Taqadum candidate shut out of Iraqi election for alleged Israel ties

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s electoral commission on Friday cancelled its endorsement of a prominent Sunni candidate accused of “praising” the normalization of ties with Israel. The decision was made a week after a US organization hosted a conference in Erbil to discuss opening ties with Israel.

The Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) excluded Haidar al-Mulla from the October 10 election after he used “obscene expressions” and “praised” the normalization of ties with Israel in a leaked audio recording, read a statement from the commission. Votes cast for Mulla will not be counted.

Mulla has been “attacking the political system in Iraq since 2003,” the commission added.

Mulla is a well-known figure from the Taqadum Alliance, led by Parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi. The complaint against him originated from Taqadum’s main rival, the Azm Alliance. They are both looking to dominate the Sunni areas of Iraq. Taqadum has a total of 150 candidates while Azm has 124 across the country.

Mulla has three days to appeal to the decision, according to IHEC.

The spokesperson for Taqadum said the complaint against Mulla was politically motivated and his exclusion from the election is “targeting the influential figures and candidates of Taqadum Alliance who we think will win,” Saud Mashhadani told Rudaw.

Mulla is a lawyer and served in the Iraqi parliament between 2010 and 2014.

“The decision is subject to appeal,” he said in a Facebook video shared late Friday night.

Iraqis will go to the polls on October 10.

Support for opening up ties with Israel is a contentious topic in Iraq, after a conference last week put on by the New York-based Center for Peace and Communication in Erbil about normalizing ties with Israel. It was attended by about 300 Sunnis and Shiites. The meeting and its call for diplomatic relations with Israel was slammed by the Kurdistan Regional Government, the Iraqi government and several Shiite figures. Warrants have been issued for attendees. A key speaker at the conference has said he was tricked and recanted the statement he made at the forum. Iraq does not recognize Israel and supports Palestinian statehood aspirations.

Several candidates have been barred from the election for violating codes of conduct.

Shaalan Abdul-Jabbar Ali, who is also a member of Taqadum Alliance, was excluded on Monday after he claimed that he spent his own money to pave the streets. “The candidate’s election campaign includes state-owned mechanisms that carry-out street paving process,” state media reported IHEC as saying.

He appealed the decision and the suspension of his candidacy was lifted.

The commission canceled the endorsement of the candidacy of Ashwaq Fahed Aboud al-Ghurairi because there is a criminal case against her on charges of buying votes.

There are more than 3,200 candidates competing for 329 seats in the parliament. Nine seats are reserved by minorities and there are 67 candidates vying for these spots. At least 25 million Iraqis are eligible to vote, but polls predict a record low turnout.

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