered aid to Iraq on Sunday, a Ministry of Defense
spokesman said.
Holly Yan reported and wrote from Atlanta;
Anna Coren reported from Irbil. CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq, Catherine E.
Shoichet, Ashley Fantz, Elise Labott, Chelsea J. Carter, Barbara Starr,
Hamdi Alkhshali, Ali Younes, Laura Koran and Ivan Watson also
contributed to this report.
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