WORLD BRIEFING / ICELAND
Iceland’s coalition government collapsed after an unprecedented wave of public dissent, as the island nation seeks to rebuild an economy shattered by the global financial crisis.
Prime Minister Geir Haarde, who had already said he was resigning for health reasons, disbanded the government he had led since 2006. Haarde was unwilling to meet the demands of his coalition partner, the Social Democratic Alliance, which insisted on choosing a new prime minister in exchange for keeping the coalition intact.
Iceland’s banks failed in October under the weight of debts amassed during years of rapid expansion. Thousands of angry citizens have joined noisy protests against the government.
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