Maliki Replaced, But Says He Isn’t Leaving
If the leader of any other country had been in charge with the king of chaos we are now seeing in Iraq, they would have been gone a long time ago. Nouri al-Maliki has been forced out, but so far says he has the right to continue as Prime Minister.
Maliki had appeared to be clinging to his post, but he was abandoned by party allies and sidelined by religious and regional backers who no longer believe he can save the crumbling state.
His defiance sets the scene for yet another volatile period in Iraqi politics at a time when the Islamic State (Isis) jihadist group continues to rampage through the country, fast diminishing the authority of the central government. It also adds more uncertainty to a pivotal period in the modern history of the region, with the unitary borders of Iraq and its neighbours under mounting pressure to hold together.
Iraqi president, Fouad Massoum, selected Haider al-Abadi, to replace Maliki.
The powerful Shia cleric, Moqtada al-Sadr, whose movement controls dozens of seats in parliament, expressed his support for Abadi’s nomination, describing it as the “first sign” the country was headed back to safety. “I think that this nomination will be an important start in order to end the crisis that the people are undergoing such as security and service problems,” he said in a statement.
Under Iraq’s constitution Maliki remains prime minister for the next 30 days, until a new cabinet is formed. His son-in-law, Hussein al-Maliki, said Maliki would seek to overturn Abadi’s nomination in the courts. “We will not stay silent. The nomination is illegal and a breach of the constitution. We will go to the federal court to object,” he told Reuters.
Tommy6860 August 11th, 2014 at 6:23 pm
This ineffectual leader was put into power by an American ineffectual leader; George W. Bush. I have a bad feeling we’ll be cleaning up more of this mess than us just getting out of the combat roles in Iraq.
fancypants August 11th, 2014 at 6:41 pm
I hear ya maliki ..we have the same problems over here with the gop
Obewon August 11th, 2014 at 6:56 pm
“Freedom’s on the march.” GWB’s anointed Maliki non-secular failures, blew up his entire country. Democracy dethroned his bigotry. Good luck keeping your head! At the Maliki corruption and mismanagement trial, conviction and sentencing.
Always Right August 11th, 2014 at 7:53 pm
Obama should have done something about that before he got reelected in December 2010. That would have been a good time to put some pressure on him.
majii August 11th, 2014 at 8:13 pm
Those of us who have studied foreign policy/international relations extensively know there’s a concept known as sovereignty which states that every country has the right to determine what its government will be like. The U.S. has violated this principle on numerous occasions and the results have been devastating. An example of our failure to acknowledge Iraq’s sovereignty was the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, which led to the present state of circumstances in the country. What irks me is the fact that there are millions of Americans who would be angry as hell if another nation interfered in our government but condone the U.S. interfering in other nations’ affairs. Those holding this attitude may not believe it, but they’re hypocrites. I’ve also noticed that those who call this particular president “weak” can’t seem to make up their minds because they seem to think at the same time that he is powerful enough to bend other nations’ leaders to his will–something no American president has ever been able to do.
*Edited for grammar
Hirightnow August 11th, 2014 at 9:36 pm
” I’ve also noticed that those who call this particular president “weak”
can’t seem to make up their minds because they seem to think at the
same time that he is powerful enough to bend other nations’ leaders to
his will–something no American president has ever been able to do.”
They have their over-riding religion in Iraq, the RW has theirs.
Best not to try and make sense of it, just figure that “GOD” is on their side, because He told them so.
Always Right August 14th, 2014 at 9:56 am
When you’re funneling billions of dollars into a country you get leverage into their internal affairs. Hillary Clinton and Carl Levin were two of several U.S. politicians who called for him to be removed from office in 2007. Senator Clinton urged Iraq’s parliament to select a “less divisive and more unifying figure” and implied she felt al-Maliki was too concerned about Iraq’s Shiite majority and not enough with national reconciliation.
Obewon August 11th, 2014 at 8:14 pm
1. Maliki has been Iraq’s prime minister since 2006!
2. But even though his coalition won the elections in April, parliament has still not agreed to give him a third term.
3. Maliki has also lost the backing of the US. -Now he has lost support from some of his own Shias – with the Shia National Alliance reported to have given Mr Abadi 130 votes, compared with just 40 votes for Mr Maliki.
The White House said Vice-President Joe Biden called Mr Abadi to congratulate him on his nomination – and promised US support for the formation of a new government. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-28739975
fancypants August 11th, 2014 at 8:25 pm
Obama left it up to Iraq to take care of what needed to be done. Since the rest of the world is pointing to the usa for this debacle we left in place Its our baby now.
tiredoftea August 11th, 2014 at 11:56 pm
He did do something. He obeyed the government of Iraq’s wishes and withdrew, per the Status of Forces agreement signed by both parties during W’s term.
granpa.usthai August 11th, 2014 at 7:09 pm
damn, if only he had said the young earth was as flat as Texas on a cold griddle, he could have passed for a Gohmert double!
Hirightnow August 11th, 2014 at 9:32 pm
Can we, for ONCE, install/back a puppet that has some common sense?
AnthonyLook August 12th, 2014 at 12:54 am
Maliki is like Cheney and his daughter; a stubborn fungus that won’t go away.