The protesters outside parliament back al-Abadi’s planned Cabinet reshuffle, which would install independent technocrats in key ministries in a bid to root out patronage and corruption that have hindered the provision of public services since the 2003 US -led invasion.
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Powerful parties in parliament have so far refused to approve the reshuffle. Around 100 deputies who have been holding a sit-in in and around the main chamber for almost two weeks and want to oust Jabouri were trying to block the meeting.
Tens of thousands of protesters have taken over central Baghdad to demand a new parliamentary vote, as divisions in government hurt economic growth.
The protest came on the same day that parliament speaker Salim al-Juburi was seeking to hold a session to vote on a new cabinet. Deputies close to Sadr’s bloc and Kurdish allies said they will attend the session despite the boycott by other political parties.
Abadi then entered the chamber where Jabouri called for dialogue with the members who were protesting, a state television correspondent said.
The protesting lawmakers, many of whom are allied with former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, have demanded the ouster of his successor, Haider al-Abadi, as well as Parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri and President Fuad Masum.
Demonstrations in recent weeks have forced some military forces to leave the front lines to secure the capital, according to security sources.
Yet it was not clear whether Abadi, who has presented two new lineups in the past month, would offer a third list on Tuesday or revive some of the previous names.
The April 26 demonstration at the gates of the heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses parliament and foreign embassies, is part of the pressure Sadr has been putting on Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi to complete the months-old reform proposals.
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Reports said Jabouri extended the vote to Wednesday as many on Abadi’s third list have failed to be elected by the lawmakers.
