Iraq's Maliki finally steps aside, paving way for

new gov't
People hold a portrait of Nuri al-Maliki and signs as they gather in support of him in Baghdad August !, "#$%
BY RAHEEM SALMAN AND
MICHAEL GEORGY-BAGHDAD Fri Aug 15, 2014
&'euters( - Nuri al-Maliki finally )owed to pressure within Iraq and )eyond on *hursday
and stepped down as prime minister, paving the way for a new +oalition that world and regional powers hope +an quash a
,unni Islamist insurgen+y that threatens Baghdad%
Maliki ended eight years of often divisive, se+tarian rule and endorsed fellow ,hi'ite -aider al-A)adi in a televised spee+h
during whi+h he stood ne.t to his su++essor and spoke of the grave threat from ,unni Islami+ ,tate militants who have taken
over large areas of northern Iraq%
/I announ+e )efore you today, to ease the movement of the politi+al pro+ess and the formation of the new government, the
withdrawal of my +andida+y in favour of )rother 0r% -aider al-A)adi,/ Maliki said% &1ull ,tory(
Maliki's de+ision was likely to please Iraq's ,unni minority, whi+h dominated Iraq under ,addam -ussein's iron rule )ut was
sidelined )y Maliki, a relative unknown when he +ame to power in "##2 with 3%,% )a+king%
Maliki had resisted months of pressure to step down from ,unnis, 4urds, some fellow ,hi'ites, ,hi'ite regional power Iran and
the 3nited ,tates% -e had insisted on his right to form a new government )ased on the results of a parliamentary ele+tion in
late April%
-is stu))orn insisten+e stirred +on+erns of a violent power struggle in Baghdad% But in re+ent days, as his support was
o)viously +rum)ling, he told his military +ommanders to stay out of politi+s%
/1rom the )eginning I ruled out the option of using for+e, )e+ause I do not )elieve in this +hoi+e, whi+h would without a
dou)t return Iraq to the ages of di+tatorship, oppression and tyranny, e.+ept to +onfront terrorism and terrorists and those
violating the will and interests of the people,/ Maliki said%
5n 6ednesday, his own 0awa politi+al party pu)li+ly threw its support )ehind A)adi and asked lawmakers to work with him
to form a new government% And Iranian ,upreme 7eader Ayatollah Ali 4hamenei, offered his personal endorsement to A)adi,
distan+ing himself from Maliki%
3%,% National ,e+urity Advisor ,usan 'i+e +ommended Maliki for his de+ision to support A)adi, and she noted a wide range
of leaders from a+ross the Iraqi politi+al spe+trum had +ommitted to help A)adi form a )road, in+lusive government%
/*hese are en+ouraging developments that we hope +an set Iraq on a new path and unite its people against the threat
presented )y the Islami+ ,tate of Iraq and the 7evant,/ 'i+e said in a statement%
3%,% ,e+retary of ,tate 8ohn 4erry des+ri)ed Maliki's de+ision as /important and honora)le/ and said /the 3nited ,tates
stands ready to partner with a new and in+lusive government to +ounter this threat/ from the Islami+ ,tate%
A 3%,% offi+ial said that on+e Iraqis themselves +on+luded Maliki had to go, 6ashington pushed Iraqi politi+ians to take steps
su+h as ratifying the ele+tion results and designating a prime minister )ut added it had not advo+ated spe+ifi+ +andidates
/It was all teeth-grinding a+tivity,/ said the offi+ial on +ondition of anonymity% /6hile we were pushing the pro+ess, they were
determining who was going to )e in the driver9s seat%/
/In the end, it was the weight of the system and the weight of the history that +ame down, and Maliki :ust lost all of his
support,/ he added% *he offi+ial also said a +lear shift last week against Maliki )y Iraq's most influential +leri+, ;rand
Ayatollah Ali al-,istani, /was a )ig, )ig part of every)ody a++epting that there was no way forward with Maliki%/
A)adi is seen as a moderate ,hi'ite with a de+ent +han+e of improving ties with ,unnis% But he is fa+ed with halting the
