Iraq appoints leader from Iran-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq as deputy PM

Iraq’s parliament has approved Laith al-Khazali, a senior figure from the Iran-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq movement, as a deputy prime minister. The United States designated the group a "foreign terrorist organisation" in 2020. Khazali is the brother of the movement’s leader, Qais al-Khazali. Washington designated both brothers as "specially designated global terrorists", citing attacks including a 2007 assault that killed five US soldiers. The US Treasury also sanctioned them in 2019 over the killing of protesters in Iraq.