Baghdad

The Iraqi Supreme Court on Tuesday (Nov 14) terminated the tenure of parliament speaker Mohammed Halbousi, the news agency Reuters reported citing state media. In a video shared by his office, Halbousi said the court's decision was strange and implied that it violated the constitution and undermined national stability. "We are surprised by the issuance of such decisions, we are surprised by their lack of respect for the constitution," he said.

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The Supreme Court's decision was related to the court case brought against the parliament speaker earlier this year. The ruling is final and not subject to appeal. Halbousi's ouster comes just over a month before Iraq holds elections for provincial councils that last happened a decade back. 

Halbousi, 42, was first elected as speaker in 2018 and then re-elected four years later. An engineer by profession, he worked as a US contractor after the US invaded Iraq in 2003. Reuters reported that Halbousi cultivated good relations with Shi'ites and Kurds who helped his rise to power.

Speaking to Reuters, independent lawmaker Amer al-Fayiz said that lawmakers gathered for a regular parliamentary session Halbousi was in the chamber at the time that the decision (to end his tenure) was issued. 

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On hearing of the decision, Halbousi exited the chamber, Fayiz said.

Deputy speaker Mohsen al-Mandalawi, a Shi'ite, takes over as interim speaker until a new speaker is elected.

(With inputs from agencies)