Friday Evening Iraq Parliament News Highlights 8-5-2

The Coordination Framework Holds A Meeting In The Presence Of All Its Leaders In The House Of Al- Hak

On Thursday, former member of the House of Representatives, Muhammad Ibrahim, accused the caretaker prime minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, of a catastrophic failure in managing the state.

Ibrahim said in a statement, "The caretaker prime minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, failed miserably in managing the state and did not achieve what was required of him, especially in the thorny files that the country went through."

He added that "the caretaker prime minister, despite the financial boom and the high oil price, did not reflect this on the deteriorating reality of the citizens, and therefore it is not possible to keep him for a longer period, whatever the reasons."

Political and popular voices reject the renewal of the current caretaker prime minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, and he bears many flaws. finished/ 25     LINK

Iraq.. The Second Step Of The Sadrist Movement To Dissolve Parliament

Posted On2022-08-04 By Sotaliraq   Sadr's supporters stormed the Iraqi parliament on Saturday.

The leader of the Sadrist movement, Jaafar al-Moussawi, called on Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kazemi, on Thursday, to dissolve parliament in a practical application of the movement's leader Muqtada al-Sadr's call for early elections in the hope of ending the worsening political crisis in the country, according to what the "Sky News Arabia" correspondent reported in Baghdad.

Al -Moussawi called Al-  Kazemi  to submit a request to the President of the Iraqi Republic, according to  the Iraqi constitution,  to dissolve the current parliament, and to call for early elections within a maximum period of 60 days from the date of dissolving the parliament.

Parliament may be dissolved with the approval of an absolute majority at the request of one-third of the members or the prime minister, and with the approval of the President of the Republic, in accordance with the constitution

In the first reactions, the chief negotiator of the coordination framework,  Hadi al-Amiri , welcomed al- Sadr's call to dissolve parliament, despite the fact that the political crisis in the country was caused by the dispute between  the Sadrist movement and the  coordination framework.

Al  -Sadr had  called on his supporters, on Wednesday, to continue their sit-in in the House of Representatives in  Baghdad , until their demands, which include early elections and unspecified constitutional amendments, are met.

And last Saturday, Sadr's supporters   began a sit-in at the Iraqi parliament, last Saturday, to express their rejection of the nomination of  Muhammad Shia al-Sudani  as prime minister, whom they consider to be a follower of former Prime Minister  Nuri al-Maliki , Sadr's main opponent.

Al-Sadr considers that the arrival of Al-Soudani to power in  Iraq is  a great danger, so he rushed to push his supporters to sit in Parliament to disrupt this step, especially since  the coordination framework  was determined to move forward with the appointment of Al-Sudani.

Al-Sadr won the largest bloc in the elections that took place in October last year, with 73 members out of 329 members, but he failed to form a government during the past months.

After that, Al-Sadr asked his deputies in Parliament to submit their resignations, which has already been done, and according to the constitution, they were replaced by the candidates who ranked second in their constituencies, which practically led to the rise of the majority of the coordination framework candidates. LINK

The framework promotes Al-Amiri at the expense of Al-Maliki to entice Al-Sadr to negotiate

Posted On2022-08-04 By Sotaliraq    Baghdad / Tamim Al-Hassan   The coordinating framework continues to think about persuading the leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, to go to dialogue.

With this step, the Coordinator aims to gain two points in one fell swoop: to return to the negotiation track, and to send a message to al-Sadr that al-Maliki is no longer a major player.

The protesters were inside the House of Representatives for their fourth night outside the parliament halls, after conflicting orders to evacuate the place.

In order to organize the demonstrations, the “minister of the leader,” a Twitter account approved by the leader of the current, announced the formation of a committee of those close to the organization to organize the affairs of the protesters.

And the “minister,” Salih Muhammad al-Iraqi, stated in a “blog” that “in view of the requirements of the public interest and in order to organize and perpetuate the popular sit-in for the Muharram revolutionaries, it was decided to form a special committee to carry out this task and provide all organizational and logistical matters to the protestors.

And he indicated that: "The media statements and special directives remain exclusively through the Minister of Commander (Hajj Saleh Muhammad Al-Iraqi)".

Al-Iraqi explained that the committee consists of 7 names: Hazem Al-Araji, Ibrahim Al-Jabri (director of Al-Sadr’s office), the resigned deputy speaker of Parliament Hakim Al-Zamili, Muhammad Al-Aboudi, Tahseen Al-Hamidawi (official of Saraya Al-Salam), Hassan Al-Kaabi, the former deputy speaker of Parliament, and the independent deputy Shaima Al-Obaidi.

On Tuesday evening, the “commander of the leader” called on the demonstrators who have been in Parliament since last Saturday, to evacuate the building within 72 hours.

The “Wazir” post said that after “liberating the House of Representatives,” the sit-in will turn into “in front of and around Parliament and its approaches.”

