BAGHDAD – Iraq’s Sunni-backed Iraqiya political bloc said yesterday it would end a boycott of parliament, easing the worst political crisis in Shia prime minister Nuri al-Maliki’s power-sharing government in a year.The decision by Iraqiya clears the way for talks among fractious Shia, Kurdish and Sunni blocs, but deep disputes over power-sharing remain unresolved, keeping alive the risk that Iraq could fall back into sectarian violence.
The crisis erupted days after the last US troops left in December, when Mr Maliki’s government sought the arrest of Sunni vice-president Tareq al-Hashemi and moved to sideline one of his Sunni deputies who branded him a dictator. The political blocs are planning a conference to try to ease the turmoil.
Iraqiya’s return could shore up Mr Maliki, but the Sunni-backed bloc is divided over the power-sharing arrangement. – (Reuters)
