at the time. He eventually was made a member of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, an exiled opposition party and militia that was formed by Iran in Tehran in 1982 but composed exclusively of Iraqi exiles. In 2006, Abdul-Mahdi, outgoing Vice President in the transitional government, unsuccessfully ran for the United Iraqi Alliance's nomination for Prime Minister against incumbent Ibrahim al-Jaafari. He lost by one vote. He was reportedly considered to be a possibility for Prime Minister once again until Nouri al-Maliki became the UIA nominee. Subsequently, Abdul-Mahdi was re-elected as Vice President of Iraq. He exerted his limited authority in that role by delaying the first meeting of the National Assembly in March. He resigned from his position as vice-president on 31 May 2011. In December 2006, the Associated Press reported that Abdul-Mahdi could be the next Prime Minister of Iraq if a new multi-sectarian coalition succeeded in toppling the government of Nouri al-Maliki. On 26 February 2007, he survived an assassination attempt that killed ten people. He had been targeted two times prior. In 2009, his bodyguards were the perpetrators of a bloody bank robbery in Baghdad. In July 2013, Abdul-Mahdi announced his decision to give up his retirement pensions as a former vice president. On 2 October 2018, Iraqi president Barham Salih selected Abdul-Mahdi to be the Prime Minister of Iraq. Mahdi had 30 days to form a new government. On 25 October 2018, Abdul Mahdi was sworn into office, five months after the 2018 elections. In April 2019, Abdul-Mahdi met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin. He announced a $14 billion plan to upgrade Iraq's electricity infrastructure, with likely cooperation with German company Siemens. Merkel also pledged to strengthen economic and security cooperation between the two countries, and to continue German support for reconstruction efforts in Iraq. Resignation On 29 November 2019, after weeks of violent protests, Mahdi stated that he would resign from his post. The Iraqi parliament approved his resignation on 1 December 2019. References External links Official Website 1942 births Iraqi Communist Party politicians Iraqi Shia Muslims Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq politicians Living people Oil ministers of Iraq Politicians from Baghdad Vice presidents of Iraq Iraqi expatriates in France Finance ministers of Iraq Prime Ministers of Iraq People expelled from public office