عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Features

Does Open Confrontation between Washington, Armed Factions Embarrass Iraqi Diplomacy?

US Marines inspect a homemade rocket launcher that was found in the desert near a military base in western Iraq (File- Reuters)
US Marines inspect a homemade rocket launcher that was found in the desert near a military base in western Iraq (File- Reuters)
TT
TT

Does Open Confrontation between Washington, Armed Factions Embarrass Iraqi Diplomacy?

US Marines inspect a homemade rocket launcher that was found in the desert near a military base in western Iraq (File- Reuters)
US Marines inspect a homemade rocket launcher that was found in the desert near a military base in western Iraq (File- Reuters)

Iraq’s official statement condemning the recent US bombing of a number of armed faction bases west and southwest of Baghdad did not rise to the level of an official protest, according to Iraqi parties that are opposed to the US presence in the country.

The Iraqi government’s statement was carefully written, using diplomatic rhetoric, which gave the impression that the Iraqi government was walking a tightrope between the United States on the one hand and the pro-Iranian armed factions on the other.

While Iraq repeatedly reiterated its need for the US-led international coalition, in addition to its adherence to the strategic framework agreement signed between Baghdad and Washington in 2009, it cannot allow further escalation with these factions for emotional reasons related to the war in Gaza.

“We vehemently condemn the attack on Jurf al-Nasr, executed without the knowledge of Iraqi government agencies. This action is a blatant violation of sovereignty and an attempt to destabilize the security situation,” Basem al-Awadi, spokesperson for the Iraqi government, said in the statement.

Stressing that the attack was carried out without the knowledge of the Iraqi government seemed to be a message of protest to Washington regarding its lack of coordination, despite the strategic framework agreement between the two countries. It also appeared to be a message of reassurance to the armed factions that the government had not given Washington the green light in any way.

Moreover, the government statement reiterated its need for the international coalition, saying that the presence of the international forces in Iraq supported “the work of our armed forces through training, rehabilitation, and counseling.”
“The recent incident represents a clear violation of the coalition’s mission to combat ISIS on Iraqi soil,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, remarks issued by several Iraqi Shiite leaders ranged between a severe tone and repeated calls for the government to implement the Parliament’s decision issued in 2020, pertaining to the removal of American forces from the country.

Hadi Al-Amiri, the leader of the Al-Fatah Alliance, and Qais Al-Khazali, the head of Asaib Ahl al-Haq, called for the expulsion of the US forces, while the leader of the State of Law coalition, Nouri al-Maliki, condemned the US attacks but left some space for diplomatic action.
“The Iraqi government is committed to protecting diplomatic missions,” he said in a statement.

During a meeting with US Ambassador Helena Romanski, Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein did not deliver a diplomatic letter of protest. This was seen by many Iraqi parties that even if Baghdad condemned the attacks, its diplomatic tone did not reach the level of official protest.

In this regard, experts and political analysts question whether Baghdad’s balanced tone would help maintain the rules of engagement between the armed factions and the United States within acceptable limits without reaching the bone-breaking stage.
Such an escalation would constitute a great embarrassment to the Iraqi government, in the event the factions bomb the US embassy or the United States directly targets some of the leaders of these groups. Then, the scene will change, so will the rules of engagement.

Most Viewed

 
 
Features

In Assad's Hometown, Few Shared in His Family's Fortune. They Hope they Won't Share in His Downfall

A defaced portrait of ousted president Bashar al-Assad hangs on the wall of a building in the capital Damascus on December 17, 2024. (Photo by Sameer Al-DOUMY / AFP)
A defaced portrait of ousted president Bashar al-Assad hangs on the wall of a building in the capital Damascus on December 17, 2024. (Photo by Sameer Al-DOUMY / AFP)
TT
TT

In Assad's Hometown, Few Shared in His Family's Fortune. They Hope they Won't Share in His Downfall

A defaced portrait of ousted president Bashar al-Assad hangs on the wall of a building in the capital Damascus on December 17, 2024. (Photo by Sameer Al-DOUMY / AFP)
A defaced portrait of ousted president Bashar al-Assad hangs on the wall of a building in the capital Damascus on December 17, 2024. (Photo by Sameer Al-DOUMY / AFP)

