Free Republic

Making sense of Iraq's January 31 provincial elections isn't easy. That they were an enormous success for Iraq, and for the United States, is certainly true. When remembering 2006, when Iraqis were dying like flies in what the New York Times's Dexter Filkins described as a "symphony of suicide bombers," and when even staunch pro-war American liberals and conservatives saw the invasion as misbegotten, I grow more respectful of my old history teacher Martin Dickson, who counseled to measure time, especially in the Middle East, in centuries, not years. In the streets of Baghdad, especially those deeply scarred by violence,...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 4, 2009 – Iraq’s government and its security forces deserve praise for overseeing the successful and mostly violence-free provincial elections that were held countrywide Jan. 31, a senior U.S. military officer posted in Iraq said today. “First and foremost, I’d like to congratulate the government of Iraq for a successful, legitimate and credible election,” Army Lt. Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, commander of Multinational Corps Iraq, told reporters during a Baghdad news conference. Iraqi soldiers and police performed well during the election, Austin said, citing their “well-coordinated and executed security plan.” The “hard work and dedication” evidenced...

MOSUL, Iraq (AP) -- Iraqi Christians still reeling from a string of murders last fall find themselves caught in the middle of a power struggle between Kurds and Sunni Arabs that was fueled by this weekend's elections. The minority community has faced years of violence and intimidation from al-Qaida in Iraq and other Islamic extremists. In the northern city of Mosul and surrounding areas, many also fear the Kurds want incorporate parts of the area into their semiautonomous region in northern Iraq. The issue came to the fore in Saturday's vote for members of ruling councils in most of Iraq's...

Voter turnout in Iraq's provincial elections Saturday was the lowest in the nation's short history as a democracy, despite a relative calm across the nation. Only about 7.5 million of more than 14 million registered voters went to the polls.

An Iraqi man displays his purple finger after voting at the polling station in Yusifiyah during the provincial elections, Jan. 31, 2009. Every citizen who voted was required to dip their finger in indelible ink to ensure each cast but one vote. Photo by Pfc. Evan Loyd, 1st Armored Division. BAGHDAD — The citizens of Mahmudiyah Qada went safely to the election polls to vote during the provincial elections, Jan. 31. With no reports of serious violence, the free election was a monumental effort and achievement for the Iraqi Security Forces. The 17th Iraqi Army Division and Iraqi Police were...

There are a lot of pitfalls in the path to Iraqi democracy. But they're getting the election part down. Today's voting to choose the leadership councils of 14 of the country's 18 provinces was orderly, safe and enthusiastic. As a reporter who's covered three before (not counting the one in 2002 in which Saddam claimed 100 percent support from 100 percent turnout), this election day lived up to its promise to show the best potential of Iraq. In any polling station you found thoughtful voters, like a distinguished architect or the relative of the Jordanian royal family, a retired Army...

US President Barack Obama has congratulated Iraqis for holding a largely peaceful vote for provincial councils across the country. He called the elections "an important step forward" for Iraqi self-determination. PM Nouri Maliki hailed them as "a victory for all the Iraqis". There was a strong turn-out in Sunni areas, which boycotted the last polls. The first nationwide vote in four years is seen as a test of stability before a general election due later this year. "I congratulate the people of Iraq on holding significant provincial elections today," Mr Obama said in a statement. "This important step forward should...

Iraqis held their most peaceful election since the fall of Saddam Hussein on Saturday, voting for provincial councils without a single major attack in a poll that demonstrated the country's dramatic security gains. U.S. President Barack Obama hailed the poll as an important step toward Iraqis taking responsibility for their future. "I congratulate the people of Iraq on holding significant provincial elections today," he said in a statement. "The purple fingers have returned to build Iraq," Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said after the polls closed, referring to the indelible ink stains on index fingers that show voters have cast their...

