While protests against the Iranian regime’s interference and institutionalized corruption continues in Iraq, Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) Quds Force chief Qasem Soleimani traveled to Baghdad on Saturday, December 14.
Soleimani traveled to Iraq aiming to convince various political parties to maintain Mohammed Shia’ Sabbar al-Sudani as the new candidate for the prime ministry, the Al-Arabiya website reported on December 16.
Al-Sudani is member of the Islamic Dawa Party led by former Iraqi PM Nouri Al-Maleki who is charged with embezzlement, corruption, murder and terrorizing his opponents. al-Sudani was also a minister in Maleki’s cabinet.
Another candidate is Ghosi Al-Sahih. He was a minister in Adel Abdol Mehdi’s cabinet and close to Nouri Al-Maleki. Following his nomination for the PM post, the Iraqi people protested in numerous cities including Baghdad, Naseriyah, Najaf and Basra.
According to the Al-Sharq website on December 18, in Basra, southern Iraq, being the birthplace of Sahil Al-Ghosi, Iraqi demonstrators burned tires, blocked roads and demanded an independent prime minister.
The London based Ilaf website wrote on December 16 that Iraqi protesters call on the United Nations Security Council to hold an urgent meeting to counter the interference of all Iranian forces in Iraq.
The Organizing Committee of The October Revolution issued a statement on December 14 pointing out that the Iranian regime’s military forces entered Iraqi soil on Saturday at 4am through the Zabatia border crossing in Wasit Province of southern Iraq. Various IRGC armored vehicles were dispatched and entered Iraqi soil at 3 pm.
The Organizing Committee added that this is an occupation by the Iranian regime in full cooperation with the Iraqi government, Parliament and paramilitary forces.
The international community has a moral and legal obligation to help the Iraqi people, the Committee statement adds. The Committee also called on the UN Security Council to take clear actions against this obvious interference.
It also called on the Arab League to hold an urgent meeting and take serious actions to defend the Arabic Defense Treaty, to ask the UN Security Council to end the Iranian military presence in Iraq. and added that the Iranian regime will be defeated through nothing but the will of the Iraqi people.
The Asaeb Al-Hagh militias, being the main paramilitary force affiliated to the Iranian regime, has published a list of more than 700 names of Iraqi journalists and political activists inside and outside Iraq, threating them to death, according to a December 18 report published by The Levant website .
Reuters published a special report on November 28 covering Iraq that the paramilitary forces affiliated to the Iranian regime have murdered dozens of Iraqi protesters.
Why can the Iranian regime not leave Iraq and let the Iraqi people decide for their own destiny?
The website of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) published an opinion on December 15 titled, “Iraqi prising and the closure of Iranian regime’s economical breathing way,” explaining how Iranian non-oil exports to Iraq have increased from $2.762 billion in 2008 to $6.424 billion in 2017.
The article says: The rate of exports in 2018 to Iraq is $8.961 billion, showing an increase of 37%.
According to the Iran – Iraq Joint Chambers of Commerce, the rate of exported electricity to Iraq in 2018 is approximately $6.3 billion and the rate of exported Iranian gas to this country in $2.4 billion.
Based on these non-oil exports statistics to Iraq, Iran had $11.721 billion of income in 2018.
According to Yahya Al-Eshagh, chair of the Iran – Iraq Joint Chambers of Commerce, in the first six months of 2019, Iran had $6.5 billion of export to Iraq and this continued in august as well, Tejarat news reported on December 1.
While the Iranian regime faces tough U.S Sanctions and an economical/social crisis, and the November 2019 protests lead it to being overthrown, the regime needs breathing room, such as Iraq, to decrease these pressures.
Soleimani’s visit to Baghdad was, for this reason, a turning point as he was not able to turn the page in Iraq in favor of the Iranian regime.
Therefore, the fate of the Iranian and the Iraqi people are intertwined. Iraqi protesters have understood this reality and are targeting the Iranian interference as their main objective.
Iran is weakened in Iraq and the situation will not return to previous conditions. In the future, we will see more protests in Iran and Iraq that will lead these countries to freedom.
Source » media express