Iran’s puppet in Iraq Nuri al-Maliki may have done a possible coup in Baghdad. Forces loyal to him have sealed off the capital and seized major points in the city.
TROOPS loyal to controversial Iraqi PM Nuri al-Maliki have sealed off Baghdad’s “Green Zone” in an apparent coup.
“There is a huge security presence, police and army, especially around the Green Zone,” the highly-protected district that houses Iraq’s key institutions, a high-ranking police officer has confirmed to AFP.
He said the deployment started at around 10:30 pm Iraq time, just 90 minutes before Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced on state television he would file a complaint against the president for violating the constitution.
“There is security everywhere in Baghdad, these are very unusual measures that look like those we impose for a state of emergency,” the police official said.
“Several streets have been closed… as well as some key bridges,” said an official at the interior ministry. “It’s all linked to the political situation.”
Al-Maliki made a suprise declaration early this morning on state television, accusing ethnic Kurdish President Fuad Masum of violating the constitution.
“Today I will file a formal complaint to the federal court against President Masum,” he said, in the midnight address.
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Iraq’s parliament yesterday adjourned until August 19 with lawmakers unable to agree on a nominee for the post of prime minister despite ever-growing international pressure, several MPs said.
“There can be no explanation for this delay,” said Ammar Toma, a Shiite MP from the Fadhilah party. “There are important matters on the table: the fate of the displaced, the security situation.” US President Barack Obama, UN chief Ban Ki-moon and visiting French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius have, over the past two days alone, stressed that Iraq needed a new and united government to lead the fight against jihadists who control large parts of the country.
It’s time to support an independent Kurdistan and not prop up Iran’s puppet regime in Baghdad.
