Iraq’s cabinet has approved Prime Minister Haider al-Abbadi’s proposal to overhaul the government bureaucracy, scrapping three vice presidential posts and the offices of three deputy prime ministers. The cabinet backed the proposed reforms on Sunday, which still needs parliamentary approval. The six posts under threat represented various political and sectarian blocs in the government. The plan also effectively would push out of government former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, widely criticised for inflaming sectarian tensions and appointing loyal, less-qualified senior officers to Iraq’s military ahead of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group’s advance last year. However, al-Maliki issued a short statement backing the proposed plan. The proposal followed weeks of demonstrations, and a call for tougher reform measures from top Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who is revered by millions of Iraqis. Political shockwaves On Sunday evening, Kurdistan’s regional government welcomed the decision and vowed […]