And before 24 hours of the “72 hours” deadline passed, the protesters had only left the parliament session halls, following new directions from Ibrahim Al-Jabri, the director of Al-Sadr’s office.

Al-Jabri, in an explanation of “Al-Iraqi” tweet in a video clip, said that “the directive of the Minister of Mr. Al-Sadr focuses on the withdrawal of the protesters from the parliament session hall only.”

Al-Jabri called on the demonstrators to continue their sit-in inside and outside the corridors of the parliament building.

Some information obtained by Al-Mada from Al-Sadr’s circles indicates that the sit-ins may expand if the crisis continues to include new sites.  

The recent tweet of the "minister of the leader" had hinted at the development of the sit-ins, as he said that: "There were other places where the sit-in should be held, and instructions will come to you accordingly."

The “blog” also referred to the expansion of the demands, as “Al-Iraqi” added: “The permanence of the sit-in is very important for the realization of your demands, which we will present to you later.”

The (range) revealed the day before yesterday, that the leader of the Sadrist movement may take "new escalation" steps after Muharram 10 (Ashura) in the middle of next week.

These steps depend on what will happen in the coming days, as proposals have begun to reach “Al-Sadr” to get out of the crisis other than the “dialogue” option.

According to al-Sadr's circles, "there are proposals that Mustafa al-Kazemi's government remain for one year, during which new elections are prepared, and during which a new constitution is written."

But until now, you did not know the mechanism of writing the new constitution - if it actually happened - and who will perform this task? Where these circles indicate that “there are proposals to dissolve parliament or return the resigned current deputies.”

And most importantly, according to what those circles say about the discussions that are taking place: “The leader of the Sadrist movement will not relieve pressure before he sees a change or the beginning of change for fear of repudiation of the political forces.”

In the summer of last year, al-Sadr had received pledges from his Shiite partners in what was known as the “Reform Document.”

This document, signed by some of the leaders of the "framework" now, contained conditions for the return of "Sadr" at the time to the elections, after a month's estrangement.

The most prominent contents of the document were the constitutional amendments, the dissolution of the “militias,” and the restructuring of the Popular Mobilization Forces in a certain period of time.

In turn, Ghaleb al-Dami, a professor of media at Ahl al-Bayt University, says: "The radical change that the leader of the Sadrist movement is demanding is very difficult, and there are other components in the country that will not agree."

Al-Daami added in an interview with (Al-Mada): “These demands should be reduced to more practical ones, such as amending the constitution.”

The media professor points out: “Even amending the constitution requires great effort and discussions because the three components’ vision (Shia, Sunni, and Kurds) are conflicting over some of its articles.”

Previous parliamentary sessions had formed more than one committee to amend the constitution in accordance with Article 142 of the constitution, but they did not reach a solution due to the difference of opinions.

Hope in Amri!

On the other side of the events, the "coordinating framework", which seems unable to find solutions to the crisis except to invite the leader of the Sadrist movement to solutions, began to promote the personality of "Amiri."

The "Attrion" launched the slogan "Al-Amri Sheikh Al-Attar", in reference to the leader of the Al-Fateh Alliance, after the latter demanded the resignation of the Shiite group.

But a well-informed politician reads this campaign in a different way, telling Al-Mada that "Al-Amiri is the only person on whom the framework depends in the dialogue with Al-Sadr."

Al-Amiri had called on the leader of the movement to sit at the discussion table, but the latter stipulated that he should expel Al-Maliki and leave the framework.

The politician, who asked not to be named, asserts that: "Promoting Al-Amiri is not only for the sake of dialogue, but rather an indication that Al-Maliki is no longer a key player in the group, which may encourage Al-Sadr to dialogue."

Qais al-Khazali, the leader of Asa’ib, MP Ahmed al-Asadi, and Shibl al-Zaidi, leader of the Imam Ali Brigades - one of the PMF factions - in statements and “tweets” named “Sheikh al-Atar” the head of the Al-Fateh Alliance.

On the other hand, other parties in the "Coordination", most notably Ammar al-Hakim and his partner in the coalition of state forces, Haider al-Abadi, encouraged Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kazemi's recent initiative, which also relates to comprehensive dialogue. LINK

President Barzani Receives The Dutch Consul General In Erbil

Posted On2022-08-04 By Sotaliraq   President Masoud Barzani received, at the Salah al-Din resort near Erbil, on Wednesday, the Dutch Consul General in Erbil, Hans Akrobom, on the occasion of the end of his work.

