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PM Abadi wants to reduce U.S.-led Coalition forces in Iraq

in MIDLE EAST/POLITICS by

During a weekly press briefing held in Baghdad, Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi has unveiled a governmental plan to gradually reduce the number of forces of the international coalition working under the U.S.-led Coalition in Iraq. Although Iraq still needs the air force of the coalition, Saeed al-Jayyashi, security adviser to the Iraqi government, said that a security commission will be developed to rearrange the international coalition’s mission in Iraq from combat duties to the training and improvement of Iraqi security services. After the Iraqi announcement, Eric Pahon spokesman of the Pentagon said that U.S. troops were only shifting mission from combat to training, without plans for a sharp drawdown of troops. In related news, two Iranian-backed Shiite groups in Iraq have urged total withdrawal of U.S. forces in the country, while Badr organization, one of the biggest armed factions that is close to the government, stressed how the presence of U.S. troops in the country will be a source of instability. The Pentagon had said in December it was keeping nearly 5000 troops in Iraq.

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US starts Iraq drawdown after declaration of victory over IS

in AMERICAS/DEFENCE by

American troops have started to draw down from Iraq following Baghdad’s declaration of victory over the Islamic State group last year, according to Western contractors at a U.S.-led coalition base in Iraq. In Baghdad, an Iraqi government spokesman on Monday confirmed to The Associated Press that the drawdown has begun, though he stressed it was still in its early stages and doesn’t mark the beginning of a complete pullout of U.S. forces. Dozens of American soldiers have been transported from Iraq to Afghanistan on daily flights over the past week, along with weapons and equipment, the contractors said.

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Terrorists returning from Syria and Iraq: Brussels wants to cooperate with Algiers

in AFRICA/DEFENCE by

The return of foreign fighters from Iraq and Syria is worrying more and more many countries facing this phenomenon. Visiting Algeria, whose experience in the fight against terrorism is recognized, the Deputy Prime Minister, Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders said on Tuesday that he had discussed with his Algerian counterpart the “ways to exchange information to deal with this phenomenon”: the return of foreign fighters (from Syria and Iraq). Reynders said at the end of the working session with Abdelkader Messahel that they will exchange best practices to deal with them”.In the same context, he announced a meeting with the Minister of Religious Affairs and Wakfs, Mohamed Aissa, to discuss the issue of de-radicalization.Referring to the migration issue in which he noted the similarity of the situation between Algiers and Brussels – “country of destination and transit” – the Belgian diplomat said, according to his words quoted by the official agency, that “there has a will to reinforce the bilateral relations, through, in particular the multiplication of the visits of high level,on both sides, and in this context, he announced the next visits to Algeria.

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Cavusoglu, US chose wrong partner

in ASIA/DEFENCE/EUROPE by

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has said the U.S. has chosen the “wrong partner” in the fight against Daesh terror group in Syria as he referred to the YPG/PKK terror group. To the New York Times, Cavusoglu said: “American reliance on the People’s Protection Units (YPG) is a self-inflicted error when the United States already has a capable partner in Turkey. “We have no doubt that the United States will see the damage this policy is inflicting on the credibility of the NATO alliance and correct its policy by putting its allies and long-term interests first again”. He said Turkey, however, could not afford to wait for “eventual and inevitable course corrections”. Cavusoglu said: “The victory against the group could not have been possible without Turkey’s active contributions”. In the article, Cavusoglu talked about how an impasse between U.S. and Turkey. He said the YPG/PKK terrorists across the borders in Iraq and Syria were using weapons and training provided by the United States. About the Operation Olive Branch, he said that Turkey will continue the operation until terrorist are wiped out. Furthermore, according to Cavusoglu, Turkey will not consent to the creation of separatist enclave or terrorist safe heavens.

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Iraq: 35,000 people might be forced to leave their homes in Diyala because of water shortages

in MIDLE EAST by

Speaking to Alghad Press on Wednesday, Mohamed Dayfan al-Obeidi, the head of al-Azim City Council highlighted how people in the city suffer from a “severe drinking water shortage for the fifth day in a row due to power blackouts and damage to water pipelines”. He warned that if this situation continues, over 35,000 residents will be forced to leave their homes in al-Azim city in northern the province, blaming persistent power cuts for the failure of water pumps to supply the city with water. He also added that water pipelines coming from the Tigris River have also “sustained severe damage due to maintenance of optical fiber cables without our knowledge”. Al-Obeidi urged the government and the other bodies concerned to swiftly intervene to save the recently-liberated city from a great disaster that could force residents to leave their homes in search for water and other basic services. Also Iraqi water resources minister Hassan Janabi said that the amount of water flowing in key Iraqi rivers has fallen by at least 40 percent in recent decades due to construction of dams and other water-holding facilities in upstream Turkey and Iran, as well as increasingly erratic rainfall across the region. Damage to Iraq’s own dams and other infrastructures have been caused also by years of fighting and by a recent earthquake, making water supplies more irregular.

