Maliki (Creative Commons)

Iraq's Parliament backed Tuesday a new government that keeps Nouri al-Maliki as Prime Minister for a second term and inserts opposition leader Ayad Allawi into a new vaguely defined ministerial post under al-Maliki.

Iraq's government remains under constant, violent attack and is unable to broadly provide some basic services such as trash pick-up and electricity. Internal struggles had threatened to take down the government altogether.

The support of the 325-member Parliament binds together a coalition of Sunnis, Shiites, Kurds and anti-Americans.