Word: maliki
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...Just two days after making his declaration to the MEK, al-Maliki left for a scheduled diplomatic visit to Iran - his fourth since taking office. The Iraqi Prime Minister was expected to try to ease fears that Iraq might be used as a base to attack Iran. He has pledged that won't happen. But it remains uncertain as to what is in store...
...some Western observers in Baghdad, it seemed like an odd thing for al-Maliki to mention, given the more momentous theme of the day. The MEK is an obscure group known for launching attacks on Iran in the 1980s and '90s, when Iraq and Iran were bitter, warring enemies. But since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the MEK has been stripped of its weapons, confined to its base at Camp Ashraf about 80 miles north of Baghdad and guarded by U.S. troops. The group is hardly an immediate threat to Iraqi security, or even particularly relevant to the challenges Iraq...
...most part, however, the MEK is no more popular with the Iraqi population than it is with the central government. In his speech from the Green Zone on New Year's Day, al-Maliki made it clear that the MEK would lose its protected status. "This group has been labeled a terrorist organization," al-Maliki said. "It can no longer operate in Iraq after today because it has caused a political crisis that contradicts the constitution ... We will never force any of these people to go back to their country ... but Iraq cannot be a base for these people...
...deport them to Iran was a welcome relief for the group's supporters and human rights organizations. For months, the National Council of Resistance of Iran has led demonstrations in New York, Paris, Geneva and Washington to protest the possible transfer of Camp Ashraf's residents to Iran. Al-Maliki's decision not to hand them over may indicate a small U.S. victory...
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was absent from the ceremony. On Monday he was scheduled to return from a two-day visit to the U.S.'s adversary, Iran, where he met with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Supreme Leader Ayatullah Khamenei. According to Iranian state news agency IRNA, Khamenei told al-Maliki on Sunday that the U.S. presence in Iraq was the root cause of terrorism, and that the U.S. seeks to establish a permanent base there to dominate the region. He urged further political and economic cooperation with Iran...