Suddenly and without warning, the caretaker governor of Diyala, Muthanna Al-Tamimi, set off towards the headquarters of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan in Khanaqin, or what is known as “Talabani Castle,” to hold extensive meetings in his capacity as head of the “Diyala Our Identity” bloc in the Diyala Council, and the right-hand man of the head of the Badr Organization. Hadi Al-Amiri, with the most prominent leaders of the party, in the presence of his representative in the Diyala Council, Aws Al-Mahdawi, despite the fact that he comes from Sunni Arab nationalism.
Five months after the provincial council elections, and despite the formation of local governments in all the governorates where the elections took place, the governments of Diyala and Kirkuk are still suspended due to the lack of agreement between the political blocs.
In this regard, Aws al-Mahdawi, a member of the Diyala Provincial Council for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, said during an interview with Al Aalem Al Jadeed, “The Khanaqin meeting did not address the issue of forming the Diyala government, but rather political and service issues related to the situation in Khanaqin.”
Al-Mahdawi adds, “The Kurds cannot be marginalized in any upcoming government formation in Diyala, because we represent 20 percent of its population, and the second nationality at the governorate level, and our policy is consensus and building a stable government, and we support the choices of the majority that chooses whoever it finds suitable for the position of governor.”
However, informed sources indicated that Al-Tamimi sought to unify the old alliance between the Badr Organization and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan through relations that extend for more than four decades, in addition to confirming support for the file of the rights of the Kurds and Khanaqin, which constitute the most important strongholds of the Patriotic Union in Diyala, with Opening the file to support the Kurdish representative in the Diyala Council for his journey in renewing the mandate for the position of governor for a second time, adding that the meeting was positive despite the weak Kurdish representation in the Diyala Council, which lost the advantage of the “egg egg,” but they agreed that any bloc that succeeds in forming the government will not marginalize the Kurdish representative.
For his part, political analyst Ibrahim Ali explained, during an interview with Al Aalem Al Jadeed, that “the Khanaqin negotiations are the beginning of a new political movement led by Muthanna Al-Tamimi, who still considers himself a candidate for the position of governor despite assurances from the leaders of the Badr Organization of their commitment to the decision of the coordination framework that the position is deserved by the State of Law coalition led by Nouri al-Maliki, but the evidence is different.”
He points out that “Sunni-Sunni disputes over who has the right to the presidency of the Diyala Council and the rest of the other positions are what hindered Al-Tamimi’s access to the position of governor in four sessions, one of which was in the capital, Baghdad, because there were eight members supporting him, but the situation has changed now after the announcement of three Sunni forces nominating Representative Raad Al-Dahlaki as a candidate for the position of governor.”
Ali notes that “Al-Tamimi faces two complexes: the Sunni-Sunni disputes and her recent position on announcing her candidate for the position of governor, and the framework’s decision that the position is entitled to the rule of law, which means that the matter is more difficult to resolve.”
The head of the State of Law coalition in Diyala Governorate, Turki Al-Otbi, announced yesterday evening, Tuesday, his withdrawal from the Islamic Dawa Party, which is led by the head of the State of Law, Nouri al-Maliki, and to continue working as an independent politician, indicating in a statement, a copy of which was received by Al Aalem Al Jadeed, that “many issues went off track and the standards became far from the correct approach, and since my success was causing inconvenience to some preachers, it became necessary for me to make a decision to leave the Islamic Dawa Party,” he added, “so I decided to announce my departure from the Islamic Dawa Party and the State of Law coalition, and announced “Myself as an independent politician and independent member of the Diyala Provincial Council.”
In turn, the Kurdish politician Ahmed Zangeneh believes, during an interview with Al Aalem Al Jadeed, that “despite the weakness of Kurdish representation in the Diyala Council, they remain an influential political force because they represent the second nationalism and have close relations with all forces. They will also not support one party against another, but rather will support who is committed to the rights of the Kurdish component.”
Zanganeh explains, “The reason for the Diyala crisis is the results that led to the Sunnis and Shiites getting 7 seats each, and the Kurds getting only one seat. The formation of the government could have been decided in the first week had it not been for the Sunni-Sunni differences.”
A member of the Diyala Provincial Council for the “Al-Sadiqoun” bloc led by Sheikh Qais Al-Khazali, Secretary-General of the Asaib Ahl al-Haq movement, Salem Al-Tamimi, had indicated that the political complex in Diyala is difficult and its solution requires time and consensus, which are currently far away, pointing out that the position of “Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq is firm and clear” in supporting the formation of a new local government capable of managing the next stage, denying that the Diyala file is linked to deciding the presidency of the House of Representatives.
