Baghdad completes its cabinet with a US-sanctioned deputy premier and a Maliki in-law at interior

Iraq’s parliament on Thursday 15 October approved the remainder of al-Zaidi’s cabinet, voting through 11 portfolios including Nayef al-Shammari at defence and Yasir al-Maliki at interior, Reuters reported; The National notes that the new interior minister is the son-in-law of former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki. AP reported that the vote included a deputy prime minister under US sanctions, with no immediate official US statement on the appointment. Al Jazeera identified him as Laith al-Khazali, a senior figure in the Iran-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq and brother of its leader, Qais al-Khazali. US Representative Joe Wilson wrote on X that al-Khazali “is a designated terrorist and Iranian puppet whose militia AAH killed Americans and Iraqis” and “is no better than ISIS, maybe even worse”, adding that the appointment was “outrageous but sadly not shocking”. Al-Zaidi said the government was “embarking on a phase of accelerated, diligent work”. One number is unreconciled: Al Jazeera reports three deputy prime ministers approved; The New Arab, reporting the pre-vote deal on 13 October, said the parties had agreed on nine ministers and four deputies.

The completed government inherits a revenue problem. On 7 October the Central Bank of Iraq set a new rate of 1,520 dinars to the dollar, replacing the roughly 1,320 fixed in 2023 — a devaluation of about 13 per cent that raises the dinar value of dollar oil receipts, Al-Monitor reported, with the bank saying reserves remained sufficient for external trade and travellers' cash. AGBI reported on 12 October that Iraq earned between $4.5 billion and $5 billion from oil exports the previous month and is trying to cut the discounts it offers buyers to offset shipping costs through Hormuz. Oil ministry spokesman Salim al-Rikabi said fees and insurance had risen “by nearly 10 times” and that Iraq had moved around two million barrels in the past week on vessels of the state-owned Iraqi Oil Tankers Company: “We are working to transport more.” The National reported on 4 October that the company had shipped crude beyond Hormuz for the first time in decades. Separately, the electricity ministry told AGBI it plans to raise Turkish imports from 600MW to 2,000MW after a 100MW Jordanian supply deal expired.

Assessment: Completing a cabinet after five months is an arithmetic achievement, not a governing one: it tells you which blocs were paid, not what the government will do. The al-Khazali appointment is the file to watch, because it tests whether US leverage survives the troop withdrawal. Washington’s silence on 15 October — AP notes no official statement — is more informative than Representative Wilson’s noise. Distrust the headline numbers in both directions: the deputy-premier count is three or four depending on the outlet, and the devaluation flatters oil revenue in dinars without adding a barrel. Also note what this desk could not reach today: October salary transfers to the Kurdistan Region, and the water file.