Iraq’s parliament approved Laith al-Khazali, a senior leader of the Iran-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq group and brother of its leader Qais al-Khazali, as one of three deputy prime ministers, completing the formation of Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s government with Thursday’s vote on previously vacant cabinet posts.

The US designated Asaib Ahl al-Haq as a foreign terrorist organisation in 2020 and named both brothers as “specially designated global terrorists”, citing attacks including a 2007 assault that killed five US soldiers. Laith al-Khazali was arrested by US forces in 2007 over allegations related to an attack targeting American forces in Karbala in January of that year.