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BAGHDAD — Iraqi political leaders took a step closer Friday to unsnarling the nation’s seven-month political gridlock, according to a key Kurdish negotiator who cited a tentative deal that would keep Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in power.
The possible agreement with Kurdish parties would give al-Maliki’s Shiite-led coalition enough parliament seats to begin the potentially thorny process of picking a Cabinet.
In exchange for their support, the Kurdish envoy said al-Maliki has promised to push ahead on an issue that is the Kurds’ top priority — laying the groundwork for helping Kurdish people legally reclaim lands they were pushed out of under Saddam Hussein’s Arabization campaign.
