Ali Abel Sadah

Ali Abel Sadah is a Baghdad-based writer for both Iraqi and Arab media. He has been a managing editor for local newspapers as well as a political and cultural reporter for more than 10 years.

Iraq | Feb 4, 2014

Iraqi orders are to kill, not capture, terrorists

The order to kill captured gunmen instead of arresting them stirs a political and moral debate in Iraq.

Mourners pray near the coffins of victims killed by a bomb attack at a Shi'ite Muslim village near the Iraqi city of Baquba, during a funeral at the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad, January 25, 2014. Police said that at least six people were killed on Saturday when three mortar bombs hit the village. REUTERS/ Alaa Al-Marjani (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTX17U8H

Iraq | Feb 3, 2014

Anbar province headed toward isolation

As fighting continues in western Iraq's Anbar province, some warn that continued fighting will isolate the province from the rest of the country in the upcoming elections.

Iraqi SWAT troopers pose for pictures as they take part in an intensive security deployment during clashes with al Qaeda-linked Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the city of Ramadi, 100 km (62 miles) west of Baghdad, February 1, 2014. Iraqi troops and allied tribesmen killed 57 Islamist militants in Anbar province on Monday, the Defence Ministry said, in advance of a possible assault on the Sunni rebel-held city of Falluja. There was no independent verification of the toll among the militants,

Iraq | Nov 6, 2013

Iraqi debate over Baghdad as Arab cultural capital

As events to recognize Baghdad as the Arab Capital of Culture for 2013 get underway, Iraqis artists and creative producers express their discontent with the Ministry of Culture .

Monumental Assyrian works stand in a gallery of the Iraq Museum in Baghdad. The authorities closed the museum and removed most of its other treasures to secret hiding places during the 1990-91 Gulf crisis, but are now considering plans with UNESCO to put them back on show. (Picture taken 30NOV98) - RTXHUYE

Iraq | Oct 30, 2013

PUK divided after losses in Kurdistan region parliament

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan has fractured following the substantial losses it sustained in September's Iraqi Kurdistan Region parliamentary elections.

Iraqi political leaders and members of parliament including from (L-R) Iyad Allawi, former prime minister and head of the secular Iraqiya coalition, Iraqi parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, Iraq's President Jalal Talabani, Kurdish President Masoud Barzani, Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Malik and Iraq's Kurdistan region Prime Minister Barham Salih are attend the 13th Conference of Kurdistan Democratic Party in Arbil, 310 km (190 miles) north of Baghdad December 11, 2010. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari (IRAQ - Tags:

Iraq | Oct 1, 2013

Iraqi Sunni Leader Accused Of Inciting Violence Against Shiites

Revered by Anbar youth as a protector of their rights, Iraqi Sunni leader Ahmad al-Alwani has recently taken heat for allegedly inciting Sunnis to kill Shiites.

Iraqi Sunni Muslims burn a poster of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad during an anti-government demonstration in Falluja, 50 km (31 miles) west of Baghdad April 26, 2013. Tens of thousands of Sunni Muslims poured onto the streets of Ramadi and Falluja in the western province of Anbar following Friday prayers, in protest at the perceived marginalisation of their sect since the U.S.-led invasion overthrew Saddam Hussein and empowered majority Shi'ites through the ballot box. Iraq's delicate ethno-sectari

Iraq | Sep 11, 2013

KDP May Run Alone In Iraqi Kurdistan Elections

The two major parties in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq have shared power since 2005, but some believe that President Massoud Barzani and his party are planning to go it alone following upcoming parliamentary elections.

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani (R) speaks with Kurdish President Masoud Barazani (L) during his visit to Dokan, 290 km (180 miles) northeast of Baghdad July 29, 2009. Ruling parties in Iraqi Kurdistan will retain control of the Kurdish parliament after weekend polls, preliminary results showed on Wednesday. An opposition movement, campaigning against corruption and for political reforms, took a surprise 23.8 percent, electoral officials said in the Kurdish capital Arbil. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari (IRAQ POLITICS

Iraq | Sep 3, 2013

Maliki to Run for Third Term Following Court Decision

A Federal Supreme Court decision in Iraq has paved the way for standing Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to run for a third term of office.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (R) and Iraqi Kurdish President Masoud Barzani (L) talk as they hold a joint news conference in Baghdad, July 7, 2013. Barzani visited Baghdad on Sunday for the first time in more than two years, in a symbolic step to resolve disputes between the central government and the autonomous region over land and oil. The visit follows an equally rare trip by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki who met Barzani in Kurdistan last month, breaking ice between leaders who have repeated

Iraq | Aug 28, 2013

Sadr Reconsiders Political Role, Mahdi Army

Tensions have boiled over between the Mahdi Army and Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq near Baghdad, as the Sadrist movement re-evaluates its military wing and vies for greater political sway.

Supporters of anti-U.S. Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr wave Iraqi flags during a rally in Baghdad, February 9, 2012. REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR2XJEL

Iraq | Aug 23, 2013

Maliki's Own Party Urges Him Not to Run

Leaders in the State of Law Coalition, led by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, are trying to convince the prime minister not to run in the upcoming legislative elections, fearing that it could spell the end of the coalition itself.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki inspects a guard of honour during his ceremonial reception at the forecourt of India's presidential palace Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi August 23, 2013. Maliki expects to finalise a deal to sell India more crude oil during a visit to New Delhi over the next few days, he said on Thursday. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi (INDIA - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS ENERGY COMMODITIES) - RTX12TX2

Iraq | Aug 18, 2013

Despite New Security Measures, Violence Persists in Iraq

Although the Iraqi government has developed new plans to address the deteriorating security situation, violence continues to strike throughout the country.