Sadr Orders Loyalists to Quit Iraqi Cabinet

Defection deepens political crisis as suicide bombs kill 70

(NEWSER) - The Sunni Accordance Front defected from Iraq's government today, accusing PM Nuri al-Maliki of being uncooperative, Reuters reports, on a day when suicide bombs killed more than 70 in Baghdad. "This is probably the most serious political crisis we have faced since the passage of the constitution,'' a deputy PM said of the troubled government. More»

Group favors a government more closely allied with Iran

(NEWSER) - Iraq’s major Shiite parties have formed a new coalition without Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki or his Dawa Party, they announced today. That means that unless Maliki finds new allies, he will likely lose his job following the January elections. If the new coalition wins a majority, he’ll be replaced by a leader with much closer ties to Iran, the Washington Post reports. More»

(NEWSER) - Iraq was rocked by two deadly, possibly destabilizing bombings this weekend, but the proof is in the reprisals, Larry Kaplow writes in Newsweek—and there were none. “Iraq today is a different place than it was when ethnic conflict threatened to engulf the country in 2006,” Kaplow continues. “The powder here is wetter than it once was.” And that’s due mostly to Shiite military power and restraint in the face of Sunni attacks. More»

Blast at Shia mosque occurs hours after PM's warning

(NEWSER) - At least 50 people were killed in Iraq today when a truck bomb detonated near a crowd of worshipers leaving a Shiite mosque near Kirkuk, Reuters reports. The bombing occurred only hours after Nouri al-Maliki warned the country that terrorist violence may increase as the planned June 30 withdrawal of US troops approaches. The blast wounded about 175 civilians and destroyed many nearby homes. More»

Shiite PM teams with secular Sunnis and even militant cleric

(NEWSER) - The Shiite party of PM Nouri al-Maliki has allied itself with Sunni political figures and even Moqtada al-Sadr, a major departure from earlier politics that followed ethnic and sectarian lines. writes Anthony Shadid in the Washington Post. All support a strong central government and advocate a united Iraq over a federated state—and they may even run as a grand coalition in key parliamentary elections later this year. Six weeks after provincial elections, "there is a new political map," said one Sunni who advises Maliki. More»