Iran Press/ commentary: Iraq has been witnessing anti-government protests since October 1, 2019. Economic, social and political demands were the reason for the anti-government protests of the Iraqi people, however, along with foreign intervention and deviant internal factions, domestic violence has been brought to the scene.
As a result, Adil Abdul Mahdi stepped down as prime minister on November 30, and the parliament approved his resignation on December 1. Abdul Mahdi continued to serve as prime minister for the past two months.
Allawi was announced as the new Iraqi prime minister two months later, during those two months many people were nominated for the post, however, opposition from the protesters prevented anyone from being nominated for the new cabinet by Barham Salih.
Although no single voice is heard by Iraqi political groups regarding Prime Ministership of Mohammad Tawfiq Allawi, however, the introduction of a new prime minister is a political achievement if it leads to the end of a two-month political vacuum in the country.
Seyyed Reza Gharabi, an expert on Iraqi issues says: "one cannot be optimistic about forming a strong government by choosing a prime minister in a long and stressful process, but the introduction of a new cabinet and the start of a new government could help one step towards calming the atmosphere and moving along the path.
The new Iraqi prime minister will face short-term challenges in the interim period. Forming a new cabinet is one of the immediate challenges. Although Allawi has announced that he will form a new cabinet far from the political factions. However, the power structure in Iraq is such that makes it difficult to ignore the political quota.
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Another important short-term challenge facing Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi is the continuing protests and insecurity in the country. A number of protesters in various Iraqi cities have voiced opposition to the new prime minister and they stated Allawi is not their chosen accepted Prime Minister, because he has already been part of Iraq's power structure and has also resided outside Iraq in recent years.
Due to the discontent of the protesters, in his first remarks after announcing his appointment as the new Iraqi prime minister, Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi said that meeting popular demands is his top priority.
Allawi will be Iraq's interim prime minister and is due to provide early parliamentary elections and form a new Iraqi cabinet in about a year's time. Given Iraq's political and security situation, preparing for early elections is a daunting task.
Last but not least, one must add to the internal challenges facing Allawi the external ones too, which the utmost important of them is the overt interference of the US government in Iraqi internal affairs. 104/219
Seyyed Reza Emadi
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