Friday, May 25, 2007
INM daily summary – 25 May 2007
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- Hamid Ma'lah, a spokesman for the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC), told Al-Sharqiyah television on May 22 that the party's Shura Council is running the affairs of the party in the absence of Abd al-Aziz al-Hakim.
- Conditions for Iraqi children affected by violence and displacement have reached a critical point, UNICEF said.
- Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr appeared in public for the first time in months on Friday and delivered a fiery anti-American sermon in the holy Shiite city of Kufa.
- Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Peter Pace on Thursday confirmed that the rate of sectarian deaths in Baghdad has begun increasing again.
- KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani, accompanied by the ministers of finance and natural resources, headed the delegation to Baghdad, intent on settling arguments regarding the Iraq draft oil law.
- A military source from Iraq's Kurdistan region said on Thursday two Turkish warplanes violated Iraqi northern Kurdistan airspace near the borders with Turkey.
- Armed fighting between the British troops and the Mehdi Army headed by Shiite cleric Moqtada Al Sadr, will escalate in Basra warned Iraqi security forces and military experts.
- Insurgents detonated a roadside bomb beneath a vehicle belonging to a British-based security company in the southern Iraqi city of Basra on Friday.
- The Minister of Electricity, Kareem Waheed, and the Chinese ambassador in Baghdad, agreed to expedite the signing of a contract for the construction of the 1320 megawatt Al-Zubaydeh power station, at a cost of $750 million.
- Four years after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, credit cards have come to the country.
- The Ambassador of Iran in Baghdad has been chosen to head the Iranian delegation in discussions with the US representative on Iraq.
- Security round-up.
Round-up of violence across Iraq
Security
(McClatchy Newspapers) - Gunmen killed 11 people insider a minibus in Baghdad, then booby trapped the vehicle with explosives, which killed two more people who responded to the first attack. In Fallujah, a suicide bomber killed 20 people at a funeral. Two incidents of Americans killing Iraqi civilians were reported, one in Baghdad, the other in Salah ad Din province.
(Reuters) - Following are security developments in Iraq at 1130 GMT on Friday:
BAGHDAD - Two U.S. soldiers were killed and another was wounded in a roadside bomb attack on their patrol in western Baghdad on Thursday, the military said. An Iraqi interpreter was also killed.
TIKRIT - A U.S. soldier was killed by a roadside bomb in Nineveh province near Tikrit on Thursday, the military said.
TIKRIT - A U.S. soldier was killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad province near Tikrit, the U.S. military said.
SALAHADDIN - One U.S. soldier was killed and another was wounded by a roadside bomb in Salahaddin province on Thursday, the U.S. military said.
BAGHDAD - A U.S. soldier was killed by small arms fire in Diyala province on Thursday, the U.S. military said.
BAGHDAD - Insurgents bombed a bridge linking the Sunni districts of al-Khadra and al-Jamiaa in western Baghdad, police said. The bridge over a major road was still standing but was badly damaged. No casualties were reported.
BAGHDAD - U.S. and Iraqi forces detained 20 suspected insurgents in raids targeting al Qaeda in Baghdad and Mosul on Friday, the military said.
BAGHDAD - The bodies of 22 people were found shot in various districts of Baghdad on Thursday, police said. Nineteen of them were found in the predominantly Sunni Arab western Karkh side of Baghdad.
BAGHDAD - One civilian was killed and three wounded in a mortar attack on a residential area of Abu Dshir in southern Baghdad, police said.
FALLUJA - Gunmen killed a sheikh from the Abu Alwan tribe in his car in eastern Falluja, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad, on Friday, police said.
LATIFIYA - Police found the bodies of two men handcuffed and shot in Latifiya, 40 km (25 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - Two U.S. soldiers were killed and another was wounded in a roadside bomb attack on their patrol in western Baghdad on Thursday, the military said. An Iraqi interpreter was also killed.
TIKRIT - A U.S. soldier was killed by a roadside bomb in Nineveh province near Tikrit on Thursday, the military said.
TIKRIT - A U.S. soldier was killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad province near Tikrit, the U.S. military said.
SALAHADDIN - One U.S. soldier was killed and another was wounded by a roadside bomb in Salahaddin province on Thursday, the U.S. military said.
BAGHDAD - A U.S. soldier was killed by small arms fire in Diyala province on Thursday, the U.S. military said.
BAGHDAD - Insurgents bombed a bridge linking the Sunni districts of al-Khadra and al-Jamiaa in western Baghdad, police said. The bridge over a major road was still standing but was badly damaged. No casualties were reported.
BAGHDAD - U.S. and Iraqi forces detained 20 suspected insurgents in raids targeting al Qaeda in Baghdad and Mosul on Friday, the military said.
BAGHDAD - The bodies of 22 people were found shot in various districts of Baghdad on Thursday, police said. Nineteen of them were found in the predominantly Sunni Arab western Karkh side of Baghdad.
BAGHDAD - One civilian was killed and three wounded in a mortar attack on a residential area of Abu Dshir in southern Baghdad, police said.
FALLUJA - Gunmen killed a sheikh from the Abu Alwan tribe in his car in eastern Falluja, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad, on Friday, police said.
LATIFIYA - Police found the bodies of two men handcuffed and shot in Latifiya, 40 km (25 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
Labels: Abu Alwan tribe, al-Jamiaa, al-Khadra, bridge, Fallujah, gunmen, Latifiyah, roadside bombs, Salahuddin, Tikrit
Iranian envoy chosen to lead talks with U.S.
