Baghdad, January 28: A senior Iraqi official has warned that Washington supports the return of former Ba’ath party members to power in a bid to bolster security arrangements with Israel.
Iraq’s Justice and Accountability CommissionHead, Ahmed Chalabi told Press TV that the US tries to involve Iraq in its political security order in the region through the return of Ba’athists to power.
According to the official, Washington has developed a security order in the Middle East which involves some Arab states and Israel and the US will consider Iraq as a threat if it does not participate in this order.
Chalabi said Baghdad’s decision to ban pro-Ba’ath candidates from participating in the country’s upcoming general elections has been part of Iraq’s constitution.
Iraq’s election organizer, The Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC), banned about 500 people from running in the March 7 vote.
According to Parliament’s Justice and Accountability Committee, all the banned candidates had links with Saddam Hussein’s political and military apparatus.
Thirteen candidates were members of the Ba’ath party, and a further 182 belonged to Saddam’s Fedayeen (Men of Sacrifice), a notorious military unit, and the former regime’s intelligence service.
Amid the election row, US Vice President Joe Biden arrived in Baghdad last week to talk with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki about the disqualification the candidates.
His visit was aimed at persuading Iraqi officials to reverse the ban on candidates with links to the Ba’ath party.
Chalabi, however, said Parliament rejected Biden’s proposal and the suggestion made no headway with the Iraqi leadership.
——-Agencies