Iraq's main Sunni Arab bloc is close to rejoining the Shia-led government, officials said today.
Getting the Accordance Front to return to government after it quit nearly a year ago is widely seen as a key step in reconciling feuding factions after years of sectarian conflict.
Sunni Arabs have little voice in the current cabinet, which is dominated by Shias and ethnic Kurds.
Asked if the Front was set to rejoin, a spokesman said: "Yes. Many of our demands have been executed . . . sharing of responsibility, the issuance of the amnesty law."
An amnesty law passed in February has freed many prisoners from the minority Sunni Arab community. Sunni Arabs form the bulk of inmates after security forces detained thousands in security sweeps at the height of a Sunni Arab insurgency.
The spokesman said the Front had put forward names for cabinet posts to Shia Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.
'A Government spokesman said Mr Maliki would submit the names and their proposed ministries before a parliamentary vote, although he did not say when.
The Front pulled out of Mr Maliki's cabinet last August, demanding the release of mainly Sunni Arab detainees and calling for a greater say in security matters.
On several occasions in the past it has appeared ready to rejoin the government, only for obstacles to suddenly emerge.
But Maliki's recent crackdowns against Shia militias in Iraq's oil producing south, as well as the Shia Baghdad slum of Sadr City, has also been welcomed by the Front.