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Iraqs Maliki threatens to quit as U.S. expresses concerns over VP arrest warrant
A political crisis is looming in Iraq as Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki threatened to resign if the Parliament did not give a vote of no-confidence against another leading Sunni politician, Saleh al-Mutlaq, who is deputy prime minister, an Al Arabiya correspondent reported.Maliki over the weekend asked parliament for the vote against Mutlaq on the grounds that he lacked faith in the political process. Iraq on Monday issued an arrest warrant for its Sunni vice president on anti-terror charges, just days after the last U.S. troops left the country. The warrant was issued against Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi, leading to fears for the unity cabinet after President Barack Obama declared America was leaving behind a stable Iraq with a government elected by the people. Hashemi and Mutlaq are both leaders of the Iraqiya bloc, a secular group backed by minority Sunnis, which joined Malikis unity government only reluctantly and recently boycotted parliament sessions after complaining of being marginalized. The United States expressed concern early Tuesday over the arrest warrant. Were monitoring reports that an arrest warrant has been issued for vice-president Tareq al-Hashimi in Iraq, said White House spokesman Jay Carney, according to AFP. Posted by: tipper 2011-12-20 |
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