Al-Sadr requires Al-Maliki to leave the scene before talking about reconciliation
Al-Sadr requires Al-Maliki to leave the scene before talking about reconciliation
7-24-2022
BAGHDAD – Former Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki is in a difficult situation after the leaks in which he attacked everyone, including his allies and those who protect his back, such as the Marjaiya and the Popular Mobilization Militia, at a time when these leaks strengthened the position of the leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, who now requires Maliki’s departure from The scene is a condition for any settlement with his Shiite opponents.
This comes in conjunction with statements by Saleh Muhammad al-Iraqi, who is described as al-Sadr’s minister and spokesman, calling on the judiciary to take action to confront those he called outlaws, in reference to al-Maliki, after the leaks attributed to him included distorting his opponents and harming their private lives and targeting the state with all its institutions.
Iraqi political circles said that al-Sadr regained the initiative against al-Maliki, after the latter had pushed him to flee the political arena and abandon the right of the current to form a government, and that the leader of the state of law and the leader of the coordinating framework had no choice but to search for a settlement that would leave his opponent the first role and allow him to Remain in the scene until circumstances change and regain the initiative.
Al-Maliki’s words about reconciliation with Al-Sadr are meaningless, and his calls to meet Al-Sadr were met with disdain by the Sadrists
These circles indicated that the leaks left al-Maliki alone, and that the components of the coordinating framework will have to break with him and search for a path to a settlement without him, and that the popular crowd, which was a strong card in his hand, will find itself obliged to neutrality, and even Iran, which is strengthened by it, will be forced to search for an alternative for him. The same applies to the Dawa Party, which will be forced to withdraw its protection and search for a new face to represent it in the next phase’s consultations.
Al-Iraqi ruled out a reconciliation between Al-Sadr and Al-Maliki against the background of the audio leaks attributed to Al-Maliki, which “offended Al-Sadr” and the various actors in Iraq.
Al-Iraqi said in a press statement distributed on Friday evening that “the audio leaks attributed to Nuri al-Maliki include an attack on the authority, insults to the Iraqi people, abuse of the security forces, assault on the crowd, stirring up sedition, accusations of national leaders without evidence, and dealing with the outside without legal cover.”
The leaks also included “the formation of factions, the purchase of heavy weapons, incitement to murder, a sectarian tone that violates the law, destabilizing security, empowering impudent militias, and acknowledging the cold-blooded killing of Iraqis under the name of the law in Basra and Karbala.”
It is unlikely that a reconciliation between al-Sadr and al-Maliki will take place on the background of the audio leaks
Saleh al-Iraqi, who is close to al-Sadr, addressed the Islamic Dawa Party, saying, “Is this how we deal with the people, with the reference and with the sects?”
He added, “Do you want our leader Muqtada al-Sadr to refrain from transgressing the authority, bloodshed, insulting the people and the crowd, or do you want him to stop accusing him of working for Israel and reconcile with the owner of the leaks, Nuri al-Maliki… What is this thinking of you, leaders of Shiites and the nation?”
And he stressed that “elimination is at stake, either justice and the application of the law or bias and cover up for outlaws.”
The Supreme Judicial Council in Iraq had revealed that the Baghdad / Karkh investigation court had received a request submitted to the Public Prosecution to take legal measures regarding the audio leaks attributed to Nuri al-Maliki and that the court was conducting a fundamental investigation in accordance with the law.
Last Wednesday, al-Maliki announced his readiness to hold a direct meeting with al-Sadr after the uproar of audio leaks attributed to him, in which he offended al-Sadr, the religious authority and the security forces.
“My hand is outstretched to find good relations with al-Sadr and leave the differences of the past,” he said.
Al-Maliki stated that there are “parties and some tribal leaders who are currently moving to arrange a direct meeting for us with al-Sadr… It is possible to meet with him directly because we want positive relations.”
Al-Maliki’s attempt to deny the recordings and say that they are fabricated and will not change anything from the reality that produced them did not succeed, especially since his opponents at home, especially the leader of the Sadrist movement, are keen to employ them as much as possible to block the way for his efforts to control the political process, especially his assumption of the presidency of the government.
Last Monday, al-Sadr called on the leader of the State of Law coalition to retire from the political process and resort to seeking forgiveness or surrendering himself. And he wrote in a tweet he posted on his Twitter account that his opponent has no choice but to “declare seclusion and retire from political work and resort to seeking forgiveness, or surrender himself and those who seek refuge from the corrupt to the judicial authorities, perhaps it will be a repentance for him before God and before the Iraqi people.”
The previous parts of the audio leaks revealed a broad plan by al-Maliki for an open confrontation with the Sadrist movement and its Sunni and Kurdish allies based on preparing armed factions with full loyalty to him to resolve the situation in Iraq by force.
The leaks mean that al-Maliki has reached a conviction that he accepts a Shiite-Shiite war to get out of the impasse in the relationship with al-Sadr, who described him as a murderer and ignorant, and called his members cowards.
Al-Maliki said, “Iraq is on the verge of a devastating war from which no one will emerge, unless the project of Muqtada al-Sadr, Massoud Barzani and Muhammad al-Halbousi is dropped. If we drop their project, Iraq will survive, and if we are unable to do so, Iraq will enter the red circle.”
He continued, “I know that al-Sadr will target me first, because I destroyed him, and I will not keep Shi’ism and Iraq in the hands of Muqtada al-Sadr, and if the Ministry of the Interior is unable, I will not. Al-Sadr, he is a spiteful man, and he has three bad qualities, he wants blood, he is a coward, he wants money and stole the whole country, and he wants to be your ‘highest Lord’, and the Imam Mahdi, as his group claims to do so.
Al-Maliki added, “I told Al-Kazemi that the army and police are not reliable, and they will not do anything, and I will not trust you or your army. He (Al-Kazemi) replied that there is an army and police, so I told him no.”
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