LATEST: Iran — We Support Maliki’s Party But Open to Change of PM

SUNDAY FEATURE

Iraq Flashback: The US Company That Killed Iraqis & Threatened the State Department

The head of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi — or a double — grabbed headlines on Saturday, with the release of a video showing his sermon at Friday Prayers in a mosque in Iraq’s second city of Mosul.

See Video: Islamic State Leader al-Baghdadi Makes His 1st Appearance

The appearance would be the first by al-Baghdadi, who declared himself “Caliph Ibrahim” a week ago. Previously he has only been seen in a couple of photographs.

The emergence of al-Baghdadi would mark his transformation from leader of a jihadist insurgency to the head of a Caliphate which claims to stretch from eastern Iraq to northwest Syria. The Islamic State, which reportedly only has about 10,000 fighters, is trying to raise its membership significantly to bolster its control of the large swathe of territory. Its recent advances in northern Iraq towards Baghdad — including the cities of Mosul and Tikrit — have rested upon alliances with Sunni and tribal groups.

Iraq’s Interior Ministry insisted the man in the footage is “indisputably” not al-Baghdadi: “We have analyzed the footage…and found it is a farce.” It claimed the Islamic State leader had been wounded recently in an Iraqi airstrike and had been taken to Syria for medical treatment.

In the 21-minute video. the Friday Prayer leader calls for jihad in praise of Allah and professes humility:

It is a burden to accept this responsibility to be in charge of you. I am not better than you or more virtuous than you. If you see me on the right path, help me. If you see me on the wrong path, advise me and halt me. And obey me as far as I obey God.


Iran: We Support Maliki’s Party But Open to Change of PM

Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Sunday that Tehran supports the party of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in power, but is open to a change of leadership.

Abdollahian said:

The State of Law coalition won first place in the last legislative elections…(and) any decision that is taken in Iraq and has the support of parliament has Iran’s backing.

If Mr Maliki is chosen as prime minister, we will work hard together. If another person is chosen by parliament, the Islamic Republic of Iran will also support them. It’s an internal affair for Iraq.

Barzani: US & Turkey Unlikely to Block Kurdistan Independence

Massoud Barzani, the Iraqi Kurdistan President, has told a German newspaper that the US and Turkey are unlikely to oppose the declaration of an independent Kurdish state.

Barzani said to Die Welt: “I do not expect active assistance or resistance.”

He repeated his call for a referendum and support for a break from Iraq:

People can only live together voluntarily, not under compulsion

Not long ago, talking about the independence of Kurdistan would could have landed you in jail. Independence is the natural right of every nation.