The Common Ills: Nouri works to churn out the votes from Iran

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Nouri works to churn out the votes from Iran

April 30th, Iraq is scheduled to hold parliamentary elections. Osama al-Khafaji and Ghassan Hamid (Alsumaria) have noted that there are 9032 candidates competing for 328 seats. Though Iraqis in some parts of Anbar Province won't be allowed to vote and Iraqi refugees in Syria won't be allowed to vote, Aswat al-Iraq notes Majeed al-Sheikh, Iraq's Ambassador to Iran, declaring that Iraq will allow voting in 11 Iranian cities.

Of course, that would be a Shi'ite vote. Iraq's Sunni refugees flee to Syria, to Jordan and to Lebanon.

Russ Wellen offers "Maliki: One of the Wrongest Horses the U.S. Ever Backed" (Foreign Policy In Focus) and thug Nouri is seeking a third term. Earlier this week, Myriam Benraad (World Politics Review) examined the campaign field in Iraq and noted:

Of all the candidates, Maliki enjoys the most support from Tehran and Washington, and the prime minister has skilfully weakened other contenders.
[. . .]
To maintain his hold on power, however, Maliki enjoys two key assets: the current legislation, which, absent provisions for term limits, allows for his prolonged stay in office, and the Iraqi military, which he has placed under tight control. The implications are not necessarily reassuring, whether for his opponents or for hopes for sustained democracy in Iraq.

A third term of Nouri al-Maliki may prove more than Iraq could handle. As many people have already noted -- including cleric and movement leader Moqtada al-Sadr, various Kurdish MPs, various Iraqiya members, etc.

His 'win' is not a sure thing, people haven't even voted and he's deeply unpopular. Hamza Mustafa (Asharq Al-Awsat) reports:

"Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki accused his rivals of seeking to place “obstacles” in the government’s counter-terrorism plans while Parliamentary Speaker Osama Al-Nujaifi, head of the Sunni-led Moutahidoun Coalition, accused Baghdad of allowing the unrest in the restive western province of Anbar to continue in order to disrupt the electoral process in Sunni-majority areas."

al-Nujaifi is correct. Nouri swore his assault on Anbar would be brief when it began in December and, back in January, was saying it would be wrapped up in weeks. It's April and ongoing.

As are his War Crimes. He continues to shell the residential neighborhoods of Falluja. NINA notes that four members of one family were left injured today when their homes was bombed.

In other violence, National Iraqi News Agency reports 2 people were shot dead in Mosul "in two separate incidents," 4 police members were shot dead in Jehesh Village, Joint Special Operations Command announced they killed 2 suspects in Ramadi, security forces say they killed 12 suspects in Albuabeid, security forces announced they killed 4 suspects in southern Falluja, a Rutba bombing left 3 police members injured, a Rutbah roadside bombing left 2 police members killed and three more injured, a battle in Shora left 1 rebel dead, and a suicide car bomber "in the Nile district 10 km north of Hilla" took his own life and the lives of 5 other people (eight more injured). IANS adds the death toll on the suicide car bombing increased to 10 people dead (in addition to the bomber) and twenty people injured. World Bulletin reports, "A local Iraqi councilor and two bodyguards were killed in an attack in the northern Diyala province on Wednesday, a security source said."

Yesterday, War Criminal Tony Blair emerged from beneath his rock and gave a speech. The Daily Mail notes, "[. . .] as his speech yesterday made clear, he remains in denial over his own role in inflaming terrorism by leading us into a bloody war in Iraq on the strength of a lie." Arun Kundnani (Guardian) observes, "Blair's supporters say he has discovered nuance. But the shift in his latest speech is not towards subtlety but a step back to the rhetoric of stability, and the abandonment of the post-9/11 neoconservative slogan of reordering the world. What remains is the hypocrisy of denouncing an ideology as inherently violent, and then launching a grand ideological war against it that results in far more violence."

Ruth's "The very disappointing John Kerry" went up but isn't showing on the links. The following other community sites -- plus Jody Watley, Susan's On the Edge, Antiwar.com, Ms. magazine's blog and Pacifica Evening News -- updated: