a top shia cleric in the country grand ayatollah sistani on friday to find he was trying to avoid this very situation from taking place urging the various factions not to take up any kind of arms against one another on presenting a unified front with the demonstrators in tahrir who are going to see real reform in their country their view is that if this escalates further there could be more tensions in position in the demonstrations and then the calls that they're fighting for wrong you get lost in the process your focus will become security is the reason in the country rather than actual political reform right or center far away from baghdad or say thank you. a saudi military student has shot 3 people dead at a u.s. naval base on a training course in florida this is the 2nd deadly shooting at a u.s. base this week i cannot reports from washington. naval air station pensacola was immediately placed in a state of lockdown as were the surrounding neighborhoods where many of the 16000 personnel at the base live along with some 7000 civilians who work there each day and navy spokesman conf

because the prime minister or at a lab will be as resigned in yet this important cleric grand ayatollah sistani says the enemies plan to spread chaos and then return it to dictatorship he doesn't mean back to the u.k. back to saddam hussein days what is going on in iraq he does actually and his entire fine intervention last week on friday was very critical critical to the events in general because he is or highs in mare's as the one authority that commands respect in the streets of baghdad in the south and his intervention was quite strong. that. taishan you made is a direct reference to the united states because the united states and saddam's baath party out an ally and open alliance official representatives of the baath party abroad and so on are boasting of their new alliance with the united states to kick out what they call it or a me an occupation of iraq so his reference to the return of the dictatorship is directly related to that official endorsement of an alliance between the united states and saddam is about as in iraq but they can't surely be blamed for hundreds of people being kille

iraq and its governments there are the popular mobilization forces that were called upon by ayatollah sistani to go and fight isis for 6 months the united states refused to back iraq against the isis advance on iraq and these p.m.u. popular mobilization units have become extremely strong and they are hostile to us for policy in iraq so you have a situation in iraq where the balance of forces is such that who ever rules iraq will have to look over their shoulders but there are important forces as well which are pro-u.s. so there is a critical situation developing in iraq where the situation is quite fluid and it is not clear whether the united states will have its way even after a bit as a gracious resignation of the some around on the thank you. well joining me now to go through some of the week's top stories is the co-founder of grassroots antiwar and geo code pink but there benjamin reid there thank so much for joining us in this year let's go straight to the barclay brothers the telegraph which is related to wire in london major some adult trump says we would be in world war 33 if it wasn'

iraq's top shia leader has called for early elections and soon as possible grand ayatollah ali al sistani delivered the message through a spokesman pictured here last friday he said forming a new government is the only way out of the country's current crisis they've been more protests against the government after political leaders filed to choose a new prime minister mass demonstrations forced to step down last month al-jazeera dorsett is in baghdad she says this statement isn't telling from just any religious cleric the highest religious authority the grand ayatollah ali sistani him self issued a statement saying that the country must go to early elections in order to avoid chaos and uncertainty that is looming here this is all because the president has not been able to come up with a nominee for a replacement for the prime minister's post since he resigned on december the 1st that's because the constitution is not very clear about what needs to happen for the replacement to be nominated there is a constitutional crisis going on right now in this country and that's because the parliament

thousands and to hear square carrying pictures of the country's top shiite cleric grand ayatollah ali al sistani. the hashed initially backed iraq's government against the protests but switched to supporting the rallies after an intervention by grand ayatollah sistani. just hours before the shootings the united states imposed sanctions on 3 leaders that xabi which is backed by iran. were not meddling in iraq in politics we support iraqi sovereignty and part of this is a demonstration or support for iraq itself during friday prayers just on his representative read a letter from the highest shia cleric in iraq calling on iraqi security to protect the peaceful protests and he stressed the need to form a new government without foreign interference amid the chaos after the shooting this protester asked where are the tribal elders or the religious authority to stop this madness many here in iraq continue to ask when or if they will be able to rely on their leaders to restore calm. for over 2 months demonstrators in cities across the country have been demanding for a change in the country's electoral l

