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Haider al-Abadi's first challenge: forming a government

Nouri al-Maliki announced that he was backing down from his demand for a third term, thus recognizing the appointment of Haider al-Abadi, who will be facing major challenges as Iraq's new prime minister.
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On the night of Aug. 14, former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced that he was backing down from his demand for a third term and that he recognized the political settlement that led to Haider al-Abadi being charged with the formation of a government. With this announcement, Abadi was faced with a number of steps to arrange his government's papers, including the leadership of delicate balances, whether within his Islamic Dawa Party — at the level of the National Alliance that comprises a group of Shiite forces — or at the level of the Iraqi political blocs.

Maliki announced late Thursday night that he was dropping the lawsuit he had filed a few days earlier against President Fouad Massoum, on charges of violating the constitution for assigning Abadi to form a government.

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