Politics, Region, Security
(Middle East Online) - Iran's envoy in Baghdad will lead his country's delegation in Monday's talks on Iraq with the US, the official IRNA news agency quoted foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini as saying on Friday. "Hassan Kazemi, the ambassador of Iran in Baghdad, has been designated to head the Iranian delegation in the discussions with the representative of the United States about Iraq," it quoted Hosseini as saying. "These talks will begin next Monday" with the aim of finding ways to improve the security situation in Iraq, he added.
Iranian television had earlier reported that Tehran's outgoing UN ambassador, Javad Zarif, would be Iran's representative in the highest-level official bilateral talks between the two sides since the 1979 Islamic revolution. The United States and Iran broke off diplomatic relations in 1980 after radical students stormed the US embassy in Tehran and held its diplomats hostage for 444 days.
Washington's delegation at Monday's landmark meeting will be led by the US envoy to Iraq, Ryan Crocker. Both sides have said their discussions will focus strictly on Iraq, and will not touch on other issues such as Iran's controversial nuclear programme. The United States accuses Iran of seeking nuclear weapons and wants Tehran to freeze sensitive uranium enrichment operations immediately. Iran says its atomic drive is peaceful and that it has every right to the full fuel cycle.
Iran believes that the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq is a prerequisite if security is to be restored to its war-ravaged neighbour. The United States charges Iran with fomenting the violence through its support for extremist groups, mainly Shiite. Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said last week that Tehran would merely use the Baghdad talks to remind Washington of its "occupiers' duty" in Iraq.
Iranian television had earlier reported that Tehran's outgoing UN ambassador, Javad Zarif, would be Iran's representative in the highest-level official bilateral talks between the two sides since the 1979 Islamic revolution. The United States and Iran broke off diplomatic relations in 1980 after radical students stormed the US embassy in Tehran and held its diplomats hostage for 444 days.
Washington's delegation at Monday's landmark meeting will be led by the US envoy to Iraq, Ryan Crocker. Both sides have said their discussions will focus strictly on Iraq, and will not touch on other issues such as Iran's controversial nuclear programme. The United States accuses Iran of seeking nuclear weapons and wants Tehran to freeze sensitive uranium enrichment operations immediately. Iran says its atomic drive is peaceful and that it has every right to the full fuel cycle.
Iran believes that the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq is a prerequisite if security is to be restored to its war-ravaged neighbour. The United States charges Iran with fomenting the violence through its support for extremist groups, mainly Shiite. Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said last week that Tehran would merely use the Baghdad talks to remind Washington of its "occupiers' duty" in Iraq.
Labels: Hassan Kazemi, Iran, Iraq, Ryan Crocker
Credit cards come to Iraq
Finance
(NPR) - Four years after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, credit cards have come to the country. At least one Iraqi bank is offering the service, unheard of during the Saddam era, to customers. But Iraq is still very much a cash-based society. Many say the find the cards more useful when they're out of the country. Iraqis refer to money as notebooks, because the bundles are so big. In Iraq, the U.S. dollar buys just over 1,200 Iraqi dinars, so going shopping and paying bills requires hauling around big stacks of local currency.
(NPR) - Four years after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, credit cards have come to the country. At least one Iraqi bank is offering the service, unheard of during the Saddam era, to customers. But Iraq is still very much a cash-based society. Many say the find the cards more useful when they're out of the country. Iraqis refer to money as notebooks, because the bundles are so big. In Iraq, the U.S. dollar buys just over 1,200 Iraqi dinars, so going shopping and paying bills requires hauling around big stacks of local currency.
The banking system is no more sophisticated. Bank employees lug boxes stacked with 10,000 dinar notes to government offices to pay employee salaries. "For people that we know, we can take some risk and give credit card. For people who have no history we start with pre-paid," said Zaid Mahdi, who is in charge of business development at the Trade Bank of Iraq. He says his bank has issued 15,000 credit cards so far.
The Trade Bank has had to start from scratch in a country embroiled in war. "We have to know a client. Things are not like in the west. They just put your Social Security number and they know your credit history," Mahdi said. "We don't have that in Iraq yet." There's a massive billboard on one street corner in downtown Baghdad with the word "VISA" emblazoned on it. This is a typical sight in most countries, but in Iraq the sign, more often than not, elicits blank stares.
Mahdi says the bank has only three ATM machines operating in all of Iraq. Progress in the banking is slow, he says, but it is moving forward, despite the uncertain security situation. But it's more than just getting people to use credit cards. "You know there are sometimes problems buying things in the first place," said Ahmed Fadhil, a 26-year-old dentist. "If you want to pay with your debit card … you have to list your address. Sometimes the lists do not have Iraq ..."
Labels: ATM machines, credirt cards, Trade Bank of Iraq, Zaid Mahdi
China to sign $750 mn. power station contract
Reconstruction
(IRAQdirecotry.com) - A high-level delegation from the Iraqi Ministry of Electricity in Beijing is signing a contract to have China speed up implementation of the power station at Zubaydiah in southern Baghdad. An official source in the ministry said that the two sides agreed, during a meeting between the Minister of Electricity Kareem Waheed and the Chinese ambassador in Baghdad, to expedite the signing of a contract for the construction of the 1320 megawatt Al-Zubaydeh power station, at a cost of $750 million.
The Ministry of Electricity has started preparing special sites for 50 generators in the city of Baghdad, to increase electric production before mid-June and reduce hours of rationing in the capital. On the other hand, a dispute escalated between officials in the ministries of oil and electricity about supplying the power plants with fuel; the Ministry of Electricity held the Ministry of Oil responsible for the waste of 1000 MW capacity because of shortfalls of fuel for the plants.