[size=45]During the meeting, views were exchanged on the latest developments in the Iraqi political process. The Dutch diplomat confirmed that his work in the Kurdistan Region was a great honor and will remain a friend to the people of Kurdistan now and in the future, stressing that his country is ready to cooperate with the Kurdistan government to develop bilateral relations, especially in the field of technology. agriculture and diversification of the agricultural sector.  LINK

Fadel Mirani Issues A Clarification Regarding His Statement Regarding The Dissolution Of Parliament

Shafaq News/ Kurdistan Democratic Party Secretary Fadel Mirani issued a clarification on Thursday regarding his statement about dissolving the Iraqi parliament.

Mirani said in a statement received by Shafaq News Agency, "What was issued by me on the issue of dissolving the Iraqi parliament does not represent the opinion and orientations of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, but rather represents my personal opinion."

Fadel Mirani had announced earlier today that dissolving parliament is not an easy thing, in response to the call of the Sadrist movement's leader Muqtada al-Sadr to dissolve it and hold new elections.   LINK

Al-Maliki Expresses His Position On The Early Elections And Warns Of The 10/10 Scenario

Shafaq News/ The head of the State of Law coalition, Nuri al-Maliki, reiterated on Thursday evening the importance of adhering to the constitutional and legal mechanisms, to spare Iraq successive crises, while stressing the importance of preventing a recurrence of what the previous elections witnessed in the upcoming voting process.

Al-Maliki wrote, in a tweet he posted on his Twitter account, that "adhering to the constitutional and legal mechanisms is the only option that spares Iraq the successive crises that have caused severe damage to the higher interests of the Iraqi people and exposed civil peace to serious dangers."

He added that "any early elections must be held in accordance with the constitution and national consensus, in a manner that enhances national unity, and prevents a repetition of what happened in previous elections that witnessed an unprecedented process of manipulation, the effects and negative repercussions of which are still a source of suffering, after they caused a serious crack in the social fabric." ".

The coordinating framework, which brings together the Shiite forces participating in the political process, affirmed on Thursday evening its support for any constitutional path to address political crises and achieve the interests of the people, including holding early elections, on the condition that national consensus on early elections is achieved, and a safe environment is provided for their holding.

These positions come a day after the leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, called for dissolving the current parliament and holding early elections, which he said he had not yet decided whether or not to run.

The political scene is living in a crisis situation and a dead end unprecedented in the history of Iraq, as more than 300 days have passed since the early elections without being able to form a new government in the country, and the survival of the caretaker government headed by Mustafa Al-Kazemi.

On the tenth of last October, Iraq held early legislative elections to get out of a political crisis that swept the country after large demonstrations in the central and southern regions in 2019 in protest against the widespread unemployment in society, the spread of financial and administrative corruption in government departments and institutions, and the deteriorating reality The service and the livelihood, which prompted the former prime minister, Adel Abdul-Mahdi, to resign under popular pressure.

As soon as the preliminary results of the elections were announced, the voices of forces and political actors rose in their rejection of losing many seats, accusing them of major fraud in the ballot, which was denied by the executive and judicial authorities, at a time when the United Nations and international organizations praised the integrity of the electoral process.    LINK

Iraq: Preconditions For Early Elections

Baghdad   Mohamed Ali   August 05 20  Iraq: Preconditions for early elections Sadr's supporters are preparing for a united prayer today inside the Green Zone (Ahmed Al-Rubaie/AFP)

The political crisis in Iraq is heading back to square one, with demands centered on dissolving parliament and holding early parliamentary elections, a position adopted by the leader of the Sadrist movement Muqtada al-Sadr, but the opposite party, specifically the "coordinating framework" forces , whose positions seemed to conflict with the early elections, It was setting preconditions.

This comes in light of the continued sit-in by the Sadrist movement's supporters in the Green Zone in central Baghdad, while they are preparing to hold a unified prayer today, Friday, inside the Green Zone, specifically in the Victory Square designated for major military parades, amid strict security measures taken by the Iraqi forces in the vicinity of the event.

A security official told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that "the measures stemmed from fears of operations targeting al-Sadr's supporters, in order to detonate the congested situation."

Al-Sadr calls for the dissolution of parliament and early elections

Al-Sadr had called, in a speech delivered from the city of Najaf in southern Iraq on Wednesday evening, to dissolve parliament and hold early and fair elections , considering that there is no benefit from dialogue. He stressed that his current protest movement "is not a struggle for power," declaring that the movement will continue until its demands are met. He continued, "I will not start with bloodshed, and if they do, then reform requires sacrifice." He also indicated that he has not yet decided to participate in the upcoming elections.

In a statement posted on "Twitter" yesterday, Thursday, al-Sadr said that the unity of the Shiite rank "currently is extremely important if it is based on rejecting subordination and real reform, rejecting corruption and the corrupt and prosecuting them." He addressed the "Popular Mobilization" by saying: "They are closer to our opinions, we, the al-Sadr family," adding that "the crowd's mujahideen are fully prepared to defend reform and truth."

