Coordination Framework Announces Sudani’s Candidacy for Iraqi Premiership

 A previous session of the Iraqi Parliament (EPA)
A previous session of the Iraqi Parliament (EPA)
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Coordination Framework Announces Sudani’s Candidacy for Iraqi Premiership

 A previous session of the Iraqi Parliament (EPA)
A previous session of the Iraqi Parliament (EPA)

Hours after Iraqi National Security Advisor Qasim al-Araji declined his nomination as Iraq’s next prime minister by the Shiite Coordination Framework on Sunday, the pro-Iran bloc announced Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani, Iraq’s former minister of labor and social affairs, as their candidate for the position.

Sudani, aged 52, is currently the leader of the al-Foraten Movement and has the allegiance of several lawmakers in Parliament. Previously, Sudani was a prominent leader in the Islamic Dawa Party which is affiliated with the State of Law Coalition.

While Sudani has held different ministerial portfolios in the previous government, this is the third time he is elected as a member of parliament. He ran independently in the last round of parliamentary elections in 2021.

Sudani’s nomination came as a result of the outcomes of a Monday meeting that took place in the residence of Al-Fateh Alliance chief Hadi Al-Amiri, who had pressured al-Araji into declining his nomination.

The announcement comes as Iraq is approaching the 10-months mark following the early parliamentary elections of October 2021, with the country yet to form its next government due to the continued disputes between the political blocs in the Iraqi parliament.

Attention is now turning to the Al-Hanana neighborhood in the city of Najaf, where the leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr is based. Iraq is waiting to see whether Sadr will green light Sudani’s candidacy or not.

Although Sudani is one of 10 candidates whose names were circulated during the last period, the forces of the Coordination Framework were divided between supporters of what was termed the first line of leaders and those who opposed them.

The first line of leaders up for nomination had included Nouri al-Maliki, Hadi Al-Amiri, Haider al-Abadi and Falih Al-Fayyadh.

Although Al-Amiri officially announced his withdrawal from running for the position, Al-Maliki wrote a tweet in which he said that he would not stand in the way of any decision taken by the Coordination Framework.

As for al-Abadi and Al-Fayyadh, they did not announce their candidacy for the position, but their names were suggested as compromise candidates, especially after the conflict between al-Maliki and al-Amiri became clear.

Sadr's position on Sudani is expected to crystallize in the coming days or perhaps hours.

While it is not possible to predict what position Sadr might take, his decision will likely depend on the extent of his conviction that al-Maliki had no role in choosing Sudani, who had previously belonged to the State of Law Coalition.

If Sadr accepts Sudani, the procedures for forming the next government will proceed smoothly if the Kurds decide their position on choosing their candidate for the presidency.

But if Sadr had a negative stance on Sudani’s nomination, the next stage would be open to unexpected surprises, the least of which would be the continuation of the current government and preparations for new elections.



Israel Demolishes Seven Palestinian Homes in East Jerusalem

A picture shows a view of the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex (top L) across from the Arab town of Silwan on the hill with its al-Bustan neighborhood (C) in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on November 5, 2024. (AFP)
A picture shows a view of the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex (top L) across from the Arab town of Silwan on the hill with its al-Bustan neighborhood (C) in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on November 5, 2024. (AFP)
TT

Israel Demolishes Seven Palestinian Homes in East Jerusalem

A picture shows a view of the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex (top L) across from the Arab town of Silwan on the hill with its al-Bustan neighborhood (C) in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on November 5, 2024. (AFP)
A picture shows a view of the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex (top L) across from the Arab town of Silwan on the hill with its al-Bustan neighborhood (C) in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on November 5, 2024. (AFP)

Municipal workers began demolishing seven homes in occupied east Jerusalem's Silwan neighborhood on Tuesday, Palestinian residents and the municipality said, after an Israeli court called their construction illegal.

"This morning the Jerusalem Municipality, with a security escort from the Israel police, began its enforcement against illegal buildings in the Al-Bustan neighborhood in Silwan," Jerusalem's Israeli-controlled city hall said in a statement.

Activist Fakhri Abu Diab, one of those affected by the demolition, confirmed that "at least seven homes have been demolished, and the operation is ongoing".

He said that both houses and apartments were affected.

"They demolished my home, which I had renovated after it was previously demolished earlier this year, as well as my son's house, Haitham Ayed's family home, and four homes belonging to the Al-Ruwaidi family," Abu Diab told AFP.

He said around "40 people, including children, were affected by the demolitions in the neighborhood, leaving them homeless".

An AFP photographer saw at least four bulldozers operating on Tuesday at demolition sites in the neighborhood under tight Israeli police supervision.

In a statement, Jerusalem city hall pointed to court orders that call for the demolition of the buildings due to zoning laws that make them illegal.

However, Palestinian residents and activists accuse the municipality of concealing its true intentions.

"The buildings, like most of the buildings in the neighborhood, are located on an area that is a green designation, that is, an open public area and where there is no possibility for zoning," the municipality said, adding that the area would become a green zone instead.

Abu Diab said the true aim of the demolitions was "to reduce the percentage of Arabs and alter the demographic composition of Jerusalem in favor of (Israeli) settlers", connecting them to west Jerusalem.

Israel "is above international law, has escaped accountability, and is exploiting global focus on the wars in Gaza and Lebanon and the US elections", he said.

Israel occupied east Jerusalem in 1967 and later annexed it in a move not recognized by the international community.

Some 230,000 Israeli settlers live in east Jerusalem, according to the United Nations. Another 3,000 live in Palestinian neighborhoods within east Jerusalem's boundaries, according to Israeli rights organization Peace Now.