عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Iraq PM Launches Anti-Corruption Battle by Warning His Brother

Mustafa al-Kadhimi in parliament for vote of confidence on May 6, 2020 [Handout/ Parliament of Iraq/Reuters]
Mustafa al-Kadhimi in parliament for vote of confidence on May 6, 2020 [Handout/ Parliament of Iraq/Reuters]
TT
TT

Iraq PM Launches Anti-Corruption Battle by Warning His Brother

Mustafa al-Kadhimi in parliament for vote of confidence on May 6, 2020 [Handout/ Parliament of Iraq/Reuters]
Mustafa al-Kadhimi in parliament for vote of confidence on May 6, 2020 [Handout/ Parliament of Iraq/Reuters]

The new Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa al-Kadhimi, launched on Sunday his battle against corruption by warning his brother from the consequences of mediating or acting on his behalf.

The premiership’s information service broadcast a video of Kadhimi during a visit to the Public Pensions Department speaking on the phone with his eldest brother, warning him from mediating on his behalf.

The PM said if such behavior happens, it would be equivalent to identity theft that is punishable by law.

Kadhimi’s presence at the Department also secured the release of salaries of around three million Iraqi pensioners.

The PM’s keenness to fight corruption was preceded by other similar moves, when he ordered the release of demonstrators arrested during the mass protests that erupted in October last year.

The Prime Minister also ordered to reinstate a top general dismissed by former Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi in September.

“We ordered the return of the hero brother, First Lieutenant General Abdel-Wahab Al-Saadi, and to promote him as the head of the Anti-Terrorism Agency,” he said.

As Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Kadhimi said all security services have been ordered to respect human rights.

Amid unprecedented differences between groups supporting the October demonstrations, protests were held in Baghdad and other cities in central and southern Iraq against the new government, shortly after Kadhimi announced the formation of a supreme legal committee to investigate the events that took place starting October 1, 2019.

Sunday’s protests raised questions regarding their timing.

Several sources warned from the “agendas” of some political parties and forces that seek to harm the PM’s term by renewing protests.

A former candidate for the Iraqi premiership, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, told Asharq Al-Awsat that Kadhimi proved to have self-confidence, mainly when he ordered the return of Saadi.

“This is considered one of the most important decisions taken by the PM so far,” he said.

MP of Iraqi Forces Alliance Abdullah al-Kharbit told Asharq Al-Awsat that most difficulties that Kadhimi would face in the future are “internal.”

“He has a very difficult mission due to accumulated problems,” Kharbit said.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
TT
TT

Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)

Italy plans to send an ambassador back to Syria after a decade-long absence, the country’s foreign minister said, in a diplomatic move that could spark divisions among European Union allies.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, speaking in front of relevant parliamentary committees Thursday, announced Rome’s intention to re-establish diplomatic ties with Syria to prevent Russia from monopolizing diplomatic efforts in the Middle Eastern country.

Moscow is considered a key supporter of Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has remained in power despite widespread Western isolation and civilian casualties since the start of Syria’s civil war in March 2011.

Peaceful protests against the Assad government — part of the so-called “Arab Spring” popular uprisings that spread across some of the Middle East — were met by a brutal crackdown, and the uprising quickly spiraled into a full-blown civil war.

The conflict was further complicated by the intervention of foreign forces on all sides and a rising militancy, first by al-Qaida-linked groups and then the ISIS group until its defeat on the battlefield in 2019.

The war, which has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half the country’s pre-war population of 23 million, is now largely frozen, despite ongoing low-level fighting.

The country is effectively carved up into areas controlled by the Damascus-based government of Assad, various opposition groups and Syrian Kurdish forces.

In the early days of the conflict, many Western and Arab countries cut off relations with Syria, including Italy, which has since managed Syria-related diplomacy through its embassy in Beirut.

However, since Assad has regained control over most of the territory, neighboring Arab countries have gradually restored relations, with the most symbolically significant move coming last year when Syria was re-admitted to the Arab League.

Tajani said Thursday the EU’s policy in Syria should be adapted to the “development of the situation,” adding that Italy has received support from Austria, Croatia, Greece, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Cyprus and Slovakia.

However, the US and allied countries in Europe have largely continued to hold firm in their stance against Assad’s government, due to concerns over human rights violations.