Member of Iraq Governing Council killed as announcement on new president delayed

Published May 31st, 2004 - 02:00 GMT
Al Bawaba
Al Bawaba

A member of the Iraqi Governing Council and Secretary General of the Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP) was killed on Monday in an attack in Baghdad.  

 

Al-Arabiya TV reported that the Sunni politician Mohsen Abdel Hamid had been killed.  

 

Mohsen Abdel Hamid's party played a key role in negotiating an end to the recent violence in Fallujah, acting as a broker between US forces and the residents of the city.  

 

Meanwhile, a Governing Council meeting to select a new Iraqi president has been postponed for a day, three officials said Monday.  

 

Three officials, including council member Mahmoud Othman, reported the postponement without providing further details. The parties had set the end of May as a deadline to declare the government.  

 

The delay in choosing a president suggests differences between the Iraqi council and the U.S.-run occupation over who should get the job persist.  

 

According to The AP, a majority of the Iraqi council reportedly favors the current head, civil engineer Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer, while the Americans back an 81-year-old former foreign minister, Adnan Pachachi. (Albawaba.com)

© 2004 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)

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