A campaign poster for Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki hangs from a building in Baghdad's Sadr City district, Jan. 29, 2009. The nation is holding its first free provincial elections entirely run by Iraqis, Jan 31. Photo by Sgt. Jerry Saslav, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs. SADR CITY — Something new is coming to Iraq.  The signs are in the air, plastered on walls, buildings, light posts lining the road and even strung between buildings. Provincial elections are being held today, and most public structures have, in some way shape or form, campaign posters attached to them.There have been elections in...

BAGHDAD — Flying high above Baghdad, the Iraqi Air Force demonstrated its capability to view polling stations and other potential critical-incident locations in preparation for the upcoming Provincial Elections. This “eye in the sky” is a sensor system, similar to that of a U.S. Predator UAV, down-linked for display into the Iraqi Prime Minister’s National Operations Center. The demonstration of this capability was conducted for the Iraqi National Security Advisor, Dr. Mowaffak al-Rubaie, other senior Government of Iraqi officials, and Coalition military advisors, Jan. 28. The demonstration was designed to showcase the functional capability of the Iraqi Air Force’s King...

Iraq's provincial elections have wrapped up without any reports of serious violence. Polls closed at 6 p.m. (10 a.m. EST) on Saturday — an hour later than planned — after millions of voters cast ballots for influential regional councils around most of Iraq. There were no reports of major violence. Iraqi authorities imposed a huge security operation around the country that included traffic bans in major cities and extensive checkpoints and surveillance posts. The U.S. military also was out in force but did not take a direct role in the election security.

You haven't heard much in the MSM because they've essentially stopped reporting anything from Iraq save a large bombing. Even when they do report about it, it's with a negative spin. They're pissed that George W. Bush had the nerve to order the surge and give Gen David Petraeus the tools needed to win. They wanted a loss and once it appeared we were victorious, all reporting stopped.

BAGHDAD, Jan. 30, 2009 – With coalition soldiers watching from a distance, Iraq’s provincial elections got off to a smooth start Jan. 28 as the country’s security forces, hospital patients and detainees had a chance to cast their ballots early. Army Col. Wilton Gorske, left, chief of communications with the 4th Infantry Division serving in Multinational Division Baghdad, gets a briefing from Army Maj. Peter Dargle, officer in charge of the division operations section’s Iraqi security forces cell, at the Combined Press Information Center in Baghdad’s International Zone during the first day of voting in the Iraqi provincial elections,...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29, 2009 – Iraqis of all backgrounds are preparing to vote during their country’s first election since 2005, a senior Defense Department official said here today. An Iraqi Army colonel shows his purple index finger indicating that he voted during the provincial elections in Baghdad, Iraq, Jan. 28, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Douglas York  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. More than 15 million Iraqis are eligible to vote in the Jan. 31 provincial elections, which will select representatives for 440 council seats across the country’s 18 provinces, Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell told Pentagon...

Members of the Iraqi National Police show off their newly inked fingers after voting in the provincial elections at the Bilal Al Habashi School in the Istaqlal Qada of northeastern Baghdad, Jan. 28, 2009. Photo by Scott Flenner, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs. ISTAQLAL — Members of the Iraqi Police and National Police kicked off the provincial elections by placing their vote at the Bilal Al Habashi School in Istaqlal Qada in northeast Baghdad, Jan 28. “This is a good step for Iraq and the people. They have free opinions to vote wherever they want and for any person they...

A truckload of Iraqi Policemen head to a local voting station in Baghdad's Adhamiyah district, Jan. 28, 2009, to cast their vote in the country's second election since the fall of Saddam Hussein. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Jerry Saslav. CAMP VICTORY — During the 2005 provincial Iraqi elections, voters had their fingers stained with election ink to prevent them from voting twice. Some held their fingers up in pride as they took part in democracy; others hid their faces from cameras, afraid of becoming victims of sectarian violence. This year, ink or not, Iraqi Security Forces will make their...

