"The prime minister will present a new government to parliament for approval at 11 am [0700 GMT] on Saturday," deputy parliamentary speaker Shia Khalid Al Attiya said.
In the five months since the election of Iraq's first permanent post-Saddam Hussein era parliament, Shias, Sunni Arabs and Kurds have been squabbling over the formation of a unity government - leaving a political vacuum that has seen violence soar.
MPs met behind closed doors on Wednesday, but there were no revelations about the likely full lineup, with the posts of interior and defense ministers - crucial to the security of the nation - still not finalized.
Maliki, who was named prime minister designate last month to end a long-running deadlock over whether outgoing premier Ibrahim Al Jaafari should remain in the job, has a May 22 deadline to form the government.
In violence on Wednesday at least 11 people were killed, with four people slain in an assault on a bakery that the assailants first hit with guns and then bombed, echoing a similar attack on a busy Baghdad market on Tuesday that left 23 dead.
Almost 50 people were killed across the country on Tuesday, while a top diplomat from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was abducted.
There was no word from the captors on Naji al-Nuami "Abu Rashid", who was seized from the Gulf state's cultural annex in Baghdad.
"I ask the kidnappers to release the Emirati diplomat Naji Al Nuami. This diplomat has done much work for Iraq and the people of Iraq," Adnan Dulaimi, the head of the Sunni Concord bloc, said.
In a sign that politicians had still a way to go before finalizing the cabinet lineup, a Shia deputy accused former interim premier Ayad Allawi's party of tying to carve off an additional ministry for itself.
"The Allawi list is asking for a fifth ministry. They threatened not to participate in the government if they don't get it," said Shia Alliance member Baha Aaraji.
A member of Allawi's party, Hafez Al Mehdi, denied that his party was threatening to abandon talks, saying: "We are still in discussions."
The Shia United Iraqi Alliance (UIA) bloc has said that it plans to leave a decision on who will lead the interior and defense ministries for later, with Maliki to take control until the posts are filled.
"The composition of the government may be announced without naming the defense and interior ministry posts," Shia deputy Hassan Al Sunaid said. "A number of candidates have been presented to Maliki for these posts, but he has not yet made his choice."
A US diplomat told journalists that the formation of the cabinet could take longer than hoped, but should make the constitutional deadline.
"It's a slow process, but you have to understand it's something they have not had before, a national unity government."
Observers have said that strong, independent leaders in the security ministries are needed to stem the violence, and President Jalal Talabani has said that he would not support a cabinet without the defense and interior ministers being named.
Sunaid said that the two favorites to head the interior ministry are both independent Shias - Ahmed Chalabi, Washington's former protégé, and Qassem Daoud, an ex-national security minister.
"The three names most often cited for the defense ministry post are Hashem Al Hasni, the former parliament speaker, the former minister of industry Osama Al Najafi, and ex-defense minister Saadun Al Dulaimi, all Sunnis," Sunaid said.
The new cabinet will be made up of more than 30 ministries, he said, providing the following rough breakdown:
- The UIA is expected to take at least 15 ministries, including the interior, oil and finance portfolios.
- The Kurdish coalition is to get five ministries, including the foreign affairs and industry portfolios.
- Allawi's secular list is expected to take five ministries, including justice and defense.
- The Sunni Concord Front is expected to take four ministries, including planning and higher education, while the Sunni faction of Salah Al Motlaq will take three.
- Christians, Turkmen and Shia Kurds are expected to hold one ministry each.
© 2006 Agence France-Presse
To add a comment,
Please log in:
Don't have an account?
Register now to comment on stories and stay up to date on important events and issues in the Middle East with our newsletter.