Page 6 - aruba-today-20220801

A6 WORLD NEWS
Tuesday 2 augusT 2022
Threat of protests, violent escalation stirs fears in Iraq

By SAMYA KULLAB and QA- Hours later, the protesters
SSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA suddenly folded up their
BAGHDAD (AP) — Thou- banners and left the area
sands gathered in Baghdad after one of the alliance
on Monday for a counter- leaders, Qais al-Khazali, di-
rally called by Iran-backed rected them to leave, an-
groups against their rival, nouncing that their “excur-
an influential cleric whose sion” Monday had been for
followers are staging a sit-in “the sake of Iraq only.”
inside the Iraqi parliament Protesters promptly curled
only to withdraw hours lat- up flags and left the area.
er. They also dismantled the
It wasn’t immediately clear tents erected near the pro-
if the pullback by support- test site, that at first signaled
ers of the Coordination the possibility of drawn-out
Framework, an alliance demonstrations in a stand-
lead by Shiite parties close off between the two Shiite
to Iran, was a definite de- factions.
escalation in their power On Sunday, al-Sadr had
struggle with cleric Muqta- egged on his followers in-
da al-Sadr’s loyalists. side the parliament, call-
Al-Sadr’s followers have ing for a “revolution” to
been camped out inside change the political sys-
the parliament in Bagh- tem, the constitution and
dad’s heavily fortified abolish his rivals. He urged
Green Zone since thou- Followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr hold posters with his photo during a sit-in, inside the Iraqi tribes to join him, a
parliament in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, Aug. 1, 2022.
sands stormed the building Associated Press message his rivals saw as a
on Saturday, demanding call to a coup.
reforms and denouncing federal elections were held Iran-backed groups and Al-Maliki leads the Coalition And though the Coalition
the Iran-backed alliance. last October with no one figures. They wore black, Framework. Framework swiftly urged
Al-Sadr’s representative winning an outright parlia- the custom ahead of the The alliance had instructed for a counter-rally, frac-
have called on supporters ment majority and tensions holy day of Ashura, an im- its supporters to say at the tures also appeared within
in Iraqi provinces to protest remain high. portant day of mourning in bridge and not enter the its leadership, with some
in their cities and towns in Earlier Monday, Iraqi securi- the Shiite Muslim calendar. Green Zone but to “wait for members calling for re-
support of the parliament ty forces erected concrete Ashoura starts on Sunday. instructions.” straint and others pushing
sit-in. barriers ahead of the street “We are sending a mes- Paramilitary forces belong- for escalation.
Dueling protests between protests by the Iran-backed sage to the other side that ing to the Popular Mobiliza- Among those urging con-
the two major Shiite factions groups. we are with the law, the tion Forces, a state-sanc- trol and moderation was
would have raised the pros- By early afternoon, thou- state,” said one demon- tioned umbrella among Fatah Alliance chief Hadi
pect of escalating tensions sands of Shiite men arrived strator, a member of for- which Iran-backed groups al-Ameri, two Shiite political
and plunged Iraq deeper at the July 14th Bridge, mer Prime Minister Nouri al- are the most powerful, officials tole The Associated
into crisis. The country has which leads to the Green Maliki’s State of Law party. formed a ring around the Press, speaking on condi-
struggled with a political Zone, waving Iraqi flags He declined to provide his protesters to block off pas- tion of anonymity in line
vacuum 10 months since and those belonging to name, fearing for his safety. sage to the Green Zone. with regulations. q

EU court limits national checks for

migrant rescue ships

disembarking migrants for authorities have the right is a victory for sea rescue.
taking aboard more peo- to inspect ships to assess In the future, ships will thus
ple than they were autho- whether rules on work- continue to do what they
rized to carry. ing conditions, health and do best: Rescue people
Italian harbor authorities safety, and the environ- instead of being arbitrarily
also considered that the ment are being respected. stuck in port,” the organiza-
ships were not certified for But it added that they do tion said in a tweet.
search-and-rescue mis- “not have the power to Neither the EU nor any of
sions. demand proof that those its 27 nations are actively
The German charity Sea-Watch 3 with 444 people on board in But the court said that res- ships hold certificates other searching for people in
the central Mediterranean on Sunday, July 24, 2022. cued people “must not be than those issued by the danger in the Mediter-
Associated Press taken into account when flag state,” which in the ranean Sea, where more
verifying whether the rules case of the Sea-Watch ves- than 1,000 people have
BRUSSELS (AP) — The Eu- plucked from the sea. on safety at sea have been sels was Germany. died or are missing so far
ropean Union’s top court The European Court of complied with. The number Sea-Watch described the this year, many of whom
ruled Monday that national Justice ruling came in re- of persons on board, even court decision as a vic- tried to reach Europe from
maritime authorities cannot sponse to an appeal by if greater than that which is tory that means that port North Africa in unseawor-
impound ships involved in German migrant aid group authorized, cannot there- authorities can’t arbitrarily thy smugglers’ boats.
search-and-rescue work on Sea-Watch. Two of the Ger- fore, in itself, constitute a detain ships and prevent But ships are bound by in-
suspicion that they might man group’s ships were ground for a control.” them from doing their work. ternational law to respond
be overloaded due to the forced to undergo inspec- The Luxembourg-based “The ruling provides clear to any distress call near
number of migrants they tions in Sicily in 2020 after ECJ also said national port legal security for NGOs and them.q