Iraq (MNN) — As the world watches Ukraine, another potential crisis unfolds in Iraq. The war-torn country has been without a leader since October of last year. Learn why here.
MENA Leadership Center VP Fadi Shareiha says Iraq’s two main political parties remain deadlocked. “One of them is pro-Iran; both are not agreeing on how to move forward,” he explains.
“They will not agree on a president [or] even Prime Minister, so everything is basically on hold.”
This is Iraq’s longest political impasse since the United States invasion in 2003. Back then, Iraq descended into civil war. See a timeline of Iraq’s tumultuous transition to civil governance.
Will history repeat itself? Will the political conflict devolve into war? “Define ‘war’ in the region,” Sharaiha replies.
“Bombs? Yes, for sure. Killing here and there? Yeah, for sure. Going to war? I really pray that they will not.”
The region cannot afford another shockwave of instability and refugees, Sharaiha explains. “Jordan cannot afford more refugees; Lebanon cannot afford any more; Syria is in a war,” he says.
Plus, “what is happening in Iraq is being decided outside of Iraq. It is a very complicated deal,” Sharaiha says. More about that here.
Several years ago, the Islamic State (also known as Daesh) leveraged Iraq’s political instability to gain a foothold in the country. “When Daesh came overnight, Christians were thrown out of their homes. Some Christian women were raped; some Christians were robbed. Join us and pray that this will not happen again,” Sharaiha requests.
Unlike some of Iraq’s people groups, like the Kurds, Iraqi Christians “do not have militias, so they are not armed. They don’t have anybody to defend them but God Himself,” he adds.
“Pray war will not happen in Iraq. Please pray that Christians will be secure and protected by the Lord.”
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of أخٌفيالله/Unsplash.
