BAGHDAD // A deal bringing the Iraqi prime minister, Nouri al Maliki, a step closer to retaining power highlights the political rifts splitting the country.
In winning the support of the Sadrist movement last week, Mr al Maliki increased his chances of holding on to the premiership for a second four-year term. With elections taking place seven months ago but no new administration in place, Iraq's political parties have already broken the world record for the amount of time taken to form a new government. Should Mr al Maliki retain power, he may find himself in charge of a country so bitterly divided over his personal leadership that it is ungovernable, some political leaders warn.
While his alliance with the Sadrists means Mr al Maliki need only enlist Kurdish support to secure the required parliamentary majority, it also has had a galvanising effect on his opponents. Even former members of the National Alliance, which Mr al Maliki heads, are now seeking to form a counter bloc, a coalition that would be united by little more than a trenchant refusal to see him remain as prime minister.
The Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI), the Fadila Party and the Badr organisation, all part of the National Alliance - the grand Shiite coalition formed after the election - insist they will not support Mr al Maliki. Instead, they are now in negotiations with his arch-rival Iraqiyya, the group headed by Ayad Allawi, which narrowly defeated Mr al Maliki at the ballot box in March, but with too small a margin to be decisive.
"We do not accept Mr al Maliki as a candidate for prime minister," said Hassan al Shammri, the head of Fadila. He said the group had not been invited to the critical meeting last week at which the alliance nominated the incumbent for the premiership. "We are now trying to negotiate with other parties, including Iraqiyya, to form a government with them," he said. "As prime minister, al Maliki failed to build a good administration and we will not accept the same failures again."
A governing coalition needs to control at least 163 of the 325 seats in parliament. Iraqiyya holds 91 seats, Mr al Maliki has 89, the Sadrists 39, ISCI and Badr combined have 18 seats and Fadila has six. The Kurdish parties control 51 seats. ISCI, which ran on a joint election platform with the Sadrists, has yet to make a formal announcement on its position, but Hussein al Fatlawi, a leading ISIC member of parliament, said there was no possibility it would support Mr al Maliki. "We prefer to go into opposition. We would now like to be in serious negotiations with parties like Iraqiyya and Fadila."
He warned that the Maliki-Sadrist alliance heralded the start of the "real" political crisis in Iraq. In a move that only increased an already confused political picture, Hadi al Ameri, a leading figure in the Badr organisation, had taken part in the meeting that endorsed Mr al Maliki. Ali Shbir, another leading Badr member, said Mr al Ameri's presence did not mean the group supported the endorsement.
"Hadi al Ameri was not representing Badr at the meeting, whatever he said does not represent us as a group, just him as an individual." Mr Shbir said. It was "possible" that the Badr group would now join an alliance with Iraqiyya, Fadila and ISCI, he said. The Kurdish bloc commands enough seats to secure either Mr al Maliki, or an alliance of his rivals, control of the government. Talks are now under way with Mr al Maliki, said Mehsin al Sadoon, a Kurdish MP. But he stressed no deal had been done, and he would not rule out the group joining an anti-al Maliki alliance led by Iraqiyya.
"We have 19 demands that we have given to al Maliki to discuss with him," he said. "We stand an equal distance between all the other parties involved in the political process. " Kurdish demands, including that they be given the extra-constitutional power to collapse any government they join if it makes decisions they dislike, have thus far been rejected by the other factions. Iraqiyya, a nationalist bloc that won votes from Sunnis and Shiites, insists that as election winner it retains the right to form the government. It continues to refuse to join any administration led by Mr al Maliki. That means any government he forms would be made up of Shiite Arabs and Kurds without any significant Sunni Arab representation. Similar circumstances after the 2005 elections helped fuel a widespread anti-government insurgency, with Sunni Arabs as its backbone.
Alia Unseif, an Iraqiyya MP, said the group had formally invited ISCI and Fadila to enter into a partnership with it. She called the NA's nomination of Mr al Maliki for prime minister dangerous. "We won the election. It's our right to form the government. The Sadrists and al Maliki cannot steal away the rights of all the Iraqis who voted for us." The regional powers in the Middle East, as well as the United States, have called for a broad-based coalition government in Iraq.
Hani Ashour, a senior Iraqiyya official, who warned Iraq was now on the path "to a new dictatorship", said he felt "completely desperate" and had little real hope that Mr al Maliki's bid for a second term as prime minister could be stopped. "There is no real chance for negotiations with the other parties after the National Alliance nominated Mr al Maliki. Now all the talks are about cutting deals for the control of ministries and powerful positions in the military."
nlatif@thenational.ae
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Wonka
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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
At a glance
- 20,000 new jobs for Emiratis over three years
- Dh300 million set aside to train 18,000 jobseekers in new skills
- Managerial jobs in government restricted to Emiratis
- Emiratis to get priority for 160 types of job in private sector
- Portion of VAT revenues will fund more graduate programmes
- 8,000 Emirati graduates to do 6-12 month replacements in public or private sector on a Dh10,000 monthly wage - 40 per cent of which will be paid by government
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BANGLADESH SQUAD
Mashrafe Mortaza (captain), Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim (wicketkeeper), Mahmudullah, Shakib Al Hasan (vice captain), Mohammad Mithun, Sabbir Rahaman, Mosaddek Hossain, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Abu Jayed (Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru Editing by Amlan Chakraborty)
RESULTS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 2,200m
Winner: Arjan, Fabrice Veron (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer).
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
Winner: Jap Nazaa, Royston Ffrench, Irfan Ellahi.
6pm: Al Ruwais Group 3 (PA) Dh300,000 1,200m
Winner: RB Lam Tara, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinal.
6.30pm: Shadwell Gold Cup Prestige Dh125,000 1,600m
Winner: AF Sanad, Bernardo Pinheiro, Khalifa Al Neyadi.
7pm: Shadwell Farm Stallions Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m
Winner: Jawal Al Reef, Patrick Cosgrave, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
7.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner: Dubai Canal, Harry Bentley, Satish Seemar.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Kamindu Mendis bio
Full name: Pasqual Handi Kamindu Dilanka Mendis
Born: September 30, 1998
Age: 20 years and 26 days
Nationality: Sri Lankan
Major teams Sri Lanka's Under 19 team
Batting style: Left-hander
Bowling style: Right-arm off-spin and slow left-arm orthodox (that's right!)
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SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20Z%20FOLD5
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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
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The Dark Blue Winter Overcoat & Other Stories From the North
Edited and Introduced by Sjón and Ted Hodgkinson
Pushkin Press
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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.
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
Watford 2 (Sarr 50', Deeney 54' pen)
Manchester United 0
RESULT
Manchester United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Man United: Sanchez (24' ), Herrera (62')
Spurs: Alli (11')