Israeli researcher: Iraqi elections will be decisive in future conflicts.
According to the Zionist newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, as the sixth Iraqi parliamentary elections began since 2003, a senior researcher at the Zionist Center for National Security Studies described the election results as crucial for the future of the regime in a note and warned of its consequences.
Danny Citrinovich, an Iran expert at the Institute for National Security Studies and former head of the Iran desk in the research department of the Israeli military intelligence agency (AMAN), wrote: “These elections are equally crucial for the future of Iraq,” and explained that their outcome is of great importance for the position of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (Hashd al-Shaabi).
Referring to the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces’ support base among the country’s Shiites, he emphasized that the victory of figures associated with the Hashd al-Shaabi and close ties with Iran will ultimately have a significant impact on the future confrontation in the region and will have significant consequences for the future of the Zionist regime.
The Zionist researcher, claiming that Iran is trying to deepen its political influence in the country, stated that Tehran hopes that the popular mobilization groups can help it confront Israel in the event of a new conflict in the region.
According to him, Iran is seeking to give the Popular Mobilization Forces a leading position in the elections, because if they win, they will become a powerful political force and will play a very decisive role in appointing the prime minister and similar matters.
This is while Esmail Baghaei, the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of our country, yesterday morning (Monday) rejected and condemned any foreign intervention in Iraq, adding: Tehran’s position is clear and the elections in Iraq are an internal matter. He added: We are confident that friendly relations will continue, regardless of the election process.
Citrinovic continued to consider the composition of the new Iraqi parliament as important, saying: “The new Iraqi parliament and government are important because they will decide in Baghdad the future of this terrorist group (Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi) and the position that Iraq will take in a possible future conflict between Israel and Iran.” He added in the note: “In recent years, Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani has tried to strike a balance between maintaining relations with the United States, which wants to disarm the group, and keeping the Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi calm while they impatiently await the implementation of the agreement on the withdrawal of US-led coalition forces from the country. This is even though the Iraqi group effectively holds part of the country’s leadership, and within the framework of sectarian power-sharing in Iraq, the prime minister must be from among the Shia Muslims, the speaker of the parliament from among the Sunni Muslims, and the president from among the Kurds.”