By Dr. Saber Abu Maryam
Secretary General Palestine Foundation Pakistan
(Palestine Foundation Information Center), In recent days, Iraq’s politics and internal security have once again come to a critical juncture where a terrible political game is being played by using the country’s institutions in the name of accountability and rule of law. The recent sudden arrests of dozens of top government officials, members of parliament and political leaders in Baghdad’s Green Zone and other sensitive areas are not just part of an anti-corruption campaign, but the driving
forces behind it and the recent US intervention clearly reflect that this is a dangerous game being played by the Baghdad government at Washington’s dictation.
Although the elimination of corruption is the basic need of any self-governing country, when this campaign is used for specific political purposes, external cues, and especially to weaken the Islamic resistance that has stood up against the Zionist and American aggression in Iraq, it is not accountability, but a backstabbing of the country.
In recent days, political commentators around the world believe that the US government has become a tool. This campaign is a continuation of the same campaign launched after the Washington Treaty against . At the same time, the American government has tried to kill the Shib blood of Recent facts and ground evidence completely expose the fabric of this conspiracy. The dramatic arrests in Baghdad came shortly after a key meeting between Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi and the US President’s Special Envoy Tom Barrack. The Iraqi public and political circles are right to raise the question that immediately after the arrival of Washington’s seal, why were those leaders who were independently demanding the complete withdrawal of American troops from Iraq and the end of American influence in the region targeted?
Shia parties and leaders who are considered ideologically and politically close to the opposition bloc have been targeted under the guise of these arrests. By taking advantage of the parliamentary recess, where the political power of the parliamentarians is weak, to align the Iraqi security agencies against their own political system is in fact tantamount to killing the political mandate of the Iraqi people.
A major and most important goal of this conspiracy is to sabotage the deep, fraternal and strategic relations between Iraq and the Islamic brotherhood of Iran. Iran supported the Iraqi government in the war against the worst threat of ISIS (ISIS) in every difficult time and saved the territorial integrity of Iraq by offering the blood of its great soldiers. The supreme commander of Iran, General Qasim Soleimani, was martyred in Baghdad along with the Iraqi commander Abu Mehdi Al-Muhandis. Not only this but the people and youth of Iraq have sacrificed their lives in large numbers for the sovereignty and independence of Iraq.
America and its Zionist allies are afraid of the strong alliance of Iran and Iraq in Western Asia and the successive successes of the resistance front. This is the reason why the recent arrests are being deliberately linked to fabricated US charges such as alleged smuggling of Iranian oil or violation of sanctions, so as to create a gulf in the economic and political ties between Baghdad and Tehran and make the US a puppet state by isolating Iraq once again.
It should be remembered that the United States has killed more than one hundred thousand Iraqi citizens as a result of continuous military operations in Iraq since 2003, but it is surprising that the current Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi has believed the words of American President Trump and his representative Tom Barak and is acting on the plan to damage the unity and stability of Iraq.
It is the duty of any independent Iraqi government to prioritize its security and economic interests with Tehran instead of bowing to the whimsical demands of Washington, because the peace of the region is not dependent on external forces but on regional unity.
Such a knee-jerk reaction to American pressure by the government of Wazir-e-Azam Ali al-Zaidi and using the country’s institutions for political revenge will prove extremely destructive to Iraq’s internal unity. Iraq has long suffered from sectarian waves, terrorism and economic crises, and even when the country was gradually moving towards political stability, such unilateral and questionable actions could push the country into a new political civil war and instability.
America’s main goal is not to eliminate corruption or establish bad governance in Iraq, but rather to paralyze the Iraqi resistance and political forces that are constantly fighting against the presence of American military bases on Iraqi soil and their assets. Using the Iraqi Army and Counter-Terrorism Squad (CTS) against its own politicians and resistance factions instead of strengthening national defense is a deep conspiracy to hollow out the state internally.
In summary, history is witness that whenever the rulers of Baghdad believed the false promises and claims of the American presidents, Iraq achieved nothing but destruction, migration and loss of sovereignty. This move of the current Iraqi government is like trading the sacrifices of the Iraqi people, the blood of resistance martyrs and the country’s pride. The message of the people of Baghdad, Najaf, Karbala and Basra is clear that no action against the country’s sovereignty and resistance bloc at the behest of external dictators will be accepted. The government should immediately put an end to this humiliating political theater, block the path of US intervention and strengthen strategic ties with its true neighbors such as Iran, through internal unity for the country’s survival and well-being.
