Ending weeks of deadlock, the Iraqi National Assembly this week named its top government officials. The leadership positions have been carefully portioned out so that each major ethnic group is represented. The most powerful post, prime minister, is going to Shiite politician Ibrahim Jafari, who is expected to name his Cabinet soon. The new president is Jalal Talabani, a Kurdish party leader who was a fierce opponent of Saddam Hussein. His vice presidents are Ghazi Yawar, a Sunni tribal leader who was president of the outgoing interim government, and Adel Abdul Mahdi, a Shiite who was finance minister in that government. The speaker of the National Assembly is Hachim Hassani, a Sunni who was industry minister in the outgoing government.
While the assembly was debating the appointments over the past two weeks, insurgent attacks increased. A large, coordinated assault on the notorious Abu Ghraib prison left 40 U.S. soldiers wounded, and marked the first time insurgents have engaged in open, head-on combat with coalition forces. Targeted assassinations picked up as well; a dozen prominent Iraqis, including local council members, were killed. Kidnappings, mostly for ransom, also continued. Iraq's top police official was nabbed off the street this week.
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