BAGHDAD: Negotiations between Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi and leaders of Shiite-dominated paramilitary troops to form an electoral alliance in the parliamentary and provincial election scheduled for May had not produced a final agreement on Friday, leaders involved in the talks told Arab News.
Gaining the support of the armed factions who fought Daesh alongside the government during the past three years is crucial for Abadi to gain a comfortable parliamentary majority to form the next government.
The negotiations, which started on Thursday, have been taking place in Baghdad between representatives of Abadi and leaders of the “Al-Fattah Alliance,” which includes the most powerful Shiite armed factions such as Badr Organization, Asaib Ahl Al-Haq, Kataib Huzballah and Jund Al-Imam in addition to the leaders of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq and the independents.
Abadi has been seeking to form the biggest electoral alliance along with “Al-Fattah,” which is headed by Hadi Al-Amiri, the commander of Badr Organization, while the leaders of the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) have been looking for protection.
“An alliance with Abadi is in the interest of both parties (Abadi and the PMU),” a senior PMU commander said on condition of anonymity to Arab News.
“The prime minister is the only one who can threaten the existence of us (the PMU). Legally he (the prime minister) is authorized to go after any of us and represents a source of concern.
“If he will be with us, this means we will be protected,” the commander said.
The negotiation teams of both sides on Friday had agreed on several issues, but who will head the final coalition and who will lead the electoral list in Baghdad are topics “still under negotiation,” leaders involved in the talks told Arab News.
“We are looking to form the biggest bloc in the next parliament, so Abadi is the best choice to achieve this,” Yazin Al-Joubori, one of the PMU commanders, told Arab News.
“The problem is that Abadi insists on being the head of the (final) coalition and the leader of the electoral list in Baghdad while (Hadi) Al-Amiri insists on giving him just one of them,” Al-Joubori said.
The guarantees which Abadi has to present to the PMU leaders also was one of the biggest obstacles as his negotiation team insists on “not giving any promises or concessions.” By the end of Friday’s meetings, no final agreement was made, leaders involved in the talks said.
“Abadi is well aware that he has a very strong card now and knows that the PMU factions need him, so he is negotiating from a position of strength,” a Shiite politician involved in the talks told Arab News on condition of anonymity.
“In all cases, this alliance will be made, but (looks like) it will be according to Abadi’s conditions.
“We have presented so many concessions, while he has refused to give us anything (in return).
“There is no other strong alternative (than Abadi). We need him so we have to go with him,” the leader said.
Abadi seeks alliance with Popular Mobilization Units based on his terms
Abadi seeks alliance with Popular Mobilization Units based on his terms
Bayern’s Davies ruled out ‘for time being’ with hamstring tear
- Bayern said scans confirmed the Canada international “sustained a muscle strain in his left hamstring”
- Davies could also miss Bayern’s Champions League playoffs in February
MUNICH: Bayern Munich defender Alphonso Davies is set for a stint on the sidelines after he was diagnosed with a torn muscle, the German club said in a statement on Thursday.
Davies, 24, was subbed out in first-half stoppage time in Wednesday’s 3-0 loss to Feyenoord.
Bayern said scans confirmed the Canada international “sustained a muscle strain in his left hamstring” and “would be absent for the time being.”
The club did not indicate how long Davies will miss but he will be in doubt for the trip to defending champions Bayer Leverkusen on February 15.
Davies could also miss Bayern’s Champions League playoffs in February, should the German giants fail to qualify for the top eight.
Wednesday’s loss to Feyenoord leaves Bayern with 12 points in 15th spot on the Champions League table, one point behind eighth-placed Leverkusen.
In the Bundesliga, Bayern sit four points clear of Leverkusen atop the table.
Digital transformation alone cannot modernize nations, UAE minister tells Davos
- Maryam Al Hammadi highlights need for comprehensive reform to meet evolving expectations
- Maryam Al Hammadi: We need to attract talents, we need to attract entrepreneurs, so we need them to be living in the UAE
LONDON: Digital transformation, while crucial, is insufficient for driving true modernization in governance, Maryam Al Hammadi, the UAE’s minister of state and secretary-general of the UAE Cabinet, told attendees at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday.
Speaking on a panel titled “Governments Rewired,” Al Hammadi emphasized that digital initiatives must be paired with sweeping regulatory reforms to ensure nations remain competitive and appealing to global talent.
She said: “We need to attract talents, we need to attract entrepreneurs, so we need them to be living in the UAE.
“It’s not about attracting them alone, but actually to make them live in the UAE. And that’s why we have to do massive reform in our regulations, in all aspects.”
