MPs ordered back to work by Iraq's Supreme Court
National News
Iraq's highest court has ordered the country's parliament back to work, in a ruling that could help break a seven-month deadlock in negotiations to form a new government.
The chief judge of the Federal Supreme Court, Midhat Mahmoud, said the court had ruled unconstitutional the parliament's failure to meet since June or to fulfil its duty to elect a speaker and a president.
The 325-member parliament elected in March has met only once, on June 14, for 18 minutes.
Advertisement: Story continues below The court's ruling has the potential to deepen the political crisis if the Iraqiya bloc, which won the most seats in the election, refuses to attend sessions.
''All members of parliament should abide by this decision,'' said Abdul Sattar al-Beeraqdar, a spokesman for the country's judiciary. ''It will be a constitutional breach if they don't.''
The ruling is in response to a case filed by a consortium of groups, backed by the Communist Party, against the acting speaker, Fouad Massoum.
Mr Massoum, a Kurd, said he would not disobey the order and expected to summon MPs to meet again within two weeks.
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USCIS Issues Clarifying Guidance on NAFTA TN Status Eligibility for Economists
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it is clarifying policy guidance (PDF, 71 KB) on the specific work activities its officers should consider when determining whether an individual qualifies for TN nonimmigrant status as an economist.
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) TN nonimmigrant status allows qualified Canadian and Mexican citizens to temporarily enter the U.S. to engage in specific professional activities, including the occupation of economist. The agreement, however, does not define the term economist, resulting in inconsistent decisions on whether certain analysts and financial professionals qualify for TN status as economists.
TN nonimmigrant status is intended to allow a limited number of professionals and specialists to work temporarily in certain specifically identified occupations in the United States. This updated guidance provides USCIS officers with a specific definition of one such category – economists – allowing them to adjudicate applications in a way that complies with the intent of the agreement. This policy update clarifies that professional economists requesting TN status must engage primarily in activities consistent with the profession of an economist. Individuals who work primarily in other occupations related to the field of economics — such as financial analysts, marketing analysts, and market research analysts — are not eligible for classification as a TN economist.