[5] The historical IFTU was headed by al-Qadir al-Ayash and Aram Khashadur in the late 1950s, was associated with the Iraqi Communist Party, and was legally affiliated with the World Federation of Trade Unions.
[6][15][16][17] By late 2005, IFTU represented supporters of former prime minister Ayad Allawi and some Arab nationalists, though was still largely aligned with the Iraqi Communist Party.
[18][5][13] Their mixed messaging may have been due to the fact that transitional prime minister Ayad Allawi, who was selected for the role by American occupation officials, had a strong alliance with the IFTU and often showed them favor, including by making them the only governmentally-recognized labor federation in the country.
[16][1] At the end of their tour, USLAW and the union groups made a collective statement in opposition of the privatization of Iraq's economy that came as a consequence of the occupation.
[8][7] On January 4, terrorists believed to be part of the disbanded Mukhabarat broke into the house of IFTU international secretary Hadi Saleh and brutally tortured and murdered him.
[6][25] On February 18, Ali Hassan Abd (also known as Abu Fahad) was gunned down while walking home with his children from the al-Daura oil refinery where he worked.