عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Features

Iraq Officials Mull Rotation Among Sects of Top Positions

A man votes in the 2018 parliamentary elections in Baghdad. (AFP)
A man votes in the 2018 parliamentary elections in Baghdad. (AFP)
TT
20
TT

Iraq Officials Mull Rotation Among Sects of Top Positions

A man votes in the 2018 parliamentary elections in Baghdad. (AFP)
A man votes in the 2018 parliamentary elections in Baghdad. (AFP)

The withdrawal from upcoming elections by influential Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, the leader of the largest parliamentary bloc, continues to weigh heavily throughout Iraq, especially among other Shiite forces.

The capital Baghdad is divided between the Sunni Karkh district and the Shiite al-Rusafa. This divide was the most intense during the past eight years, first with the civil war when Shiites were killed in Sunni neighborhoods and Sunnis in Shiite neighborhoods.

The divisions were further widened during four rounds of elections that were held since 2005. These elections have produced a form of governance that has since proven to be a failure as Iraq plunges deeper in mismanagement at the hands of corrupt officials.

Moreover, the post-Saddam period that began in 2003 resulted in a sectarian political understanding that stipulates that the top positions of president, prime minister and parliament speaker should be divided according to sectarian lines.

As it stands, the prime minister is always a Shiite, the president a Kurd and parliament speaker a Sunni. However, parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi stirred debate recently by declaring: “Iraq is Arab and so the position of president should go to the Sunni Arabs.” He made it a point to say Arab because the Kurds too adhere to Sunni Islam.

His statement did not sit well with the Kurds, who boast their own influential blocs and are also divided among themselves over which Kurdish party should hold the position of president.

According to an understanding between the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), headed by Masoud Barzani, and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), the president of the Kurdish Region should hail from Barzani’s party, while the Iraqi president must be a member of the PUK.

Since 2003, Kurdish figures – Jalal Talbani, Fuad Masoum and Barham Salih – have served as president.

Disputes have even emerged from the PUK itself over the nomination of the next president.

On the Shiite scene, political forces have grown paranoid of a conspiracy being plotted to thwart the appointment of a Shiite to the position of premier. The constitution does not explicitly state that the prime minister should be a Shiite, Sunni or Kurd.

The signs of a Kurdish-Sadrist alliance may create further political confusion in the country. The alliance, should it come to light, would be the first since 2003.

Shortly before Sadr withdrew from the elections, he had paid a visit to Erbil to meet with KDP officials and Barzani. Observers at the time speculated that they would soon announce an alliance between the largest Shiite and Kurdish forces that would create a major shift in the political scene.

Sadr’s surprise withdrawal, however, has upended the scene and forced the KDP to rethink its future alliances.

Had the two sides forged an alliance, the division of the “sovereign positions” of president, prime minister and speaker, would have changed. The position of premier would be held by Sadr, Barzani would control the presidency instead of the PUK, and Sunni Arabs would retain the position of speaker.

The Sunni and Kurdish parties now have to wait with bated breath for Sadr to take a final decision on whether he will run in the elections or not, with all forces setting their sights on the position of prime minister.

Most Viewed

 
Features

From 'Conclave' to 'White Smoke,' a Glossary of Terms Used in a Papal Transition

Birds fly as sunlight hits St. Peter's Basilica, following the death of Pope Francis, Vatican City, April 22, 2025. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach
Birds fly as sunlight hits St. Peter's Basilica, following the death of Pope Francis, Vatican City, April 22, 2025. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach
TT
20
TT

From 'Conclave' to 'White Smoke,' a Glossary of Terms Used in a Papal Transition

Birds fly as sunlight hits St. Peter's Basilica, following the death of Pope Francis, Vatican City, April 22, 2025. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach
Birds fly as sunlight hits St. Peter's Basilica, following the death of Pope Francis, Vatican City, April 22, 2025. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach

A change in popes - through death or resignation - is a complicated process, with centuries-old rituals involving the transition in leadership for both the spiritual head of the global Catholic Church and the Vatican´s head of state.

These are the need-to-know terms - some of them in Latin - to help make sense of news in the coming days:

This is the "chamberlain" - the cardinal in charge of formally verifying the pope´s death - and then sealing his room and study. Between then and the election of the new pope, the camerlengo administers the "goods and temporal rights" of the Holy See. The current one is the Irish-born American Cardinal Kevin Farrell.

There are 252 cardinals worldwide, and as a body, they are in charge of the Holy See´s affairs in-between popes, albeit with limits. Of them, 135 are "cardinal electors," who gather in the Vatican to choose the new pope. For centuries, they have chosen one of their own. The vast majority of the electors - 108 - were made cardinals by Pope Francis, according to Vatican statistics.