Labels: Al-Zubaydeh power station, China, electricity, Kareem Waheed, Ministry of Electricity, Zubaydiah
British security company hit in Basra
Security
(AFP) - Insurgents detonated a roadside bomb beneath a vehicle belonging to a British-based security company in the southern Iraqi city of Basra on Friday, British military officials said. "There seems to have been a roadside bomb. We have no more details, but we believe it was a private security vehicle," said British military spokesman Major David Gell, adding that he had received no word on casualties.
Another British military official later said that the vehicle belonged to the London-based Aegis Specialist Risk Management, a private security company, which said it had no knowledge of the incident. Children frolicked around the burning hulk of a sports-utility vehicle, squirting the wreckage and each other with toy water guns, an AFP photographer at the scene said. Although southern Iraq has been relatively calm, British military and private security forces frequently come under attack from the local Shiite militias that control Basra, the country's main sea port.
Another British military official later said that the vehicle belonged to the London-based Aegis Specialist Risk Management, a private security company, which said it had no knowledge of the incident. Children frolicked around the burning hulk of a sports-utility vehicle, squirting the wreckage and each other with toy water guns, an AFP photographer at the scene said. Although southern Iraq has been relatively calm, British military and private security forces frequently come under attack from the local Shiite militias that control Basra, the country's main sea port.
Labels: Aegis Defense Services, Basra, private security companies, roadside bombs, Shia militias
Iraqi military experts warn fighting will escalate in Basrah
Security
(Gulf News) - Armed fighting between the British troops and the Mehdi Army headed by Shiite cleric Moqtada Al Sadr, will escalate in Basra, Iraq's second-largest city, warned Iraqi security forces and military experts. The warning comes after London's decision to begin troop withdrawal from Iraq. Zaman Al Khuzai, a major general in the former Iraqi army, told Gulf News: "I believe Americans will shift some of their forces to Basra and other Shiite southern provinces in case the United Kingdom starts an early troop pullout from Iraq.
"Americans will keep a track of the Shiite militias, loyal to Iran, to prevent them from getting a grip on Basra and control of the situation, particularly as the government of [Prime Minister] Nouri Al Maliki is impotent and largely involved with militia infiltration in the state's institutions." He alleged: "The replacement does not amuse Al Maliki and other Shiite political and religious leaders who want to surrender the full security file to the Iraqi forces, which are accused by the British and Americans of being loyal to the dominant Shiite militias."
Sources close to Iraqi intelligence revealed that the Mehdi Army has mobilised itself and its supporters are preparing to return to Iraq immediately after an early pullout of British forces. Some do not rule out a coup attempt. Muaid Abdul Mustafa Al Dulaimi, an expert in strategic military studies, told Gulf News: "The Mehdi Army and rival Shiite militias will attempt a coup to seize control of the entire official military and security establishments in Basra and other southern Iraqi cities."
If this happens, "the [militias] will be extremely powerful and stronger than Al Maliki's government, especially as Iran will back the militias in the south more than supporting the government in Baghdad", Al Dulaimi said. It does not seem that Al Dulaimi's analysis is fully true as some reports confirm that the British withdrawal is likely to unleash a power struggle among main Shiite militia groups like the Mehdi Army and their rivals the Fadila party which engaged in clashes recently.
Some sceptics believe that the British and Americans have a role in creating the current conflict between the two Shiite groups to spark off an internal fight in the Shiite block. The security situation in Basra is growing critical and witnesses struggles for interests and power between the United States, Britain and Iran. The development may spur Americans to bring a strong central Iraqi government led by the former Baathists as its primary mission will be to suppress Shiite militias and end Iranian influence in southern Iraq.
"Americans will keep a track of the Shiite militias, loyal to Iran, to prevent them from getting a grip on Basra and control of the situation, particularly as the government of [Prime Minister] Nouri Al Maliki is impotent and largely involved with militia infiltration in the state's institutions." He alleged: "The replacement does not amuse Al Maliki and other Shiite political and religious leaders who want to surrender the full security file to the Iraqi forces, which are accused by the British and Americans of being loyal to the dominant Shiite militias."
Sources close to Iraqi intelligence revealed that the Mehdi Army has mobilised itself and its supporters are preparing to return to Iraq immediately after an early pullout of British forces. Some do not rule out a coup attempt. Muaid Abdul Mustafa Al Dulaimi, an expert in strategic military studies, told Gulf News: "The Mehdi Army and rival Shiite militias will attempt a coup to seize control of the entire official military and security establishments in Basra and other southern Iraqi cities."
If this happens, "the [militias] will be extremely powerful and stronger than Al Maliki's government, especially as Iran will back the militias in the south more than supporting the government in Baghdad", Al Dulaimi said. It does not seem that Al Dulaimi's analysis is fully true as some reports confirm that the British withdrawal is likely to unleash a power struggle among main Shiite militia groups like the Mehdi Army and their rivals the Fadila party which engaged in clashes recently.
Some sceptics believe that the British and Americans have a role in creating the current conflict between the two Shiite groups to spark off an internal fight in the Shiite block. The security situation in Basra is growing critical and witnesses struggles for interests and power between the United States, Britain and Iran. The development may spur Americans to bring a strong central Iraqi government led by the former Baathists as its primary mission will be to suppress Shiite militias and end Iranian influence in southern Iraq.
Labels: Basra, coup attempt, Fadhela party, Mahdi Army, Shiite militias, Zaman Al Khuzai
Turkey violates Kurdish airspace
Security, Kurdistan, Turkey
(Voices of Iraq) - A military source from Iraq's Kurdistan region said on Thursday two Turkish warplanes violated Iraqi northern Kurdistan airspace near the borders with Turkey. "Two Turkish warplanes violated today the Kurdistan region airspace for a distance of ten kilometers inside the Iraqi territories," the source, who asked not to be named, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
The warplanes flew over Kurdish villages west of Zakho, the source added. Meanwhile, local residents from villages on the borders with Turkey told VOI "12 artillery shells were fired from the Turkish territories onto the villages of Nazador and Gali Bazagha with no reports of casualties." Duhuk, third province within Kurdistan region, is in the farthest north of Iraq and it has borders with Turkey and Syria.
