Iraq Press Roundup

Early this month King Abdullah II of Jordan visited Iraq for the first time since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. Many Iraqi newspapers handled the visit and credited political and economical developments as justification for the first visit to Iraq by an Arab head of state.

The visit is a big step toward strengthening the relationship between the two countries, furthering bilateral interests and respecting mutual sovereignty, the daily al-Adala newspaper of the Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council said.

Future ambitions of equality.

The visit by Abdullah is a sign that the vision of the Arab countries is more focused on Iraq as a "democratic" country than when it was a dictatorship.

After the fall of the regime of Saddam Hussein, Iraqis built a new democratic government that calls for peace and security and intends to be a good source of reformation. Iraq has a policy of openness that could help to "walk" the people of Iraq through hardships.

Opening Arab embassies in Iraq, and the trip by Abdullah and other high officials from the Kingdom of Jordan, are important initiatives toward assessing the experience of the government in its fight against radicalism.

During the visit, both sides discussed future political and economic issues that would build a strategic relationship benefiting the people of the two countries.

Islam has an influence on political policies in most countries around the world. Such influence is negative and is blamed for promoting violence.

The liberal al-Ahali newspaper highlighted the matter and said threats coming from the religion of Islam have been the subject of discussion in England and most Western countries. Zionist Jews have been against it until it became one of the most talked about theories in the media.

The danger of political Islam on Islam.

When Muslim religious figures announce a fatwa, or religious edict, that contradicts the role of Islam and speaks of the principles of human rights, radical Muslims call it "American Islam" or "Islam of globalization."

Liberals accuse political Islam of giving Islam a bad image and using it as a method for pursuing their cheap interests.

Since the beginning of Islam, political Islam has exploited the religion of Islam to obtain political or personal advantages. Religious leaders prior to the Umayyad caliphate in the 5th century followed the same policy in Iraq, and later Ottoman groups used the policy as justification for the occupation of Iraq.

In its new history, political Islam manifested itself in such government policies as Wahhabism and radical Muslims invented a "new" Islam. Knowing that the Wahhabi movement was destructive to the religion of Islam, it was embraced by the British -- and now by the United States of America, the newspaper said.

Saudi Arabia is the first Arab country that is led by political Islam, which contributed to a negative reputation for Islam. The United States has been supportive of the country with the most radical Islamic movement in the world, while at the same time calling for the elimination of political Islam.

On the topic of politics, there are many elements of worldly and local politics that are difficult for normal people to understand.

It is absurd that catastrophes in most places have a unifying influence, but in Iraq it has split the people apart, the independent Kul al-Iraq newspaper said.

The element of politics in Iraq.

Five years after the "liberation" of Iraq, Iraqis have yet to find the right policy to solve their problems. On the one hand, they claim they have a competent government of nationality, and on the other they announce it needs reformation.

One of the first elements that must be opened is the issue of corruption, as Iraq is named the country with the highest rate of corruption, yet no actions have been taken to hold the corrupt accountable.

Another important step needs to be taken on the issue of the displaced Iraqis and their future. The displaced are squatting in abandoned houses of other displaced, making the issue a long-term crisis, the newspaper said.

The Iraqi Ministry of Migration has yet to visit areas where Iraqis were forced out of their homes. The Iraqi government has been giving more attention to bring back Iraqi refugees from foreign countries because that issue paints a bad picture of Iraq, whereas the internally displaced are less of an influence on the security situation on the ground.