Al-Sadr: The unity of the Shiite rank is currently very important if it is based on rejecting subordination and real reform, rejecting corruption and the corrupt and putting them on trial.

A politician close to the Sadrist movement, Fattah al-Sheikh, had told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that "the new early elections must be in an atmosphere free from uncontrolled weapons, political money and the participation of the corrupt, and in which there is an emphasis on the application of the entire provisions of the parties' law, and this What will the Sadrist movement do after turning to this option?

Variations within the "coordinating framework"

Following al-Sadr's call to dissolve parliament and hold early elections, and his rejection of calls for dialogue with the "coordinating framework", different and varied reactions were issued by forces and parties within the framework, some of whom supported this solution, others had reservations about it, and a third set conditions for its implementation.

A prominent Iraqi leader in the "Al-Fateh" coalition, the political wing of the "Popular Mobilization" factions, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the position within the "coordinating framework" forces was divided until yesterday, between accepting the option of dissolving parliament and holding new elections,

Among others, they first require changing the current election law (multiple districts) and hold it responsible for their loss of many seats, and others demand the formation of a new government first that will take upon itself the organization of the next elections, and they refuse to keep Mustafa Al-Kazemi’s government as a non-neutral party and closer to Al-Sadr than them.

He considered that "Al-Sadr raised the ceiling of his demands to dissolve parliament and hold early elections, and this means that we have at least 9 months before the commission can prepare the file for the new elections." On the position of the Sunni and Kurdish forces on the crisis, he stressed that it is "closer to al-Sadr, and there are unannounced and continuous contacts between the leaderships of the Sovereignty Alliance and the Democratic Party to coordinate positions."

He pointed out that "the efforts of friendly parties have contributed in the past two days to controlling the situation and preventing their interaction in the Shiite al-Sadr and al-Atari street, but in any case, the situation is still tense within the political center."

Iraq: Preconditions for early elections 1241090531

Arabic reports

Iraq: Does Sadr Get Supporters Who Aren't His Supporters?

For his part, the head of the Popular Mobilization Authority, Faleh al-Fayyad, told Al-Jazeera that the rerun of the parliamentary elections is no longer an issue for the Sadrist movement, noting that the "coordinating framework" has not yet taken its official position on holding early elections.

But he considered that dissolving parliament and holding early elections would be a solution in the event that all blocs and other political parties agree, pointing out that the system of government in Iraq is consensual and one position cannot be accepted for a specific party. He believed that the current government is a caretaker government and does not have the powers to hold re-elections.

Al-Fayyad: Dissolving Parliament and holding early elections will be a solution if all blocs and political parties agree

In the same context, former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki issued a statement in which he responded to al-Sadr's call for elections, saying that "there must be a return to the constitution and respect for constitutional institutions." He considered that the solution "is through serious dialogues, from which we hope to resolve differences and restore matters to their rightful place."

For his part, the leader of the "Al-Fateh" coalition, Hadi al-Amiri, announced his support for holding early elections, but added that holding elections "requires a comprehensive dialogue in order to set a date, mechanisms and requirements for holding them, and to provide appropriate climates for free, fair and transparent elections that restore citizen's confidence in the political process."

As for the leader of the "Victory" coalition, Haider al-Abadi, who is one of the pillars of the "coordinating framework", he welcomed al-Sadr's request to hold early elections, considering in his statement that "the step is to preserve blood and achieve reform." He called on everyone to "join hands to serve the people, reform the system and strengthen the constitutional state."

In the context of the disputes within the “coordinating framework”, political sources in Baghdad revealed to “Al-Araby Al-Jadeed” that a meeting that was scheduled for Wednesday night for the leaders of the “framework” was postponed due to the failure of many coalition leaders to attend the meeting that was scheduled at the home of the leader of the Islamic Council. Above, Hammam Hammoudi.

According to the sources, the non-attendance is due to differences in viewpoints, especially between Al-Maliki and Khazali on the one hand, and Al-Amri, Al-Abadi and Al-Fayyad on the other. It revealed efforts by the UN envoy in Baghdad, Jenin Plasschaert, to play a role in the coming days, to create an atmosphere that would allow meetings between representatives of the Iraqi political forces.

On the other hand, a member of the Iraqi civil movement, Ahmed Haqqi, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the civil and secular forces will issue a statement in support of dissolving parliament and holding early elections. He added that the general trend is for civilians and independents to participate strongly and not to boycott any future elections, whether the "Tishreen Forces" or the Communist Party.

For his part, a member of the Sadrist movement, Muhammad al-Daraji, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the presence of the movement's supporters in the Green Zone "continues until directives are issued by Najaf," referring to Al-Sadr. He talked about the imminent entry of "other non-Sadr popular activities on the line of protests in Baghdad", without naming any of them, but the closest that they are meant is the clans that announced their support for al-Sadr earlier.    LINK