The warplanes flew over Kurdish villages west of Zakho, the source added. Meanwhile, local residents from villages on the borders with Turkey told VOI "12 artillery shells were fired from the Turkish territories onto the villages of Nazador and Gali Bazagha with no reports of casualties." Duhuk, third province within Kurdistan region, is in the farthest north of Iraq and it has borders with Turkey and Syria.
(Stratfor) - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would support Turkey's generals if they chose to attack Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq in retaliation for the May 22 suicide bombing in Ankara. The Kurdistan Workers' Party has denied responsibility for the blast. Erdogan also said the United States should do more to crack down on Kurdish separatists in Iraq.
COMMENT: Previously Turkey's military command and politicians have been divided on attacking Kurdistan to pursue the PKK, with the military pushing for an attack and the politicians prefering a more diplomatic approach. The chances of Turkey attacking will rise now that the two sides are (temporarily) united. Also, the politicians had to be seen to be doing something following the Ankara bombing. COMMENT ENDS.
Labels: Ankara, bombings, Kurdistan, PKK, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish warplanes, Zakhu
Kurdish delegation heads to Baghdad for meeting on draft oil law
Politics
(Kurdish Globe) - KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani, accompanied by the ministers of finance and natural resources, headed the delegation to Baghdad, intent on settling arguments regarding the Iraq draft oil law. Iraqi and Kurdish lawmakers have not been able to settle disputes on how to distribute the country's oil wealth or the KRG's right to sign contracts with international oil and gas firms.
Barzani who met with Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki Monday and described the environment as "friendly", expressed Erbil's support for the Maliki administration. He also announced the formation of a common committee to settle the disputes. General Jabar Yawar, spokesman of the Kurdistan forces who accompanies PM Barzani, said the meeting was "positive" but refrained from disclosing any details. Other constitutional issues up for discussion include possible amendments to the Iraqi constitution as well as the implementation of Article 140 in Kirkuk and other disputed areas.
The discussion comes at a time when the Norwegian company DNO announced its first-quarter activities of 2007. DNO began exploring for oil in Tawke, near Zakho town, nearly two years ago under an agreement with the KRG. The company stated on May 16 that Tawke oil is currently ready to be transported to market and that two new drilling projects completed at Tawke now bring the total to five.
"We are pleased with our achievements of developing Tawke into a field ready to produce," said Helge Eide, DNO managing director. "This is also testament to the commitment of the KRG and DNO to develop long-term and sustainable values from their joint projects."
Barzani who met with Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki Monday and described the environment as "friendly", expressed Erbil's support for the Maliki administration. He also announced the formation of a common committee to settle the disputes. General Jabar Yawar, spokesman of the Kurdistan forces who accompanies PM Barzani, said the meeting was "positive" but refrained from disclosing any details. Other constitutional issues up for discussion include possible amendments to the Iraqi constitution as well as the implementation of Article 140 in Kirkuk and other disputed areas.
The discussion comes at a time when the Norwegian company DNO announced its first-quarter activities of 2007. DNO began exploring for oil in Tawke, near Zakho town, nearly two years ago under an agreement with the KRG. The company stated on May 16 that Tawke oil is currently ready to be transported to market and that two new drilling projects completed at Tawke now bring the total to five.
"We are pleased with our achievements of developing Tawke into a field ready to produce," said Helge Eide, DNO managing director. "This is also testament to the commitment of the KRG and DNO to develop long-term and sustainable values from their joint projects."
Labels: Article 140, Baghdad, DNO, draft oil law, Helge Eide, Iraqi constitution, KRG, Nechirvan Barzani, Tawke
Sectarian deaths in Baghdad increasing again
Security
(KUNA) - Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Peter Pace on Thursday confirmed that the rate of sectarian deaths in Baghdad has begun increasing again. Looking at the numbers since President George W. Bush announced a U.S. troop surge into Baghdad early this year, Pace reported that there were more than 1,400 murders in Baghdad in January, which he attributed to "sectarian violence, et cetera." That number fell to 800 in February, and to just over 500 in March, he said. The number remained fairly constant in March and April with just over 500 in each of those months, he said.
"This month it is a little bit higher, maybe about 20 or 30 higher than it was at this time last month," Pace said during a joint Pentagon briefing with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates. "But inside of those numbers it is very difficult to parse out which death is caused by what kind of activity," Pace said. "But clearly the overall violence levels are down, whereas inside there may be a bomb one month that goes off that takes a larger toll than another one." One of the main goals of the U.S. troop surge was to help quell sectarian violence in Baghdad order to allow the Iraqi government a better opportunity to achieve political reconciliation.
"This month it is a little bit higher, maybe about 20 or 30 higher than it was at this time last month," Pace said during a joint Pentagon briefing with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates. "But inside of those numbers it is very difficult to parse out which death is caused by what kind of activity," Pace said. "But clearly the overall violence levels are down, whereas inside there may be a bomb one month that goes off that takes a larger toll than another one." One of the main goals of the U.S. troop surge was to help quell sectarian violence in Baghdad order to allow the Iraqi government a better opportunity to achieve political reconciliation.