Al Hammadi cited the UAE’s introduction of specialized courts operating in English as an example of such reforms. She argued that without updating regulatory frameworks, countries risked widening bureaucratic gaps as technology and industries evolved, discouraging both investment and talent retention.
She added: “In four years, 80 percent of the federal laws in the UAE have been changed, more than 40 laws in the UAE have been rebuilt and 30 new laws introduced.” She said that 99 percent of government services had been digitally transformed.
Al Hammadi highlighted that the rapid pace of technological advance had significantly elevated expectations, making modernization not a “luxury” but a “necessity” for governments to remain relevant, competitive, and effective.
Artificial intelligence and its potential to bridge global divides dominated discussions both on and off the forum’s panels. While many speakers championed AI’s ability to foster development, concerns about growing protectionism and restricted access to the technology persisted.
Achim Steiner, administrator of the UN Development Programme, highlighted the importance of adopting a decentralized and agile approach to AI governance.
He said: “What I sometimes find intriguing is that the AI narrative of Davos is sometimes somewhat removed from the narrative that I hear in the rest of the world.”
He pointed out that much of AI’s foundational research had been publicly funded, emphasizing the role of governments in shaping AI’s trajectory.
“We often pretend that all of this is just a commercial and business value proposition. Actually, much of the fundamental research is publicly funded,” Steiner said, stressing the critical role of governments in fostering innovation.
He further argued that while fundamental research helped to lay the groundwork, the real challenge was at the other end — how these applications could drive entirely new economic trajectories, create markets, and establish platforms.
Steiner stressed the importance of governments striking a balance between being “enablers and regulators” in this process, adding: “Society leads technology, and not always technology leads society.”
Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair said that while technological advance presented a concrete opportunity to “transform,” how “government understands, masters and harnesses the technology revolution is the single biggest thing for government to get its head around today.”
He added: “This is the challenge, both for the developed world and the developing world.”
Saudi economic success being driven by ‘key North Star, not egos,’ says finance minister at WEF
- Mohammed Al-Jadaan highlights Kingdom’s shift from short-term budgets to longer-term fiscal planning, ensuring clear priorities and disciplined spending
- Transformation driven by clear decisions and significant investments led to strong economic performance, adds economic planning chief Faisal Al-Ibrahim
DAVOS: Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan on Thursday said that the Kingdom’s economic planners were being driven by their “North Star” and not egos as they look to maintain growth in the economy.
Speaking on a panel about the Saudi economy at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, Al-Jadaan highlighted Saudi Arabia’s shift from short-term budgets to longer-term fiscal planning, ensuring clear priorities and disciplined spending.
He said that there was flexibility and a readiness within the government to adapt plans based on global circumstances. “I’ve said this repeatedly, we don’t have egos. We are willing to change depending on circumstances and we will continue to do that. We will prioritize what matters,” he said.
“Our key North Star is what is driving us, and the tools can change, the means can change. It’s really that North Star that we are looking forward to,” he said.
He emphasized the progress and resilience of Saudi Arabia’s economy under Vision 2030, noting that the plan had mobilized the entire nation — government, businesses, right down to citizens — toward clear, long-term goals.
He attributed this success to visionary leadership, tough decision-making and consistent execution, adding that this approach could be a universal “recipe” for unlocking global potential.
On the Saudi-US relationship, Al-Jadaan highlighted its strategic importance over the past eight decades, emphasizing that Saudi Arabia had maintained strong economic, diplomatic and security ties with Washington, regardless of the administration in power, whether Republican or Democrat.
He described the partnership as a “win-win situation” that remained vital and was likely to endure into the foreseeable future.
Al-Jadaan was joined on the panel by Saudi Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal Al-Ibrahim, who attributed the Kingdom’s strong economic performance to a first wave of transformation driven by clear, courageous decisions and significant investments, not only financially but also in terms of effort and planning.
Looking ahead, Al-Ibrahim stressed that the next phase of Vision 2030 would focus on addressing more complex challenges, particularly in enabling the private sector.
He emphasized the goal of increasing the private sector’s contribution to 65 percent of GDP by fostering collaboration, co-developing opportunities and creating an environment where private enterprises could take the lead in driving economic growth.
Key priorities include enhancing institutional capabilities, ensuring policy clarity and predictability, and addressing barriers to innovation-driven entrepreneurship, he said.
Al-Ibrahim also underlined the government’s commitment to working closely with the private sector, noting that ministers and their teams often worked long hours to respond to and engage with private enterprises. This collaborative approach, he said, was deeply embedded in the country’s Vision 2030 blueprint for economic transformation.
