BAGHDAD

Iraqi President Barham Salih on Thursday named intelligence chief Mustafa al-Kadhimi to form a new government, local media reported.

The move came after Adnan Al-Zurfi had withdrawn from forming a cabinet on Thursday, Iraqi News agency reported.

Al-Kadhimi, who has been serving as director of the Iraqi National Intelligence Service since 2016, has been mandated to form the government within 30 days as per the constitution. 

The Sairoon coalition, led by religious leader Muqtada al-Sadr and Shia groups in Iraq, had agreed to nominate the intelligence chief instead of al-Zurfi. Sunni and Kurdish groups also announced their support for Kadhimi.

Iraq has been roiled by mass protests since early October over poor living conditions and corruption, forcing Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi to resign.

More than 600 people have been killed and 17,000 injured in the protests so far, according to the Iraqi rights commission.

*Writing by Zehra Nur Duz