Iraqi parliament under fire for labelling boycott as ’absence’

Iraqi parliament under fire for labelling boycott as ’absence’

Iraq's parliament is facing criticism after officially recording 123 lawmakers as "absent" from its latest session—a move Kurdish parties say ignores their deliberate political boycott. The session, held on Sunday and led by Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, saw 166 MPs in attendance. However, the published absentee list on the parliament's website and Iraq's state media made no distinction between MPs who stayed away in protest and those who were …

Iraqi MPs clash over law to protect Saudi investors

Some threaten to boycott debate Saudi ‘will control Iraq’s economy’ Investment in Iraq to increase Iraq’s parliament has started debating a controversial law to protect Saudi investment specifically following a pledge by Riyadh to pump more capital into the country. The debate last week has already split the legislative body, with a group of MPs threatening to boycott the next sessions, saying that the new law would allow Saudi Arabia to control…