He has never held public office, built his fortune in banking, satellite broadcasting and government contracts, and runs a financial institution that the United States Treasury barred from the dollar system in 2024. Yet Ali Al Zaidi is now the man Washington wants to be Iraq’s next prime minister.
According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, President Donald Trump has invited Zaidi to Washington and declared that the US “is with him all the way.”
The choice came after months of stretched-out negotiations in which former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki, who is considered close to Iran, was put forward for the role. Trump warned he would cut off US assistance to Iraq if Maliki was confirmed. Lawmakers eventually turned to Zaidi as a compromise, with Iraqi officials confirming to the Wall Street Journal that both the US and Iran were consulted before the nomination was announced.
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