Region

BAGHDAD — Hundreds of supporters of pro-Iranian factions staged a fresh demonstration on Saturday in the Iraqi capital over last month’s election results, a day after at least one protester was killed in a clash with police.

The demonstrations come while Iraq’s numerous political parties negotiate to form coalitions and name a new prime minister after the October 10 elections.

Preliminary results saw the Conquest (Fateh) Alliance, the political arm of the pro-Iran multi-party Hashed Al Shaabi paramilitary network, suffer a substantial decline in its parliamentary seats.

The group’s supporters have denounced the outcome as “fraud” and Iraqi political analyst Ihsan Al Shamari said the pro-Hashed protests are aimed at strengthening its negotiating position during the coalition bargaining process.

In a calm atmosphere a day after deadly tensions, Hashed supporters gathered at one of the four entrances to the high-security Green Zone, which is home to government buildings and the US embassy.

“No to America!”, “No to Fraud!” the demonstrators chanted, as security forces stood by in force.

The protesters had brought in tents and sanitary facilities, in a sign of a possible repeat of a sit-in that began on October 19.

Others burned a portrait of Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhemi, whom they called a “criminal”.

On Friday there were clashes with police when hundreds of Hashed supporters rallied near the Green Zone to vent their fury over the election result.

Demonstrators threw projectiles and blocked access to the Green Zone before they were pushed back by police who fired in the air, a security source said, requesting anonymity.

Another security source said a protester died in hospital of his wounds, while the health ministry reported 125 injuries, most of them from the security forces.

A leader of the Hizbollah Brigades, one of Hashed’s most powerful factions, told AFP on Friday that two demonstrators were killed.

On Saturday mourners in the holy Shiite city of Najaf carried two coffins of Hashed supporters they said died in the Baghdad clashes.

According to preliminary tallies, the Conquest won around 15 of the 329 seats in parliament, down from 48 it held previously, which made it the second-largest bloc.

The big winner this time, with more than 70 seats according to the initial count, was the movement of Moqtada Sadr, a Shiite Muslim preacher who campaigned as a nationalist and critic of Iran.

Final election results are expected within weeks.

KHARTOUM — Pro-democracy protesters prepared on Saturday to launch a two-day civil disobedience campaign against Sudan’s military coup, as Arab mediators were expected in Khartoum to try to defuse the crisis.

The calls were spearheaded by the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA) — an umbrella of trade unions which were instrumental in the 2018-2019 protests against now-ousted president Omar Al Bashir.

The SPA urged protesters to set up barricades from Saturday night and to stage a two-day, peaceful civil disobedience campaign against the military’s October power grab.

“The Sudanese people have rejected the military coup,” the SPA said on Twitter, vowing “no negotiation, no partnership, no legitimacy”.

“We will start by barricading the main streets to prepare for the mass civil disobedience on Sunday and Monday,” it said, urging protesters to avoid confrontation with the security forces.

The calls have been circulated via text messages as Internet services have been largely down since October 25, the day of the military coup.

That day, Sudan’s top general Abdel Fattah Al Burhan dissolved the government as well as the ruling joint military-civilian Sovereign Council.

Burhan also declared a state of emergency and detained Sudan’s civilian leadership, including Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and members of his government.

Hamdok was later placed under effective house arrest and the military has since Thursday released four civilian members of his government.

Other key figures have however remained in detention.

The military takeover sparked a chorus of international condemnation and punitive aid cuts, with world powers demanding a swift return to civilian rules.

On Friday, the UN Human Rights council joined global condemnation of the coup, with its head Michelle Bachelet describing the situation in Sudan as “deeply disturbing”.

Sudan has since August 2019 been led by a civilian-military ruling council to steer a transition to full civilian rule.

Last month’s coup has triggered nationwide protests which were met by a deadly crackdown that left at least 14 demonstrators killed and some 300 wounded, according to the independent Central Committee of Sudan’s Doctors.

Multiple mediation efforts for a political settlement between Sudan’s military and civilian leaders have since been under way, with no sign of a breakthrough yet.

On Saturday, the Arab League said a high-level from the pan-Arab bloc was due to arrive in another bid.

“The delegation will meet with various Sudanese political leaders... with the aim of supporting efforts to move past the current political crisis,” the organisation said.

Representatives of the Israeli government have also been trying to resolve the crisis, according to Israeli media reports.

KHARTOUM - Sudan's army said on Thursday the formation of a new government is now "imminent", following last week's military takeover which triggered international condemnation and mass anti-coup protests.

General Abdel Fattah Al Burhan -- Sudan's de facto leader since the 2019 ouster of autocratic president Omar Al Bashir -- last week dissolved the government, detained the civilian leadership and declared a state of emergency.

The military power grab on October 25 prompted local and international mediators to push for a compromise between the two sides.

"We are considering all internal and external initiatives to serve the national interest," Sudan TV quoted Burhan's media advisor Taher Abouhaga as saying.

