By John Lee. According to media reports, the Nasr (Victory) Alliance led by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi is trailing in third place in the Iraqi general elections. With more than half of votes counted, Saeroun (Marching Towards Reform) list, comprising Shia Muslim cleric Moqtada Sadr's Istiqama (Integrity) party and six mostly secular groups, is in the […]
By Omar Sattar for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq's firebrand Shiite cleric presents his political successor In a meeting with the ministers of defense and interior in Muqtada al-Sadr's Najaf office May 3, Sadr's nephew Ahmed al-Sadr […]
By Ammar Alsawad for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. On Feb. 28, hundreds of pro-Sadrist university students in Kut attacked Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's procession with stones and water bottles. Abadi's security forces fired tear gas and live […]
From AFP. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Hundreds of supporters of Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr demonstrate in Baghdad to demand electoral reform ahead of a planned provincial vote in September:
By Simon Kent. Prime Minister Haidar al Abadi has received a huge boost to his embattled reform campaign as parliament approved his initial choice for new Minister of Oil, Jabar Ali al Luaibi. Luaibi was formerly the head of the South Oil Company, and his appointment comes after difficult negotiations with the IMF, that included […]
By Mustafa Saadoun for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Alaa Abboud, the spokesman for the Peace Brigades, the armed faction of the Sadrist movement, said in a TV interview with a local Iraqi channel July 20, “We will […]
By John Lee. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has accepted the resignations of the ministers of oil, transport, housing and construction, water resources and industry, as well as interior, which had been previously announced. Abadi has previously called for the cabinet to include technocrats, a call later taken up by Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, but […]
From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Thousands of Iraqis have defied a protest ban and rallied in the heart of the capital, Baghdad, to demand an end to sectarianism and corruption. Al Jazeera's Natasha Ghoneim reports.
By Mohammed A. Salih for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. In a dramatic shift, 13 years after the US-led invasion of Iraq, Muqtada al-Sadr, the once-ignorable Shiite cleric, has reinvented himself as the central figure in a chaotic push to reform the country's broken […]
By Ali Mamouri for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq finds itself facing a major political crisis, as parliament is obstructed, the formation of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's new cabinet has yet to be completed and popular protests continue to demand radical reform to the legislative, executive and judicial branches. The […]
By Simon Kent. A new wave of protesters have entered Iraq's parliament, forcing Iraqi security forces to escalate force with tear gas, rubber bullets and according to reports, live ammunition. Four protesters are reported dead, with estimates putting injured at over 50. Pictures on social media showed a man who appeared to have a serious […]
By John Lee. Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Baghdad to protest at a months-long political crisis and lack of reform, according to BBC News. Supporters of the Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr (pictured) marched towards the Green Zone to press Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to push ahead with his plan […]
