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| [credit: Rob Rogers, Pittsburg Post-Gazette] |
Embattled Nouri al-Malik has refused to form a coalition government of national salvation. He has put his bet on purchasing Sukhoi jets from Russia and Belarus since the United States is insisting on a political solution to Iraq's crisis before US air power is applied. The
Sukhoi Su-27 is a world-class fighter plane superior to the F-16, but Maliki is deluded if he actually thinks the solution to Iraq's ethnic and sectarian fragmentation is air cover for his $40 billion, unreliable army. If the Iranians get fed up with Maliki, which they are close to being according to
the latest reports, he does not have a snowball's chance of surviving in power. Influential Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr is already referring to him as the "oppressor". More importantly, the Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani shares the view with Iran's Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force that Maliki has to go. Maliki's call for a July 1st meeting of parliament to proceed with the process of re-installing him as prime minister will be met with the lack of a quorum.
[credit: Tom Janssen, Trouw, Netherlands]
Wackydoodle axes: Y'all seen the Evil Empire?