Labels: sectarian assassinations, Staff Chairman General Peter Pace
Al-Sadr re-appears in public
Politics
(AP) - Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr appeared in public for the first time in months on Friday and delivered a fiery anti-American sermon in the holy Shiite city of Kufa. "No, no for the devil. No, no for America. No, no for the occupation. No, no for Israel," he chanted at the start of his speech. The roughly 6,000 worshippers in the mosque repeated after him. Al-Sadr told the worshippers that "the occupation forces should leave Iraq," and condemned fighting between his Mahdi Army militia and Iraqi security forces, saying it "served the interests of the occupiers."
Al-Sadr had gone into hiding in Iran four months ago at the start of the Baghdad security crackdown, but U.S. military officials said early Friday that he had returned to the holy city of Najaf, where he has a house. Residents in Najaf said they saw his motorcade leaving the city and heading toward Kufa on Friday morning. The black-turbaned leader then entered the revered mosque for prayers.
The 33-year-old leader, who has had an antagonistic relationship with the United States, is believed to be honing plans to consolidate political gains and foster ties with Iran. His Mahdi Army fought U.S. troops to a virtual standstill in 2004, but he ordered his militants off the streets when the U.S. began its security crackdown in the Baghdad area to avoid confrontation.
His associates say his strategy is based in part on a belief that Washington will soon start reducing troop strength, leaving behind a huge hole in Iraq's security and political power structure that he can fill. It was not clear why al-Sadr chose to return to Iraq now, although a major rival, Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq leader Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim was recently diagnosed with lung cancer and went to Iran for treatment.
Al-Sadr also believes that Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government may soon collapse amid its failure to improve security, services and the economy, al-Sadr's aides say. A political reshuffle would give the Sadrist movement, with its 30 seats in the 275-member parliament, a good chance of becoming a major player.
Al-Sadr had gone into hiding in Iran four months ago at the start of the Baghdad security crackdown, but U.S. military officials said early Friday that he had returned to the holy city of Najaf, where he has a house. Residents in Najaf said they saw his motorcade leaving the city and heading toward Kufa on Friday morning. The black-turbaned leader then entered the revered mosque for prayers.
The 33-year-old leader, who has had an antagonistic relationship with the United States, is believed to be honing plans to consolidate political gains and foster ties with Iran. His Mahdi Army fought U.S. troops to a virtual standstill in 2004, but he ordered his militants off the streets when the U.S. began its security crackdown in the Baghdad area to avoid confrontation.
His associates say his strategy is based in part on a belief that Washington will soon start reducing troop strength, leaving behind a huge hole in Iraq's security and political power structure that he can fill. It was not clear why al-Sadr chose to return to Iraq now, although a major rival, Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq leader Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim was recently diagnosed with lung cancer and went to Iran for treatment.
Al-Sadr also believes that Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government may soon collapse amid its failure to improve security, services and the economy, al-Sadr's aides say. A political reshuffle would give the Sadrist movement, with its 30 seats in the 275-member parliament, a good chance of becoming a major player.
Labels: Abdul Aziz Al Hakim, Iran, Kufa, Mahdi Army, Moqtada Al-Sadr, politics
UNICEF needs $42 mn. to help Iraqi children
Humanitarian
(UNICEF) - Conditions for Iraqi children affected by violence and displacement have reached a critical point, UNICEF has said. The children’s organization requires $42 million to provide relief over the next six months for children inside Iraq, as well as those who fled with their families to neighbouring Jordan and Syria.
“Humanitarian aid offers a lifeline to Iraq’s children and stepping up support now is the best way to protect and invest in Iraq’s future,” said Daniel Toole, Acting Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF and Chief of Emergency Operations. “Plans are in place to reach Iraq’s most vulnerable children with basic health, water, sanitation and education support – particularly displaced children living in host communities, as well as children living in Iraq’s most violent districts.”
UNICEF will also help the Jordanian and Syrian governments in providing quality social services for the growing population of Iraqi children. Initial priorities in these countries include ensuring that Iraqi children have full access to the classroom, health care and protection from exploitation.
“Humanitarian aid offers a lifeline to Iraq’s children and stepping up support now is the best way to protect and invest in Iraq’s future,” said Daniel Toole, Acting Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF and Chief of Emergency Operations. “Plans are in place to reach Iraq’s most vulnerable children with basic health, water, sanitation and education support – particularly displaced children living in host communities, as well as children living in Iraq’s most violent districts.”
UNICEF will also help the Jordanian and Syrian governments in providing quality social services for the growing population of Iraqi children. Initial priorities in these countries include ensuring that Iraqi children have full access to the classroom, health care and protection from exploitation.
“Iraq’s drain of care-givers is creating major gaps in children’s daily lives, an issue often overlooked amid the violence,” said Roger Wright, UNICEF Special Representative for Iraq. “We need to fill these gaps to address the most debilitating effects of the insecurity. Conditions for too many Iraqi children are deteriorating,” he added.
Last week Iraq reported its first suspected cholera cases of the year (all of them children), increasing fears of a serious outbreak over the summer months. The deterioration of Iraq’s water and sanitation systems means only an estimated 30 per cent of children have access to safe water. Health services are becoming increasingly hard to access. And with many schools hit hard by insecurity and overcrowding, too few children are completing this school year with a quality education.
Last week Iraq reported its first suspected cholera cases of the year (all of them children), increasing fears of a serious outbreak over the summer months. The deterioration of Iraq’s water and sanitation systems means only an estimated 30 per cent of children have access to safe water. Health services are becoming increasingly hard to access. And with many schools hit hard by insecurity and overcrowding, too few children are completing this school year with a quality education.