"The government formation is imminent," he said.

Sudan has since August 2019 been ruled by a joint civilian-military council as part of the now derailed transition to full civilian rule.

Deepening splits and long-simmering tensions between the military and civilians have marred the transition.

Last week's coup triggered nationwide mass protests against the military -- demonstrations met by a deadly crackdown by security forces, resulting in at least a dozen people killed and scores wounded.

World powers demanded a swift return to civilian rule, and made punitive aid cuts that will hit hard in a country already mired in a dire economic crisis.

Western diplomats have called for Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok's reinstatement, while Arab powerhouses such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates urged that the civilian-led transition be restored.

Burhan, a veteran general who served under Bashir's three-decades-long rule, insisted the army takeover was "not a coup" but a move "to rectify the course of the transition".

He has since vowed to form another civilian government.

On Thursday, small gatherings of protesters rallied in neighbourhoods around Khartoum chanting "Down with military rule."



BEIRUT - Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati called on feuding politicians on Thursday to take action to mend a damaging row with Gulf Arab states over comments made by one of his own ministers.

The row, which has prompted Saudi Arabia and its allies to block imports from Lebanon, threatens to further deepen the country's financial meltdown.

"We are determined to address the issue of relations with Saudi Arabia and other brotherly Gulf countries," Mikati told a news conference.

"I call on all parties to... take the necessary steps towards a solution and I emphasise the need for the government to resume work to make up for wasted time."

The row was triggered by comments made by Information Minister George Kordahi in a pre-recorded interview broadcast last week in which he characterised the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen since 2015 as an "external aggression".

The row has split Mikati's government with some ministers backing Kordahi in his refusal to resign and others calling for him to step down to assuage Saudi anger.

Mikati himself stopped short of asking for his minister's resignation Thursday but pressed him to "take the necessary measures and prioritise national interest" over partisan or populist considerations.

The prime minister did issue a thinly veiled jibe at Hizbollah, however, after the Shiite militant group announced its nominees would boycott cabinet meetings until the government takes a clear stand on the conduct of the official investigation into last year's devastating explosion in Beirut port.

Mikati condemned the "defiance and arrogance" that is disrupting his government's work.

"Whoever thinks they can impose their will through political paralysis and escalatory rhetoric is mistaken," he added.

Hizbollah has been leading calls for the removal of the current chief investigator, judge Tarek Bitar, whom it accuses of bias, and is believed to be staunchly opposed to demands for Kordahi to resign.

The dispute has crippled Mikati's government, which has not met for three weeks despite facing what the World Bank has described as one of the planet's worst financial crises since the mid-19th century.

NASIRIYAH, Iraq — For the first time in Iraq, a new breed of representatives is entering parliament, born from a civil society movement fed up with the corruption that has long tarnished politics.

Among the newcomers is pharmacist Alaa Al-Rikabi, 47, whose party Imtidad (Extension) emerged in the aftermath of the October 2019 protest movement against the entrenched political elite.

Imtidad positions itself as the "opposition" to governments that have emerged through an informal ethno-sectarian quota system that has been in place since the US-led invasion of 2003, Rikabi told AFP.

Despite campaigning with extremely limited finances, the party secured nine of the 329 seats in the Iraqi Council of Representatives in the October 10 election, according to preliminary results.

"I'm aware that our size in parliament will not allow us a lot of leeway" to push a political agenda, Ribaki said, stressing that his party instead aims to perform a watchdog role.

"We will not participate in any government set up on the basis of quotas, so that we will be able to hold leaders to account," Rikabi said in his home in Nasiriyah, a flashpoint of protests in Iraq's mainly Shiite south.

Overall, big political blocs retained their dominance in the election, which was marked by a record abstention rate.

The biggest winner was the Sadrist movement, led by firebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr. It took 70 seats, according to the results that are expected to be finalised within a few weeks.

Search for allies 

Behind the scenes, there have been discussions over the formation of blocs to create a parliamentary majority that would distribute the upcoming Cabinet posts.

But it is specifically against this system that the protest movement, and by extension Imtidad, was forged.

Imtidad is seeking its own alternative alliance to make its presence felt.

With only nine seats, the party “will not be able to extend its influence in parliament”, said Saleh Al Alawi, a judge and a political scientist.

Rikabi pointed out that, “according to the constitution, we need at least 25 MPs to be able to question a minister”.

To this end, he said, “we are trying to come to an understanding” to team up with other parties.

In particular, Imtidad has been in talks with a small Kurdish party, the New Generation Movement, which has similar leanings and also holds nine seats.

Protest movement 

The unprecedented protest movement that broke out two years ago railed against the political class running the oil-rich but poverty-stricken country where youth unemployment is soaring.

The streets of Nasiriyah still bear witness to the anger, and posters of the “martyrs” adorn the walls, honouring many of the hundreds of activists who paid with their lives.

