Controversy arises inside the Sunni house, scattering "allies" and "adversaries"

Shafaq News / The withdrawal of MP Raad Al-Dahlaki from al-Siyada Alliance, and the "acceptance of the resignation" of Laith Al-Dulaimi from the House of Representatives, raised questions about the reasons for the outbreak of disagreement within the Sunni house. Some observers believe that it emerged following the formation of the government. In contrast, others believe that it came in preparation for the next stage, during which early local or parliamentary elections that require new alliances will be held.

Independent MP Yassin al-Ithawi said that "differences within the Shiite house may be more intricate and profound than they are within the Sunni house," noting that "they are due, among other things, to the formation of the ministerial cabinet, and the divergence of views regarding the management of many political issues."

"The change was made for a clearly defined objective, not for personal interests," he noted.

MP al-Dahlaki announced his withdrawal from al-Siyada Alliance for reasons he said were "essential" related to the political aspect and the benefits of Diyala Governorate. While Takaddum Party, led by Parliament Speaker Muhammad Al-Halboosi, indicated that al-Dahlaki took this decision after he failed to secure the chairmanship of the Parliamentary Integrity Committee and appoint his secretary as the Governor of Diyala.

"Differences between Sunni forces usually appear after the government formation, especially after sharing interests, so they come in their natural context," according to Ihsan al-Shammari, director of the Center for Political Thinking. "During the last period, these deep differences within al-Siyada Alliance had reached the media, although the State Administration Coalition contributed to freezing the differences of Azm and al-Siyada Alliance to some extent."

"Among the other reasons for the differences is the nature of the conflict or competition for the leadership of the Sunni house, and it seems that al-Halboosi topped the Sunni component with concern, considering that it may completely reduce the Sunni position, as some Sunni parties plan to overthrow him to seize the position of speaker of the parliament he presently occupies."

What also prompted the outbreak of disputes was "the way the second phase of the quotas is shared," according to al-Shammari, "There are presidencies of parliamentary committees, positions of senior civilian grades, and preparations for the upcoming elections through forming new alliances."

Moreover, the Speaker of Parliament, decided on Sunday, to terminate the membership of MP Laith al-Dulaimi "based on his resignation". The latter said he disagrees with the decision to "exclude" him, considering it "illegal and arbitrary", and calling for deterrence and confronting "dictatorship".

It is noteworthy that MP al-Dulaimi was previously part of al-Halboosi's Takaddum party, which expelled him on April 22, 2022, for "his lack of commitment to the directives of the party's leadership." However, in June of last year, al-Dulaimi came back as a representative for al-Siyada Alliance, which Khamis Al-Khanjar leads.

For his part, political analyst, Kitab al-Mizan, explained that "at every electoral stage, and after the formation of a government, political alignments occur according to the partisan interests that require it," noting that "the reasons for which al-Siyada alliance was built were under cover of distributing positions for the Sunni component, and after the government was formed and the gains were distributed, the interest of continuing the alliance expired."

"The alliance has passed that stage and is coming to another, which is the stage of local or early parliamentary elections, which require alignments for new alliances that will emerge from the political arena at the level of western or Sunni governorates."

Furthermore, Diyala MP Nahida al-Daini warned of the disintegration of the Sunni alliance due to the "neglect" of Diyala's entitlements and their "marginalization" by Sunni leaders.

It is worth mentioning that al-Siyada alliance consists of the 37-member Takaddum alliance, led by Parliament Speaker Mohammed Al-Halbousi, and the 34-member Azm alliance, led by Khamis Al-Khanjar.