ERBIL, Iraq — A report released mid-August by the Iraqi parliament on the 2014 fall of Mosul, the country's second-largest city, to the Islamic State (IS) is being viewed as a litmus test for the new direction Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi wants to take the country through a set of bold but decisive political, economic and administrative reforms. Iraqi lawmakers ratified the report Aug. 17 without reading it on the floor and referred it to the judiciary for action. That the investigative committee put former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki at the top of a list of more than 30 senior state officials responsible for Mosul's fall is likely to deepen tensions in the Iraqi political landscape, as Maliki is currently locked in a power struggle with Abadi.

The report's release coincided with efforts by Abadi to enact a broad range of reforms, approved Aug. 11 by the legislature, to overhaul the country's dysfunctional system of governance. Capitalizing on widespread and popular calls for change and support from senior Shiite religious figures, including Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Abadi proposed the abolition of deputy prime minister positions, of which there are three, as well as the three vice presidencies. Given the issue of balancing sectarian and ethnic representation in Iraq's higher institutions, Abadi's measures could antagonize many powerful figures, not the least Maliki.

In a country crippled by conflict, corruption and personal rivalries at the highest levels, if Abadi is serious about introducing a new approach to governance, the Mosul report could be used to his advantage to implement the desired reforms. “There could be a major credibility hit to Abadi if he fails to follow through on the report with prosecution or punishment,” Ahmed Ali, an Iraq expert with the Institute of Regional and International Studies at the American University of Iraq-Sulaimani, told Al-Monitor.

Abadi succeeded Maliki as prime minister after the mood turned against him in the wake of IS' dramatic seizure of almost one-third of the country in June 2014. Both politicians are members of the Shiite Dawa Party, of which Maliki remains the leader. “[The report] showcases [Maliki's] inability to manage the security portfolio as commander-in-chief. These conclusions should weaken Maliki's chances of returning to the premiership if he still harbors that ambition,” Ali observed.