Iraq's alliance of Shi'ite political blocs, the Coordination Framework, reaffirmed on Saturday its support for former premier Nouri al-Maliki to lead the next government, despite a warning from U.S. President Donald Trump that Washington would no longer help Iraq if Maliki returned to power.
Former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki walks at a polling station inside Al-Rasheed Hotel during the parliamentary election in Baghdad, Iraq, November 11, 2025. Reuters/Thaier Al-Sudani
Iraq's alliance of Shi'ite political blocs, the Coordination Framework, reaffirmed on Saturday its support for former premier Nouri al-Maliki to lead the next government, despite a warning from U.S. President Donald Trump that Washington would no longer help Iraq if Maliki returned to power.
The bloc, which holds a majority in parliament, picked Maliki, Iraq's first elected prime minister after a U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003, as its nominee for the post following an election.
"The choice of the prime minister is a purely Iraqi constitutional matter and should proceed without foreign interference," the Coordination Framework said in a statement, adding that it seeks balanced relations with international partners based on mutual respect.
Trump's threats are the starkest example yet of the Republican president's campaign to curb Iran-linked groups' influence in Iraq, which has long walked a tightrope between its two closest allies, Washington and Tehran.
Reporting by Muayad Hameed
Syrian authorities said on Thursday they had foiled an attempt to smuggle advanced weapons and missiles across the border from Iraq, with state news agency SANA citing an Interior Ministry source as saying the shipment appeared destined for militant group Hezbollah.
The U.S. struck Iran's coastal defenses and missile sites on Wednesday after reimposing a naval blockade of its ports, while Iran threatened to shut off more regional energy exports, saying it was engaged in an "existential war" with America.
The Syrian Liberal Party has called the passage of a modern Political Parties Law an urgent constitutional necessity, arguing it can no longer be treated as ordinary legislation but as a precondition for completing Syria's transitional phase.
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