Iraqi PM warns against foreign 'conspiracies'

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Source: Evening Echo

Iraq’s beleaguered prime minister Nouri al-Maliki today warned against “conspiracies” in foreign capitals against his government.

He called on his military chiefs to wield “iron fists” against those who would “lay the red carpet” for outside interference in Iraq.

The toughly-worded speech, at a conference of Iraqi army division commanders, did not specify which Iraqis or foreigners Maliki fears may be working to oust him, but his largely ineffectual, year-old leadership has been under criticism both at home and abroad, including in the US Congress.

Former prime minister Ayad Allawi, a parliament member and secular Shiite Muslim, is believed gathering Iraqi political support to try to replace Maliki, whom he regards as a sectarian Shiite Islamist.

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