Cabinet list finally submitted for approval

Lawmaker killed; deadline passes for Romanian hostages

? Iraq’s new prime minister said Wednesday he submitted a complete list of 36 Cabinet members, including seven women, a critical step before the National Assembly votes on a new government drawing in the main ethnic and religious groups and ending a three-month stalemate.

The announcement came hours after gunmen killed a Shiite Muslim lawmaker in her home — the first elected official slain since the country’s landmark vote for parliament on Jan. 30. And a deadline set by Iraqi militants threatening to kill three kidnapped Romanian journalists and their Iraqi-American translator lapsed with no word on their fate.

Lamia Abed Khadouri al-Sakri, who was elected to the National Assembly on outgoing Prime Minister Ayad Allawi’s ticket, was shot and killed by militants in her house in Baghdad’s Hay Aour neighborhood, police Capt. Ali al-Obeidi said. Just last week, Allawi himself survived an attack on his convoy in Baghdad.

The kidnapping and killing underscored fears the prolonged delay in naming a government had emboldened insurgents, who have staged a series of dramatic and well-coordinated attacks in recent weeks.

Prime Minister-designate Ibrahim al-Jaafari — who could have forfeited his post had he not formed a government by May 7 — struggled to reconcile the competing demands of Iraq’s myriad factions.

“The Iraqis will find that this government has religious, ethnic, political and geographic variety, in addition to the participation of women,” al-Jaafari told reporters on the steps of his office. “Now that the process has started, we will spare no effort to bring back a smile to children’s faces.”

He gave the list to President Jalal Talabani and his two vice presidents for approval before presenting it to the National Assembly today.

Talabani already indicated he would not exercise his veto, and al-Jaafari was confident the list would clear the presidential council and parliament. A formal handover between Allawi and his successor will take place in the coming days, al-Jaafari said.

Shiite lawmakers said Allawi’s Iraqi List party, which has 40 seats in the National Assembly, was not included in the new Cabinet. They said they had given up trying to balance Allawi’s demands with those of Sunni factions that could offer help in beginning talks with Sunni militants, who are believed to be the backbone of the insurgency.

Many Shiites have long resented the secular Allawi, accusing his outgoing administration of including former Baathists in the government and security forces.

Shiites make up 60 percent of Iraq’s 26 million people. The Kurds make up 20 percent, and the Sunni Arabs, who largely stayed away from the elections either in boycott or for fear of attacks, are roughly 15 percent to 20 percent.