Nouri al-Maliki

Nouri al-Maliki is the Prime Minister of Iraq and the leader of the Islamic Dawa Party. In 1980, he was sentenced to death by Saddam Hussein for his work with the opposition. To avoid death, he went into exile, first in Iran, then Syria, where he directed guerrilla forces against Hussein's regime.BBC News: Profile Nouri Maliki Following the 2003 fall of Saddam Hussein, al-Maliki returned to Iraq and was given the task of purging members of the Baath Party from government.

Nouri al-Maliki was named Prime Minister of Iraq on April 22, 2006. While in office, he has worked to fight militias (specifically, the Mahdi Army led by Muqtada al-Sadr)and shepherded the new Iraqi constitution. On July 5, 2008, the Prime Minister announced that the Iraqi government has "defeated terrorism".International Herald Tribune: Irqi PM Says Government Has Defeated Terrorism (July 5, 2008) Two days later, Maliki called for a timetable for the withdrawal of United States ground troops.Associated Press: Irq Raises Idea of Timetable... (July 7, 2008)No schedule for U.S. troop departure has been set.

During an interview with Spiegel Online on July 19, 2008, Nouri al-Maliki stated that he supported Presidential candidate Barack Obama's proposed 16 month plan to remove U.S. troops from Iraq. Maliki stated that the support for the plan was not an election endorsement.Spiegel Online: Iraq Leader Maliki Supports Obama's Withdrawal Plans (July 19, 2008)

"Under the national unity government, the Iraqis have achieved national feats ... that are now lighting the course of our march." - Nouri al-MalikiInternational Herald Tribune: Irqi PM Says Government Has Defeated Terrorism (July 5, 2008)

• 1950: Born in Abu Gharaq, Iraq

• Late 1960's: Joins Islamic Dawa Party as a student

• 1980: Saddam Hussein condemns him to death for his activism

• 2003: Joins Iraqi Interim Government following ouster of Hussein

• 2006: April 22, Replaced Ibrahim al-Jaafari as Iraqi Prime Minister