Al-Sadr’s opponents deepen the Sunni rift in Iraq

Yesterday, a tweet by the Sunni leader, Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament, Muhammad al-Halbousi, expressed his concern about the return of his opponents in his stronghold, Anbar Governorate, to the political scene under the cover of the Shiite “coordinating framework” that includes opponents of his ally Muqtada al-Sadr, and also reflected the deepening of the rift in the Sunni house.

About two weeks after the return of the former Minister of Finance, Rafi’ al-Issawi, to Baghdad and then to Fallujah in Anbar Governorate, and two days after the return of Ali Hatem al-Sulaiman, one of the most prominent sheikhs of Anbar, to the capital and then to the city of Ramadi, where he was born, al-Halbousi announced that he would take a stand seriously and alone from the political process in the country. In a sharp-tongued tweet on Twitter, Al-Halbousi said that “political action is governed by principles and ethics, and disregard for the security of citizens, and stirring up strife among the people under any reason, cannot be classified as maneuvering or political pressure.” He added: “Therefore, we will take serious and unitary positions with regard to overall participation in the political process, given the control of the armed outlaws and their tampering with the security of the country and people.” Referring to his Sunni opponents, especially Ali Hatem al-Suleiman, who is accused of being one of the leaders of the Anbar demonstrations in 2013, al-Halbousi said that “sooner or later everyone who has committed crimes against the people, plundered its wealth, left its men, killed and obstructed its youth as they demanded their rights, and others who have expelled them from their homes, will be held accountable.” And he deposited innocents instead of criminals who were smuggled out of prisons in broad daylight.”