As the power struggle in Iraq intensified, with new victims among the protesters and a general strike paralyzing the country, the street's anger is increasingly targeted by the powerful Iranian neighbor. Including in the south of the country, mostly Shiite.
Supporting several Iraqi political parties and armed groups, some of which are members of the government coalition, such as Hashd al-Shaabi, a paramilitary group dominated by Shiite militias, Iran is accused of interfering in the country's affairs.
After the fall of the totalitarian regime of Saddam Hussein in 2003, provoked by the American invasion, Tehran extended its political and economic influence (Iraq is the first economic partner of Iran) to its neighbor. Shiite leaders, often exiled in Iran, dominate the new power in Baghdad.
In the demonstrations that have killed 270 people since 1 October in Baghdad and the south of the country, hostility against the Islamic Republic is reflected in the slogans chanted by the protesters. In addition to their economic and social demands, they say they want to get rid of the Iranian presence in the country and a "regime put in place by Tehran".
"The Islamic Republic has infiltrated Iraq's political class and society"
"We are currently witnessing a revolution that will reshuffle all the cards in the country and in the region, and it is a real threat for Iran, which holds the power in Iraq since 2003," says historian Omar Mohammed to France 24. , creator of the blog "Mosul Eye." Through their slogans and their actions, the demonstrators express their rejection of the Iranian influence, but also of any ambition of Tehran which aims to keep under its control the power and the political elite of the country".
On the night of November 3-4, in the holy Shia city of Kerbala, 100 kilometers south of Baghdad, protesters tried to burn down the Iranian consulate. They deployed Iraqi flags on the wall of the building where they wrote "Free Karbala, Iran outside," Four protesters were killed during these events.
On Monday, deadly clashes erupted in the capital, on bridges leading to the Iranian embassy, the seat of government, and the foreign affairs and justice ministries.
This is not the first time that the Iranian stranglehold, also pointed by Westerners, is denounced in Iraq. In September 2018, in Basra, southern Shiite, hundreds of demonstrators set fire to the Iranian consulate and attacked armed parties and groups, most of them close to Iran, in a wave of violence. protests against corruption and the decay of public services.
"Why is Iran so targeted by protesters, because the Islamic Republic has infiltrated Iraq's political class and society all over the country, from Najaf to Sulaymaniyah, and from Basra to Erbil? deployed in the entire Iraqi social body through educational and cultural centers, consulates and universities, "says Adel Bakawan, director of the Center for Sociology of Iraq, University of Soran and author of" L'Impossible Iraqi State ", published in March 2019 by Éditions L'Harmattan.
He added: "There are more than 60 institutionalized militias in the country, and nearly 80% of them are pro-Iranian and supported by Tehran. passing through the militia filter that a young Iraqi can hope to have an employment perspective and a social recognition. "
Iranian supreme leader's speech stirs up anger
In response to the crisis that is destabilizing Iraqi power, and ongoing protests in Lebanon, Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, spoke of an international conspiracy in a speech on October 30. He notably accused the United States, Israel and "some Western countries" of being at the origin of "troubles" that cross these two countries, and in which Tehran has powerful relays.
"I recommend to those in charge of Iraq and Lebanon to remedy the insecurity and turmoil created in their country by the United States, the Zionist regime [the State of Israel is not recognized by Tehran, Ed], some Western countries and the money of some reactionary countries, "said Ali Khamanei. On October 7, he had already accused "enemies" of "sowing discord" between Tehran and Baghdad.
The content of the speech of the Supreme Leader was rejected by Iraqi demonstrators, whose spontaneous mobilization with patriotic accents results from a social crisis against a backdrop of economic slump.
"Khamenei's recent remarks provoked an opposite reaction to the one that was sought, in the sense that he stirred up the anger of the protesters and the protest against the Iranian influence," said Amar Al Hameedawi, a journalist originally from Iraq in Iraq. France 24. The Iraqi people reject any idea of conspiracy as well as those who defend it, and no longer want to be associated with the regional wars of the Iranian neighbor, nor with his conflict with the United States ".
In addition to the Iranian Supreme Leader's comments and insinuations, frequent visits to Iraq during the disputed month of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, the influential Quds Force commander in charge of the Revolutionary Guards' external operations, have ulcerated the protesters. Especially since several Iraqi leaders also went to Iran during the crisis, like the Shiite leader Moqtada al-Sadr.
While the country is bogged down in a political stalemate, and no prospect of ending the crisis seems to emerge, Tehran is accused of seeking to keep in power the Prime Minister of Iraq, Adel Abdel Mahdi, appointed to this post at the following a tacit agreement between Iran and the United States, the other power frequently accused of interference in Iraq. Sign of the Iranian will, in full arm with the United States, to defend a system and a partner regime whose people demand the fall.
"The Islamic Republic has invested heavily in Iraq, both politically and economically, and the Iranian government is not about to give up its grip on the country because it is a geopolitical issue of national security. not rule out a scenario in which the force would be used, directly or indirectly, to defend strategic assets ", concludes Adel Bakawan.