Warnings to al-Zaydi before heading to Washington: Avoid the “siege scenario” and handle issues with America rationally.
Warnings to al-Zaydi before heading to Washington: Avoid the “siege scenario” and handle issues with America rationally.
2026-09-18
Shafaq News – Baghdad / Najaf
The imam and preacher of the Abu Hanifa al-Nu’man Mosque, Abdul Wahab al-Samarrai, warned on Friday of the repercussions of the withdrawal of the US-led international coalition forces from Iraq at the end of September, hinting at the possibility of reimposing economic sanctions on Baghdad similar to those that were tightened in the 1990s.
Al-Samarrai said in his Friday sermon: “We have sent a message to our government and its president stating that this people and country are a trust placed in their hands, and part of that trust is to prioritize the interests of the country and its people over the interests of groups and individuals.”
He added, “Some are talking about economic sanctions and recalling the days of the embargo. We remind officials that the Imam is likened in Islam to a shepherd, and he should lead the flock to safety, not to destruction, and not gamble with the fate of the country or prioritize the desires of the part over the whole.” He stressed that “the Iraqi people are tired and have not tasted prosperity, and are suffering from a lack of services and a lack of medicine.”
For his part, the Imam and Friday preacher of Najaf, Sadr al-Din al-Qubanchi, addressed the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi to the United States next Sunday to participate in the work of the United Nations General Assembly, stressing that “any political or security disturbance in Iraq will trigger a crisis in the entire region and destabilize the global economy, so the issues must be dealt with rationally.”
shafaq.com
