Attachments
Key Takeaways:
- Sadr Renews The Call To Close The U.S. Embassy; IHEC Proposes New Date For The Kurdistan Region’s Legislative Elections – On May 28, Muqtada al-Sadr called for the expulsion of the U.S. ambassador and the closure of Washington’s embassy “without bloodshed.” Sadr made his call in response to continued U.S. support for Israel, which he accused of committing war crimes and acts of terrorism against civilians in Gaza. Sadr followed up with a televised speech on May 29, in which he attacked the U.S. over what he called double standards and enabling Israeli genocide against Palestinians. Notably, Sadr’s speech displayed the new banner of his rebranded political movement, the National Shia Trend (al-Tayyar al-Watani al-Shee’ie). On May 29, Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) sent a letter to the president of the KRG in which it proposed September 5 as the new date for holding the long-delayed legislative elections in the region. The KRG has yet to make a public response to the proposal. In other developments, on May 26, Iraqi PM Mohammed al-Sudani discussed with the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, his government’s request to end the work of the UN Assistance Mission to Iraq (UNAMI), and the timeline for reducing staff levels at the mission. On May 30, KRG PM Masrour Barzani held a series of meetings with Iraqi leaders, starting with National Security Adviser Qasim al-Araji and PM Sudani. Barzani said his goal was to focus on mutual priorities and common interests in counter-terrorism, dealing with climate change, and cooperation in building stronger business ties and developing Iraq’s banking sector, and not get stuck on “the decade-old disputes.” more…
- Several U.S. Businesses Attacked In Baghdad, Ostensibly Over Support For Israel – Between May 26 – 30, five Western businesses…
