Confrontation over the Name of the Persian Gulf between Qalibaf and the Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament
The release of a photo of Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, during his visit to Iraq, with the phrase ‘Persian Gulf’ visible in the background, faced a reaction from Mohammad al-Halbousi, the Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament.
A few hours later, al-Halbousi released a similar photo of himself with the phrase ‘Arabian Gulf’ in the background.
This photographic confrontation has received widespread attention on social media and has been interpreted as a direct response to the photo released by Qalibaf.
Al Jazeera, also noting the political standing of both parties, wrote that the Iraqi Speaker’s response using the same photographic format has given this dispute over the name of the Persian Gulf a political dimension.
