عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Baghdad Money Fails to Stifle Southern Anti-Corruption Protesters

Demonstration against corruption and poor services in Tahrir Square in Baghdad (AP)
Demonstration against corruption and poor services in Tahrir Square in Baghdad (AP)
TT
TT

Baghdad Money Fails to Stifle Southern Anti-Corruption Protesters

Demonstration against corruption and poor services in Tahrir Square in Baghdad (AP)
Demonstration against corruption and poor services in Tahrir Square in Baghdad (AP)

Civil rights protests continued marching across Southern Iraq despite the outgoing Iraqi government's Thursday announcement on disbursing funds promised by Prime Minister Haider Abadi to central and southern provinces.

Demonstrations went on with protests against corruption and poor services in each of Basra, Maysan, Muthanna, Dhi Qar governorates and even the capital Baghdad.

While Iraq’s Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the supreme religious authority in Iraq, encouraged public riots as the only mean of obtaining rights, another Shiite cleric Ayatollah Bashir al-Najafi (one of the top four Najaf references alongside Sistani) urged calm and delaying demands to establish the oil-rich Basra province as an autonomous region.

Najafi’s representative Ahmad al-Safi, during a Friday sermon in Karbala, reiterated the right to protest in demand of rights.

Validating protests, Safi said that any Iraqi has every right to be angered by disrupted life affairs so long that protests are remain restrained and peaceful.

“When a person is exposed to anything that provokes his anger, such as a social problem, economic, political or military, and he decides to take it outside to face and protest it under a controlled manner, then such anger is praiseworthy,” Safi said.

“There are positive effects to anger,” he added.

On the other hand, Salah al-Din residents’ demand for the complete withdrawal of Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) factions grew intensively after Khazraj tribal leaders, known as sheikhs or elders, were kidnapped and killed by gunmen who were reported to belong to Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq.

Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, a PMF offshoot, denied its responsibility despite incoming reports.

Salah al-Din’s provincial council joined in the demand and called for “the removal of all armed factions from the province.”

The council also joined popular demands and called on the central government to “intervene and withdraw all paramilitary factions under the banner of the PMF to avoid further problems and clashes.”

Ahmed al-Jubouri, a renowned local politician, was asked to play a role in realizing a PMF exit.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Aoun Wants Formation of ‘Consensual’ Lebanese Govt Representing All Components

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.
TT
TT

Aoun Wants Formation of ‘Consensual’ Lebanese Govt Representing All Components

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun is advocating the formation of a government of “consensus” that includes representatives from all political factions.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam has requested that parliamentary blocs submit non-partisan nominees for ministerial positions, emphasizing that they must not belong to any political party.

Aoun stressed on Tuesday that all components of society have the right to be represented in the government, parliament and public administration, as this is already practiced in the army.

“We have significant opportunities that we hope to seize by uniting all elements of Lebanese society—civil, spiritual, and political. Together, we can rebuild our nation,” he declared.

Highlighting the importance of meeting international expectations, Aoun hoped for the rapid formation of a government to achieve political, economic, and security stability, which would allow citizens “to live with dignity, not merely in relative comfort.”

During meetings with professional delegations at the Presidential Palace, Aoun said: “We are at a crossroads. Either we take advantage of the current circumstances and rise above sectarian, religious, and political divisions, or we head in a different direction and bear full responsibility for failing to fulfill our duties.”

Negotiations between Aoun, Salam, and political factions over the formation of a government are ongoing. The discussions, which kicked off last week, have reportedly made progress, with efforts directed toward expediting the government formation process, issuing decrees, preparing a ministerial statement, and securing its vote of confidence from lawmakers.

While the Shiite duo of Hezbollah and the Amal Movement appear to have finalized their proposed nominees for the government, disagreements over the ministerial statement remain.

MP Waddah Sadek, who is backed by the opposition, firmly rejected the inclusion of the “Army, People, Resistance” term in the statement. He declared: “No ‘blocking third’ in the government, and no unconstitutional gimmicks. The slogan of the new phase in Lebanon should be: the ‘Army, People, and State.’”

The Kataeb Party echoed this stance, stressing that Lebanon, emerging from a devastating war between Hezbollah and Israel, must align with the Aoun’s inaugural speech and Salam’s remarks by ensuring the ministerial statement exclusively underscores the state’s monopoly over arms and the defense of the nation.

“The government must act decisively, dismantle militias, strictly enforce the ceasefire, and uphold its provisions across all Lebanese territory,” it demanded.

The Kataeb Party also urged Aoun and Salam to resist the “great extortion” by Hezbollah and Amal to secure specific ministries or positions, in violation of the inaugural speech, calling instead for the application of uniform standards to ensure the government’s success.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah adopted a more confrontational tone.

MP Hussein Hajj Hassan, a member of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, commented: “To those betting on Hezbollah’s weakness or the weakness of the Hezbollah-Amal alliance, what will you say when the government is formed? What will you say when you realize the strength of Hezbollah, the alliance, and the resistance’s supporters across all segments of Lebanese society? What will you say when you see the unwavering determination and unity of the resistance at every critical juncture?”