Former MP opposes opening Basra presidential palaces to investment

BASRA, Iraq — Former member of parliament and tribal leader Mansur al-Timimi has criticized a project to open the presidential palaces in Basra to investment, holding local authorities responsible for the plan. Speaking at a gathering in the Shatt al-Arab district, al-Timimi said the palaces were built on a park area carved out of agricultural land and that the site contains residential units with a distinctive historic character. Al-Timimi argued that converting the area into a museum and historic site would be more appropriate, allowing the public to examine that period closely. While acknowledging that the palaces could succeed as a tourist facility, he opposed their conversion into investment complexes, asking: "What else is left in Basra?" Al-Timimi concluded his remarks by warning that approving the investment of the presidential palaces would amount to "the beginning of slavery and idolatry."