BAGHDAD, Jan. 28, 2009 – Soldiers with the 4th Infantry Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team and embedded provincial reconstruction team members traveled yesterday to schools in the Adhamiyah, Istaqlal and Sadr City districts here to observe preparations for Iraqi provincial elections scheduled for Jan. 31. Iraqi National Police officers discuss provincial election preparations with U.S. soldiers of the 4th Infantry Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team during a visit to the Bilal al-Habashi School in northeastern Baghdad’s Istaqlal neighborhood, Jan. 27, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Scott Flenner  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The provincial elections -- the first...

CAMP VICTORY, Iraq, Jan. 28, 2009 – During the 2005 provincial Iraqi elections, voters had their fingers stained with election ink to prevent them from voting twice. Iraqi army Pvt. Ryhad Ghani Kadhum shows off his ink-stained finger after voting in his country's second election since the end of Saddam Hussein's regime in Adhamiyah district, Baghdad, Jan. 28, 2009. The early voting day was designated for members of the Iraqi security forces, emergency personnel and displaced and disabled civilians to cast their vote. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Jerry Saslav  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Some held their...

Iraq votes in key test of nation's stabilityPosted: 29 January 2009 1136 hrs Iraqi soldiers stand outside a polling center in Najaf, Iraq BAGHDAD: Millions of Iraqis vote on Saturday in an election seen as a gauge of how far the war-torn nation has progressed since a US-led invasion ousted Saddam Hussein from power almost six years ago. Iraq has in the past year seen a stark improvement in its security situation, but tens of thousands of police and soldiers will guard the country's first ballot since 2005, testing their ability to keep the peace. The stability of Iraq has...

This Saturday, about 15 million Iraqis will be voting in council races across most of the country's provinces. A nationwide election will follow at the end of 2009. These, together, could determine whether Iraq evolves into the Arab world's first representative democracy, where the majority respects the rights of the minority. The price for establishing a stable, safe and free Iraq, assuming one eventually emerges, has been staggering. For Americans, maybe $3 trillion; 4,000 soldiers killed and 30,000 wounded. Some 100,000 Iraqis have died - "only" 8,000 in 2008, compared to around 20,000 in 2007. Perhaps two million Iraqis became...

BAGHDAD — Thousands of soldiers, police officers, hospital patients and prisoners cast ballots on Wednesday as part of early voting in Iraq’s provincial elections. Overall, however, the voting appeared to go smoothly, Iraqi election officials said. About 615,000 people, most of them employed by Iraq’s security forces, were eligible to vote Wednesday, three days before Saturday’s election. Government officials said the early balloting would help ensure that security forces would be on duty to protect polling stations on Saturday, when about 14 million more Iraqis are eligible to vote. More than 14,000 candidates are running for 440 seats on provincial...

BAGHDAD (AFP) — Several hundred thousand Iraqis voted on Wednesday in the first stage of a landmark provincial election, the country's first ballot since 2005...

An Iraqi policeman stands guard outside a voter registration center in Mosul as US and Iraqi troops enter. When Iraqi Army Brigadier General Noor Aldeen visited his old secondary school in northern Mosul this week, he had little time to reminisce about placing first in spelling and arithmetic. His former school in the neighborhood of Al Nomaniya is an election registration site for upcoming regional elections in October, making it a popular place for a terrorist attack in the coming weeks. Almost all of the 57 registration sites in Iraq’s third-largest city are at primary and secondary schools --...

Voters from Southeast Rashid raise their hands in favor of a candidate during elections at Joint Security Station Doura in southern Baghdad, March 5. The elections were the first of their kind, providing the people with seven representatives to the Government of Iraq. Photo by Pfc. Nathaniel Smith, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division. BAGHDAD — In the United States, “Decision ‘08� is getting into full swing with political parties holding primaries and caucuses in states around the Nation. In southern Baghdad, the story is no different as the people of East Rashid held elections this week to determine...

