Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Mustafa al-Kadhimi delivers a speech during the vote on the new government at the parliament headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, May 7, 2020. Iraqi Parliament Media Office/Handout via REUTERS Mustafa al-Kadhimi was confirmed as prime minister of Iraq on May 6 and the task before him has rightly been called a suicide mission. There is hardly any nati
Read MoreFixing the country’s chronic political dysfunction can only begin with new elections. After the third try in less than six months, Iraq’s parliament has finally approved a new prime minister: Mustafa Al-Kadhimi, the former intelligence chief. He deserves our commiserations for being burdened with the Middle East’s most impossible task. Since Kadhimi has no chance of succe
Read MoreSummary: Iraq has implemented measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19, but confusing messages and political opportunism are hobbling an effective response. Iraq is one of the Arab countries hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic but like others it has been accused of hiding the full scale of the problem. Last Thursday Reuters reported that the country was suffe
Read MoreThe protests that started in October 2019 ushered in a new political era in Iraq. For the first time in the post-2003 process of democratic transition, a government was forced to resign due to popular pressure. The resignation of Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi’s cabinet forced the Iraqi political leadership to face contentious constitutional and procedural questions about g
Read MoreIf Kadhimi’s nomination goes through, it would be good news for Iraq, but Washington’s troubled relationship with Baghdad still needs a radical strategic reset. On April 9, Iraqi prime minister-designate Adnan al-Zurfi withdrew from his short campaign to form a cabinet after coming under pressure to step aside. Taking his place is intelligence chief Mustafa al-Kadhimi, a can
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