However more recently both al-Nujaifi and al-Mutlaq appear to have reconciled with al-Maliki with al-Nujaifi seen to hold three meetings with al-Maliki in as many weeks and al-Mutlaq returning to his deputy duties. Al-Maliki withdrew his request to Parliament to have al-Mutlaq fired.
As all this has gone on, neither al-Nujaifi nor al-Mutlaq have chosen to leave the Iraqiya bloc. Although it would be clear to both of them that Iraqiya bloc leader Allawi wouldn’t be all that pleased with their increasingly close ties to al-Maliki. Some would say that Allawi considers al-Maliki his worst enemy and that he even blames al-Maliki for making rifts within Iraqiya worse.
And while Allawi has never expressed too much concern about the White Iraqiya and Free Iraqiya parties splitting off, the fact that two of his bloc’s most senior members appear to be negotiating with the opposition must cause him some worries – especially because this is happening in the run up to Iraq’s next provincial elections, slated to happen early next year.
For example, only a few days ago one leading MP from the State of Law bloc, Sami al-Askari, mentioned that his coalition was discussing the prospect of forming an alliance with al-Mutlaq and al-Nujaifi in preparation for the elections planned for April 2103.
Despite all this though, many other members of Iraqiya are standing strong. “The attempts by some blocs to cause rifts in the Iraqiya List will not succeed,” Itab al-Douri, a member of the Iraqiya bloc who was once considered a potential Minister of Defence, told NIQASH. Loyal Iraqiya members like al-Douri insist that the bloc will contest the provincial elections together, vigorously and with enthusiasm.
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