In an article on the assassination of Baghdad Governor Ali Radi al-Haydari this morning in Baghdad, RFE is reporting:
Kurdistan Satellite television reported on 3 January that the Kurdish and Iraqi parliaments will call on the Council of Ministers and the president to postpone the elections due to the unfavorable conditions in the country. That request is due to be made at the interim National Assembly’s next meeting in Baghdad, the station reported. Meanwhile, interim Defense Minister Hazim al-Sha’lan proposed in Cairo on 3 January that national elections be postponed by a few weeks in order to allow Sunnis to organize should they agree to participate in elections. It is unclear whether al-Sha’lan’s proposal was an official proposal floated by the interim government or a personal one. For now, there is no official word on whether a delay will take place.
Further, a call from Allawi to his masters in Washington is being interpreted as a possible sign that he is preparing the ground to make the case for delay.