POSTED ON BY SOTALIRAQ
Baghdad / Tamim Al-Hassan
Muqtada al-Sadr, the leader of the Sadrist movement, gave his opponents two more weeks to fulfill 3 conditions, according to the latter’s circles, to resolve the political crisis.
Al-Sadr’s speech on Friday was interpreted as what he considered “the month of reconciliation” as an extension of the truce of the Arbaeen visit, which ended more than a week ago.
Several hypotheses were put forward after the visit, the worst of which was the fear of renewed clashes between the “current” and the factions.
Meanwhile, the coordination framework has been going on for more than two months in the same episode, as it fails to pass its candidate for prime minister, Muhammad al-Sudani, and also fails to convince the Sadrists.
On the other hand, groups affiliated with the October protests vowed to storm the Green Zone on the third anniversary of the start of the demonstrations next October.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi revealed that he would call for a new round of dialogue, after two previous rounds boycotted by Al-Sadr.
In an interview with the official channel, Al-Kazemi called on the political forces to “assume their historical responsibility towards Iraq and take advantage of the opportunity for national dialogue,” calling for “a third round of national dialogue to solve our problems, and we have no way but dialogue.”
Al-Kazemi indicated that “there are those who wish the government would fail in everything because of personal differences with me.”
The last round of dialogue, which took place more than two weeks ago, boycotting the Sadrist movement, had concluded the formation of a committee to prepare a “road map” for the re-election.
Al-Kazemi, who is participating in the meetings of the United Nations General Assembly at its 77th session held in New York, announced that the security services “were able to arrest an important person belonging to a state institution accused of killing protesters and some personalities” without revealing his identity.
During an interview with him on the official channel at his residence in New York, he stressed the “necessity for the state’s legislative, judicial and security institutions to cooperate to end uncontrolled weapons,” pointing out that “everyone knows who owns uncontrolled weapons and we have taken measures to address it (this issue).”
The political forces and the leader of the Sadrist movement warned of renewed clashes between his supporters and the popular crowd during the last Arbaeen visit of Imam Hussein, as the two sides were assigned security and logistical duties in that event, which witnessed the influx of millions of visitors to Karbala.
He remained obsessed with the return of scenes of clashes in the Green Zone at the end of last August, in which at least 30 people were killed, until recently, until al-Sadr’s last call for the “month of unification and reconciliation” was considered an extension of the truce.
Following the last visit, an unwritten truce began between al-Sadr and his opponents, while questions arose about a “scenario” after the visit (it ended more than a week ago).
Sources close to al-Sadr said in an interview with Al-Mada that “the leader of the Sadrist movement granted this deadline to give the coordination framework more time to agree to its three conditions to resolve the political crisis.”
The sources revealed that the conditions are: “Al-Kazemi’s government will survive, announce new elections, dissolve parliament, and find a legal solution to the problem of the largest bloc and the blocking third.”
Al-Sadr’s words about the anniversary of the Prophet’s death were considered as indications of extending the “Arbaeen truce” from the date of its expiry date on September 18 last and for a period of one month (ending in the middle of next October).
This extension coincides with the first anniversary of the early legislative elections, which took place on October 10 last year.
Al-Sadr called in a tweet on Friday on “Twitter” that the days from (21 Safar to 17 Rabi’ al-Awwal next) be the “month of unity and reconciliation.”
During the month-long deadline, Al-Sadr demanded “the renunciation of violence and extremism among Muslims” and “the cessation of all wars and conflicts between countries.”
And the last deadline is the fourth launched by the leader of the Sadrist movement after the legislative elections that took place about a year ago.
The first was the forty-day period (from April to May last), followed by a month (experimental transition to the opposition in mid-May), and the 10-day deadline granted by al-Sadr last month to the judiciary to dissolve parliament.
Framework concessions
To this, the coordination framework is still unable to resume parliament sessions to pass its candidate to head the new government, Muhammad al-Sudani, after the latter’s session in the council’s cafeteria to inform a few deputies of what he said was his program for the next government.
In return, the “framework” began by making concessions to persuade al-Sadr, as Qais al-Khazali (Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq) confirmed what al-Mada had mentioned a week ago about giving the “current” 6 ministries (half the Shiites’ share in the next government), and the possibility of replacing al-Sudani.
Khazali said during his hosting on the official channel that “the movement wanted to return to parliament, so there are early elections, and if it wants to participate in the government, the framework is welcome and ready to give half of the Shiite component’s entitlement to the Sadrist movement to participate.”
He pointed out that “Muhammad Shiaa al-Sudani is ready to give up his candidacy for the position of prime minister by the framework if the solution is his apology.”
Khazali added, “Everything that the current demands will find a response from the framework for discussion, and the framework is open to the Sadrist movement and is responsive to it to overcome the political crisis.”
Al-Attar fears that its efforts to resume parliament sessions will be disrupted, coinciding with the second anniversary of the start of the October protests.
A group calling itself the Central Committee for the preparation of the demonstrations, the first of next October, vowed to storm the Green Zone.
The group said in a video statement that their next step would be “on 1/10 by gathering at Al-Nusour Square, west of Baghdad, at 11 am, then storming Al-Khadra through the gate near the square.”
The group stressed that “the intrusion is to convey messages of the people’s aspirations,” noting that the messages will be announced at a later time.
The political and civil movements under the name of “forces of protest and change” revealed in a meeting that took place on Friday in Nasiriyah, their support for the protests expected to start next week.
At the end of the meeting, these forces called for arms to be confined to the hands of the state, and to the formation of a political party that believes in democracy.
The “Protest and Change” group affirmed “full support for the peaceful protest against the corrupt authority aiming for change on the third anniversary of the October Revolution.”
Yesterday, Baghdad Operations announced that it had cut the Jumhuriya Bridge in central Baghdad, which leads to the Green Zone, for half an hour as part of “security practices.”
The authorities had conducted more than one practice last week, in the capital, during which they closed bridges and main roads for several hours, while observers believed that this was a “simulation of the security work in the event of demonstrations or riots.”
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