ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Six of twelve leaders in Iraq's ruling Coordination Framework have withdrawn their support for State of Law Coalition's Nouri al-Maliki for Iraq's premiership, with another leader expected to follow suit, a source in the pro-Iran Sadiqoun parliamentary bloc said Wednesday.

Speaking to The New Region, Sadiqoun political bureau member Hussein al-Shaihani said that he had spoken to three leaders in the ruling body, who informed him that "they have withdrawn their support for Nouri al-Maliki; accordingly, those who oppose Maliki have become six leaders out of a total of 12 leaders."

Shaihani added that "it is expected that another leader of the Coordination Framework will join the front opposing Maliki, whereby the number of votes will become seven out of 12 votes." 

The divide in the Shiite camp comes after a post by US President Donald Trump in January, where he cautioned that Washington will "no longer help Iraq" if Maliki, a former Iraqi premier, was re-elected to the post, citing his "insane policies and ideologies." 

The Coordination Framework had elected the State of Law Coalition leader as its candidate earlier in January by a "majority vote."

Maliki's camp has time and again said that he will not back down from his candidacy despite the Trump threat, with the former premier saying earlier in February that the only circumstance under which he would withdraw from running for the top post is if two-thirds of the Coordination Framework oppose his candidacy.

Shaihani added that the reason for the opposition to Maliki in the ruling Shiite framework is that "the Kurds and Sunnis will not attend the sessions of Parliament to elect a President, because they do not want the President to task someone whom the United States opposes and who lacks national consensus internally." 

The Sadiqoun official explained that the six current voices of opposition account for 124 lawmakers of the Coordination Framework's 185 MPs in the Iraqi parliament, "they are the vast majority of this Shiite house and their word carries its own weight." 

Maliki previously served two terms as prime minister from 2006 to 2014, stepping down during his second term amid major security setbacks linked to the rise of the Islamic State group and ongoing corruption allegations, factors that continue to shape debate over his potential return to office.

His State of Law Coalition came in third place in Iraq’s recent parliamentary elections, securing 29 seats out of the 329-seat legislature.