Baghdad: Iraq's US-installed Governing Council was dissolved today (June 1, 2004), handing its responsibilities over to Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's Government ahead of the June 30 transfer of sovereignty, a coalition official said.

"The Governing Council was dissolved this morning. The interim Government will take over responsibilities as of today, until sovereignty is fully transferred on June 30," the official said on condition of anonymity.

An aide to the new Shiite vice president Ibrahim Jaffari had said earlier that the dissolution would take place.

Iraq's new Prime Minister Iyad Allawi vowed today to carry Iraq toward Democracy, as he announced his Government line-up.

"After 35 years of tyrannical regime ... we are starting now our march towards sovereignty and Democracy," Allawi told reporters, standing alongside UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi and Iraq's new President Sheikh Ghazi al-Yawar.

Allawi, whose selection was announced on May 28, is a Governing Council member and former Baathist with strong ties with the US Central Intelligence Agency.