View full report: IMMEDIATE NEEDS FOR IRAQI CHILDREN IN IRAQ AND NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES
Labels: cholera, clean water, Daniel Toole, Iraqi children, Jordan, Roger Wright, Syria, UNICEF
Shura Council in charge while al-Hakim receives treatment
Politics
(RFE/RL) - Hamid Ma'lah, a spokesman for the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC), told Al-Sharqiyah television on May 22 that the party's Shura Council is running the affairs of the party in the absence of Abd al-Aziz al-Hakim, who is in Tehran for cancer treatment. "At present, we have the SIIC's Central Shura committee, which regularly holds meetings to run SIIC affairs. There is no big administrative problem because we have institutions, which are headed by officials, and the SIIC has a central Shura committee that draws the broad outlines of the [party's] work. Work continues as usual," Ma'lah said. He added that if an important matter arises, the party will consult al-Hakim via telephone. Al-Hakim's son, Ammar, who heads the party's Badr Organization, told London-based "Al-Sharq al-Awsat" that it is unlikely he will assume his father's position as head of SIIC in the elder's absence, the daily reported on May 22.
Labels: Abdul Aziz Al Hakim, Ammar al-Hakim, Hamid Ma'lah, Shura Council, SIIC, Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council
Thursday, May 24, 2007
INM daily summary – 24 May 2007
Scroll down for full articles.
- At least 27 people were killed and dozens wounded on Thursday when a suicide bomber in a car packed with explosives drove into a crowd of mourners at a funeral in Falluja.
- The U.N. Security Council approved the transfer of more than $3 million in oil-for-food revenue to meet Iraq's U.N. arrears and dues.
- Seventy percent of foreign insurgents arrested in Iraq came from Persian Gulf countries via Syria where they were provided with forged passports, an Iraqi intelligence officer said in a published report Wednesday.
- The military confirmed Thursday that the body found a day earlier in the Euphrates River south of Baghdad was that of Pfc. Joseph Anzack Jr., who had been missing since militants ambushed his unit nearly two weeks ago.
- Iranian forces bombarded northern Iraq's rugged Qandil mountains with mortars Wednesday, targeting Kurdish guerrillas, a local official said.
- Iraq's prime minister asked Parliament Thursday to approve six new Cabinet members to replace a group which resigned last month on the orders of radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
- Many members of the former security forces are reluctant to join the Interior Ministry for fear of retaliation.
- Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdul Mahdi arrived in Najaf on Wednesday morning and met with top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.
- Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdul Mahdi met with Kurdistan Prime Minister Negervan al-Barazani on oil draft law and Kirkuk in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, Mahdi's office said on Wednesday.
- Babel police said two more bodies believed to be of the kidnapped U.S. soldiers were found on Wednesday near a bank of the River Euphrates in al-Masayeb area.
- The US military is engaged in delicate negotiations inside Sadr City to clear the way for a gradual push in coming weeks by more American and Iraqi forces.
- A visiting European Union delegation said that EU countries are interested in importing Iraqi natural gas from the Ekas field in southern Iraq.
- Farmers in southern Iraq have started to grow opium poppies in their fields for the first time, sparking fears that Iraq might become a serious drugs producer along the lines of Afghanistan.
- According to Raghavan's report on May 20, talks between Sadr's representatives and Sunni leaders, including leaders of Sunni armed resistance factions, first began in April.
- Security round-up.
Round-up of violence across Iraq
Security
(McClatchy Newspapers) - The daily Iraq violence report is compiled by McClatchy Newspapers in Baghdad from police, military and medical reports. This is not a comprehensive list of all violence in Iraq, much of which goes unreported. It’s posted without editing as transmitted to McClatchy’s Washington Bureau.
(Reuters) - Following are security developments in Iraq at 1000 GMT on Thursday:
* denotes new or updated item.
* FALLUJA - A suicide car bomb targeting mourners at a funeral killed at least 27 people and wounded more than 30 others in Falluja, 50 km (35 miles) west of Baghdad, hospital and police officials said.
* BAGHDAD - At least two people were killed and 15 wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near a group of day labourers in Baghdad's Shi'ite Sadr city district, police said.
* SULAIMAN BEK - Six policemen were killed and six wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near their patrol in the town of Sulaiman Bek, 250 km north of Baghdad, police said.
ANBAR - Two U.S. soldiers were killed in combat on Wednesday in Anbar Province, the U.S. military said.
NEAR KIRKUK - Saboteurs set an oil well on fire in a town near Kirkuk in northern Iraq, police said.
* denotes new or updated item.
* FALLUJA - A suicide car bomb targeting mourners at a funeral killed at least 27 people and wounded more than 30 others in Falluja, 50 km (35 miles) west of Baghdad, hospital and police officials said.
* BAGHDAD - At least two people were killed and 15 wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near a group of day labourers in Baghdad's Shi'ite Sadr city district, police said.
* SULAIMAN BEK - Six policemen were killed and six wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near their patrol in the town of Sulaiman Bek, 250 km north of Baghdad, police said.
ANBAR - Two U.S. soldiers were killed in combat on Wednesday in Anbar Province, the U.S. military said.
NEAR KIRKUK - Saboteurs set an oil well on fire in a town near Kirkuk in northern Iraq, police said.
Labels: Al Anbar, Fallujah, Kirkuk, oil well, policemen, roadside bombs, Sadr City, suicide car bomber, Sulaimen Bek
Al-sadr in talks with Sunni tribal leaders, Sunni militants
Security, Politics, Tribal
(IPS) - Nationalist Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's bid to unite Sunnis and Shiites on the basis of a common demand for withdrawal of U.S. occupation forces, reported last weekend by the Washington Post's Sudarsan Raghavan, seems likely to get a positive response from Sunni armed resistance. An account given Pentagon officials by a military officer recently returned from Iraq suggests that Sunni tribal leaders in Anbar province, who have generally reflected the views of the Sunni armed resistance there, are open to working with Sadr.
