Iraqi president, UNAMI condemn rocket attack on parliamentary speaker’s residence

Dilan Sirwan

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s president and the United Nations mission in the country on Wednesday condemned a rocket attack that targeted the parliamentary speaker’s residence on Tuesday night, hours after Iraq’s top court rejected cases filed against the speaker’s election.

“The attack, which targeted the headquarters of the Speaker of Parliament in Anbar, and resulted in the injury of civilians, is a deplorable terrorist act, and its timing targets national and constitutional entitlements,” read a tweet from President Barham Salih early Wednesday morning, adding that all forces must unite to defend peace, and continue the path of forming an Iraqi government that “responds to the aspirations of our people.”

The statement from the president comes after three rockets targeted Anbar province, close to the residence of Mohammed al-Halbousi, injuring two people including a young child.

Iraq’s Security Media Cell on Tuesday reported “a cowardly terrorist act targeting Karma district, the birthplace of the Iraqi Parliament Speaker,” adding that three Katyusha rockets landed in the district center.

Halbousi took to his twitter early Wednesday morning to post a picture of a child injured in the attack, saying “I apologize to you, and I promise you, we will continue with our cause so that hope is achieved in a country where justice prevails, injustice is removed, and the forces of terrorism and statelessness are defeated, so that you may enjoy peace and security.”

Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani also denounced the attack in a tweet, saying that such escalation “aims to destabilize security and stability in Iraq.”

The UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) also condemned the attack, calling it a cowardly attempt to create chaos..

The attack came on the same day Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court rejected the lawsuit filed at the first parliamentary meeting which erupted into chaos earlier in January.

The legislative session erupted into disorder after the Coordination Framework, an alliance of Shiite factions that continue to object to the election results, submitted a paper claiming they, rather than the Sadrist bloc, now hold the biggest parliamentary bloc with 88 seats, MPs from the scene told Rudaw. MP Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, who was chairing the legislature’s session, was evacuated from the hall after falling ill following the flare-up of tensions and arguments between the blocs.

In the days following the session in which Halbousi and his two deputies were elected with a majority formed through an alliance between the Sadrist bloc, the Sunni Taqadum, and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), several attacks took place against offices of political parties and figures, including the office of Taqadum which is led by Halbousi, and his deputy which is KDP’s Shakhawan Abdullah.

Despite no group having taken responsibility for any of the recent attacks, the perpetrators are strongly believed to be those opposed to the October 10 parliamentary elections results and the election of parliament leadership, which the Coordination Framework continues to reject.

Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who is head of the Sadrist bloc and has continuously called for a majority government to which the Iran-backed Shiite parties oppose, has on several occasions warned that those who support his idea of a majority government should not be targeted.

He indirectly blamed the Coordination Framework for attacks on political parties in a tweet earlier this month.