advan+e of the Islami+ ,tate, whi+h has overrun large areas of Iraq%
ANBA' A;'<<M<N*=
Before Maliki's announ+ement, a leading figure in the ,unni minority told 'euters he had )een promised 3%,% help to fight
the Islami+ ,tate militants%
Ahmed 4halaf al-0ulaimi, the governor of the ,unni heartland provin+e of An)ar, told 'euters his request for help, made in
meetings with 3%,% diplomats and a senior military offi+er, in+luded air support against the militants who have a tight grip on
large parts of his desert provin+e and northwestern Iraq%
,u+h a move +ould revive +ooperation )etween ,unni tri)es, the ,hi'ite-led authorities and 3%,% for+es that was +redited with
thwarting al >aeda in Iraq several years ago%
But the 3%,% ,tate 0epartment played down 0ulaimi9s statement%
/6e9ve +ontinued meeting with a range of offi+ials to talk through what the needs might )e - the se+urity needs - to fight I,I7
a+ross the )oard,? ,tate 0epartment spokeswoman Marie -arf told reporters in 6ashington%
Asked if 0ulaimi was +orre+t that the 3nited ,tates had made a +ommitment, -arf said she had no details% /6e9re having
+onversations a)out what it &any se+urity assistan+e( might look like in the future, )ut nothing +on+rete )eyond that,/ she
said%
A 3%,% defense offi+ial said@ /6e are not tra+king any su+h request, and there are no plans to support them%/
0ulaimi said in a telephone interview@ /5ur first goal is the air support% *heir te+hnology +apa)ility will offer a lot of
intelligen+e information and monitoring of the desert and many things whi+h we are in need of%/
/No date was de+ided )ut it will )e very soon and there will )e a presen+e for the Ameri+ans in the western area%/
3%,% President Bara+k 5)ama said on *hursday that 3%,% troops planning an eva+uation of refugees further north were
standing down as 3%,% air strikes and supply drops had )roken the /siege of Mount ,in:ar,/ where thousands of mem)ers of
the AaBidi religious minority had taken refuge from the militants% &1ull ,tory(
5)ama said some of the 3%,% personnel sent to draw up plans for the eva+uation of the AaBidis would soon leave Iraq%
0isowned )y al >aeda as too radi+al after it took +ontrol of large parts of ,yria, Islami+ ,tate +apitalised on its ,yrian
territorial gains and se+tarian tensions in Iraq to gain +ontrol of 1allu:a and An)ar's +apital 'amadi early this year%
3nlike 5sama )in 7aden's al >aeda, whi+h set its sights on destroying the 6est, the Islami+ ,tate has territorial goals, aims to
set up a +aliphate and rages against the ,ykes-Pi+ot agreement of C2 )etween Britain and 1ran+e that split the 5ttoman
empire and +arved )orders a+ross the Ara) lands%
,eiBing the +apital, Baghdad, would )e diffi+ult )e+ause of the presen+e of spe+ial for+es and thousands of ,hi'ite militias who
have slowed down the Islami+ ,tate elsewhere%
But a foothold :ust near the +apital +ould make it easier for the I, to +arry out sui+ide )om)ings, deepen se+tarian tensions
and desta)ilise Iraq%
5n *hursday, Islami+ ,tate militants massed near the town of >ara *appa, "# km &DE miles( north of Baghdad, se+urity
sour+es and a lo+al offi+ial said, in an apparent )id to )roaden their front with 4urdish peshmerga fighters%
*he movement around >ara *appa suggests they are )e+oming more +onfident and seeking to gra) more territory +loser to
the +apital after stalling in that region%
/*he Islami+ ,tate is massing its militants near >ara *appa,/ said one of the se+urity sour+es% /It seems they are going to
)roaden their front with the 4urdish fighters%/
&6riting )y Mi+hael ;eorgyF Additional reporting )y Arshad Mohammed and Missy 'yan in 6ashingtonF <diting )y Peter
Millership, 8im 7oney, 4en 6ills and 7isa ,humaker(
Posted )y *havam