Iraq’s Maliki meets with rival Allawi

As the Iraqi parliament gets ready to hold its first session in three months, the country’s Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki meets with the head of the al-Iraqiya party to discuss forming a new government.

Iraqi Premier Maliki and former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi met for the first time on Sunday after the country’s March 7 general elections, The Associated Press reported.

Aides described the meeting as more of an icebreaker than a start for serious negotiations.

A coalition government is due to be formed in war-ravaged Iraq as no bloc won a majority in the country’s 325-seat parliament.

The al-Iraqiya alliance led by former Premier Allawi narrowly won the elections by taking 91 seats — only 2 seats more than Prime Minister al-Maliki’s State of Law coalition.

The first session of the parliament is scheduled to be held on Monday one week after Iraq’s Supreme Court approved the results of the elections.

By confirming the narrow victory of the al-Iraqiya bloc, the Supreme Court is believed to have made an important step toward the establishment of a new government in the country.