On Thursday Iraq's parliament votes on the last empty seats in Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi's government, and on four new deputy prime ministers.
One of the nominees put forward is Laith al-Khazali, a senior figure in Asaib Ahl al-Haq whom the US Treasury sanctioned in 2019.
The nominees
Parliament has published no list, so these are the names their own blocs have put forward. None is confirmed until the vote, and the chamber has turned a nominee down before. For Interior, the bloc of former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki has put forward Yasser Sakhil al-Maliki, reported to be his son-in-law. Iraqi reporting says two new ministries are meant for factions that agreed to give up their weapons.
What moved this week
- Washington — Iraq's National Security Adviser said on Tuesday that the United States had decided on strikes and a blockade before Baghdad chose economic deals with it.
- The banks — the US Treasury fined Bank of America more than $1.21 billion over money-laundering and sanctions failures.
- The cut — Iraqi reporting says the governing parties approved the cut to 1,500 in June, months before it was announced.
- The street — Tuesday closed at 166,250 IQD for $100 in Baghdad, against the bank's public price of 152,000.
- The budget — the 2027 budget has still not reached parliament.
- Hormuz — two senior Iranian officials say attacks on shipping have been stepped up to keep oil high through the US elections.
The question
Why would Baghdad bring men Washington sanctioned into its government, and why would Washington let it? And what does that mean for the dinar you hold?
Credit: Written by Reset Intelligence — David E. Atterton, author of Head of the Snake (@EXIT_FIAT). Read the full briefing: Who Is Joining Iraq's Government?
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