ALL ABOUT PUBLIC SERVICE:

Iraqi PM, anti-U.S. group reach local alliance deal (Khalid al-Ansary, 2/21/09, Reuters)

Followers of anti-American Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr are nearing a deal with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to form coalitions in Iraq's provinces following last month's election, officials said on Saturday. [...]

Hassan al-Sneid, a lawmaker from Maliki's Dawa Party, said the agreement was just about wrapped up between the Sadrists and the Dawa-led coalition, which trounced other Shi'ite groups in what was Iraq's most peaceful vote since the 2003 invasion.

The provincial alliances may be named "Public Service Front," he said.

The Muqtada factor re-emerges in Iraq (Sami Moubayed, 2/25/09, Asia Times)

Maliki and Muqtada had created what many called an "unspoken alliance" in 2006. Muqtada supported the newly elected prime minister, giving him legitimacy among grassroots Iraqi Shi'ites, while Maliki gave Muqtada protection from Iraqi officialdom, turning a blind eye to the activities of his Mahdi Army.

The relationship grew stronger when Muqtada's team took 30 of the 275 seats in the Iraqi parliament, and six seats in the Maliki cabinet, including powerful portfolios like Commerce, Health and Education.

In 2007 the alliance snapped when Muqtada walked out, objecting to Maliki's refusal to call for a timetable for US troop withdrawal. Maliki saw this as a blessing in disguise, since Muqtada's outrageous activities had become an embarrassment to the prime minister, especially before neighboring Arab states after the execution of Saddam. He accepted the resignations immediately, cracking down on the Sadrists and turning instead to foster a new alliance with the Kurds.

Maliki today seems as something of a hypocrite, having rallied last month on a platform that steered clear from religious slogans and "sounded" secular. He is now ready to ally himself with someone who wants to create an Iran-like theocracy in Baghdad, independent, however, of direct Iranian influence.

In 2007, Muqtada gave an interesting interview to La Republica, explaining his relationship with the prime minister: "Between myself and Abu Israa [what Maliki is called by friends] there has never been much feeling. I have always suspected that he was being maneuvered, and I have never trusted him. We have met only on a couple of occasions. At our last meeting he first told me: 'You are the country's backbone,' and then he confessed that he was 'obliged' to combat us. Obliged, you hear me?"

Muqtada was trying to say that while Maliki liked him, the feelings were never mutual. Perhaps that is true, and we can never know how many times the two men have actually met, but what is clear from 2006-2007 is that when they were allied, the Shi'ites were getting the upper hand in Iraqi politics, and greater security was being brought into Shi'ite neighborhoods. There was also not much need for strong bridges between the prime minister and either Talabani, or the now fractured PUK.

Posted by Orrin Judd at February 23, 2009 6:07 PM