Iraq's prime minister plans to reshuffle his cabinet just 100 days after it was formed because of frustrations with some ministers' performance and disloyalty among others, Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih told Reuters. snip. Some changes will involve the movement of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, several political sources said on Sunday. A key player in the government formed in May after months of wrangling, Sadr denies his Mehdi Army militia runs some of the sectarian death squads behind much recent violence. "There will be a government reshuffle. There will be some changes in a number of cabinet portfolios," Salih,...

Iraq's prime minister plans to reshuffle his cabinet just 100 days after it was formed because of frustrations with some ministers' performance and disloyalty among others, Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih told Reuters. In a weekend interview, he said Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki would make the changes soon in an "important signal" of commitment to efficiency in his national unity coalition and to his efforts to rally factions behind a reconciliation plan to avert civil war. Some changes will involve the movement of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, several political sources said on Sunday. A key player in the government...

BAGHDAD -- The completion of the national unity government Thursday in Iraq marks the starting point for repaying Iraqis' commitment to and thirst for democracy. We are at this juncture thanks to the bravery of the soldiers, police and citizens who have paid the highest price to give Iraq its freedom. Our national unity government will honor these sacrifices by pursuing an uncompromising agenda to deliver security and services to the Iraqi people and to combat rampant corruption. This government will build on the additional momentum gained from the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in order to defeat terrorism and...

8:33 A.M. EDT THE PRESIDENT: The formation of a unity government in Iraq is a new day for the millions of Iraqis who want to live in freedom. And the formation of the unity government in Iraq begins a new chapter in our relationship with Iraq. This morning, I called the President, the Prime Minister and the Speaker to congratulate them on working together to form the unity government. I assured them that the United States will continue to assist the Iraqis in the formation of a free country, because I fully understand that a free Iraq will be an...

BAGHDAD, May 20, 2006 – In a watershed day in Iraqi history, the country's Parliament today approved 39 ministers and state secretaries that form the elected, representative government. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announces his new Cabinet in the Baghdad convention center May 20. Multinational Force Iraq photo   The Parliament confirmed Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's choices for the Iraqi national unity government. The 37-member Cabinet contains representatives from all major parties and all major ethnic and secular groups. Following the vote, the ministers took their oath of office during a session broadcast throughout Iraq. The Parliament met at the...

I congratulate Prime Minister Maliki on the formation of Iraq's new unity government. Iraqis now have a fully constitutional government, marking the end of a democratic transitional process in Iraq that has been both difficult and inspiring. This broadly representative unity government offers a new opportunity for progress in Iraq. The new government reflects Iraq's diversity and opens a new chapter in that country's history. Iraq's new leaders know the period ahead will be filled with great challenge. But they also know that they -- and their great country -- will not face them alone. The United States and freedom-loving...

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Iraq's parliament approved the country's new Cabinet Saturday, opening the way for the inauguration of a national unity government three years after the U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein. Incoming Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki told the 275-member parliament that he would make restoring stability and security the top priority of his new administration. Approval of the Cabinet is the final stage in formation of a national unity government the United States hopes can calm the violence raging in the country. < snip > The 37-member Cabinet took months of negotiations to form after the Dec. 15 elections and...

The Truth - Iraqi elections mean Nothing to the democrats! FOX just had a discussion about President Bush's upcoming speech this Monday night. When asked about the impact it would have, "democratic strategist" Mary Ann Marsh said, "Bush giving a speech, is like having an election in Iraq, it doesn't mean anything". How Foul and Disgusting!!

Iraqi Vice President Dr. Adel Abdulmahdi and Acting Prime Minister Nouri Al-Malki said that the new government formation will be announced in less than three days. Parliamentarian bloc leaders met Saturday evening at Abdulmahdi's house, and although the gist of the meeting was not announced, Dr. Abdulmahdi said that the first formed Iraqi government will be announced this week. Dr. Abdulmahdi said that there are no complications in forming the government, however, politicians and leading figures should take action to control the daily violence that has broke out in different areas of the country. Information indicate that the Ministry of...

