Tribal magnate named Iraq's first post-Saddam president

0 Comments | AFP, June, 2004

BAGHDAD (AFP) — Ghazi al-Yawar will seek to build on his legitimacy as a tribal leader to erase the bitter feud which led to his appointment as Iraq's first president since dictator Saddam Hussein was ousted.

In a dramatic denouement to days of acrimonious wrangling over the line-up of the government which will be tasked with leading the troubled country to free elections next year, Yawar won the post after his rival Adnan Pachachi refused it.

The US-led coalition and members the interim Governing Council which it installed had been lcoked in a bitter feud over the appointments, with each side accusing the other of seeking to promote its own interests.

The post of president for the transitonal period starting June 30 is largely ceremonial, stripped of its...