Allaoui resigns and Iraq settles in a permanent interim

It wasn't possible this time either. The Iraqi Parliament's new attempt to form an enduring government has ended in a resounding failure. The candidate Mohamed Tawfiq Allaoui has been forced to resign from appointing a cabinet after the one-month deadline granted to him by President Barham Saleh has expired. Allaoui has accused the country's traditional parties of obstructionism and they have been against his nomination the whole time.

This Sunday, the seat of Iraq's legislature was celebrating the second attempt in a week to appoint the prime minister's cabinet, after an earlier failed attempt last Thursday. However, the problem has returned. Only 108 of the 329 members of the Council of Representatives turned up for the session. The lack of a quorum made the vote unworkable.

Allaoui's candidacy was intended to be a breath of fresh air in the Iraqi political landscape; a person outside the traditional parties, engaged in their power games, who could, at the same time, break the division between the Shiite and Sunni formations and connect with the demands of the demonstrators who have been protesting in the streets for months. 

However, the harsh reality has ended up prevailing. This vitriol of a figure who was not part of the circles of the power apparatus has ended up costing Allawi a great deal, and he has lashed out at his political rivals in a short speech. “I tried everything I could to save the country from sliding into the unknown and resolving the current crisis”, he said. He has accused certain parties he has not named of “negotiating for very narrow interests” and “not taking seriously the implementation of reforms they promised the people”.

After Allaui's withdrawal, President Saleh will wait a fortnight to find another candidate willing to take on the complicated mission of winning over the support of the fragmented Council of Representatives. In the meantime, Adel Abdul Mahdi, who was forced to resign at the end of last year due to massive social protests, will remain in charge of the current government. It is, however, unclear whether the former prime minister will agree to continue piloting a ship that seems to be drifting.

While Iraq is settling into a permanent interim, demonstrations in the streets of the country's main cities have not stopped. Thousands of people gathered on Sunday in Baghdad's largest squares. The demonstrators are calling for new elections to vote out the political class that has led the country for the past few years. Since the current cycle of protests began last autumn, the number of deaths at the hands of the security forces has risen to around 500, according to Reuters.

The current power struggle makes it impossible for the unstable country in the Middle East to meet the challenges ahead. The Iraqi economy is languishing, in part due to the drop in oil prices caused by the global spread of COVID-19. In addition, the territory is experiencing structural problems such as high unemployment, especially among the young population (around 16.5%). The combination of this factor with low wages has created an optimal breeding ground for a decline in the standard of living of the citizens.

Regardless of its economic impact, the coronavirus itself is a reason for some concern to the Iraqi authorities. Iran, one of its neighbours, has been identified as one of the new hot spots for the disease due to the increase in the number of cases it has recorded over the past week.

Iraq's problems are not just economic or health-related. The security aspect is very important. In the current scenario of tension between Iran and the United States, Iraq is in the middle. In fact, recently it has once again been the theatre of confrontation between these two geopolitical rivals: it was in Iraq that a U.S. operation killed Revolutionary Guard General Qassem Soleimani and People's Mobilization Forces (PMF) leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. It was also in Iraqi territory that the Iranian air attack in response hit two army bases that housed U.S. soldiers. Although the escalation has not gone any further for the time being, Iraq's position remains delicate.

Moreover, within its own territory, in recent months, there has been a very significant increase in the activity of Jihadi terrorist groups. Daesh is one of the main culprits of this circumstance. Although it lost his leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in Syria, the organisation has rearmed itself in the underground, in a process similar to that experienced by Al-Qaeda after the intervention of the United States in Afghanistan as a result of the attacks of 9/11. Similarly, Shiite militias supported by Iran, such as the aforementioned PMF or Kataib Hezbollah, associated with the Lebanese group, have gained quite a lot of importance. The recent decision by the legislature in Baghdad to expel US troops could further aggravate the current situation in the country.

The attacks happen practically every day. Precisely a few hours after the failure of the parliamentary session, two mortar shells were launched against the so-called Green Zone in Baghdad. It is in this district that most of the country's institutions and embassies are located. One of the impacts has been registered near the United States diplomatic representation.

According to statements by an Interior Ministry official, the mortars have not caused any human damage, as they fell in a vacant area. The responsibility for the attack has not been claimed at this time.