Iran claims Al-Sadr aims to get rid of Al-Maliki

Iran has warned former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki that top Shia cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr is planning to get rid of him, Arabi21 reported sources saying yesterday.

Iran asked Al-Maliki to dispatch 200 people to take part in a three-month security training programme in the Islamic republic in order to protect him. Al-Maliki complied with the request and sent close relatives from his birth city of Babylon.

Al-Maliki is currently on a visit to Iran and is seeking to meet the Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani, to date he has only met one of Al-Sistani’s aides.

Iran has also said it supports Al-Maliki in his bid to become head of Iraq’s National Council of Strategic Policies. The council is a body which oversees the government’s performance.