IRAQ - The Challenges Of Terrorism - Part 5E - Towards A New Iraqi Government.

Elections to Iraq's first four-year House of Representatives were held on Dec. 15 in a largely orderly situation and the day was remarkably calm as it was safe for the people to cast their votes, even in the war-torn western province of Anbar. Now the focus is on forming a new national government, with negotiations proceeding at a slow pace in view of a crisis between Shi'ite and Sunni Arabs over the outcome of the elections.

After the final results of the polls have been announced, the new 275-seat House will elect a three-member presidential council which in turn will select a prime minister. The latter will form a council of ministers which will succeed an Iraqi cabinet that has presided over a difficult transitional phase since it took over in late April 2005.

It took a long time for the transitional government to be formed after the previous assembly was elected on Jan. 30. But, despite the difficulties and violence which that government faced, the balance of power in Iraq has finally begun to tilt in favour of the US-led struggle against terrorism. Yet the challenges of terrorism remain there and, as the top US commander has indicated, it is the Iraqi insurgency which will decide the size of the American military presence in this country.

Although the balance of power is tilting against the Neo-Salafi groups, as there is a clear and firm Iraqi majority opposed to these Sunni Arab jihadis (holy warriors) who keep killing people indiscriminately, the balance of power between pan-Arab nationalists and Iraqi nationalists remains vague. This is despite the fact that the trend of pluralism in the Arab world is on the rise at the expense of both pan-Islamism and pan-Arabism (see news1-ArabDemocracyJan2-06).