'd cola supplements the spokesperson for grand ayatollah ali sistani during last week's friday prayers in karbala said that there must be elections held immediately so that's what the country really lose at this point but the issue is the iraqi parliament and the electoral commission in the country has said that they need at least between 6 months to one year to be able to hold elections in the country for logistical and security reasons so they're not equipped to. go to the polls in a month or anything to that effect so it's very very unclear what will happen next and we know that. going prime minister abdullah the next me is still in office who's the caretaker prime minister he is still holding his weekly cabinet session still conducting his job because there hasn't been a replacement for him so this resignation of the president just makes things much much more unclear and of course the issue all of what happens next is perhaps the big question this is a new ground a new route a new reality that the iraqi political establishment and the public at large never experience before you tou

protesters who aren't breaking the country's laws or supporting as the sheer spiritual leader ayatollah sistanisays the iraqi people have a natural right to peaceful nonviolent assembly. they've been through a lot in recent decades but during saddam hussein's reign and often times. and now they've got their freedom it's only natural that they have some adjustment tomorrow . any newly appointed iraqi government should be meeting the demands of iraqi people to set and working on resolving the issues with us. where they're into cations that iraq's parliament has candidates for prime minister mr mohammed al sistani seems to be one of the we don't know yet whether he'll win a vote of confidence in parliament to lead the government however there is evidence that now are the demands of the iraqi people to finally be respect. this will happen once the rock has a new government it is wise and mature government the focus is in iraq's national interests acts according to people's expectations and responds to their legitimate tomorrow. he do that it was all he said is to run support. him well you just ment

iraq's peaceful protesters who want breaking the country's laws as the sheer spiritual leader ayatollah sistani says the iraqi people have a natural right to peaceful nonviolent assembly. they've been through a lot in recent decades both during saddam hussein's reign and after. and now they've got their freedom and it's only natural that they have some legitimate tomorrow. any newly appointed iraqi government should be meeting the demands of the iraqi people and working on resolving their issues with. their integrations that iraq's parliament has candidates for prime minister mr mohammed al sistani seems to be one of the we don't know yet whether he'll win a vote of confidence in parliament delete the government however there is evidence that now it's a monster the iraqi people finally be respected. this will happen once a rock has a new government it is wise and mature a government the focus is iraq's national interests acts according to people's expectations and responds to their legitimate demands. to that it was always supposed to run support. you just mentioned. this well we don't support

iraq's peaceful protesters who aren't breaking the country's laws is the sheer spiritual leader ayatollah sistani says the iraqi people have a natural right to peaceful nonviolent assembly as. they've been through a lot in recent decades both during saddam hussein's reign and after. and now they've got their freedom and it's only natural that they have some adjustment to manage this. any newly appointed iraqi government should be meeting the demands of the iraqi people and working on resolving their issues with. where they're into patients that iraq's parliament has candidates for prime minister mr mohammed al sistani seems to be one of the we don't know yet whether he'll win a vote of confidence in parliament delete the government however there is evidence that now it's a monster the iraqi people to finally be respected. this will happen once a rock has a new government it is wise and mature a government the focus is in iraq's national interests it acts according to people's expectations and responds to their legitimate demands. that it was only supposed to ransom. you just mentioned. this well

get involved in politics and for more on that here is our report from niger on the role of ayatollah ali al sistani in iraqi politics. as iraq slips deeper into political crisis the one man iraq is look to for guidance is silent grand ayatollah ali al sistani is friday's sermon delivered through his representative usually includes comments on political matters closely watched in streets and halls of government alike this week the cleric announced he'd no longer speak on political issues and he passed a cryptic message to iraq's politicians explaining why. if you read history you'll find that the problem is not with the people who have wisdom and intellect but with those who don't listen to those who have wisdom and intellect. clerics close to stanley say his silence is a show of dismay that iraq's politicians are not heeding his advice to start his reclusion comes at a critical time on thursday president barham saleh said he would rather resign than appoint the nominee for prime minister danny seen as representing the status quo. what is the point of talking on political issues we are repeating the

