Vote on Iraq cabinet draws closer

The parliament's first meeting on 16 March was largely symbolic

Iraq's new parliament will convene for its first working session on Saturday to try to form a new government, Kurdish and Shia Muslim sources say.

MPs are expected to finalise cabinet posts, most of which will be held by the Kurdish bloc and the main Shia party, the United Iraqi Alliance.

The two groups, which between them control over two-thirds of seats, have been locked in talks for several weeks.

Iraq voted on 30 January in the first elections since the fall of Saddam.

News of the parliamentary session came a day after the Shia spiritual leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, called for a quick agreement on the formation of the government.

A leading Shia politician, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, said the cleric felt "discontent" over the delay.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has signed the order for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq.

Ukrainian forces began to leave last week and are expected to complete their withdrawal by the end of the year.

In the latest violence:

• A US patrol is targeted in the northern city of Mosul in an attack which leaves four civilians dead. Seventeen militants were reported killed in a gun battle in the city late on Monday

• A US marine is killed in the troubled western province of al-Anbar

• An Interior Ministry worker is shot dead as he drives to work in the Doura district of Baghdad.

Cabinet posts

The parliament will meet after Shia and Kurdish groups sign a declaration on the status of the northern oil city of Kirkuk and the role of Islam, politicians told Reuters news agency.

But some cabinet posts are still to be decided, particularly that of defence, said senior UIA politician Ali al-Dabagh.

Shia are expected to take just over half the cabinet posts, with Kurds around a quarter and the rest being divided among Sunni Arabs - many of whom boycotted the elections - Turkmen and Christians.

But the allocation of posts could change if outgoing Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's group also decides to join the government.

Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani is expected to be appointed president and senior Shia politician Ibrahim Jaafari will be prime minister.