Meet Ali al-Zaidi, businessman and Iraq's new prime minister-designate

Legal sources familiar with the nominee told Al-Monitor that there are no US sanctions on Zaidi or financial institutions affiliated with him.

Adam Lucente

Apr 28, 2026

Iraqi businessman Ali al-Zaidi was nominated by the Shiite-led Coordination Framework on Monday after months of disagreements over who to put forth as a candidate for prime minister. 

Zaidi, who emerged as a consensus candidate at the last minute, has friendly relations with much of Iraq’s political elite, including figures aligned with Iran and the United States, and would bring a strong business background to the office. A number of Kurdish and Sunni politicians have signaled openness to supporting his bid to form a government, though it remains unclear whether the Trump administration will back him.

The Coordination Framework, an alliance of Shiite parties, originally nominated former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in January, but he was opposed by some Sunni and Shiite leaders as well as the US, with President Donald Trump in January referring to his policies as “insane” and threatening to cut off support to Iraq. Maliki, who served as premier from 2006 to 2014, is widely seen as close to Iran and presided over the Islamic State’s (ISIS) emergence. 

Iraqi President Nizar Amede formally tapped Zaidi to form a government late Monday evening, calling on politicians to "support him and cooperate with him to expedite the completion of this constitutional and national obligation." 

انطلاقاً من مسؤولياتنا الدستورية،........

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