BAGHDAD - Iraq's parliament demanded on Thursday that the government set a timeline for the withdrawal of foreign troops stationed in the country to help fight Islamic State, a ruling coalition lawmaker told Reuters.



"Parliament voted on a decision to thank friendly nations for their support in defeating ISIS and at the same time to demand the government set a timeline for the withdrawal of foreign troops," said Husham al-Suhail.



"It is up to the government to decide how long we need them here -- one year, two years, it's up to them," he added.



A US-led coalition was formed in 2014 to fight Islamic State in Iraq and Syria and has thousands of troops deployed in Iraq. It provided key air support to Iraqi security forces who declared victory over the militants in December. </s> Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Iraq’s parliament has urged the government to set a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops from the country, two months after the government declared victory over Islamic State militants.

The parliament voted on Thursday for a decision to oblige the government to set a schedule for the withdrawal of foreign troops, NRT reported.

Saad al-Hadithi, a spokesperson of the Iraqi Cabinet, said last month it was logical that the coalition would reduce the number of its troops in Iraq after victory was declared over Islamic State militants in December.

Also in February, Saeed al-Jayyashi, an adviser to the Iraqi government, told Shafaq News website that a security committee will observe the regulation of the activities of the U.S.-led international coalition.

The U.S.-led coalition intervened in Iraq after IS miliants declared in 2014 the establishment of a self-proclaimed “caliphate” rule in Iraq and neighboring Syria.

But a spokesman of the Pentagon was quoted saying after the Iraqi announcement that U.S. troops were only shifting mission from combat to training, without plans for a sharp drawdown of troops.

The Pentagon had said in December it was keeping nearly 5000 troops in Iraq. </s> BAGHDAD—Iraq’s parliament on Thursday called for a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops, putting pressure on the country’s leader ahead of May elections as he seeks to prevent a resurgence by Islamic State militants.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared victory over the terror group three months ago, after U.S.-backed Iraqi forces ousted Islamic State from the last territory it controlled in the country. But since then, Islamic State militants have reverted to guerrilla warfare in northern Iraq, exposing persistent... </s> BAGHDAD: Iraq’s parliament demanded on Thursday that the government set a timeline for the withdrawal of foreign troops stationed in the country to help fight Islamic State (IS) insurgents, a ruling coalition lawmaker said.

A U.S.-led coalition was formed in 2014 and with thousands of troops and air support helped Iraqi security forces and a Kurdish-led Syrian militia roll back IS across large swathes of Iraq and Syria and destroy the cross-border caliphate set up by the jihadists. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared victory over IS in December.

IS has since reverted to a guerrilla-style insurgency and continues to carry out attacks on selected targets.

The Iraqi parliament’s demand underscores the balancing act Abadi must conduct between the United States and Iran, his two biggest military allies who are themselves arch-adversaries.

“Parliament voted for a decision to thank friendly nations for their support in defeating Islamic State and at the same time to demand the government set a timeline for the withdrawal of foreign troops,” lawmaker Husham al-Suhail told Reuters.

“It is up to the government to decide how long we need them here – one year, two years, it’s up to them.”

Thursday’s vote, backed by all but a handful of the 177 lawmakers present, was sponsored by lawmakers from the ruling Shi‘ite Muslim bloc in parliament.

“The timing of the vote, right before the election, is a message from pro-Iran parties that they do not want American troops in Iraq forever,” said political analyst Ahmed Younis.

“They are achieving two things – pressure on Abadi’s government to expel foreign troops, as well as scoring political points before the election.”

Abadi is seeking a second term in parliamentary elections scheduled for May.

A spokesman for the coalition told Reuters the presence of its troops hinged on Iraqi government approval.

“Our continued presence in Iraq will be conditions-based, proportional to need, in coordination with and by the approval of the Iraqi government,” said U.S. Army Colonel Ryan Dillon.

The coalition says it has begun a transition from focusing on retaking territory to consolidating gains.

It has trained 125,000 members of the Iraqi security forces, 22,000 of which were regional Kurdish Peshmerga fighters, and helped retake almost a third of Iraq from Islamic State through air and logistical support.