According to Raghavan's report on May 20, talks between Sadr's representatives and Sunni leaders, including leaders of Sunni armed resistance factions, first began in April. A commander of the 1920 Revolution Brigades, Abu Aja Naemi, confirmed to Raghavan that his organisation had been in discussions with Sadr's representatives. Sadr's aides say he was encouraged to launch the new cross-sectarian initiative by the increasingly violent opposition from nationalist Sunni insurgents to the jihadists aligned with al Qaeda. One of his top aides, Ahmed Shaibani, recalled that the George W. Bush administration was arguing that a timetable was unacceptable because of the danger of al Qaeda taking advantage of a withdrawal.
Shaibani told Raghavan that sectarian peace could be advanced if both Sadr's Mahdi Army and Sunni insurgent groups could unite to weaken al Qaeda. Raghavan reports that the cross-sectarian united front strategy was facilitated by the fact that Shaibani had befriended members of Sunni nationalist insurgent groups while he was held in U.S. detention centres from 2004 through 2006. Now Shaibani, who heads a "reconciliation committee" for Sadr, is well positioned to gain the trust of those Sunni organisations. The talks with Sunni resistance leaders have been coordinated with a series of other moves by Sadr since early February.
Although many members of Sadr's Mahdi Army have been involved in sectarian killings and intimidation of Sunnis in Baghdad, Sadr has taken what appears to be a decisive step to break with those in his movement who have been linked to sectarian violence. Over the past three months, he has expelled at least 600 men from the Mahdi Army who were accused of murder and other violations of Sadr's policy, according to Raghavan.
The massive demonstration against the occupation mounted in Najaf by Sadr's organisation on Apr. 9, which Iraqi and foreign observers estimated at tens or even hundreds of thousands of people, was apparently timed to coincide with his initiative in opening talks with the Sunnis. The demonstration not only showed that Sadr could mobilise crowds comparable to the largest ever seen in post-Saddam Hussein Iraq, but also made clear Sadr's commitment to transcending sectarian interests.
The demonstrators carried Iraqi flags instead of pictures of Sadr or other Shiite symbols. It also included a small contingent of members of the Sunni-based Islamic Party of Iraq. Sadr's decision in mid-April to pull his representatives out of the al-Maliki government also appears to have been aimed in part at clearing the way for an agreement with the Sunni insurgents. Leaders of those organisations have said they would not accept the U.S.-sponsored government in any peace negotiations with the United States.
The officer also reported that Sunni tribal sheiks have explicitly disavowed the notion that Sadr is a pawn of the Iranians, insisting instead that he doesn't like either Iran or the newly-renamed Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq, which was created in Iran and supported by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. The sheiks have warned their U.S. military contacts against aggressive military actions against Sadr's followers in Sadr City during the troop surge, according to the account given by the special ops officer.
They said Sadr hopes such provocative United States actions will ultimately result in a new Shiite resistance war against U.S. forces, and they urge swift withdrawal to avoid that outcome. Sadr's project for a Sunni-Shiite united front against both al Qaeda and U.S. occupation offers a potential basis for an eventual settlement of the sectarian civil war in Iraq as well as for U.S. withdrawal. But it could also be the basis for a new and more deadly phase of fighting if Sadr returns once more to military resistance.
Labels: Abu Aja Naemi, Al Qaeda, Iraqi Islamic Party, Mahdi Army, Moqtada Al-Sadr, Sunni militants, Sunni tribal leaders, the 1920 Revolution Brigades
Farmers in southern Iraq start to grow opium poppies
Security, Agriculture
(The Independent) - Farmers in southern Iraq have started to grow opium poppies in their fields for the first time, sparking fears that Iraq might become a serious drugs producer along the lines of Afghanistan. Rice farmers along the Euphrates, to the west of the city of Diwaniya, south of Baghdad, have stopped cultivating rice, for which the area is famous, and are instead planting poppies, Iraqi sources familiar with the area have told The Independent.
The shift to opium cultivation is still in its early stages but there is little the Iraqi government can do about it because rival Shia militias and their surrogates in the security forces control Diwaniya and its neighbourhood. There have been bloody clashes between militiamen, police, Iraqi army and US forces in the city over the past two months.
The shift to opium production is taking place in the well-irrigated land west and south of Diwaniya around the towns of Ash Shamiyah, al Ghammas and Ash Shinafiyah. The farmers are said to be having problems in growing the poppies because of the intense heat and high humidity. It is too dangerous for foreign journalists to visit Diwaniya but the start of opium poppy cultivation is attested by two students from there and a source in Basra familiar with the Iraqi drugs trade.
Drug smugglers have for long used Iraq as a transit point for heroin, produced from opium in laboratories in Afghanistan, being sent through Iran to rich markets in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. Saddam Hussein's security apparatus in Basra was reportedly heavily involved in the illicit trade. Opium poppies have hitherto not been grown in Iraq and the fact that they are being planted is a measure of the violence in southern Iraq. It is unlikely that the farmers' decision was spontaneous and the gangs financing them are said to be "well-equipped with good vehicles and weapons and are well-organised".
There is no inherent reason why the opium poppy should not be grown in the hot and well-watered land in southern Iraq. It was cultivated in the area as early as 3,400BC and was known to the ancient Sumerians as Hul Gil, the "joy plant". Some of the earliest written references to the opium poppy come from clay tablets found in the ruins of the city of Nippur, just to the east of Diwaniya.