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Iraqi PM Abadi: “no postponement of elections at all”.

in MIDLE EAST/POLITICS by

BAGHDAD – Speaking during his weekly press briefing on Tuesday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi remained inflexible to run parliament and local elections on time, saying there will be “no postponement of elections at all”. He also promised to resolve pending issues with Kurdistan Region, including employees’ salaries. Some Sunni groups have shown a preference to call off elections which the Cabinet had slated for May 12th in order to give time to civilians displaced by the war against the Islamic State militants to repatriate and vote. Speaking about the crisis with Kurdistan Region Abadi said: “We seek to resolve all pending issues with Kurdistan Region, and we are serious about disbursing the salaries of all of the region’s employees”, adding that his government remains eager to resolve all disputes with Erbil. Representatives of the governments of Baghdad and Erbil have discussed over the past week to resolve pending issues caused from a poll the region held in September considered unconstitutional, in which a majority voted for independence from Iraq. Baghdad also prompted it to take over disputed areas and border crossings, and to impose an air embargo on Kurdistan. Another contentious issue between both governments has been the payment of Kurdish employees’ salaries: Baghdad has asked Erbil to make an accurate count of its employees, suggesting paying the salaries from its oil exports’ revenues. Erbil, meanwhile, argued that the revenues would not suffice for the payments, and had also objected to its share in the proposed federal budget.

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Iraqi troops prepare to invade IS members hiding in village, south of Mosul

in MIDLE EAST/POLITICS by

Speaking to BasNews website, Col. Falah Aref, an officer from the Joint Operations Command, announced that Iraqi troops are preparing to invade Hawija village, a village in south of Mosul between Qayyarah and Hammam al-Alil towns, into which tens of Islamic State militants infiltrated. “Joint troops of army and police as well as Rapid Response forces are getting ready to invade Hawija village, which has wide areas of forests, helping militants to hide there”, he added. Col. Aref said that the invasion will be backed by Iraqi fighter jets, after evacuating the residents through safe passageways, adding that “The presence of IS members in the village endangers security of the south of Mosul”. In July, Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi declared victory over IS militants who had held the second largest Iraqi city since 2014. More than 25,000 Islamic State militants were killed throughout the campaign. Last month, Abadi announced full recapture of Iraqi lands, declaring end of war against IS members.

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Kurdish leader: meetings between officials in Baghdad and Erbil to reach a solution of pending disputes

in MIDLE EAST/PRESS RELEASE/REGIONS by

On Wednesday, Mulla Bakhtiar, a senior leader at the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, said in statements that a series of secret meetings between officials in Baghdad and Erbil have been held to reach a solution of pending disputes. Talks in Baghdad between the central government and the Kurdistan Region government signed a “detente” in the crisis. Mulla Bakhtiar added in later statements on social media that the meetings have shown that “Baghdad is pretty prepared for dialogue, while the Kurdistan government is working on setting the suitable atmosphere to that end”. “Officially, there will be no clash between Iraqi forces and (Kurdish) Peshmerga troops” Bakhtiar stated, adding “The issue of land and air ports, as well as customs, are currently being handled thoroughly, and after those are resolved, an action plan will start to resolve the budget, payments and disputed territories’ issues”. Bakhtiar also urged the Kurdish government to hold a meeting with parliamentary blocs to agree on points of negotiations with Baghdad to ensure “an inclusive solution”.

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UNAMI expresses concern over violence in Kurdistan region

in MIDLE EAST/PRESS RELEASE/REGIONS by

In a statement on its website, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) expressed on Wednesday deep concern over violence in Iraqi Kurdistan region, saying “is deeply concerned about the violence and the reported casualties during demonstrations in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) in the last two days, and calls for restraint and calm on all sides”. It stressed that people have the right to participate in peaceful demonstrations, and the authorities in KRI have the responsibility of protecting their citizens, including peaceful protesters. KRI security forces also are urged to exercise maximum restraint dealing with the demonstrators. UNAMI also exhorted demonstrators to avoid any act of violence, including the destruction of public and private properties. The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq urged the authorities to respect and protect the media, after NRT TV was ordered to suspend its broadcasts because of the content of its reporting on the demonstrations. “The Mission urges the media to abide by the law, while emphasizing the critical role of free and impartial media in any democratic society”, the statement concluded. Several media reported that Kurdish forces have launched a wide-scale arrest campaign in Sulaymaniyah to silence demonstrators, who have protested since Monday because of delayed salary payments and poor services.

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Iraq gets millions in EU and UK for reconstruction and demining

in MIDLE EAST/PRESS RELEASE/REGIONS by

On Wednesday, Iraqi Planning Minister Salman al-Jumaili signed with European Union representatives an agreement for EU funding of reconstruction and demining projects worth 60 million of euros as international donors continue efforts to address the dilemma of millions displaced by the war against the Islamic State. In a press conference following the signature of the deal he said that the projects purpose is to restore stability and to repatriate civilians to areas recaptured from militants. In fact, Iraq is getting 50.4 million of euros for reviving economic activity, rehabilitating infrastructures and supporting small-sized enterprises at liberated areas and 10 million of euros will address explosives contamination at those areas. In a separate declaration, the UK embassy in Iraq announced that next year the UK will provide £30 million to help restore livelihoods, essential infrastructures and basic services in Iraq, including to support displaced communities to return safely to liberated areas. At least £20 million will also be provided in humanitarian aid “to help deliver urgent life-saving assistance like food, shelter and access to clean water”, as he said.

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