Agence Global - Article

Agence Global - Article: "Prime-Minister Iyad Allawi Guarantees Chalabi's Power
by William O. BeemanReleased: 29 May 2004


The choice of Iyad Allawi as prime-minister designate of Iraq further cements Ahmad Chalabi�s hold on power, virtually guaranteeing that he and his family will be the rulers of Iraq in the future. A look at the post-June 30 government reveals that virtually all of the players are from the Chalabi extended family.

Iyad Allawi is related to Ahmad Chalabi by blood and marriage, and in Middle Eastern terms, is part of his extended family. Though somewhat distantly related by American standards, Allawi and Chalabi would be expected to be in close contact in the tightly knit, almost corporate kinship networks of the Middle East.

Ahmad Chalabi has been the Iraqi leader of choice by Donald Rumsfeld and the American Department of Defense since long before the invasion of Iraq. In him they felt they had a reliable �plumber� who could represent American interests. Since he would be beholden to the United States for his office, he would �cooperate� with the United States in military, political and economic matters. Chalabi was somewhat discredited in recent weeks for having misled the United States concerning the presence of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq, and for his undisguised ambitions for power. Supporting a surrogate for himself from his own family was diabolically clever on his part, allowing him to bide his time until after the American presidential election, when he could emerge to assume a clear leadership position.

Although Ahmad Chalabi was not present for the vote on Iyad Allawi, his representative cast a positive vote. It is notable that in choosing Allawi, the council also acceded to Ahmad Chalabi�s wish that they not choose the neutral, 80-year-old Sunni, Adnan Pachachi, former Iraqi "