Maliki Arrives in Beirut for Talks with Officials, Party Leaders

Iraqi President's deputy and former Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, arrived Saturday in Beirut on an official visit, state-run National News Agency reported.

He was welcomed at the airport by State Minister Mohammed Fneish, MPs Hassan Fadlallah, Bilal Farhat and Ali Bazzi, Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's representative Mohammed Kawtharani, and Iraqi Ambassador to Lebanon Raad al-Hallousi, NNA said.

“One cannot hold talks, especially in Lebanon, without tackling the issue of combating terrorism,” Maliki told reporters at the Rafik Hariri International Airport.

“The region has become rife with terrorism and the countries have become unstable and perhaps a new map for the region is in the making,” the ex-PM added.

Asked about the fight against the Islamic State group in Iraq, Maliki said he is “very optimistic that Iraq will be the IS' graveyard.”

Describing U.S.-led strikes against the extremist group as “useful,” the Iraqi official stressed that air raids alone “cannot liberate the land.”

Maliki will meet with prominent Lebanese officials and party leaders, Agence France-Presse said on Thursday.

His talks will reportedly focus on the latest developments in the region.

Countries in the Middle East are confronting a growing threat by the Islamic State group, which has seized control of vast swathes of Iraq and Syria.

Maliki's eight years in office as prime minister were marked by tensions with Iraq's Sunni community and with Sunni-dominated Saudi Arabia.

On August 14, he dropped his acrimonious bid to remain premier of Iraq for a third term amid regional and international pressure.

After a strong showing in April polls, the two-term premier insisted the top job should again be his, but President Fuad Masum tasked Haidar al-Abadi, a member of Maliki's Dawa party, with forming a new government instead.

Y.R.