On the walls of the palatial mausoleum built to house the remains of former Syrian President Hafez Assad, vandals have sprayed variations of the phrase, “Damn your soul, Hafez.”
Nearly two weeks after the ouster of his son, Bashar Assad, people streamed in to take photos next to the burned-out hollow where the elder Assad’s grave used to be. It was torched by opposition fighters after a lightning offensive overthrew Assad's government, bringing more than a half-century rule by the Assad dynasty to an end, The Associated Press said.
The mausoleum's sprawling grounds — and the surrounding area, where the ousted president and other relatives had villas — were until recently off limits to residents of Qardaha, the former presidential dynasty's hometown in the mountains overlooking the coastal city of Latakia.
Nearby, Bashar Assad’s house was emptied by looters, who left the water taps running to flood it. At a villa belonging to three of his cousins, a father and his two young sons were removing pipes to sell the scrap metal. A gutted piano was tipped over on the floor.
While the Assads lived in luxury, most Qardaha residents — many, like Assad, members of the Alawite minority sect — survived on manual labor, low-level civil service jobs and farming to eke out a living. Many sent their sons to serve in the army, not out of loyalty to the government but because they had no other option.
“The situation was not what the rest of the Syrian society thought,” said Deeb Dayoub, an Alawite sheikh. “Everyone thought Qardaha was a city built on a marble rock and a square of aquamarine in every house," he said, referring to the trappings of wealth enjoyed by Assad's family.
In the city’s main street, a modest strip of small grocery stores and clothing shops, Ali Youssef, stood next to a coffee cart, gesturing with disdain. “This street is the best market and the best street in Qardaha and it’s full of potholes.”
Families resorted to eating bread dipped in oil and salt because they could not afford meat or vegetables, he said. Youssef said he dodged mandatory military service for two years, but eventually was forced to go.
“Our salary was 300,000 Syrian pounds,” a month, he said — just over $20. “We used to send it to our families to pay the rent or live and eat with it" while working jobs on the side to cover their own expenses.
"Very few people benefited from the former deposed regime,” Youssef said.
So far, residents said, the security forces made up of fighters from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham — the main group in the coalition that unseated Assad, and which is now ruling the country — have been respectful toward them.
“The security situation is fine so far, it’s acceptable, no major issues,” said Mariam al-Ali, who was in the market with her daughter. “There were a few abuses ... but it was fixed.” She did not elaborate, but others said there had been scattered incidents of robberies and looting or threats and insults.
Al-Ali called Assad a “traitor,” but she remained circumspect about her Alawite community's position in the new Syria.
“The most important thing is that there should be no sectarianism, so there will be no more blood spilled,” she said.
Dayoub, the Alawite sheikh, described “a state of anticipation and caution among all citizens in this area, and in general among Alawites,” although he said fears have started to ease.
At the town’s municipal building, dozens of notables sat on bleachers discussing the country' s new reality and what they hoped to convey to the new leadership.
Much was centered around economic woes — retired public servants' salaries had not been paid, the price of fuel had risen, there was no public transportation in the area.
But others had larger concerns.
“We hope that in the next government or the new Syria, we will have rights and duties like any Syrian citizen — we are not asking for any more or less,” said Jaafar Ahmed, a doctoral student and community activist. “We don’t accept the curtailment of our rights because the regime was part of this component.”
Questions also loomed about the fate of the area's sons who had served in Assad's army.
Since the army's collapse in the face of the opposition advance, residents said several thousand young army recruits from Qardaha have gone missing. Some later turned up on lists of former soldiers being held at a detention center in Hama.
“These are young guys who are 22 or 23 and they never took part" in active combat, said Qais Ibrahim, whose nephews were among the missing. Over the past few years, active combat was largely frozen in the country's civil war. “We send our children to the army because we don’t have any other source of income.”
Um Jaafar, who gave only her nickname out of fear of reprisals, said the family had no information about the fate of her two sons, stationed with the army in Raqqa and Deir Ezzour, though one son's name later turned up on the list of those imprisoned in Hama.
“My children got the best grades in school, but I didn’t have the ability to send them to the university,” she said. “They went to the army just for a salary that was barely enough to cover their transportation costs.”
Syria's new authorities have set up “reconciliation centers” around the country where former soldiers can register, hand over their weapons and receive a “reconciliation ID” allowing them to move freely and safely in Syria for three months.
But Ahmed, the doctoral student, said he wants more. As the country attempts to unify and move on after nearly 14 years of civil war, he said, “We want either forgiveness for all or accountability for all.”
Ahmed acknowledged that during the war, “rural Latakia was responsible for some radical groups,” referring to pro-Assad militias accused of widespread abuses against civilians. But, he said, opposition groups also committed abuses.
“We hope that there will be either an open process of reconciliation ... or transitional justice in which all will be held accountable for their mistakes, from all parties," he said.
"We can’t talk about holding accountable one ... group but not another.”