The Hijacking of Democracy: The Role of Political Parties in Iraq...

Looking across the Tigris to the unfinished Al-Rahman Mosque, Baghdad © Des Clark 2018

In the eighteen years since the fall of Saddam’s regime, more than 250 political parties were registered. But those who hold power now are far fewer. About a dozen parties and “alliances” remain; some of which are buttressed by armed militias. A power triangle has formed, comprised of the parties (or political blocks), the militias, and the state. Of this trio, the state is the weakest. It has the trappings of a normal government but has extremely limited independent political will.