Baha Araji

Baha Araji (also transliterated Bahaa al-Aaraji) is an Iraqi politician and a member of the Iraqi National Assembly. He is a spokesman for the United Iraqi Alliance and a member of the Sadrist Movement which is led by Muqtada as-Sadr.

He was a member of the committee that drafted the Constitution of Iraq, where he opposed the proposal for Shi'ite and Sunni Arab Regions. [http://news.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=1767552005]

During coalition negotiations in 2006 he strongly opposed the inclusion of Iyad Allawi's Iraqi National List in the government, saying they represented a red line drawn in blood. This was a reference to the crackdown that Allawi's Iraqi Interim Government launched against the Mahdi Army.

Quotes

* "The Mahdi Army and the Sadrists represent a wide sect of the Iraqis and that is why Maliki should support them." [http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/world/16439599.htm]

External links

* Sadr links [http://fairuse.1accesshost.com/news3/latimes149.html]
* [http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=1&id=6837 Interview with Bahaa al-Araji of the United Iraqi Alliance] , "Asharq Alawsat", 2006-10-26