Tom Barrack to replace Mark Savaya as US special envoy for Iraq: sources

US ambassador to Turkey and special envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, will be replacing Mark Savaya as the special envoy for Iraq, the country’s foreign minister, Fuad Hussein, alleged on Sunday.

Hussein told broadcaster Kurdistan24 that"Mark Savaya is no longer Trump’s envoy for Iraq affairs, and Thomas Barrack is now managing the Iraq file in his place", following rumours of the diplomat's dismissal.

Three Iraqi government officials in Baghdad also confirmed the news to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, The New Arab’s Arabic language sister publication, saying that Washington had tasked Barrack with communicating with Iraqi officials for the time being.

The sources said that Savaya is no longer the US envoy to Iraq, following rumours last week that the Iraqi-American businessman had been dismissed from the position.

There has been no official word from Washington on Savaya's future, but further reports claim that Barrack has been handling communications between Washington and Baghdad over the past few days, when rumours of Savaya's dismissal first emerged.

It comes amid tensions between the two countries over the possible appointment of former Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki as premier and the future of Iran-linked militias in the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) in the country.

The sources did not reveal a reason behind the decision to replace Savaya; however, one person close to the Iraqi government said the move follows a "performance evaluation" of the envoy's job so far.

According to the source, Barrack is seen as "more hardline with regards to the case of Iran and armed groups", and "Barrack’s presence may push for more hardline American positions with regard to the armed factions".

An employee in Iraq’s foreign minister confirmed the remarks, stating that Barrack had "contacted Iraqi foreign minister Fuad Husein, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, and Democratic Party leader Masoud Barzani in the past two days to convey American views regarding the government and armed groups".

Another source said it was Savaya's failure to prevent the nomination of Al-Maliki as the country's next premier - a move Trump has warned Baghdad against - that could have led to his alleged dismissal.

On Saturday, Reuters quoted sources saying that US President Donald Trump is considering assigning Barrack to Iraq matters, due to his extensive experience in Middle East affairs and intimate knowledge of the region, as well as in light of US objectives towards Iraq.

Iraqi political analyst Ahmed Al-Nuaimi told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that replacement of one envoy with another was "an indication of Washington’s seriousness in continuing to deal with Iraq in a way that is not isolated from Lebanon and Syria".

Last week, Savaya denied any change in his role, insisting that he was still working on the same tasks assigned to him as envoy, but a source also claimed that the businessman was never even a State Department employee.

Savaya's X account was also deactivated, stirring questions about his current role.

Savaya, who ran a cannabis business in Detroit and has close ties to Trump, raised eyebrows when he was initially announced as the envoy due to his complete lack of diplomatic experience. He has not travelled to Iraq in an official capacity since being named to the role, two of the sources said.

He was set to visit Iraq and hold meetings with senior officials last Friday, but abruptly cancelled them, two Iraqi officials said.

The appointment of Tom Barrack comes just days after Trump appeared to warn Baghdad that if it chose Maliki as its prime minister, who is viewed as close to Iran, Washington would no longer help the country.

Maliki has also been accused of fuelling sectarian strife during his time in office, which contributed to the rise of the Islamic State group among disenfranchised Sunni Muslims in Iraq.