Dr. Iyad Allawi has been chosen as Secretary General of Iraqi National Security Council, this was revealed by Iraqi Parliament.

WASHINGTON, April 25, 2006 – The makeup of Iraq's new unity government reflects the diversity of its society, President Bush said here today. "After months of patient negotiations, Iraqi leaders reached an agreement on a unity government," Bush said in a speech on energy policy. "This new leadership reflects the diversity of Iraq, and it reflects the will of the Iraqi people who defied the terrorists and killers and went to the polls last December." The Iraqi parliament April 22 elected seven high-ranking officials, including President Jalal Talabani, who then named Jawad al Maliki as prime minister-designate. The new government...

The selection of a compromise prime minister in Iraq is a major victory for that country’s fledgling political class, and for the Bush administration. Purveyors of doom on Iraq now have some explaining to do: If the country is in the midst of a full-scale civil war fatal to our project there, how is it that elected representatives of the major factions were able to sit down and hammer out an agreement on the top positions in a national unity government? Iraq pessimists act like they have a special immunity from ever having to recalibrate their view of the conflict,...

WASHINGTON, April 23, 2006 – After months of deadlock, Iraq reached an "important milestone" in its journey toward democracy with an agreement on top leadership posts for a national unity government, President Bush said yesterday. The parliament elected a president, two vice presidents, a parliament speaker and two deputies yesterday. President Jalal Talabani then named Jawad al Maliki as prime minister-designate. "This agreement represents compromise and consensus among many different Iraqi groups and it came after months of patient negotiations," Bush said in a speech at the California Highway Patrol Academy in Sacramento. "The agreement reflects the will of the...

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Shiite politicians agreed Friday to nominate Jawad al-Maliki as prime minister, replacing the incumbent in a bid to clear the way for a long-delayed new government, two Shiite officials said. Al-Maliki is a top ally of outgoing Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, whose nomination had sparked sharp opposition from Sunni Arab and Kurdish leaders and caused a deadlock lasting months. Leaders of the seven parties that make up the Shiite alliance agreed on al-Maliki's nomination in a meeting Friday evening, said Jalal Eddin al-Sagheer, a member of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, the largest...

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Iraq's president formally designated Shiite politician Jawad al-Maliki to form a new government Saturday, starting a process aimed at healing ethnic and religious wounds and pulling the nation out of insurgency and sectarian strife. The move ends months of political deadlock among Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds that threatened to drag the nation into civil war. Al-Maliki has 30 days to present his Cabinet to parliament for approval. Parliament elected President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, to a second term and gave the post of parliament speaker to Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, a Sunni Arab. Al-Mashhadani's two deputies were to...

<p>BAGHDAD, Iraq - After months of political deadlock, Iraq's parliament convened Saturday and filled top leadership posts, starting the process of putting together a new government aimed at pulling the country out of insurgency and sectarian strife.</p> <p>President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, was elected to a second term, and the post of parliament speaker went to Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, a Sunni Arab. Al-Mashhadani's two deputies were to be Khalid al-Attiyah, a Shiite, and Aref Tayfour, a Kurd.</p>

Iraq: Jaafari ready to give up its candidature for the post of Prime Minister BAGHDAD - Ibrahim Jaafari was ready Thursday to be given up her candidature for the post of Prime Minister after having lengthily insisted to succeed itself, opening the way at an exit of the political crisis in Iraq. "Doctor Jaafari was selected like candidate by the Iraqi unified list (AUI, the block Shiite) and it asks today this block to decide its candidature", declared one of its close relations Jawad Al-Maliki with the press. Outgoing the Prime Minister thus leaves with his block the choice...

The majority of Iraqis overall view the recent parliamentary elections as valid, are optimistic that their country is going in the right direction and feel that the overthrow of Saddam Hussein has been worth the costs. Sunnis, on the other hand... The poll was conducted for WorldPublicOpinion.org by the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) at the University of Maryland and was fielded by KA Research Limited... Among the Shia and Kurds optimism is even higher. Seventy-six percent of Kurds and 84% of Shia say they think the country is headed in the right direction. the ethnic divisions are very...

