Political tensions rise over future of US forces

The assassination of Kataeb Hezbollah’s Abu Baqir Al-Saedi has heightened ethnosectarian tensions among the political elite and undermined the government’s negotiating position on the future of Coalition forces.

Parliament held a session on Saturday to discuss the US assassination of Al-Saedi. It is not clear how many MPs were in attendance but there was certainly a low turnout, and Sunni and Kurdish MPs were largely absent, although it was reported that Salim Al-Eissawi, Siyada’s nominee for the speakership, attended the session.

What was particularly notable was that although figureheads from the Coordination Framework parties attended the session, many of their MPs did not. Furthermore, there was a strong showing among Shia MPs that are not aligned to the main parties, including independents and even the Tishreen-aligned Emtidad Party. This suggests that acting speaker Muhsin Al-Mandalawi, who is backing a draft bill on the withdrawal of foreign forces, has been able to build a loose coalition of Shia MPs that are not aligned to the traditional parties.

During the session, one Emtidad MP questioned the Sudani government’s position on the withdrawal of US troops, accusing the government of dragging its feet on the issue. He demanded that Sudani be hosted in parliament to explain the government’s position.