Nineveh Governor defies Maliki

Nineveh Governor Ethel Nujaifi extended the strike of the governorate's departments in the Nineveh province of Iraq until next Monday. He defied the decision of the General Secretariat of the Iraq Council of Ministers to punish districts that went on strike during working hours, describing the decision as "illegal". Nujaifi said in a statement issued by his office: "Nineveh provincial council decided during its meeting held on Wednesday to extend the general strike until next Monday.” He noted that the decision was "in response to the letter of the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, who has threatened to punish the government departments that participated in the strike." Nujaifi threatened to continue the strike and related sit-ins until the demands of the strikers are answered. The Nineveh provincial council announced a general strike on the 29th of December 2012, threatening mass resignations unless the central government responded to the demonstrators' demands within 3 days.