Arthur Chrenkoff can go ahead and put this one under good news from Iraq.

Almost three months after the elections in January, Iraq’s National Assembly voted overwhelmingly Thursday to approve a Shiite-led cabinet, establishing the first elected government in Iraqi history.

The assembly chamber burst into wild applause after a show of hands revealed that 180 of 185 legislators in attendance had voted in favor, with almost a third absent.

A traditional Islamic chant of praise – “God’s blessings be on Muhammad and on his family” – went up soon afterward.

But the divisions that had delayed the government’s formation for so long became apparent almost immediately. Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the Shiite political alliance that dominates the assembly and the cabinet, gave a warlike speech hinting at purges to come in the government security forces.

A Sunni Arab assembly member later stood up to angrily accuse the Shiites of dividing the country and said one member had threatened to gather evidence that would send him to the gallows.

“This is not a national government, it is a government of the winners,” said the Sunni member, Meshaan al-Juburi. “I am here to say that the Sunni Arab members have been marginalized, and the Sunni Arab political forces should be aware of that.”

Tensions were visible even in the list of cabinet members, which remains incomplete. Four important positions – the ministries of Defense, Oil, Electricity, and Human Rights – were given to place holders, because the assembly’s political factions have not yet agreed on candidates.

Under pressure from Washington as well as fellow Iraqis, the members agreed to submit the incomplete list rather than delay it further. Two deputy prime minister posts have also not been filled. Ibrahim al-Jaafari, the new Shiite prime minister, said he expected to fill those positions in less than a week.

Despite the gaps, the assembly vote placed Jaafari at the head of a multi-ethnic cabinet that will include 17 Shiites, 8 Kurds, 6 Sunni Arabs, 1 Christian and at least 6 women.

Iraq’s Kurdish president, Jalal Talabani, and his two deputies approved the cabinet list late Wednesday night, allowing it to proceed to the assembly vote.

When it assumes power early next week, the new government will face an extraordinary array of challenges, from guiding the effort to write a new constitution to rebuilding Iraq’s shattered cities to fighting an undiminished insurgency.

Jaafari and his aides will also need to assert firm control over the provincial governments, which began to drift into chaos in recent weeks as Iraq’s post-election political stalemate continued. Last weekend, Bush administration officials warned Shiite and Kurdish leaders that the political vacuum appeared to be fueling the insurgency.

Mohammed from Iraq The Model has a lengthy post reflecting his take on the events of the day. Ali is also hosting a question and answer session from readers with regards to how daily life has progressed in Iraq.

I think that the above article is correct in saying that the vacuum caused by the month of trying to form a government has lead directly to a partial security fallout in some areas. The Iraqi blogs also give this impression, and Hammorabi blogs on it quite a bit. On the other hand, a new government has just been formed and the vacuum can be closed up, the difference now being that it will be necessarily done by Iraqis over American troops. The “insurgents” should be scared, because when the legitimately elected government cracks down on criminal terrorists, I can imagine they will not only be less politically correct than we are, but the everyday Iraqi will approve of the actions taken.