Iraq parliament confirms May 12 as date for elections

 Iraq's parliament has confirmed May 12 as the date for holding a parliamentary election, state TV reported on Monday. The Supreme Federal Court on Sunday ruled against calls by Sunni and Kurdish lawmakers to delay the election to allow hundreds of thousands of people displaced by war to return home.

Shi'ite politicians, including Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi who is seeking re-election, had argued delaying the election would be unconstitutional.