and we've also just heard a statement being released from the office of a grand ayatollah sistani who is the highest religious authority. religious authority in iraq and he condemned these attacks on quote iraq forces which is of course a very important statement because he's basically saying that. being part of the p.f. should be concert a state force and he called on the u.s. to respect iraq's sovereignty and not to further add to the burden on the government. rebel fighters are being blamed for killing at least 18 people and torching their homes and democratic republic of congo police say the overnight raid is the latest carried out by a d f rebels in the eastern region of bernie they operate in both c. and neighboring uganda and have killed hundreds of people recently. a sudanese court has sentenced 29 members of the security services to death they were convicted of torturing and murdering a protester in february the death of the teacher was an important moment in the uprising against former president omar al bashir. turkey's government is fast tracking legislation to parliament o

on the southern compound in the province this is something the highest authority cleric grand ayatollah sistani had been warning against specific lee in his sermon on friday to not have these kinds of divisions created within the protesters in the demonstrators they know there needs to be one united voice when it comes to trying changing the changes that they actually are demanding that is an overhaul of the complete the electoral system in the country so this really makes things much more complicated and there is a real sense of worry here that unless the government does something immediate the this can only make things much much worse to have the news in the u.s. and iran of exchange prisoners in a swamp facilitated by the swiss government the iranian government released the chinese american who faced spying charges after being detained in 2016 in exchange the u.s. released the iranian scientist so many who flew back to iran with the foreign minister mohammad serif a u.s. state department official says he is hopeful ones release is a sign iran is willing to come to the table to talk about all

iraq's top share leader has called for early elections to be held as soon as possible grand ayatollah sistani says forming a new government is the only way out of the country's crisis or protests have resumed as iraq's political leaders failed to reach their deadline for nominating a new prime minister anti-government demonstrations began in october of a corruption unemployment and poor public services now poland's parliament has defied a warning from the european union and passed a law that would see judges punished of their critical of court reforms the judicial changes has sparked protests in poland with allegations they're aimed at shutting down criticism of the government the european commission has written to polish leaders reminding them to stay with then the e.u. laws were early and my colleague now i am the man they spoke with the law and pet issues a professor of european law at middlesex university and he says poland is moving further away from laws and the block itself. this is not the 1st time the warnings from brussels have been ignored by pushed or it is and in fact. british au

the grand ayatollah spokesperson there was a call for this exact situation to be avoided grand ayatollah sistani express his views saying that they don't want any divisions within the demonstrators they don't want any other groups to come into the demonstrators claiming that they are there on the behalf of the clerical establishment in iraq and that the iraqi demonstrators really have one voice and there is no division within them but what we seen is a different story which took place late last night it was the exact opposite it seems that these men that carried out these attacks were crying trying to create that very division that the highest clerical authority in iraq was urging to avoid so it's a very tense situation in an escalation really in terms of the division that's being created within the demonstrations and the various groups that are trying to take control of the voice on the streets of baghdad or sort of are with the latest or source of thank you a saudi military student has killed 3 people at a u.s. naval base he was on a training course and florida the saudi king is found u.s. pre

just heard a statement being released from the office of a grand ayatollah ali sistani who is the highest religious authority shia religious authority in iraq and he condemned these attacks on quote iraqi forces which is of course a very important statement because he's basically saying that the type hezbollah being part of the p.f. should be considered a state force and he called on the u.s. to respect iraq's sovereignty and not to further add to the burden on the government which is of course already dealing with 3 months of anti-government protests now we've also heard news coming from al fatah which is the iranian black back bloc in parliament now of course the p m f has not only arm close but it also has its political wings and. is the biggest party in parliament which also forms the biggest block and they basically called upon political parties to rally together and to basically support expelling foreign troops including the u.s. troops from iraq now technically according to the constitution it's only the executive who can propose such legislation sort of parliament cannot really do

cleric in iraq has also called for ayatollah grand ayatollah ali sistani during friday sermons last week his representative in karbala said that there must be early elections held so this is all happening in an effort to make that a possibility the president has now left baghdad we've heard from various sources that he's back in his home town until the parliament decides what to do next but for now they have to decide whether or not to accept his position and that is that he will not accept this candidate who is the governor of basra because there is such opposition to him and his record because basra is one of the poorest provinces in. iraq while it is actually home to 70 percent of iraq's oil reserves so there's a lot of allegations against this governor and that is why this candidate has not been accepted by anybody specifically the president himself so he's now put himself in a position where he says it's really not up to me anymore it is up to parliament to decide what to do next we're not sure who say me is the director of the center for middle east studies at the university of den

