Breathless in the Green Zone: countdown to ending Iraq’s parliament presidency dilemma

Shafaq News/ With political tensions simmering and external pressures mounting, Iraq's Coordination Framework (CF) has thrown its weight behind Mahmoud Al-Mashhadani for the parliament presidency, marking a new step towards resolving the months-long deadlock that has left the country without a parliamentary speaker.

Parliament Presidency Dilemma

Since the removal of former Speaker Mohammed Al-Halboosi in November 2023, Iraq’s political forces have struggled to elect a new parliament speaker. Numerous sessions have been held, but deep divisions persist.

Al-Halboosi’s Taqaddum bloc insists that the speaker's position is its rightful claim. However, the Al-Siyada coalition, led by Khamis Al-Khanjar, along with other Sunni factions, argues that the position should represent the Sunni community as a whole rather than a specific party.

Ongoing Challenges

Abdulrahman Al-Jazayeri, a leader in the Coordination Framework, revealed details of a recent meeting held at Nouri Al-Maliki's residence with key Sunni factions. He noted, “following the meeting, certain Sunni blocs involved in the speaker’s selection issued statements signaling their intent to boycott the election session scheduled for next Wednesday.”

"Some within the Sunni component were critical of the meeting’s outcomes," Al-Jazayeri told Shafaq News, "viewing them as imposed decisions by the Shiite majority." He added that the Framework is determined to avoid delaying the session, especially amid growing "regional tensions, threats from Israel and the US, and the ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon, which are heightening the instability in Iraq's parliament."

Al-Jazayeri explained that the Al-Azm coalition, another Sunni faction, has even threatened to withdraw from the political process, while Taqaddum remains aligned with the State of Law Coalition. “Taqaddum has backed Al-Halboosi’s candidate for speaker, Mahmoud Al-Mashhadani, who is also supported by the State of Law and its allies.”

Despite this, Al-Jazayeri acknowledged the ongoing dissatisfaction within Taqaddum about the speaker’s nomination, leading to further disagreement. "The Framework has made it clear that the session will proceed with or without full agreement, as long as a quorum (Half + 1) is achieved," he added.

Impact of External Players

Al-Jazayeri did not rule out external influences, pointing to Turkish President Recep Tayyib Erdogan’s recent visit to Baghdad, “during which he met with Sunni leaders to discuss the speaker’s election.” Additionally, there are claims of Gulf and Iranian involvement in “shaping the Sunni bloc’s decisions, particularly in Al-Anbar.”

Push for Sunni Consensus

Former MP Nawaf Kamel Al-Ghurairi expressed that a resolution is inevitable. He believed there is a framework agreement, but emphasized that many Sunni factions still view the speaker’s position as belonging to the Sunni community, not to any one political bloc.

Al-Ghurairi told Shafaq News that Mahmoud Al-Mashhadani is likely to be “the final choice.”

In turn, political analyst Abbas Al-Jubouri echoed this sentiment, attributing the delays to persistent disagreements within the Sunni factions. "Each Sunni party wants to claim the position for itself," Al-Jubouri said, adding that the decision-making process has been further complicated by conditions set by the CF and Kurdish parties.

He further noted that without a unified Sunni candidate, Iraq could see a repeat of the 2018 scenario, where the parliament had to step in to resolve the issue. "Ultimately, if consensus isn’t reached, parliament will step in to make the decision."

A Session Within Days

Last week, the Coordination Framework confirmed its support for Al-Mashhadani. Ali Al-Fatlawi, another CF leader, announced that the bloc had unanimously agreed on Al-Mashhadani’s candidacy and that the election session is set for the 22nd or 23rd of this month.

In this context, political analyst Ibrahim Al-Dulaimi indicated that a tentative agreement has been reached among the various blocs to hold an extraordinary session to elect the new speaker within the next week. He explained to Shafaq News that “several key laws, pending the presence of the speaker, are awaiting passage. Therefore, the CF, along with Sunni and Kurdish blocs, is eager to proceed without further delays.”