Adil Abdul-Mahdi

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Adil (Adel) Abdul-Mahdi عادل عبدالمهدي

1st Vice President of Iraq
Incumbent
Assumed office April, 2005
Preceded by	Ibrahim Jaafari and Rowsch Shaways (interim)
Succeeded by	incumbent
President	Jalal Talabani

Born	1942 Baghdad, Iraq
Political party	Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI)

Adil (Adel) Abdul-Mahdi (al Muntafiki) (Arabic: عادل عبد المهدى ) (born 1942 in Baghdad, Iraq) is an Iraqi Shi'a politician, economist, and is one of the two current Vice Presidents of Iraq. He was formerly the Finance Minister in the Interim government.

Abdel-Mahdi is a leader of the powerful Shi'a party the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, or SCIRI. Long based in neighboring Iran, the group opposed a United States administration but holds close ties with the other U.S.-backed groups that opposed Saddam Hussein, including the Kurds and the Iraqi National Congress.

[edit] Background

He is a trained economist who left Iraq in 1969 for exile in France. He worked for French think tanks and edited magazines in French and Arabic. Adel Abdul Mahdi is also referred to as Adel Abd al'Mahdi, as well as other various derivations (this highlights the continual difficulties of transliteration from Arabic into English). Abdul-Mahdi was educated in France, and is the son of a respected Shiite cleric who was a minister in Iraq's monarchy. Graduated high school from "Baghdad Collage" an American Jesuit Catholic high school.

[edit] Iraqi Politics

In 2006, Abdul-Mahdi, outgoing Vice President in the transitional government, unsuccessfully ran for the United Iraqi Alliance's nomination for Prime Minister against incumbent Ibrahim al-Jaafari. He lost by one vote. He was reportedly considered to be a possibility for Prime Minister once again until Jawad al-Maliki became the UIA nominee. Subsequently, Abdul-Mahdi was re-elected as Vice President of Iraq. He exerted his limited authority in that role by delaying the first meeting of the National Assembly in March. (see Government of Iraq, 2006-2010#First Assembly Meeting)

In December 2006, the Associated Press reported that Abdul-Mahdi could be the next Prime Minister of Iraq if a new coalition succeeds in toppling the government of Nouri al-Maliki. [1]

[edit] External links

Preceded by Coalition Provisional Authority	Finance Minister of Iraq June 30, 2004-2005	Succeeded by Ali Allawi
Preceded by Ibrahim Jaafari and Rowsch Shaways (interim)	Vice President of Iraq April, 2005-present	Succeeded by incumbent