The Iraqi people were left unfazed by the hundreds of leaked pages of Iranian intelligence cables detailing how Tehran managed to gain influence over its neighboring country since 2003.
“The documents are nothing new. The Iranian infiltration and Tehran’s detailed control of several files in Iraq has been known since 2003,” head of the Political Thinking Center, Dr. Ihsan al-Shammari told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Obtained by The New York Times and The Intercept, 700 pages of Iranian cables exposed on Monday Tehran’s efforts to embed itself in Iraq, including the role Iranian spies played in appointing Iraqi officials.
Al-Shammari told Asharq Al-Awsat that the documents are important because they have revealed part of the truth. “They will definitely impact the protests because they prove their convictions over Iran’s infiltration” of Iraq, he went on to say.
“The documents have proven that the political elite, or at least a large part of them, never worked for their country, but cooperated with foreign powers,” he added.
Analysts believe that the leaks will have little impact on the anti-government protests.
Ali Sumari, an Iraqi journalist and activist told Asharq Al-Awsat that the information they revealed are common knowledge among the people, “including the fact that Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish agents were working against Iraq’s interest.”
“They are beneficial, however, in shedding light to the world about what we have been saying for years” about Iran’s meddling, he stressed.
Another activist, Ahmed Khoazm, blamed the United States for allowing Iran to infiltrate Iraq to such an extent.
“Personally, I don’t trust the US anymore and many protesters share my conviction,” he remarked.
He said that the timing of the leak coincides with the current clash between Washington and Tehran and serves “certain purposes.”
“As for us, we know everything that Iran has done in our country and we do not need further evidence to incite us to pursue our struggle against the collaborator authorities,” he added.
