There is no place for former Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki in the coalition to form Iraq's next government, a spokesman for the recent election's largest political bloc has said.
"Nouri Al Maliki is not welcome to join the coalition," Dhiaa Al Assadi, a close aide to Shiite Cleric Moqtada Al Sadr, told The National.
Last month's parliamentary elections saw electoral lists led by nationalist Mr Al Sadr and Iranian-backed militia chief Hadi Al Amiri win the largest number of seats. The two leaders announced their intention to form an alliance of their political blocs on Wednesday.
They called on other political groups to join them in a coalition. Notably absent from that invitation was Mr Al Maliki.
It appears a decisive set back for Mr Al Maliki, who in the past managed to cling to power despite rising unpopularity.
Mr Al Maliki took power in 2006 with the blessing of both the United States and Iran. But he rapidly alienated the country's Sunni and Kurdish minorities by shutting them out of key security positions and undermining power-sharing agreements.
During the 2010 elections, a secular bloc headed by vice president Ayad Allawi won the most seats in parliament. But Tehran backed Mr Al Maliki to remain in power, who was able to form a "national unity" government with the help of Mr Al Sadr.
Mr Al Maliki was finally forced to step down in 2014 following the collapse of a third of Iraq's military and police units in the face of an ISIS offensive which overran a third of the country. He immediately assumed the largely ceremonial role for vice president. He was replaced as premier by fellow Dawa Party member Haider Al Abadi.
As general secretary of the Dawa party, Mr Maliki has retained political influence, though his State of Law coalition performed bellow expectations in the recent elections, winning just 26 seats.
The blocs controlled by Mr Al Sadr and Mr Amiri control 101 seats, short of the 165 required to form a majority.
Mr Al Sadr's Sairoun alliance, which also includes the Communist Party and secular candidates, won 54 seats, while Mr Amiri's Fatah coalition of Shiite paramilitaries won 47 seats.
Incumbent Prime Minister Abadi's Victory alliance took 42 seats.
"His Eminence [Mr Al Sadr] has always welcomed Dr Al Abadi to join his coalition," Mr Al Assadi said.
The Shiite cleric has previously vowed that he would not allow Mr Maliki another term as prime minister.
Even his former backers in Tehran may have given up on him. "Nouri Al Maliki was Iran's best person but they accept that he's not part of the next government because of the instability caused" during his time in power, Renad Mansour, senior research fellow at London's Chatham House, told The National.
“Al Sadr’s stance has been to side-line Nouri Al Maliki," he added.
Mr Al Sadr's strong election performance marked the culmination of years of speaking out against corruption and government mismanagement.
He first built his name outside of mainstream politics, as the head of the Mehdi Army militia which fought against the US occupation using sophisticated bombs likely supplied by the Iranians. But he has remained a staunch nationalist, critical of Iranian interference in Iraq.
For his proposed coalition to succeed, Mr Al Sadr will need to overcome grievances from members of his own bloc who insist Tehran should not be permitted to interfere in Iraq's affairs.
Iran backs Mr Al Amiri, a militia leader who spent two decades fighting former dictator Saddam Hussein from Iran. He is also close to General Qassem Soleimani, commander of foreign operations for Iran's Revolutionary Guards who has great influence in Iraq.
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Neil Thomson – THE BIO
Family: I am happily married to my wife Liz and we have two children together.
Favourite music: Rock music. I started at a young age due to my father’s influence. He played in an Indian rock band The Flintstones who were once asked by Apple Records to fly over to England to perform there.
Favourite book: I constantly find myself reading The Bible.
Favourite film: The Greatest Showman.
Favourite holiday destination: I love visiting Melbourne as I have family there and it’s a wonderful place. New York at Christmas is also magical.
Favourite food: I went to boarding school so I like any cuisine really.
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
T20 World Cup Qualifier
October 18 – November 2
Opening fixtures
Friday, October 18
ICC Academy: 10am, Scotland v Singapore, 2.10pm, Netherlands v Kenya
Zayed Cricket Stadium: 2.10pm, Hong Kong v Ireland, 7.30pm, Oman v UAE
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Darius D’Silva, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zawar Farid, Ghulam Shabber, Junaid Siddique, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Waheed Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Zahoor Khan
Players out: Mohammed Naveed, Shaiman Anwar, Qadeer Ahmed
Players in: Junaid Siddique, Darius D’Silva, Waheed Ahmed
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 178hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 280Nm at 1,350-4,200rpm
Transmission: seven-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: from Dh209,000
On sale: now
Name: Peter Dicce
Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
The biog
Name: Fareed Lafta
Age: 40
From: Baghdad, Iraq
Mission: Promote world peace
Favourite poet: Al Mutanabbi
Role models: His parents
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.