ALARM - Opening of the inaugural session of the new Iraqi Parliament BAGHDAD - the Iraqi Parliament elected on December 15 opened Thursday its first session in Baghdad in the medium of imposing safety measures, according to correspondents' of AFP.

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraq's president said Monday he would convene the new parliament for the first time on March 12, beginning a 60-day countdown during which lawmakers must elect a new head of state and sign off on a prime minister and Cabinet. A string of explosions in Baghdad and north of the capital, meanwhile, killed at least 14 Iraqis and wounded 52. A U.S. soldier was reported killed in insurgency-plagued western Anbar province, pushing the American military death toll to 2,300 since the beginning of the war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. The violence underscored...

al-Jaafari's nomination to continue for four more years as Iraq's prime minister is already in trouble, according to Iraqi sources. "I doubt he will be confirmed," said a member of the United Iraqi Alliance, the Shia political coalition that last week nominated al-Jaafari. The nomination by the UIA, the largest political group in the new Iraqi Council of Representatives, or parliament, was supposed to make confirmation a formality. But al-Jaafari is unpopular with the Kurds, the second largest bloc in the council. And his most powerful backer, anti-American Shia militant Muqtada al-Sadr, is anathema to another bloc, led by former...

February 13, 2006 Unreported History in Baghdad By Lieutenant Colonel John M. Kanaley The silence was deafening and the seats were empty. The western press was nowhere to be found. The location was Baghdad and the event was a February 10th, 2006 press conference announcing the final verification of December's election results. Although the final allocation of parliamentary seats did not change from last month's tentative reports, the conference was nonetheless significant for American and Iraqi history. What was equally significant was the absence of members of the western press. If the pre-release of the topics to be discussed included...

U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, and former Iraqi Interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, right, leave the Prime Minister's office after a meeting, in central Baghdad, Iraq Friday, Feb. 11, 2005. Secular and tough-minded, Ayad Allawi seems the perfect U.S. choice to run Iraq's security forces. But many fellow Shiites have never forgiven Allawi for decisions taken when he was prime minister and seem ready to fight to keep him on the political sidelines.

Shiite lawmakers chose Ibrahim al-Jaafari today to continue as prime minister in Iraq's next government, after a contentious internal ballot that exposed the growing power of anti-American fundamentalists within the new Iraqi Parliament. The selection of Jaafari, a moderate Islamist, is the first step toward the creation of a full-term, four-year government. They will now begin negotiating in earnest with the leaders of Iraq's other political groups to create a cabinet. That task, which is expected to take months, could be complicated by the surprise selection of Mr. Jaafari, who has been widely criticized for his tenure as prime minister...

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Shiite lawmakers Sunday chose Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari to head Iraq's new government, Shiite officials said. Al-Jaafari won 64 votes, one more than Vice President Adil Abdul-Mahdi, officials said. There were two abstentions. More than 100 lawmakers from the Shiite coalition, the United Iraqi Alliance, gathered to vote. The choice of the umbrella Shiite alliance is assured of becoming prime minister because Shiites won the most parliament seats in the Dec. 15 national elections. Shiite lawyers cast their votes at the heavily guarded home of Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, the head of Abdul-Mahdi's party. Al-Jaafari's supporters gathered in the...

Iraqi elections solve little (21 January 2006) Glen Rangwala looks at how the elections in Iraq are unlikely to bring national reconciliation, and how the US is deepening the hostility with every bomb dropped. Published in Labour Left Briefing (February 2006) All the talk in Iraq’s official political circles since the national parliamentary elections on 15th December has been about forming a government of national unity. This, we are told, would bring in the main political groups from all three major ethnic and sectarian groupings – the Kurds, the Sunni Arabs and the Shi‘a Arabs. The new parliament, elected for...