is probably overdue for him to be leaving the scene but this is not the end of the road grand ayatollah sistani has played a significant role in channeling the protest movement into a single ask of the political leadership and of the government obviously in the absence of strong iraqi state institutions on the one hand and also in the in the absence of organized civil society the inability of the populists and public protest movement into being translated into employee specific apps that allow us that he has played that again referring back to. these resignation letter he doesn't say in response to the protesters but specifically says in response to the call by grant that the losses. pressure is growing on not as prime minister after a prominent businessman was charged in the murder of a journalist organic fan and chester ny complicity in the murder of daphne crayon eclipse jan 2017 this isabelle's into a major political crisis for the prime minister joseph muscat his chief of staff resigned this week amid reports he was being questioned by police but to albert de lay a journalist at the malta

well a grand ayatollah sistani officially he carries a lot of weight many people look to him for guidance not just on religious and social matters but also on the political developments so his silence today will certainly be met with both criticism as well as support people feel like he is basically protesting the lack of responsiveness by the government on the other hand there are also protesters who feel that he should have 6 spoken out more strongly against the government he should have been more direct in his critique because many times what he says is misinterpreted by the political parties for their own gains of people feel that he has not been direct and strong enough in his criticism of the government's response to was this protest so we have to wait and see because of course the crowds turn out in the streets a few hours after the friday sermon so we'll be monitoring the situation both here and not just as well as in baghdad to see what the response will be and we will talk to you about that again later simona 14 in not job. his what we've got coming up for you on this new mexico

their thousands into their square carry pictures of the country's top shia cleric grand ayatollah ali al sistani. the hushed initially backed iraq's government against the protests but switched to supporting the rallies after an intervention by grand ayatollah sistani. just hours before the shootings the united states imposed sanctions on 3 leaders that xabi which is backed by iran. were not meddling in iraq in all attacks we support iraqi sovereignty and part of this is a demonstration of our support for iraq itself during friday prayers just on his representative read a letter from the highest shia cleric in iraq calling on iraqi security to protect the peaceful protests and he stressed the need to form a new government without foreign interference amid the chaos after the shooting this protester asked where are the tribal elders or the religious authority to stop this madness many here in iraq continue to ask when or if they will be able to rely on their leaders to restore calm i for over 2 months demonstrators in cities across the country have been demanding for a change in the country's ele

they have been anti-government protests since october calling for political reform grand ayatollah ali al sistani the country's highest shia religious leader has been critical of politicians the not heeding the protestors demands but this week he declared he'll no longer get involved in politics some reports from not jeff and shia stronghold in southern iraq. as iraq slips deeper into political crisis the one man iraq has looked to for guidance is silent grand ayatollah ali al sistani is friday sermon the liver through his representative usually includes comments on political matters closely watched in streets and halls of government alike this week the cleric an announced he'd no longer speak on political issues and he passed a cryptic message to iraq's politicians explaining why. if you read history you'll find that the problem is not with the people who have wisdom and intellect but with those who don't listen to those who have wisdom and intellect. clerics close to stanley say his silence is a show of dismay that iraq's politicians are not heeding his advice to start his reclusion comes at a

president iraq's top cheer leader has called for early elections as soon as possible grand ayatollah ali al sistani said forming a new government is the only way out of the country's current crisis protests against the government started back in october. well those are the headlines do stay with us here on al-jazeera the news will continue after inside story. catastrophic bushfires in australia reignited the debate over climate change with the government accused of not doing enough why was 20191 of the worst years on record globally for wives phys ed is there the political will to find a solution this is inside story. hello and welcome to the program back to people bushfire is a common during the summer in australia but firefighters are calling this year's conditions catastrophic at least 8 people have been killed since september including 2 firefighters who died on thursday when their truck was hit by a falling tree with a more than 105.

