Exclusive: Behind the scenes of “Operation Dawn” from Washington: Al-Zaidi gave the leaders a choice: money or arrest
The broad anti-corruption campaign launched by Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi has garnered attention and welcome within political and security circles in Washington, amid assessments that this step could strengthen his position ahead of his anticipated visit to the White House, if it succeeds in translating reform slogans into sustainable measures.
Al-Zaidi is preparing to visit Washington in mid-July to meet with US President Donald Trump at the White House, according to a joint statement issued earlier this month by the Prime Minister and US Special Presidential Envoy Tom Barrack.
A wave of arrests began at dawn on Sunday, targeting political officials, members of parliament, and businessmen as part of an anti-corruption campaign, which Al-Zaydi described during a cabinet meeting as the “first phase” of broader measures to recover public funds, while tasking oversight bodies with receiving any indications related to cases of corruption or negligence in state institutions.
In this context, Paul Davis, a professor of cybersecurity at the Institute for Global Policy and a former official at the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, said that the recent wave of arrests represents “a step that the United States and the international community have been waiting for for years.”
Davis, who previously oversaw political and military analysis files on Iraq, Iran, and Syria at the US Department of Defense, explained to Shafaq News Agency that corruption has been for decades one of the most prominent obstacles hindering the development of the relationship between Baghdad and Washington, as well as being a major factor in weakening Iraqi state institutions.
The American expert revealed behind-the-scenes details that preceded the implementation of the campaign, indicating that Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi held a crucial meeting with Iraqi political leaders, during which he informed them of the necessity to return the funds suspected of being seized, warning that failure to do so would lead to the issuance of arrest warrants against those involved.
He added that the recent moves reflect al-Zaidi’s commitment to the promises he made since taking over the premiership, noting that Washington views these measures as a practical test of the Iraqi government’s ability to enforce the rule of law and restore the confidence of the international community.
Davis believed that the campaign would have mixed results both domestically and internationally. On the one hand, it would raise al-Zaidi’s political and diplomatic standing during his upcoming meetings with American officials, as an indication of his government’s seriousness in combating corruption. On the other hand, it might open the door to an internal political crisis, because a number of those targeted occupy influential positions within the political class and the Iraqi parliament.
He noted that decision-making circles in Washington, despite their clear welcome of the campaign, will closely monitor its developments, not only in terms of the number of arrests, but also through its ability to continue and reach judicial rulings and recover public funds, away from selectivity or political pressure.
Davis concluded by saying that the success of the campaign would give al-Zaidi’s government political momentum at home and boost the confidence of the United States and Iraq’s international partners in its ability to implement real reforms, while its failure would revive old doubts about the Iraqi state’s ability to confront powerful corruption networks.
Shafaq.com