It could take weeks before we know the final results of Iraq's March 7 elections, but already there are plenty of reasons for a cheer (or two).
For one thing, the election's sheer ordinariness has been heartening. The vote came off as scheduled and, as we expected, voting day in Iraq was eclipsed by an event thousands of miles away - the Oscars.
This public indifference in much of rest of the world, deplorable under most circumstances, felt like a strange sort of victory, given Saddam Hussein's dictatorship, the US occupation and other catastrophes that have recently beset Iraq.
There is another reason for cheer, too: Iraq's elections have featured the same banalities and clichés that mark elections everywhere. On election day, we saw voters' purple thumbs raised in triumph, no doubt at the bidding of photographers hovering around polling places.
Now, as speculation about voting results mounts, we watch as media advisers for Iraqi politicians scramble to spin reporters - a sight that elsewhere might be proof positive of what's wrong with modern politics but seems reassuring in Iraq. As methods of persuasion go, it beats a gun, an explosives vest or Saddam and his henchmen.
Even the apparent electoral success of the followers of Muqtada al Sadr, a radical cleric who led the anti-American Shiite insurgency, feels like grounds for some applause.
With about 80 per cent of the vote counted, neither the former prime minister Iyad Allawi nor the incumbent Nouri al Maliki has a commanding lead, but Mr al Sadr's supporters appear poised to win a king-making 40 seats in the 325-member Parliament.
Critics of the Sadrists might find their re-emergence alarming, but it may represent the proverbial grey-cloud-with-a-silver-lining. It shows the Sadrists could be on their way towards a full embrace of the rough-and-tumble political process now evolving in Iraq.
Not everything about Iraq is rosy, certainly. The days ahead may yet prove grim. The country is still bristling with weapons and ordnance, along with people willing to use them.
Naturally, families of the 15 dead from bombings this week will find paeans to elections empty, as well they should. Their grief is a reminder that ensuring security will be the ultimate litmus test of successful elections.
Furthermore, lest we need reminding, elections do not a democracy make. Ali Allawi, a former defence minister, recently described Iraq's political landscape as a "minimalist" democracy built around a "new class" of 500 to 600 politicians.
The region has seen this political arrangement before, Mr Allawi said, in Egypt and Iraq during the British period last century. Then, the elites learned to play party politics, too, but not to meet people's needs. "That ended in tears," he said.
Mr Allawi's warning, however, shouldn't detract completely from Iraq's achievement. After paying an incalculable price in blood and treasure, Iraqis have made their voices heard at the ballot box. Thus with each passing day, Iraq is a country that more truly belongs - for good and ill - to its people. And that, in the end, is the only thing that matters.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company%20profile
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6 UNDERGROUND
Director: Michael Bay
Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Adria Arjona, Dave Franco
2.5 / 5 stars
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Avengers: Endgame
Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Josh Brolin
4/5 stars
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German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
THE%20SPECS
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Company profile
Date started: January, 2014
Founders: Mike Dawson, Varuna Singh, and Benita Rowe
Based: Dubai
Sector: Education technology
Size: Five employees
Investment: $100,000 from the ExpoLive Innovation Grant programme in 2018 and an initial $30,000 pre-seed investment from the Turn8 Accelerator in 2014. Most of the projects are government funded.
Partners/incubators: Turn8 Accelerator; In5 Innovation Centre; Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Programme; Dubai Future Accelerators; FHI 360; VSO and Consult and Coach for a Cause (C3)
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match info
Southampton 2 (Ings 32' & pen 89') Tottenham Hotspur 5 (Son 45', 47', 64', & 73', Kane 82')
Man of the match Son Heung-min (Tottenham)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
Most%20polluted%20cities%20in%20the%20Middle%20East
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MOST%20POLLUTED%20COUNTRIES%20IN%20THE%20WORLD
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Common%20symptoms%20of%20MS
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The Good Liar
Starring: Helen Mirren, Ian McKellen
Directed by: Bill Condon
Three out of five stars
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Bib%20Gourmand%20restaurants
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Asia%20Cup%202022
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013