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On April 9, the 23rd anniversary of the day Saddam Hussein’s regime fell, the Iraqi government found itself confronting an acute political and security crisis. That day, a senior U.S. official summoned Iraq’s ambassador to condemn “egregious terrorist attacks by Iran-aligned militia groups launched from Iraqi territory against U.S. diplomatic personnel and facilities.” The governments of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait also summoned Iraqi diplomats with a similar complaint: These countries had all been targeted by drones launched from Iraqi soil.

Two days later, while Iraqi diplomats were still busy trying to explain why their country’s territory was being used in a war it was not a party to, the country’s parliament announced a new president. Despite deep political divisions, Nizar Amidi was selected in a secret ballot, more than two months after the constitutional deadline passed for picking the president. On April 27, after nearly six months of deliberation, Iraq’s dominant political bloc, the Coordination Framework, named Ali al-Zaidi as its nominee for prime minister—missing the constitutional deadline by one day.

On April 9, the 23rd anniversary of the day Saddam Hussein’s regime fell, the Iraqi government found itself confronting an acute political and security crisis. That day, a senior U.S. official summoned Iraq’s ambassador to condemn “egregious terrorist attacks by Iran-aligned militia groups launched from Iraqi territory against U.S. diplomatic personnel and facilities.” The governments of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait also summoned Iraqi diplomats with a similar complaint: These countries had all been targeted by drones launched from Iraqi soil.

Two days later, while Iraqi diplomats were still busy trying to explain why their country’s territory was being used in a war it was not a party to, the country’s parliament announced a new president. Despite deep political divisions, Nizar Amidi was selected in a secret ballot, more than two months after the constitutional deadline passed for picking the president. On April 27, after nearly six months of deliberation, Iraq’s dominant political bloc, the Coordination Framework, named Ali al-Zaidi as its nominee for prime minister—missing the constitutional deadline by one day.

Upon his election by parliament, Amidi swore an oath to protect “Iraq’s independence and its sovereignty.” If he is able to form a government within the 30-day deadline set for him, so will Zaidi. It won’t be easy for either man. The country is suffering from repeated constitutional violations by the very people tasked with protecting it, not to mention high-profile assassinations and fighting between domestic militias and foreign powers. Although these crises predate the........

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