The Federal Supreme Court of Iraq has rejected a parliamentary faction's request to cancel the selection of the parliament speaker.

The parliament had elected Muhammad al-Halbousi for a second term on Jan. 9. Tensions were running high during the session when former speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, who is affiliated with the Azm Alliance, argued with the Sadrist movement’s deputies, prompting him to adjourn the session.

Khaled al-Dajari took over, and the session ended in the elections of al-Halbousi as speaker of parliament, Hakim al-Zamili (Sader Movement) as first deputy, and Abdallah Shukhan (Kurdistan Democratic Party) as second vice president.

This prompted the Coordination Framework blocs (the State of Law Coalition led by former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, the Fatah coalition led by Hadi al-Amiri, as well as some other Shiite blocs) to object to the session as “unconstitutional.”  A lawsuit was filed by MPs Bassem Khashan and Mahmoud Daoud Yassin. On Jan. 13, the Federal Supreme Court temporarily suspended the work of the Presidency of Parliament.