Wave of Assassinations in Iraq May Force Postponement of Elections

Mourners chant slogans as they march during a funerary procession for renowned anti-government activist Ehab al-Wazni in the city of Karbala on May 9, 2021 following his assassination. (AFP)
Mourners chant slogans as they march during a funerary procession for renowned anti-government activist Ehab al-Wazni in the city of Karbala on May 9, 2021 following his assassination. (AFP)
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Wave of Assassinations in Iraq May Force Postponement of Elections

Mourners chant slogans as they march during a funerary procession for renowned anti-government activist Ehab al-Wazni in the city of Karbala on May 9, 2021 following his assassination. (AFP)
Mourners chant slogans as they march during a funerary procession for renowned anti-government activist Ehab al-Wazni in the city of Karbala on May 9, 2021 following his assassination. (AFP)

The wave of assassinations that has targeted activists in Iraq’s anti-government movement has prompted it to declare a boycott of the upcoming elections, set for October.

The latest assassination victim was Ehab al-Wazni, one of the most prominent faces of the protest movement. He was killed in the city of Karbala on May 9, drawing widespread outrage and condemnation among the protesters.

Ensuing statements of condemnation declared a boycott of the polls, with activists seeking to make their voices heard on the streets rather than the ballots.

Iraqi researchers welcomed the move. Haidar Saeed said that Wazni’s assassination would persuade the “October forces” to refrain from backing the elections.

In contrast, however, the traditional political forces are more determined than ever to hold the elections on time.

As it stands, the elections will be held as scheduled and the traditional powers are on course for victory, dashing popular hopes for radical change in the country.

On the ground, small protests have continued. Last week, protesters in al-Hillah were seen running away from the security forces, which locals said have been ordered to crack down on rallies.

The security forces appeared determined to end the protests with force not seen in the city since the anti-government movement erupted in October 2019.

In a voice recording obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, an activist said that the federal police and security forces chased the protesters to their homes in a bid to quell their movement. Over 35 people were arrested.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, an Iraqi officer said the armed groups have decided to limit the popular anger sparked by Wazni’s killing to Karbala to prevent the development from becoming a spark that lights a broader protest movement.

“The gunmen are ready to open a broader front with the activists. You can say that their list of assassination targets is on the table,” he revealed.

Activists spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat of a sense of fear that has gripped the regions in the central and southern Euphrates regions.

The boycott of the elections stems from the desire to avert more assassinations, they added.

However, leaders of the protest movement confirmed that the boycott is also aimed at postponing the polls.

The leaders have ruled out the possibility of holding the elections amid the current state of instability and the armed groups’ tightening grip over the Shiite population that makes up the bulk of the protest movement.

The officer told Asharq Al-Awsat: “It is no surprise that the government is helpless at the moment. Its sovereign decision-making voice has disappeared and the scene has been left to commanders, who are sympathetic with the armed groups.”

In Karbala, a meeting was held by the protest movement leaders aimed at garnering support from social groups, such as academics and syndicates, in an effort to study the electoral boycott.

Meanwhile, the postponement of the elections may present Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi’s government with an opportunity to catch its breath after it has been pushed to the side and proven ineffectual in ending the assassinations and holding the perpetrators to account.



Israel Will Keep Gaza Buffer Zone, Minister Says, as Ceasefire Efforts Stall 

15 April 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Smoke billows after an Israeli air strike seen from Jabalia camp. (dpa) 
15 April 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Smoke billows after an Israeli air strike seen from Jabalia camp. (dpa) 
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Israel Will Keep Gaza Buffer Zone, Minister Says, as Ceasefire Efforts Stall 

15 April 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Smoke billows after an Israeli air strike seen from Jabalia camp. (dpa) 
15 April 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Smoke billows after an Israeli air strike seen from Jabalia camp. (dpa) 

Israeli troops will remain in the buffer zones they have created in Gaza even after any settlement to end the war, Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday, as efforts to revive a ceasefire agreement faltered. 

Since resuming their operation last month, Israeli forces have carved out a broad "security zone" extending deep into Gaza and squeezing more than 2 million Palestinians into ever smaller areas in the south and along the coastline. 

"Unlike in the past, the Israeli army is not evacuating areas that have been cleared and seized," Katz said in a statement following a meeting with military commanders, adding that "tens of percent" of Gaza had been added to the zone. 

"The army will remain in the security zones as a buffer between the enemy and the communities in any temporary or permanent situation in Gaza - as in Lebanon and Syria." 

In southern Gaza alone, Israeli forces have seized about 20% of the enclave's territory, taking control of the border city of Rafah and pushing inland up to the so-called "Morag corridor" that runs from the eastern edge of Gaza to the Mediterranean Sea between Rafah and the city of Khan Younis. 

It already held a wide corridor across the central Netzarim area and has extended a buffer zone all around the border hundreds of meters inland, including the Shejaia area just to the east of Gaza City in the north. 

Israel says its forces have killed hundreds of Hamas fighters, including many senior commanders of the Palestinian group, but the operation has alarmed the United Nations and European countries. 

More than 400,000 Palestinians have been displaced since hostilities resumed on March 18 after two months of relative calm, according to the UN humanitarian agency OCHA and Israeli air strikes and bombardments have killed at least 1,630 people. 

Medical charity MSF said Gaza had become a "mass grave" with humanitarian groups struggling to provide aid. "We are witnessing in real time the destruction and forced displacement of the entire population in Gaza," Amande Bazerolle, MSF's emergency coordinator in Gaza said in a statement. 

Katz said Israel, which has blocked the delivery of aid supplies into the territory, was creating infrastructure to allow distribution through civilian companies at a later date. But he said the blockade on aid would remain in place. 

He said Israel would push forward with a plan to allow Gazans who wished to leave the enclave to do so, although it remains unclear which countries would be willing to accept large numbers of Palestinians. 

RED LINES 

The comments from Katz, repeating Israel's demand on Hamas to disarm, underscore how far away the two sides remain from any ceasefire agreement, despite efforts by Egyptian mediators to revive efforts to reach a deal. 

Hamas has repeatedly described calls to disarm as a red line it will not cross and has said Israeli troops must withdraw from Gaza under any permanent ceasefire. 

"Any truce lacking real guarantees for halting the war, achieving full withdrawal, lifting the blockade, and beginning reconstruction will be a political trap," Hamas said in a statement on Wednesday. 

Two Israeli officials said this week that there had been no progress in the talks despite media reports of a possible truce to allow the exchange of some of the 59 hostages still held in Gaza for Palestinian prisoners. 

Israeli officials have said the increased military pressure will force Hamas to release the hostages but the government has faced large demonstrations by Israeli protesters demanding a deal to stop the fighting and get them back. 

Israel launched its campaign in Gaza in response to the October 2023 attack by Hamas on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies. 

The offensive has killed at least 51,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, and devastated the coastal enclave, forcing most of the population to move multiple times and reducing broad areas to rubble. 

On Wednesday, Palestinian medical authorities said an airstrike killed 10 people, including Fatema Hassouna, a well-known writer and photographer who had documented the war. A strike on another house further north killed three, they said. 

The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said Israel's suspension of the entry of fuel, medical, and food supplies since early March had begun to obstruct the work of the few remaining working hospitals, with medical supplies drying up. 

"Hundreds of patients and wounded individuals are deprived of essential medications, and their suffering is worsening due to the closure of border crossings," the ministry said.