Hikma official: Shia coalition backed graft raids but questioned use of tanks

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Coordination Framework, the Shia coalition behind the current government, supported the recent anti-corruption operation but objected to the tanks and armored vehicles deployed during the Green Zone raids, a senior Hikma Movement official said.

Hassan Fadam said the Framework had deliberately not reviewed the list of suspects before the raids, so that no one could accuse its leaders of tipping off wanted figures if any escaped. “The Coordination Framework delegated Zaidi and did not want to review the details of the arrests of corruption suspects, fearing it would be said that its leaders ‘leaked the information’ if some suspects escaped,” Fadam told Dijla TV. Coalition leaders trusted the judiciary and the government, he said, and set no conditions on Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi as he pursued the case.

The coalition’s one objection, Fadam said, was the show of military hardware. “The only observation on ‘Dawn Strike’ was the excessive use of tanks and armored vehicles inside the Green Zone, and people began asking: Is this a military or political coup?” he said, adding there was no need to alarm the public, particularly during the Islamic month of Muharram. Zaidi, he said, had accepted the coalition’s advice to avoid such displays while continuing the campaign.

Fadam called the arrests “a real operation against corruption” and said future rounds could reach politicians, businessmen and officials. “The Coordination Framework delegated Zaidi to pursue any of these categories, and there is no consideration for any corrupt figure, regardless of who they are,” he said. He said the prime minister might soon make statements highlighting the political backing he had received from the coalition.

The comments follow the first phase of “Dawn Strike.” Security and political sources previously told 964media the operation was planned in near-total secrecy, with only a small group of commanders told in advance, personnel ordered to surrender their phones beforehand and targets revealed only as forces moved in. The inquiry has centered on former Deputy Oil Minister Adnan al-Jumaili, whose detention over alleged oil-sector financial irregularities widened into a broader investigation of lawmakers and senior officials. Zaidi has called the campaign only its first phase, with more arrests expected.