And meanwhile groups like the one led by al-Hashemi – the country’s Vice-President who was sentenced to death after being accused of terrorism and who remains in hiding outside of Iraq – have been split by opinions on what to do about their former leader. Some have supported al-Hashemi and others have not.
In fact some observers speculate that the Iraqiya bloc’s internal crisis has been caused by the idealistic way in which Allawi has managed the party ever since the crisis around the formation of the government in 2010. In comparison, observers say that al-Maliki has behaved in a more non-partisan and practical way.
All of these issues have seen Allawi’s leadership undermined. And at the same time, Iraqiya’s major opposition party – the State of Law bloc led by al-Maliki – has welcomed the defectors. The defectors have tended to vote with whomever they support on any particular issue – this has included voting against Iraqiya-supported efforts to remove al-Maliki from power.
“These days Allawi certainly doesn’t represent all of Iraqiya,” a leading member of the State of Law bloc, Mohammed Sayhoud, suggested to NIQASH. “In fact, he is the cause of most of the defections and splits.”
It is true that within the party, there are also still divisions –particularly among some of the leading members. This includes Osama al-Nujaifi and one of Iraq’s three deputy prime ministers, Saleh al-Mutlaq, who heads another of the parties that make up the Iraqiya bloc. “They may not always agree with decisions made by Allawi but they have opted to remain with the bloc,” Sayhoud noted.
In fact, some observers say that al-Nujaifi has become the “real” leader of the Iraqiya bloc behind the scenes. At first al-Nujaifi had supported the attempts to oust al-Maliki from power – the Iraqiya bloc was staunchly behind those attempts as were other blocs, including ones from inside the State of Law bloc (which indicates the Iraqiya bloc is not alone in battling internal divisions).
Al-Mutlaq was also behind the challengers, accusing al-Maliki of having dictatorial qualities and even leaving his job as Deputy Prime Minister.
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