is some of vocal support from protesters on the street from the senior clerical establishment ayatollah sistani and from other political parties i think that will perhaps provide him with more. political capital to try and navigate this very dangerous moment that iraq is passing through the people of iraq are not fully sovereign and what i mean by that is that you know the united states but particularly the islamic republic of iran has a huge amount of influence over the. character and the nature of you know the ebb and flow of iraqi politics last month the new york times and the intercept published these you know secret cables that effectively you know documented that iraq is a vassal state of the islamic republic of iran so any type of you know decision on who will be the next prime minister who form the next government is deeply dependent on what the islamic republic of iran wants to do and this just complicates you know the political. debate inside iraq today. and this or prime minister benjamin netanyahu has fended off an internal leadership challenge that could get inside i had hoped to c

well not just any religious cleric in iraq of the highest religious authority the grand ayatollah sistani him self issued a statement saying that the country must go to early elections in order to avoid chaos and uncertainty that is looming here this is all because the prior president has not been able to come up with a nominee for a replacement for the prime minister's post since he resigned on this summer the 1st that's because the constitution is not very clear about what needs to happen for the replacement to be nominated there is a constitutional care crisis going on right now in this country and that's because the parliament has not been able to come up with a nominee for the position of the prime minister any names that have been floating around over the past 1516 days have all been rejected by the protesters on the streets they say that they want a change to the whole entire electrical system and of course that's not something that is likely to happen overnight and this call by the grand ayatollah only adds an urgency to the matters saying that there really must be a broader solut

warrants against demonstrators following the killing of a teenager in baghdad the top shiite cleric ayatollah sistani says it was a crime and anti-government protests which normally follow friday prayers were smaller than normal simona reports from the capital. it was a gruesome development in iraq's mostly peaceful anti-government protests a mob killed 17 year old nathan then hung his body from a traffic light as hundreds of people as well as security forces stood by the circumstances of thursday's killing remain unclear demonstrators accuse the teenager of shooting at them but a military spokesman said he didn't harm anyone neighbors say he simply wanted to protect his house from encroaching crowds. i think. he's the son of neighborhood i've known him since childhood when i heard his name i was surprised he's just a child how can they accuse him of. some protesters blame the killing on infiltrators refusing to accept the possibility that other demonstrators could be capable of such violence. yes but i mean. it has affected us it has brought about reputation upon us we went to protest peacefully we

is probably overdue for him to be leaving the scene but this is not the end of the road grand ayatollah sistani has played a significant role in channeling the protest movement into a single ask of the political leadership and of the government obviously in the absence of strong iraqi state institutions on the one hand and also in the in the absence of organized civil society the inability of the populists and public protest movement into being translated into employee specific ask that the laws that he has played that again referring back to the document these resignation letter he doesn't say in response to the protesters but specifically says in response to the call by grant that the losses. pressure is growing on malta's prime minister after a prominent businessman was charged over the murder of a journalist you're going fenech has been charged with complicity in the murder of death in a car on the galaxy and 2017 he pleaded not guilty to this and other charges relating to the case has developed into a major political crisis for the prime minister joseph muscat his chief of staff resigned t

there's a lot of nepotism there's a lot of corruption there's a lot of foreign interference as ayatollah sistani said from both the united states but predominantly from iran so these concerns are always going to remain the protesters know that if they go home now then it's unlikely that they're going to achieve anything further so the kind of you know how can i say is going to kind of an olive branch i suppose from the authorities isn't being taken seriously the resignation of the prime minister wasn't taken seriously which is why they're staying in the protest sites and which is why they've not escalate the violence against them so what i believe is going to happen here if this continues it could actually cause a civil war and this is something which is you know it's going to be unbelievably bloody and on par in terms of the loss of life with the war against eisel just a couple of years ago this is something that needs to be avoided and that's why these political issues need to be addressed ok we must leave it. in london thank you. the u.s. and iran have exchanged prisoners in a swap facilitate

on the souther compound in the province this is something the shia authority to cleric grand ayatollah sistani have been warning against specifically in his sermon on friday to not have these kinds of divisions created within the protesters and demonstrators they need one united voice when it comes to trying changing the. changes that they actually are demanding that is an overhaul of the it complete the electoral system in the country so this really makes things much more complicated and there is a real sense of loyalty here that unless the government does something immediate the this can only make things much much worse dosage a bar in baghdad thank you for all of the now with us on skype from london sala hashmi legal advisor to the national council for iraqi opposition. talking there about you know a setting of parliament and the need for the government to do something it doesn't really happen though does it and you can't imagine that a hastily convened emergency session of parliament would create any great difference. well absolutely thank you for 1st of all for having me and allow me to m

