IRAQI GOVERNING COUNCIL DISBANDS

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Iraq Council Disbands; CPA Still in Power



By HAMZA HENDAWI, Associated Press Writer

BAGHDAD, Iraq - The U.S. and Saudi-educated head of Iraq's Governing Council was named president of the interim Iraqi government Tuesday, after the Americans' preferred candidate turned down the post.


The selection of Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer to the largely ceremonial position broke a deadlock over the makeup of a new Iraqi government set to assume power June 30. Iraqi leaders said the Americans were trying to force them to accept the U.S.-backed candidate. The Governing Council then decided to dissolve immediately rather than remain in office until the transfer of sovereignty to the new government, said council member Younadam Kana.

Later, new Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi said that Iraq needs help from U.S. and other multinational forces to help defeat "the enemies of Iraq." The statement was seen as a prelude to the new government negotiating an agreement that would allow troops of the U.S.-led coalition to continue operating in the country.

During a ceremony presenting his 30-member Cabinet, Allawi said Iraqis "like other peoples of the world" do not enjoy living under foreign military occupation.

Nevertheless, he said: "We will need the participation of the multinational forces to help in defeating the enemies of Iraq. We will enter into alliances with our allies to accomplish that."

A senior Bush administration official said the council dissolved to allow the new government to begin taking over responsibilities immediately. Still, the U.S.-led occupation authority will continue to run Iraq until June 30, the official said on condition of anonymity.

"We Iraqis look forward to being granted full sovereignty through a Security Council resolution to enable us to rebuild a free, independent, democratic and federal unified homeland," al-Yawer told a press conference.

In those talks, the Iraqis are seeking greater say over the operations of Iraqi security forces as well as the 135,000 American troops and other coalition forces on Iraqi soil.

The new Minister of Industry Hajim al-Hassani told Al-Jazeera that as of Wednesday there would be "no more American coordinators to impose their will on Iraqi ministries."

"The ministries can make use of their available expertise but the final decision will be an Iraqi one," he said.

Al-Yawer, a Sunni Muslim who has sharply criticised U.S. policy in Iraq, will hold the largely symbolic post of president, while the more powerful position of prime minister goes to Allawi, a U.S.-backed Shiite Muslim with military and CIA connections.

Allawi, whose appointment was announced Friday, was chosen because he was considered the best candidate to cope with the deteriorating security situation.

As word of the appointment was announced, a car bomb blew up outside the offices of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, which is located just outside the green zone U.S. coalition headquarters in central Baghdad.

The Arab language television stations Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya quoted police as saying about 10 people were killed, but the information could not immediately be confirmed. Another blast, followed by gunfire, sent a mushroom cloud billowing into the air. Coalition aircraft could be heard flying over Baghdad.

The PUK is seen as being close to the Americans, and fighters from the party backed American forces in last year's invasion. Under the leadership of Jalal Talabani, the party represented one of the main anti-Saddam forces on Iraqi soil after the Gulf War (news - web sites).

It was not immediately clear if the blast was tied to Tuesday's government announcement.

A roadside bomb also exploded near a U.S. military base in the northern town of Beiji, killing 11 Iraqis — including seven members of the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps — and wounding more than 22 people, including two U.S. soldiers.



Council members had angrily accused the American governor of Iraq, L. Paul Bremer, of trying to install Adnan Pachachi, a former foreign minister, over their opposition.

Sources had said earlier that the Americans warned that if the members went ahead and voted for al-Yawer, the United States might not recognize the choice.

Al-Yawer, who routinely wears traditional Arab robes and head gear, was sharply critical of the American occupation in a recent television interview, blaming U.S. ineptness for the deterioration in law and order. Al-Yawer also has denounced violence against American and other coalition forces.

U.N. envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, who announced al-Yawer's appointment, had hoped to complete the selection of the 26-member Cabinet by Monday, but the dispute over the presidency delayed the decision for a day.

Brahimi said the two vice presidencies went to Ibrahim al-Jaafari, of the Shiite Muslim Dawa party, and Rowsch Shaways, speaker of parliament in the Kurdish autonomous region in Irbil.

Most of the 22-member Governing Council backed al-Yawer, the current Governing Council president. A graduate of the Petroleum and Minerals University in Saudi Arabia and of Georgetown University, he is a prominent member of the Shammar tribe, one of the largest in the Gulf region that includes Shiite clans. He enjoys the support of Shiite and Kurdish council members.

Brahimi, flanked by Allawi and al-Yawer, congratulated the two and said, "The people of Iraq will be praying all over the country for the success of their mission, which aims at starting the rebuilding of the new Iraq."

Coalition spokesman Dan Senor insisted the Americans have not shown a preference for Pachachi, a claim that many council members dismissed as untrue.

"We lobbied for neither one," the senior administration official said. U.S. officials in Baghdad "went back to Washington for guidance" and were told that either would be "an excellent president for Iraq."

If the Americans had insisted on Pachachi, they would have risked a major breach with their Iraqi allies at a sensitive period as Washington prepares to hand control of a still-unstable, war-ravaged country to an untested leadership.

Adnan Pachachi, 81, told reporters he turned down the presidency for "personal reasons" and denied that he was the coalition's choice.

He said the president "must have the support of all levels of the Iraqi people and all quarters."

In the newly announced Cabinet, Kurd Hoshyar Zebari retained his post as foreign minister, and Kurdish official Barham Saleh, who is close to the Americans, was named deputy prime minister for national security affairs.

Adil Abdel-Mahdi, an official of a powerful Shiite political party, was named finance minister; Hazem Shalan al-Khuzaei became defense minister; and Thamir Ghadbhan took over as oil minister.

In Mosul, al-Yawer's hometown, crowds swept into the streets to celebrate the news, cheering and firing weapons in the air.

Al-Yawer's appointment comes at a delicate time for President Bush. Facing election in November, he must ensure that Iraqi politicians who take power next month are supportive of American goals in Iraq.

With more than 800 U.S. military dead since the Iraq war began in March 2003, Washington is eager to see a government that can tackle the security crisis, including a year-old Sunni revolt in Baghdad and areas north and west of the capital and a Shiite uprising to the south.