On the 12th of July 2018, The Council organized a closed panel discussion on the developments in Iraq after the Parliamentary Elections , under the theme “Iraq after the parliamentary Elections… between external pressures and internal data” with the participation of Ambassadors Dr.Ezzat Saad, Director of the council; Sayed Abu Zaid; Mohammed Badreldeen Zayed; Dr.Rajaei Fayed, Member of the Council and Director of The Egyptian center for Kurdish Studies; Dr.Gamal Abdel Gawad, Senior Advisor at Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies; a number of Iraqi Experts, Analysts, and politicians who are: Dr.Salah Nasrawy, Iraqi Political Writer and Analyst; Dr.Yassin Raouf Rasoul, Kurdish Iraqi; Dr.Mohammed Turky Abu Kalal, Director of the Office of Mr.Ammar Abdel Hakim in Cairo; Dr.Mohamed Arslan, Kurdish Journalist; and Dr.Abdel Rahman Jaddoua Saad Al-Tamimi, The Iraqi Academic.
Participants agreed that the situation in Iraq showed the following points:
– The results of the elections have shown indicators related to the mood of the Iraqi electorate who is looking forwards to having new blood and Unfamiliar alliances in the Post-ISIS- stage, as well as the fragmentation of the political powers as none of them obtained the majority that allows for constitution of the Government, and therefore this depended upon difficult negotiations and mutual concessions and this was regardless of questioning the election results by several coalitions.
– Recent Iraqi public objections have imposed itself over the negotiations for the constitution of the Government where the political powers have conducted a series of intensified contact for starting serious and different negotiations for constituting the new Government to reduce public anger and pressure as a result of the lack of essential services and corruption.
– The internal situation in Iraq suffers a state of liquidity for several reasons varying from the state of incoherence and the chronic problems related to political, economic and security situations, in addition to the political situation of the Kurds following the referendum over the separation and the issue of not reaching a solution or political settlement with the Iraqi Government. This is in addition to its being influenced by the external situations and the several interventions by the neighboring regional powers and the foreign powers.
– The Kurds must learn the lesson and the harms that followed the referendum process over the political practice by the Kurds and over the formation of alliances, and that is what have been reflected in the results they obtained in the elections. In fact, a political process must be launched to exit the state of chaos and for some of the political leaders to comprehend the result and the defeat, who despite the dictatorial system they faced, but they caused a lot of harms and risks to the Iraqi State and widespread corruption, unemployment and terrorism. In spite of all, this they are insisting to hold onto the leadership of the country.
– What the Iraqi political process has reached to; indicates positive results represented in the break of Shiite alliances and the trend to form varying political alliances, this supports the view point of the Stream of wisdom that the minority shall take over the power and the opposition is to be formed by the majority.
– The results broke sectarian alliances and forced big leaders, who were the cause of the deterioration of political, economic and social crises within the Iraqi State, out of the political process. In addition to refusal of current leaders to any agendas imposed from outside.
– The failure of these forces to formulate a national vision resulted in failing to determine the future of Iraq and in formulating a “Sumerian Iraq” combining East and West and becoming a bridge that links Iran “as a representative of the East” to the USA “as a representative of the West”, or will Iraq remain an area of conflicts and waging wars by proxy and the victims are the Iraqi people.
