Home
BAGHDAD — Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki threatened Wednesday to abandon the American-backed power sharing government created a year ago, throwing the country's fragile democracy into further turmoil just days after the departure of American troops.
In a nearly 90-minute news conference aired on tape delay on state television, al-Maliki defied his rivals and pushed back on all fronts in Iraq's burgeoning political crisis, threatening to release investigatory files that he claimed show his opponents have been involved in terrorism.
He told Kurdish leaders there would be “problems” if they do not turn over Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, who fled to the semiautonomous Kurdish region in recent days to escape an arrest warrant on charges he ran a death squad responsible for assassinations and bombings.
The Iraqi leader, a Shiite, also issued a warning to his rivals from Iraqiya, the largely Sunni bloc of lawmakers that includes al-Hashimi: If it does not end its boycott of Parliament and the Council of Ministers, he would move to form a majority government that would, in essence, exclude them from power.
If Iraqiya's ministers do not show up at future sessions, he said, “we will appoint replacements.”
The news conference was the first time the nation had heard directly from its prime minister since the controversy erupted several days ago.
The crisis was triggered when the Shiite-dominated government issued its arrest warrant for al-Hashimi, the top Sunni politician, on terrorism charges.
Al-Maliki did offer a small attempt to defuse tensions by calling for a conference of Iraq's political elite to discuss the matter. If the issue cannot be resolved, he said he would “move toward forming a majority government.”
But his efforts at conciliation seemed to end there.
Public life in Iraq is one of perpetual crisis, but some analysts say this is the worst political instability here in years.
In calling for the Kurds to turn over al-Hashimi, al-Maliki risked alienating a powerful minority that operates in its own semiautonomous region and whose support he would need to form a new government without the support of the Sunni-dominated Iraqiya.
While in the north, al-Hashimi is largely out of reach of al-Maliki's security forces, and from there could easily flee the country.
Iraq now faces myriad political problems that in sum could derail the national unity government, which American diplomats helped craft last year and which is supposed to include meaningful roles for Iraq's three major factions — Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds.
This, in turn, raises fears of a return to rampant sectarian and factional violence — although so far it appears that the infighting has remained confined to the arena of politics.
Read more: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
In a nearly 90-minute news conference aired on tape delay on state television, al-Maliki defied his rivals and pushed back on all fronts in Iraq's burgeoning political crisis, threatening to release investigatory files that he claimed show his opponents have been involved in terrorism.
He told Kurdish leaders there would be “problems” if they do not turn over Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, who fled to the semiautonomous Kurdish region in recent days to escape an arrest warrant on charges he ran a death squad responsible for assassinations and bombings.
The Iraqi leader, a Shiite, also issued a warning to his rivals from Iraqiya, the largely Sunni bloc of lawmakers that includes al-Hashimi: If it does not end its boycott of Parliament and the Council of Ministers, he would move to form a majority government that would, in essence, exclude them from power.
If Iraqiya's ministers do not show up at future sessions, he said, “we will appoint replacements.”
The news conference was the first time the nation had heard directly from its prime minister since the controversy erupted several days ago.
The crisis was triggered when the Shiite-dominated government issued its arrest warrant for al-Hashimi, the top Sunni politician, on terrorism charges.
Al-Maliki did offer a small attempt to defuse tensions by calling for a conference of Iraq's political elite to discuss the matter. If the issue cannot be resolved, he said he would “move toward forming a majority government.”
But his efforts at conciliation seemed to end there.
Public life in Iraq is one of perpetual crisis, but some analysts say this is the worst political instability here in years.
In calling for the Kurds to turn over al-Hashimi, al-Maliki risked alienating a powerful minority that operates in its own semiautonomous region and whose support he would need to form a new government without the support of the Sunni-dominated Iraqiya.
While in the north, al-Hashimi is largely out of reach of al-Maliki's security forces, and from there could easily flee the country.
Iraq now faces myriad political problems that in sum could derail the national unity government, which American diplomats helped craft last year and which is supposed to include meaningful roles for Iraq's three major factions — Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds.
This, in turn, raises fears of a return to rampant sectarian and factional violence — although so far it appears that the infighting has remained confined to the arena of politics.
Read more: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
ty....BL