IMF Chief Kristalina Georgieva, who was also on the panel, praised Saudi Arabia’s transformation efforts, highlighting the country’s ability to create an appealing environment for business and tourism.
She commended its forward-thinking approach in engaging the private sector to diversify experiences and attract repeat visitors. Referring to her visit to AlUla, she said: “I didn’t know what to expect, but I came out thinking it was great we decided to open our regional office in Riyadh.”
Georgieva also noted Saudi Arabia’s strategic planning to host global events and foster economic growth. She described the country as a “good example of transformation” that others could look to for inspiration in creating dynamic, sustainable growth through proactive planning and investment.
Croatia issues Serbia travel warning after saying nationals expelled
- The Croatian foreign ministry alleged “inappropriate and unfounded actions of Serbian authorities toward Croatian nationals“
- Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman on Wednesday said he would send a protest note to Serbia
ZAGREB: Croatia on Thursday recommended its nationals postpone non-essential travel to Serbia, alleging Belgrade had expelled five Croatian women citing security reasons.
The Croatian foreign ministry alleged “inappropriate and unfounded actions of Serbian authorities toward Croatian nationals,” in a statement.
Other Croatians had previously been accused of taking part in a recent wave of protests against Serbia’s nationalist government in an separate case.
Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman on Wednesday said he would send a protest note to Serbia over the “detention of five Croatian women” there who all returned home safely.
He said the five attended a workshop involving NGOs organized by Austria’s Erste Bank foundation and were “detained without any explanation.”
He said Zagreb will inform the European Union delegation in Belgrade about Serbian authorities’ actions, “which put Croatian citizens in a humiliating position.”
Serbia’s foreign ministry said it was “inappropriate” for a Croatian official to “accuse Serbia of endangering the freedom of movement and speech of several Croatian nationals.”
The latter were “treated in Belgrade by the competent state bodies in line with legal procedures and usual international practice,” it said in a statement without elaborating.
Serbia’s interior ministry did not reply to AFP’s request for comment.
Ana Kovacic, an art historian from Zagreb who took part in the two-day workshop, told the newspaper Jutarnji list that it was attended by around 15 people from Bosnia, Croatia, North Macedonia, Romania and Slovenia.
After it ended, the participants were taken from their hotel to a police station where they were interrogated, she said.
They were given a document to sign saying that they were “threatening the security of the Republic of Serbia,” should leave the country within 24 hours and were banned from entering it for a year.
Croatian and Serbian human rights groups condemned the actions of the Serbian police, who they said “arrested and deported several persons” from those countries, describing those arrested as “activists.”
Two workshop participants from Albania also told local media in their country that they suffered the same treatment.
The Albanian foreign ministry said on Thursday it had summoned the Serbian ambassador over the case.
It “expressed regret and serious concerns regarding the detention” of the two, describing them as “representatives of civil society who participated in a seminar in Belgrade.”
Serbia has been rocked by regular protests since a deadly disaster at a train station in November ignited longstanding anger over corruption.
High-ranking Serbian government officials, without providing evidence, have claimed in their statements that the student blockades and protests are “influenced by Western intelligence agencies” with the aim of “overthrowing President Aleksandar Vucic.”
At the end of December, tabloid media close to the Serbian authorities accused a group of Croatian students of participating in the protests.
Ties between two former Yugoslav republics remain frosty since Croatia’s 1990s war of independence against Belgrade-backed rebel Serbs.
Paris court sentences Pakistani who targeted Charlie Hebdo to 30 years jail
- When he carried out attack, 29-year-old Zaheer Mahmood wrongly believed satirical newspaper was still based in the building
- Newspaper had moved in the wake of an earlier attack, which killed 12 people including eight of the paper’s editorial staff
PARIS: A Paris court on Thursday sentenced a Pakistani man to 30 years in jail for attempting to murder two people outside the former offices of Charlie Hebdo in 2020 with a meat cleaver.
When he carried out the attack, 29-year-old Zaheer Mahmood wrongly believed the satirical newspaper was still based in the building, which was targeted by Islamists a decade ago for publishing cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
The newspaper had in fact moved in the wake of the attack, which killed 12 people including eight of the paper’s editorial staff.
The killings in 2015 shocked France and triggered a fierce debate about freedom of expression and religion.
Originally from rural Pakistan, Mahmood arrived in France illegally in the summer of 2019.
The court had earlier heard how Mahmood was influenced by radical Pakistani preacher Khadim Hussain Rizvi, who had called for the beheading of blasphemers to “avenge the Prophet.”
Mahmood was convicted of attempted murder and terrorist conspiracy, and handed a ban from ever setting foot on French soil again.
