Iraq’s relations with Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been hostile for some time, but Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki’s 9 March interview with France 24 upped the ante. In a 20-minute interview filmed at the opulent presidential residence in Baghdad, Maliki – with the 30 April general election in his sights – unequivocally accused Saudi Arabia and Qatar of supporting terrorism in Syria and Iraq, going so far as to say that “Iraq’s sectarian and terrorist crisis is primarily the responsibility of these two countries”. “I accuse them of inciting and encouraging the terrorist movements. I accuse them of supporting them politically and through the media, of supporting them with money and buying arms for them,” Maliki told journalist Marc Perelman in a measured tone. “I accuse them of declaring an open war against the Iraqi government. I also accuse them of sheltering the leaders of Al-Qaeda and takfiris...”
Subscribe to Gulf States Newsletter