'Blaming resistance groups for Kadhimi assassination bid is playing with fire amid political stalemate'

The leader of an Iraqi resistance group says the Arab country has been clearly locked into a political stalemate since the disputed parliamentary elections last month, warning that the situation in Iraq would turn for the worse.

In remarks on Sunday, Qais Khazali, who heads the Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq resistance group, attributed the problems Baghdad is currently facing to the electoral process and the results of the October 10 parliamentary elections.

“The current situation in Iraq is a clear political stalemate,” Khazali said, noting that the results of the latest elections are challenged by “all components and the broader political spectrum.”

He further explained that “the situation in Iraq was bad before the elections, therefore it was agreed to hold early elections” to make it better, warning that the situation in Iraq would get worse due to the problems that arose after the polls.

Khazali also said the Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq – a subdivision of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) or Hashd al-Sha’abi – would provide videos that prove violations in the elections.

The Iraqi capital and a number of major cities have been tense after the preliminary results of elections came out, with several political factions and their supporters in the Arab country rejecting the results as "fraudulent".

A total of 329 seats were up for grabs in the elections.

Senior Iraqi lawmaker slams UNAMI chief over 'interference' in legislative vote results

A top Iraqi official blasts the UNAMI chief over what he termed as interference in the Arab country’s voting process and election results.

The results of the elections show the Fatah Alliance has won 15 seats, down from 48 seats in the 2018 vote.

Meanwhile, influential cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s Sairoon coalition, the results show, has won more than 70 seats, which, if confirmed, could give him considerable influence in forming a government.

The elections were originally planned to be held in 2022, but the date was brought forward in response to a mass protest movement that broke out in 2019 to call for economic reforms, better public services, and an effective fight against unemployment and corruption in state institutions.      

'Playing with fire'

Elsewhere in his remarks, Khazali described the recent drone attack on the residence of Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi as a “dangerous issue that affects the country’s status,” calling for an immediate investigation into the incident.

He also warned that the attempt to blame the resistance groups for the attack is “an attempt to play with fire and an attempt to drag the country into a major crisis.”

Khazali also called on the committee in charge of probing the incident to provide “concrete evidence and real proofs”, not allegations.

Assassination bid against Iraqi PM aimed to pin blame on resistance groups: Analyst

The recent assassination attempt against Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi was aimed at destabilizing the Arab country and placing the blame on anti-terror groups.

Kadhimi escaped unhurt from the unclaimed “assassination” attempt on November 7, in which at least two quadcopter drones armed with explosives targeted his home in the Green Zone.

The explosion blew doors off hinges and smashed concrete stairs on the outside of the building, wounding some of the premier’s security guards.

Earlier this month, Muhammad al-Baldawi, a member of the Fatah (Conquest) Alliance in the Iraqi parliament, said US forces were “the first and last culprit” in the incident because Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses foreign embassies and government offices, is protected by the US Counter-Rocket, Artillery, Mortar (C-RAM) systems, and American aircraft carry out constant reconnaissance and patrol flights over the capital.

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