(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) Iraq's Foreign Ministry has voiced its displeasure over a conference held last week in Qatar devoted to "national reconciliation" in Iraq, saying the event constituted "blatant interference" in Iraq's internal affairs.
In a statement, ministry spokesman Ahmad Jamal said the ministry had been "surprised" by the event, which, he said, "was held in Qatari capital Doha without the knowledge of the Iraqi government".
The spokesman went on to express the ministry's "condemnation" of the event, which, he went on to assert, had hosted "individuals accused of supporting terrorism and cooperating with terrorist organizations".
Attendees of last week's conference included several Iraqi personalities for whom arrest warrants have been issued by Iraq's judicial authorities, including former Finance Minister Rafi al-Issawi and former Vice-President Tareq al-Hashemi.
Jamal described last week's conference as "blatant interference in Iraq's internal affairs and a clear violation of the principles of bilateral relations built on the basis of respect for the sovereignty of states".
He went on to warn that the event had threatened "to harm the fraternal relations between the Republic of Iraq and the sister state of Qatar".
"We reject any conference devoted to Iraq's internal affairs held without the knowledge of the Iraqi government," he added. "The ministry is awaiting clarification on the subject from the Qatari side."
Noura Albjara, for her part, a member of Iraq's National Union parliamentary bloc, said: "The objection of the government € and some of Iraq's political parties € is based on the presence of Iraqi political personalities [at the conference] who oppose the current government."
"If the [Qatari] government wants to talk about intervention, then what about all the countries that interfere in Iraq's internal affairs, including Iran?" she asked.
"If the [Qatari] government wants to stop interfering in [Iraq's] internal affairs, it should begin by drafting a formula for genuine reconciliation," she added.
The Iraqi National Union is the largest component of Iraq's Sunni bloc in parliament, to which Parliament Speaker Saleem al-Jubouri belongs.
Last week, MPs from the State of Law parliamentary bloc announced that they had collected the signatures of 100 MPs calling for al-Jubouri's dismissal from his post after he visited Qatar.
Al-Jubouri issued a clarification, however, in which he pointed out that he had not taken part in last week's conference and that his visit to Qatar had come in response to an official invitation.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.