A number of prominent Iraqi MPs from various factions said in 2012 Iraqi leaders failed to sit down for even one meeting, the Iraqi al-Mada daily wrote, adding this is due to the deceptive intentions of the judicial branch that arrests dissidents and provides immunity for Nouri Maliki.
Iraqi MP Amir al-Kanani from the al-Ahrar faction said the campaign for a no-confidence vote on Maliki faced various barriers due to pressures imposed by Iran on the National Alliance and all its various movements, especially the Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq, leading to Muqtada Sadr departing Iran and returning to Baghdad.
The Sadr movement opposed these pressures, he added, continuing to say Tehran’s pressures were due to the mullahs’ fear of a new government coming to power in Iraq not being in line with its interests, especially since Maliki’s government assist Iran’s projects and backs Tehran’s nuclear drive.
Iran fears the result of a no-confidence vote against Maliki and the unknown future afterwards, he concluded.