The Iraqi government called Monday on the international community to put an end to Israeli violations against the Palestinian people and end the blockade on the Gaza Strip, as Hamas’ “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” against the Israelis enters its third day.
In an official statement, the cabinet reiterated Iraq’s firm position towards the Palestinian cause and the struggle of the Palestinian people.
The official Iraqi position came while prominent Shiite leaders called for mass demonstrations to support the Palestinians in Gaza, and for the burning of Israeli flags. They even threatened to attack the United States if it intervenes in the ongoing war.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Muhammed Al-Sudani discussed the latest developments in Gaza in two separate phone calls with Jordan's King Abdullah and the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
The PM also tackled the Palestinian file with the new Ambassador of the European Union to Iraq, Thomas Seiler.
“Al-Sudani urged the European Union to play a decisive role in implementing international resolutions that affirm the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people,” the PM’s office said in a statement.
It added that the discussions highlighted the relations between Iraq and the European Union, and ways to develop them in all fields, in addition to the Iraqi-European Partnership Agreement, and the work of European companies in Iraq.
Al-Sudani then noted the necessity of confronting the increasing “hate speech” that has recently escalated in some European countries, particularly the burning of copies of the Holy Quran.
Earlier, the Iraqi government had stated that the Palestinian uprising is a direct consequence of the longstanding injustices that have been inflicted on the Palestinian people and the continuation of violations and transgressions against Al-Aqsa Mosque and the crimes committed against the Palestinians.
The cabinet therefore expressed regret over the international community's inconsistency in enforcing its decisions and maintaining silence in the face of violations and crimes against the Palestinian people and Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Al-Sadr and Al-Amiri
In parallel with Iraq’s cabinet positions, the Shiite political leadership adopted a rather escalated rhetoric regarding the developments in the occupied Palestinian territories, that claimed hundreds of dead and thousands of wounded on both sides.
The leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, called on Monday for a peaceful million-man demonstration in support of the Palestinian cause.
He said: “Let us burn the Israeli flags, and raise the Palestinian flags side by side with Iraqi flags. May this demonstration be to destroy and disperse them (the Israelis), and to terrify the great evil, America, which supports Zionist terrorism against our loved ones in Palestine, and may the Palestinian lands and Holy Jerusalem return to the confines of truth, and truth is above and beyond it.”
For his part, a leader in the Coordination Framework and head of the “Nabni” electoral coalition, Hadi Al-Amiri, on Monday, threatened to target America if it supported Israel against the Palestinians.
During a meeting with Iraqi tribal sheikhs, Al-Amiri said, “The victories achieved in Palestine have been unable to be achieved by all Arab armies, and the new Iraq stands with the Palestinian cause and we will not back down from supporting it.”
