(AINA) -- Iraq is being dismantled deliberately. This destruction is not the result of fate, historical inevitability, or the diversity of its people. It is the outcome of calculated decisions made by political elites who chose loyalty to power, parties, and foreign patrons over loyalty to the Iraqi nation. The tragedy of modern Iraq is not that it is pluralistic, but that it is ruled by forces that benefit from permanent weakness, chaos, and fragmentation.

The land that gave humanity its first cities, laws, and written language now struggles to preserve the most basic elements of statehood. Borders are violated, citizenship is manipulated, sovereignty is compromised, and public trust has collapsed. What is unfolding is not merely mismanagement or corruption--it is a sustained betrayal of the Iraqi state by two dominant forces: unaccountable Kurdish ruling parties in the north and Iranian-backed political and militia networks in the south.

This is not an accusation against any people. Iraq's population has suffered collectively. Responsibility lies squarely with political leaderships and armed groups that have hijacked identity, weaponized grievance, and subordinated the country to external agendas.

The Post-2003 Order and the Collapse of Sovereignty

Since the fall of the Iraqi state in 2003, Iraq has existed in a permanent state of transition--one that never ended because instability became profitable. What was promised as democracy evolved into a system of quota politics, party domination, and militia rule. Institutions were hollowed out while real power shifted to armed actors operating above the law.

Instead of rebuilding a unified national state, Iraq was fragmented into zones of influence. Each zone developed its own loyalties and power structures while maintaining the illusion of a single country. This fragmentation created ideal conditions for foreign interference, particularly from regional powers that understood how to exploit weak institutions and divided societies.

The result is a country where sovereignty exists more on paper than in reality.

Northern Iraq: From Autonomy to Party Control

In northern Iraq, what was intended to be a federal arrangement within a unified Iraq has gradually transformed into an unaccountable party-controlled system. Kurdish autonomy, rather than strengthening Iraqi federalism, has been monopolized by ruling parties that fused political authority, security forces, and economic resources into a closed structure.

These parties operate with minimal transparency and little oversight from Baghdad. Parliamentary mechanisms have been weakened, opposition marginalized, and independent voices suppressed. Elections have failed to produce genuine accountability, as power remains concentrated within a narrow elite.

More dangerous is the use of demographic manipulation as a political instrument. Since 2003, large numbers of non-Iraqis have reportedly been settled, naturalized, and placed on government payrolls without national consent or transparent legal procedures. Iraqi citizenship--one of the last remaining symbols of national identity--has been reduced to a tool of political loyalty.

There are persistent allegations that individuals linked to extremist organizations, including ISIS elements and armed factions aligned with the PKK, have obtained Iraqi documents and protection. The PKK is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, yet its affiliated elements operate openly on Iraqi soil, pulling Iraq into conflicts that serve party agendas rather than national interests.

This reckless approach has weakened Iraq's internal security, damaged its international credibility, and undermined the meaning of citizenship itself.

Southern Iraq: Iranian-Backed Parties and Militia Dominance

In southern and central Iraq, an equally destructive process has unfolded. Iranian-backed political parties and militias have entrenched themselves within the state while systematically undermining it. These groups do not merely influence decision-making--they dominate it.

Militias operate outside the authority of the Iraqi armed forces while receiving state funding and political protection. They control border crossings, ports, and key economic sectors. They interfere in judicial processes, intimidate activists, silence journalists, and suppress protest movements through violence and fear.

Their loyalty is openly directed toward Tehran rather than Baghdad. Iraqi territory has been transformed into a platform for regional confrontation, exposing civilians to instability and retaliation for agendas that are not their own.

Reports of Iranian nationals receiving Iraqi citizenship, salaries, and benefits while Iraqi citizens struggle to meet basic needs have intensified public outrage. Whether through formal mechanisms or informal arrangements, the perception is unmistakable: Iraqi resources are being diverted to serve external interests.

The Human Cost: Salaries, Services, and Lost Futures

While political elites consolidate power, ordinary Iraqis endure daily hardship. Salaries are delayed, reduced, or stolen outright. Public sector employees--teachers, doctors, engineers--wait months for wages that barely sustain their families. At the same time, corruption scandals involving billions of dollars emerge with little accountability.

Youth unemployment has reached alarming levels. Iraq is rich in oil and human potential, yet its young generation sees no future. Many risk dangerous migration routes, fleeing not war but hopelessness. Those who remain are often forced into silence, dependency on patronage networks, or recruitment into armed groups.

Basic services have collapsed nationwide. Electricity shortages persist despite trillions spent. Clean drinking water is unavailable in cities along the Tigris and Euphrates. Hospitals lack equipment and staff. Schools deteriorate. Infrastructure projects remain unfinished or fail due to corruption.

Repeated protests across Iraq--from Basra to Baghdad to Nasiriyah--have delivered the same message: Iraqis are not demanding privilege. They are demanding dignity, accountability, and the most basic rights of citizenship.

The response has been repression, not reform.

Corruption as a Governing System

Corruption in Iraq is not an exception--it is institutionalized. Political parties and militias have converted the state into a vehicle for wealth extraction. Ministries are treated as party assets. Contracts are distributed based on loyalty rather than competence. Oversight bodies are neutralized through intimidation or co-optation.

This corruption is shielded by armed power. Whistleblowers are threatened. Activists are assassinated. Journalists are silenced. Justice is selective and political.

Despite differences in rhetoric, both the Kurdish-controlled north and the Iranian-influenced south operate closed systems resistant to reform. Both criminalize dissent. Both accuse critics of treason while practicing it openly.

Weaponizing Identity and Crushing Accountability

One of the most destructive tactics employed by ruling elites is the weaponization of identity. Political leaders manipulate identity narratives to deflect accountability and justify repression.

Criticism of Kurdish ruling parties is labeled hostility toward autonomy. Criticism of militias is framed as opposition to resistance. This deliberate distortion fractures society while insulating those in power.

In reality, corruption and repression affect all Iraqis. The suffering is shared, but responsibility is consistently evaded.

Iraq Reduced to a Corridor

Today, Iraq functions less as a sovereign state and more as a corridor for regional power projection. Its territory is used for weapons transfers, political bargaining, and proxy warfare. National decisions are constrained by armed actors loyal to foreign capitals.

Borders are violated, airspace is compromised, and the constitution is selectively applied. Authority is fragmented, and the rule of law is replaced by the rule of force.

This reality has severely damaged Iraq's international standing and undermined trust in the state.

Moral Collapse and Historical Accountability

Beyond politics and economics lies a profound moral failure. Iraqi leadership has normalized injustice and inequality. They have accepted that millions live without basic services while a few accumulate vast wealth. They have accepted the killing of protesters and the silencing of critics. They have accepted the erosion of citizenship itself.

History will judge this era not by speeches, but by outcomes.

Conclusion: A National Reckoning

This is not a call for violence. It is a call for national reckoning. Iraq does not need new militias, new parties, or new foreign patrons. It needs the restoration of citizenship, sovereignty, and accountability under the law.

This crisis cannot be resolved by replacing one faction with another. It requires rejecting proxy rule in all forms--whether Iranian-backed militias or unaccountable party regimes in the north.

The Iraqi people are angry, betrayed, and increasingly aware. Silence is no longer neutrality; it is complicity.

Iraq must be reclaimed by Iraqis, for Iraqis. Not by Iranian-backed militias. Not by unaccountable Kurdish party administrations. Not by any foreign-sponsored proxy.

Either Iraqis unite around sovereignty, dignity, and citizenship--or Iraq will survive only as a memory and a warning to future generations.