Referencing his constitutional duty to protect the “independence, sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity” of the country, Salih said that it was the responsibility of the president to nominate the candidate of the largest parliamentary bloc under Article 76, but could not outright reject nominations under that provision.

Saying that he was unwilling to nominate Basra Governor Asaad al-Eidani, he expressed his “readiness to resign” to the Council of Representatives. The bloc, which is dominated by the Fatah Alliance and State of Law, nominated Eidani as its candidate for prime minister on Wednesday.

Earlier this week, the Federal Supreme Court ruled that the largest bloc was essentially the grand coalition of the parties that enabled consensus nominee Adil Abdul Madhi to become prime minister over a year ago. If that was no longer viable, then the largest party in parliament would be considered to be the largest bloc.

Currently, the Sairoon Alliance, which is part of the Sadrist Movement, is the largest single party, but only controls 54 seats in Iraq's 329-member legislature. Combined, al-Bina's parties have more MPs than Sairoon, but this does not qualify under the court's decision.

Salih's strong move objecting to al-Bina's candidate will likely be welcomed by protesters, who resoundingly rejected Eidani's nomination on Thursday.

Iraq has been rocked by anti-government protests for nearly three months. Initially the demonstrators wanted the government to do more to fight corruption, increase job opportunities, and improve public services, but they are now adamant that the current government and parties should be swept aside and new elections held.

Protesters have repeatedly rejected candidates floated by the parties, saying that they will not accept anyone who previously served in government.

More than 497 people have been killed and over 17,000 others have been wounded since the protests began on October 1, according to the High Commission for Human Rights. Local and international rights watchdogs have condemned the killings.

Reporter’s code: 50101