Iraq's prime minister plans to reshuffle his cabinet just 100 days after it was formed because of frustrations with some ministers' performance and disloyalty among others, Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih told Reuters.
Some changes will involve the movement of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, several political sources said on Sunday. A key player in the government formed in May after months of wrangling, Sadr denies his Mehdi Army militia runs some of the sectarian death squads behind much recent violence.
"Some people have a foot in the government and a foot outside," Salih said. "They have to make a choice. Either they are part of the government and abide by the policies of the government or be outside the government.
A senior official in Maliki's United Alliance, the Shi'ite Islamist bloc that dominates parliament, said he expected some changes to be announced before parliament reconvenes in a week after its summer recess. One minister from the Sadr movement, the transport minister, has already resigned, officials said.
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