The coalition has drawn criticism, however, for the number of civilian casualties resulting from air strikes. At least 841 civilians were killed this way as of January 2018. It says it goes to great lengths to avoid civilian casualties.—Reuters </s> The parliament, which is the Council of Representatives, is the main legislative body in the country. It has 329 seats, nine of which are reserved for representatives of ethnic and religious minorities, including five seats for Christians. The remaining 320 seats are distributed among 18 Iraqi provinces.

In line with the Iraqi legislation, one member of the parliament represents 100,000 people, and women should occupy 25 percent of all seats.

READ MORE: Iraqi Forces Foil Terror Attack During First Elections Since Daesh Defeat — MP

A nominee to the Council of Representatives must be an Iraqi citizen with a college education and no involvement in a crime. The law does not allow members of the Council of Representatives to simultaneously occupy another official position or engage in business activities.

​The election is held every four years. The new lawmakers are elected no later than 45 days before the previous parliament completes its duties. The vote for a lawmaker is cast by direct secret ballot on the single day of universal voting designated by order of the Presidential Council.

READ MORE: Iraqi Parliamentary Vote Guided by Issues, Not Sectarianism

The responsibility for organizing elections rests with the Supreme Independent Election Commission (SIEC) of Iraq.

The election is based on a proportionate system. Once the election threshold is met, mandates are distributed among the lists of candidates in proportion to the votes cast for them. Iraqis living abroad also have the right to vote.

In order to prevent to prevent the election tampering, automatic voter registration (AVR) was introduced.

In 2013, the authorities introduced a new method of distributing mandates – the Sainte-Lague method. It increases the chances that small parties will be elected to the parliament. According to this method, seats are distributed consecutively and are occupied by those who have a higher coefficient calculated on the basis of a formula.

READ MORE: US Is Responsible for Discord in Iraq — Iraqi Ex-Defense Minister

Within 30 days since the start of the first session, members of the Council of Representatives must choose a new president of the country among its members. In the next 15 days, the parliamentary bloc that won the elections should submit for the approval of the president a candidate for the position of the prime minister.

​The Council of Representatives approves the national budget, monitors the activities of the executive, and exercises certain other powers, for instance, approving the heads of the Federal Court of Appeal, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Department of Court Inspections, and the chief of the Army General Staff. It also ratifies international agreements. By an absolute majority vote, the Council of Representatives can pass a no-confidence motion against any government minister and relieve the president of his duties before his term expires. </s> Iraq parliament votes in favour of travel ban on US

Iraqi lawmakers voted Monday to call on the government to enact a reciprocal travel ban on Americans if Washington does not withdraw its decision to bar the entry of Iraqis.

The call is a response to President Donald Trump's executive order barring citizens of Iraq, Iran, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen from entering the US for at least 90 days, a move he billed as an effort to make America safe from "radical Islamic terrorists".

The travel restrictions, which come on the heels of repeated assertions by Trump that the US should have stolen Iraq's oil before leaving in 2011, risk alienating the citizens and government of a country fighting against militants the president has cast as a major threat to America.

US President Donald Trump has imposed restrictions on travelers from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen ©Bryan R. Smith (AFP)

Parliament called on the Iraqi government to "respond in kind to the American decision in the event that the American side does not withdraw its decision", a parliamentary official who was present for the vote told AFP, quoting text of the decision that was read at the session.

"Parliament voted by majority on calling on the Iraqi government and the foreign ministry to respond in kind," MP Hakim al-Zamili said.

Sadiq al-Laban, another lawmaker, confirmed that "the vote was for a call on the government" to enact reciprocal measures.

"We are against this stance from the new administration," Laban said, adding: "We hope that the American administration will rethink... this decision."

Trump's decision led to the detention of incoming refugees at US airports, sparking protests, legal challenges and widespread condemnation from rights groups.

And it has led to a growing backlash inside Iraq that could undermine relations between Baghdad and the US amid the battle for Mosul, the largest military operation yet in the war against the Islamic State group.

- Security ramifications -

The parliamentary vote came a day after its foreign affairs committee made a similar call for Iraq to respond in kind to the US measure.

Hassan Shwairid, the deputy head of the committee, said that the call did not apply to the thousands of American military personnel in the country as part of the US-led coalition against IS.