now iraq's top share leader has called for early elections as soon as possible grand ayatollah ali al sistani delivered the message to a spokesman pictured here last friday he said forming a new government is the only way out of the country's current crisis there have been protests against the government after political leaders failed to choose a new prime minister in mass demonstrations forced into. down last month. in baghdad and she says this statement isn't coming from just any religious cleric of the highest religious authority the grand ayatollah ali sistani i'm selfish it a statement saying that the country must go to early elections in order to avoid chaos and uncertainty that is looming here this is all because the president has not been able to come up with a nominee for a replacement for the prime minister's post since he resigned on december the 1st that's because the constitution is not very clear about what needs to happen for the replacement to be nominated there is a constitutional crisis going on right now in this country and that's because the parliament has not been able to

the highest religious authority the grand ayatollah ali sistani him self issued a statement saying that the country must go to early elections in order to avoid chaos and uncertainty that is looming here this is all because the president has not been able to come up with a nominee for a replacement for the prime minister's post since he resigned on december the 1st that's because the constitution is not very clear about what needs to happen for the replacement to be nominated there is a constitutional crisis going on right now in this country and that's because the parliament has not been able to come up with a nominee for the position of the prime minister any names that have been floated around over the past 1516 days have all been rejected by the protesters on the streets they say that they want a change to the whole entire electoral system and of course that's not something that is likely to happen overnight and this call by the grand ayatollah only adds an urgency to the matters saying that there really must be a broader solution to try and end this deadlock because as long as this

as they're here square on thursday carrying pictures of iraq's leading shiite cleric grand ayatollah ali sistani during friday prayers says danny's representatives read a letter from the highest shia cleric in iraq calling on iraqi security to protect the peaceful protests and he stressed the need to form a new government without foreign interference more than 400 iraqis have been killed and thousands injured in the past 2 months demonstrators in cities across the country have been demanding more jobs less corruption and sectarianism changes in the electoral laws and an overhaul of the entire political system prime minister he resigned last week but remains as a carrot taker his replacement is yet. to be announced as tensions increase here protesters keep asking the same question where other government forces which are supposed to protect them a question that is becoming increasingly difficult to answer as the political and sectarian allegiances continue to create further division between iraqis or such a party al-jazeera backed out while similar fulton is lifeless now in baghdad so now what can

storage cleric in iraq has also called for ayatollah grand ayatollah ali sistani during friday sermons last week his representative in karbala said that there must be early elections held so this is all happening in an effort to make that a possibility the president has now left baghdad we've heard from various sources that he's back in his home town until the parliament decides what to do next but for now they have to decide whether or not to accept his position and that is that he will not accept this candidate who is the governor of basra because there is such opposition to him and his record because basra is one of the poorest provinces in. iraq while it is actually home to 70 percent of iraq's oil reserves so there's a lot of allegations against this governor and that is why this candidate has not been accepted by anybody specifically the president himself so he's now put himself in a position where he says it's really not up to me anymore it is up to parliament to decide what to do next turkey's president says he plans to send troops to libya with the tripoli based administration

parliament and try to hold early elections that is something that we've also heard from the grand ayatollah ali sistani who is the leading shia cleric in the country and very powerful one at that last week during friday sermon his representative in kerbala said that early elections must be called the soonest possible because the will of the people is not being respected so they need to have a part in the political process we also had a new sweeping electro legislation that has the parliament on tuesday evening a legislation which sees a change in the way this country is going to go to the votes next time because people will be able to vote for independent candidates and not based on parties or alliances that are formed anyone who is an iraqi citizen who doesn't have a criminal record is of 30 years of age will be able to run in their country's parliamentary elections next time around and that is really what is needed at this point many analysts believe that there is really no candidate suitable to become the country's next prime minister that will please all sides including the protesters that have bee