Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki faces new challenges after the Sadr bloc left the ruling Shiite alliance on Saturday, media reports said.

Members of the party led by radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr said they pulled out of the United Iraqi Alliance because the other parties do not consider their opinions. The Sadrists have previously threatened to resort to this drastic measure if their point of view isn’t taken in consideration.

They were occupying 30 of the 128 seats controlled by the United Iraqi Alliance in the Council of Representatives.

Sadr leaders said the coalition isn’t capable of bringing stability in Iraq because several parties continue to dictate the alliance’s decisions, regardless of other opinions.

Earlier this year, six ministers from the same Sadrist movement left the cabinet after al-Maliki refused to establish a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq.

Also on Saturday, the Sunni Islamic Party led by Vice President Tareq al-Hashimi announced that Ali Ghalib Baban was dismissed from the party after resuming his duties as Minister of Planning and Development Co-operation.

The Islamic Party is part of the Iraqi Accord Front which controls 44 seats in parliament. The party said Baban was casted out after he refused to comply with a previous decision which banned all Sunni ministers from returning to al-Maliki’s cabinet.

Sunnis accused the government of brushing off their requests in numerous rows and failed to maintain an objective stance towards all political factions comprising the administration.

Last month, five Sunni ministers and a deputy prime ministers decided to walk out of the cabinet, blasting the government for ignoring their demands. At the same time, Sunnis boycotted the parliament’s sessions, leaving al-Maliki with support from Shiites and Kurds.

Despite those protest actions and heavy criticism from other members of his party, Baban decided to return to his regular duties last week. Al-Maliki is trying to cope with a deep crisis, numerous factions accusing him of being impartial and widening the rift between parties.

Meanwhile, Baban told journalists on Saturday that he wasn’t dismissed and left the Islamic Party on his own.

“I resigned from the Islamic Party before I was relieved,” the minister said, adding, “Now I feel at ease after I got rid of the burdens I felt while being inside the party.”

He also criticized the decision of his former colleagues to leave the government, saying the measure sends “a wrong message” and brings more turmoil in the strife-torn country.