But US Senators John McCain and Lindsay Graham said Trump's ban would impact military cooperation and security in other ways.

"This executive order bans Iraqi pilots from coming to military bases in Arizona to fight our common enemies," the two lawmakers said in a joint statement.

"Ultimately, we fear this executive order will become a self-inflicted wound in the fight against terrorism," they said.

The Hashed al-Shaabi, a powerful paramilitary umbrella organisation that includes Iran-backed Shiite militias that fought against American forces in past years, called Sunday for US citizens to be banned from the country.

Both units from the Hashed and American troops are deployed in the Mosul area as part of the operation to retake the city from IS, and heightened anti-US sentiment among militiamen could increase the danger to Washington's forces.

Trump's travel restrictions also drew condemnation from populist Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, America's bete noir for much of its 2003-2011 war in Iraq.

"Get your nationals out before removing expatriates," said Sadr, scion of a powerful clerical family who rose to widespread fame due to his condemnation of and violent resistance to the US invasion and occupation of Iraq. </s> Iraqi lawmakers on Thursday demanded that US forces leave the country, in the wake of a surprise visit by President Donald Trump the previous day, since denounced by politicians as arrogant and a violation of the country’s sovereignty, AP said. Politicians from both blocs of Iraq’s divided parliament called for a vote to expel US troops, and promised to schedule an extraordinary session to debate the matter. “Parliament must clearly and urgently express its view about the ongoing American violations of Iraqi sovereignty,” Salam al-Shimiri, a lawmaker loyal to the populist cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, said. Trump, making his first presidential visit to troops in the troubled region, said he has no plans to withdraw the 5,200 US personnel in the country. </s> The Iraqi parliament on Thursday demanded the government to develop a schedule for the withdrawal of foreign troops from the country, a source in the parliament told Sputnik.The US-led international coalition was providing military support to Iraq, withOn Tuesday, Iraqi Prime Minister said that coalition force numbers were now "very limited" and emphasized it wasThere is no base or airport controlled by foreign forces... No aircraft lands or takes off without our authorization," he told a news conference.US forces occupied Iraq for eight years, between a 2003 invasion that overthrew Saddam Hussein and their withdrawal in December 2011. Three years later, Daesh seized a third of Iraq, sweeping aside security forces.In recent years, both Syria and Iraq have been influenced by activities of numerous terrorist groups, such as Daesh and Jabhat Fatah al-Sham (formerly known as al-Nusra Front) that have controlled vast territories of the Middle Eastern nation.Due to successful military campaigns and support of allies, troops loyal to Damascus and Baghdad have mostly driven terrorists out, but a number of sleeping cells still exist in the region and carry out deadly attacks against both military and civilian targets. </s> CAIRO (Sputnik) — The Iraqi parliament voted on Thursday to dismiss the governor of the Kirkuk province, which is in favor of holding a referendum on the independence of Iraqi Kurdistan, a source in the deputy corps told Sputnik on Thursday.

“The Iraqi parliament voted for the resignation of the governor of Kirkuk,” the source said.

Earlier this week, the Iraqi parliament voted against the Iraqi Kurdistan independence referendum.

In June, Masoud Barzani, the president of the Iraqi Kurdistan, set September 25 as the date for an independence referendum. The announced referendum has been widely criticized by a number of countries, including Russia, Iran and the United States. While Moscow voiced support for Iraq’s unity and territorial integrity, Washington reportedly asked Iraqi Kurdistan’s President Masoud Barzani to postpone holding the region’s independence referendum.

In late March, Kirkuk authorities decided to raise the flag of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), an act which was met with criticism by the federal government. In early August, Kirkuk’s governor Najmaldin Karim told Sputnik that the region “has been and will be” part of Iraqi Kurdistan. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi called the decision of the Iraqi province of Kirkuk to participate in the referendum on Iraqi Kurdistan’s independence a mistake.

In 2005, the Iraqi Constitution recognized Kurdistan as an autonomous region that was run by the Kurdistan Regional Government. Since then, Kurdistan’s authorities have repeatedly raised the issue of independence.
The Parliament of Iraq votes to oblige the federal government to set a schedule for the withdrawal of foreign troops.