Factions of the Hashed Al Shaabi, a paramilitary group integrated into the armed forces and represented by the pro-Iran Fatah (Conquest) Alliance in parliament, have faced accusations of targeting activists.

Hussein Ali, 28, said he has been in a wheelchair for two years since being shot in the back during a demonstration.

“I voted for Imtidad because I hope they can fight for the rights of the demonstrators,” he said. “Ever since I was injured, I haven’t received any compensation from the government.”

Changing ‘stereotypes’ 

Unlike many established Iraqi politicians, newcomers like Rikabi have little money and had to run low-cost campaigns.

Imtidad spent four million dinars (about $2,700) for posters and events in the province of Dhi Qar, of which Nasiriyah is the capital, a fraction of the tens of millions often spent by larger parties.

In a bid to break with what he calls the “stereotype of the representative”, who is out of touch with voters and with reality, Rikabi drives his own car and does not have an office.

Others have been even more frugal, such as Mohammed Al Anouz, who came to be known on social media for putting up his own campaign posters in the Shiite shrine city of Najaf.

For him, opposition is the only option, he told AFP.

“The big parties have contacted me to find out my position,” he said. “I will not form an alliance with the parties that have led the country in past years.”

“It is they who got us into this situation where there are no public services and corruption reigns.”

TEHRAN — Iran said Wednesday it had thwarted an attempt by the US navy to seize a tanker in the Sea of Oman carrying its oil, state television reported.

It gave no details of the date of the incident or the country where the vessel is registered.

The report comes amid faltering efforts to revive Iran's nuclear deal with world powers that would see a lifting of US sanctions on its oil exports.

The sequence of events reported by the television report left key questions unanswered.

"The United States stopped a tanker exporting Iranian oil and transferred its cargo to another tanker which it directed towards an unknown destination," it said.

"The naval arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guards then captured the tanker with air support," it said, without specifying which vessel it was referring to.

"US forces again tried to block the passage of the tanker using a warship and several helicopters but again failed.

"The tanker is now in Iranian territorial waters."

Under the 2015 nuclear deal, Washington had lifted its sanctions on Iran's oil exports in return for strict limits on its nuclear activities.

But in 2018, then president Donald Trump abandoned the agreement and reimposed the sweeping sanctions.

President Joe Biden has expressed willingness to rejoin the deal in exchange for Iran returning to the limits on its nuclear activities, but talks on the practicalities have been suspended since June.

RIYADH — The Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen said Wednesday it has killed 145 Huthi rebels in 24 hours in air raids near Marib, the final northern stronghold of pro-government forces.

The coalition, which backs Yemen's internationally recognised government, has reported near-daily strikes over the past three weeks that it claims have now inflicted more than 2,000 lives among the Iran-backed Huthi rebels.

But the insurgents, who have for months waged an offensive against the government stronghold, rarely comment on losses, and AFP can not independently verify the tolls.

“Eighteen military vehicles have been destroyed and 145” insurgents killed in the latest 24 hours, the Saudi-led coalition said in a statement published by Saudi Arabia’s official SPA press agency.

The rebels were killed in raids in the Sirwah district, east of Marib city, it added.

The coalition has since October 11 issued near-daily reports of bombing around Marib, saying it has killed a total of around 2,450 insurgents in the area.

The Houthi began a major push to seize the city in February and, after a lull, they renewed their offensive in September.

A pro-government military official had told AFP on Tuesday that the rebels have made “new advances amid ongoing clashes with pro-government troops”.

Another loyalist official confirmed the insurgents were edging closer to the city.

The Houthi said on Tuesday they were on the outskirts of the city.

Yemen’s civil war began in 2014 when the Houthi seized the capital Sanaa, prompting Saudi-led forces to intervene to prop up the government the following year.

Tens of thousands of people have died and millions have been displaced in what the United Nations calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

DAMASCUS — Syrian singer Sabah Fakhri, considered one of the most famous in the Arab world, died in Damascus on Tuesday at the age of 88, his son told AFP.

"He died a natural death in Damascus. His heart stopped beating," said Anas Fakhri, lamenting his father's passing as a "huge loss for Syrian art".

Born in the northern province of Aleppo and hailed as one of Syria's greats, Fakhri was known for his masterful delivery of traditional Syrian songs that combined Arabic poetry with music.

The short stout man modified and popularised the Qudud Halabiya — a traditional form of Aleppine music that combines lyrics based on the poetry of Al Andalus with old religious melodies collected mostly by musicians from the northern Syrian city.

"He was a living legend and legends do not die," his son said.

"He will continue to be the legend of Syria and Aleppo."

A symbol of the golden age of Arabic song, Fakhri was able to keep his audience in suspense for hours by tirelessly repeating the verses of classical or contemporary Arabic poems.

In 1968, he broke a record singing for 10 straight hours on tour in the Venezuelan capital Caracas.