This is the closed-door meeting of the cardinal electors to choose the new pope in the Sistine Chapel. Its name, literally "with a key," was used in the 13th century to describe the process of locking up the cardinals until the election is completed. It must begin no more than 20 days after the death or resignation of a pope. The electors are sequestered from all outsiders for the duration; the last three popes were chosen within days.

The current dean is Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re. He is the head of the College of Cardinals who informs the rest of the cardinals and the ambassadors to the Holy See of the pope´s death once he learns of it from the camerlengo. He convenes the conclave and presides as the electors take their oaths. Once a new pope is chosen, the dean asks him if he accepts and what name he wants to be called.

This Vatican guesthouse, built in 1996, specifically houses cardinals during a conclave and is used at other times as a hotel for visiting priests and Vatican officials. Pope Francis never moved out after he was elected pope, choosing to live in suite 201, rather than the papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace.

A Latin phrase for "all out," it's spoken by the master for papal liturgical celebrations, currently Italian Archbishop Diego Ravelli, to ask all those present except the cardinal electors to leave the Sistine Chapel to begin the voting process during the conclave.

Each pope gets this ring at the Mass marking the beginning of his pontificate. It bears this name because Jesus told St. Peter, the first pope, that he would be "a fisher of men." Until the 1990s, it was destroyed upon a pope´s death. Now, it´s "annulled," or marked in such a way that it can´t be used as a seal.

This is the name given to the gathering of all members of the College of Cardinals after the pope´s death and before the start of the conclave to discuss major church affairs. All cardinals who aren't infirm take part in this meeting in the Vatican´s Apostolic Palace. They also discuss preparations for the conclave, under oath and in secret.

This Latin phrase translates to "We have a pope." These are the words used by the "protodeacon" of the College of Cardinals to announce from the loggia of St. Peter´s Basilica that a new pope has been elected. He then says the new pope's birth name and the name he has chosen to use as pope, also in Latin. The current protodeacon is French Cardinal Dominique Mamberti.

These are the three cardinals, chosen by a random drawing from the electors, who are charged with gathering the ballots of any electors who are ill during the conclave.

This is Latin for "having had mercy and choosing him" - a phrase that Francis chose as his motto when he was elevated to bishop and kept as his papal seal. It was drawn from the homilies of St. Bede the Venerable, an 8th century monk. It comes from the Gospel narrative of St. Matthew, a tax collector whom Jesus called to follow him.

These are the three cardinals, chosen by random drawing from the electors, who are charged with reviewing the ballots during the conclave.

This is the document, or "deed," listing key details of the pope´s life and papacy that is placed in his coffin. It´s written in Latin by the master for papal liturgical celebrations. A copy is kept in the Vatican archives.

These are the three cardinals, chosen by random drawing from the electors, who are charged with reviewing each ballot and announcing it to the assembled conclave after each round of voting. They then tally the votes - to win the election, two-thirds of the votes are necessary - and they also burn the ballots.

This is Latin for "vacant seat," the period between the pope´s death or resignation and the election of a new one.

This is the basilica in Rome where Pope Francis said he wants to be buried. Francis is breaking with the tradition of his predecessors who are buried inside the Vatican, saying he wanted to be near his favorite icon of the Virgin Mary, the Salus Populi Romani, a Byzantine-style painting of the Madonna draped in a blue robe, holding the infant Jesus who in turn is holding a jeweled golden book. The icon is located in the church first built in the 5th century and devoted to the Virgin Mary. In his will, Francis said he wanted a simple underground tomb with only "Franciscus" written on it.

This Latin phrase means "the Lord´s whole flock." It´s the Vatican constitution that regulates the processes from a pope´s death until a new one is elected. St. John Paul II issued it in 1996 during his papacy, and Pope Benedict XVI twice amended it, most significantly by removing John Paul's provision that after about 12 days of balloting a simple majority could elect a new pope rather than a two-thirds majority. If the conclave lasts that long, the top two vote-getters go to a runoff, with a two-thirds majority required to win. Neither of the top two candidates casts a ballot in the runoff.

After each round of voting in the Sistine Chapel, the ballots are burned in a special furnace to indicate the outcome to the outside world. If no pope is chosen, the ballots are mixed with cartridges containing potassium perchlorate, anthracene (a component of coal tar), and sulfur to produce black smoke. But if there is a winner, the burning ballots are mixed with potassium chlorate, lactose and chloroform resin to produce the white smoke. Bells also are rung to further signal there is a new pope.