Iraq’s parliament voted Thursday to approve the government of Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, passing 14 ministries out of a proposed 23, with the remaining cabinet posts to be voted on at a later date.
Notably, the list of the 14 approved ministers did not include figures affiliated with armed factions designated by the United States as terrorist organizations, including Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kataib Hezbollah, Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya, Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada and Kataib al-Imam Ali.
The Sadiqoun Movement, the political wing of Asaib Ahl al-Haq led by Qais al-Khazali, had been expected to receive two positions in the new government — a deputy prime minister post and one ministry — but that did not happen during Thursday’s session.
Parliament is scheduled to resume voting on the remaining ministries in Zaidi’s government after the Eid al-Adha holiday later this month.
In Washington, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department told Alhurra on Thursday that the United States continues to closely monitor the Iraqi “government formation process” and that “Iraq has a choice to make” regarding the participation of armed factions in the next government.
The spokesperson’s comments came in response to questions from Alhurra regarding Iran’s role in the Iraqi government formation process and Washington’s view of the growing influence of armed factions in Iraq.
The spokesperson stressed that “Iran’s terrorist militias must have no role in state institutions, and Iraqi government funds must not be used to support these terrorist militias in any way.”
The spokesperson added that the United States “will calibrate [its] approach to the new government on that basis.”
Earlier Thursday, a source within the Coordination Framework told Alhurra that “the United States had placed a veto on the participation of six armed factions with political wings in the next government.”
The source, who requested anonymity, said the U.S. veto was delivered through a message sent to a group of Coordination Framework leaders, but did not disclose the names of the factions involved.
The U.S. State Department has not yet commented on a request sent by Alhurra regarding the alleged “veto” on the participation of six factions in the upcoming government.
The results of the most recent elections, held in November, and the political alliances that followed in early 2026 revealed unprecedented political gains for these factions, in what appeared to be an effort to strengthen their political role rather than rely solely on military power.
According to a tally conducted by Alhurra, armed factions active in Iraq secured nearly a quarter of the seats in parliament, winning about 80 lawmakers out of the legislature’s total 329 seats.
All of these factions are part of the Coordination Framework, a coalition of Shiite parties loyal or close to Iran. The bloc holds around 180 seats, making it the largest coalition in parliament and constitutionally entitled to nominate the prime minister.
For several months, Washington has been exerting significant pressure on the Iraqi government and leaders of the Coordination Framework to deal firmly with the weapons held by Iran-aligned Iraqi armed factions.
The U.S. State Department previously told Alhurra that Washington is not seeking political pledges from Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi or other Iraqi leaders regarding Iran-backed armed factions, but is instead looking for “action, not words.”
The Coordination Framework announced Zaidi’s nomination for prime minister on April 27, a move welcomed by Donald Trump, who wished him success “as he works to form a new Government free from terrorism that could deliver a brighter future for Iraq.”
The article is a translation of the original Arabic.
Ghassan Taqi
A journalist specializing in Iraqi affairs, he has worked with the Middle East Broadcasting Networks (MBN) since 2015. He previously spent several years with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, as well as various Iraqi and Arab media outlets.