There has been an upsurge in violence not only in Diwaniya but in Basra, Nassariyah, Kut and other Shia cities of southern Iraq over the past 10 days. It receives limited attention outside Iraq because it has nothing to do with the fighting between the Sunni insurgents and US forces further north or the civil war between Shia and Sunni in Baghdad and central Iraq. The violence is also taking place in provinces that are too dangerous for journalists to visit. Aside from Basra, few foreign soldiers are killed.
The fighting is between rival Shia parties and militias, notably the Mehdi Army, who support the anti-US cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, and the Badr Organisation - the military wing of the recently renamed Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC). In many, though not all, areas of southern Iraq, the latter group controls the police.
The intra-militia violence in southern Iraq is essentially over control of profitable resources and the establishment of power bases. According to one report the violence in Diwaniya has been escalating for two months and was initially motivated by rivalry over control of opium production but soon widened into a general turf war.
The grip of the British Army around Basra and other southern provinces was always tenuous and is now coming to an end. Although the government in Baghdad speaks of gradually taking control of security in the provinces from US and Britain, the winners in the new Iraq are the militia, often criminalised, that have colonised the Iraqi security forces. Diwaniya is in Qaddasiyah province, which was never under British control but the pattern in all parts of Shia Iraq is very similar.
The one factor currently militating against criminal gangs organising poppy cultivation in Iraq on a wide scale is that they are already making large profits from smuggling drugs from Iran. This is easy to do because of Iraq's enormous and largely unguarded land borders with neighbouring states. Iraqis themselves are not significant consumers of heroin or other drugs.
But it is evident from the start of opium production around Diwaniya that some gangs think there is money to be made by following the example of Afghanistan. Given that they can guarantee much higher profits from growing opium poppies than can be made from rice, many impoverished Iraqi farmers are likely to cultivate the new crop.
The shift to opium cultivation is still in its early stages but there is little the Iraqi government can do about it because rival Shia militias and their surrogates in the security forces control Diwaniya and its neighbourhood. There have been bloody clashes between militiamen, police, Iraqi army and US forces in the city over the past two months.
The shift to opium production is taking place in the well-irrigated land west and south of Diwaniya around the towns of Ash Shamiyah, al Ghammas and Ash Shinafiyah. The farmers are said to be having problems in growing the poppies because of the intense heat and high humidity. It is too dangerous for foreign journalists to visit Diwaniya but the start of opium poppy cultivation is attested by two students from there and a source in Basra familiar with the Iraqi drugs trade.
Drug smugglers have for long used Iraq as a transit point for heroin, produced from opium in laboratories in Afghanistan, being sent through Iran to rich markets in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. Saddam Hussein's security apparatus in Basra was reportedly heavily involved in the illicit trade. Opium poppies have hitherto not been grown in Iraq and the fact that they are being planted is a measure of the violence in southern Iraq. It is unlikely that the farmers' decision was spontaneous and the gangs financing them are said to be "well-equipped with good vehicles and weapons and are well-organised".
There is no inherent reason why the opium poppy should not be grown in the hot and well-watered land in southern Iraq. It was cultivated in the area as early as 3,400BC and was known to the ancient Sumerians as Hul Gil, the "joy plant". Some of the earliest written references to the opium poppy come from clay tablets found in the ruins of the city of Nippur, just to the east of Diwaniya.
There has been an upsurge in violence not only in Diwaniya but in Basra, Nassariyah, Kut and other Shia cities of southern Iraq over the past 10 days. It receives limited attention outside Iraq because it has nothing to do with the fighting between the Sunni insurgents and US forces further north or the civil war between Shia and Sunni in Baghdad and central Iraq. The violence is also taking place in provinces that are too dangerous for journalists to visit. Aside from Basra, few foreign soldiers are killed.
The fighting is between rival Shia parties and militias, notably the Mehdi Army, who support the anti-US cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, and the Badr Organisation - the military wing of the recently renamed Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC). In many, though not all, areas of southern Iraq, the latter group controls the police.
The intra-militia violence in southern Iraq is essentially over control of profitable resources and the establishment of power bases. According to one report the violence in Diwaniya has been escalating for two months and was initially motivated by rivalry over control of opium production but soon widened into a general turf war.
The grip of the British Army around Basra and other southern provinces was always tenuous and is now coming to an end. Although the government in Baghdad speaks of gradually taking control of security in the provinces from US and Britain, the winners in the new Iraq are the militia, often criminalised, that have colonised the Iraqi security forces. Diwaniya is in Qaddasiyah province, which was never under British control but the pattern in all parts of Shia Iraq is very similar.
The one factor currently militating against criminal gangs organising poppy cultivation in Iraq on a wide scale is that they are already making large profits from smuggling drugs from Iran. This is easy to do because of Iraq's enormous and largely unguarded land borders with neighbouring states. Iraqis themselves are not significant consumers of heroin or other drugs.
But it is evident from the start of opium production around Diwaniya that some gangs think there is money to be made by following the example of Afghanistan. Given that they can guarantee much higher profits from growing opium poppies than can be made from rice, many impoverished Iraqi farmers are likely to cultivate the new crop.
Labels: Diwaniya, militias, opium poppies, rice farmers
E.U. delegation interested in importing Iraqi natural gas
E.U.
(Voices of Iraq) - A visiting European Union delegation said that EU countries are interested in importing Iraqi natural gas from the Ekas field in southern Iraq, the spokesman for the Iraqi Oil Ministry said on Wednesday. "EU representatives held talks this week with oil ministry officials, headed by oil minister Hussein al-Shahrestani, and expressed EU countries’ interest in importing Iraqi natural gas from the Ekas field, a huge field that extends from Ninewa province to the southern borders of Saudi Arabia," Essam Jihad told the independent news agency voices of Iraq (VOI).
"Ekas is one of the fields included in the ministry's development plan. It has a production capacity of 100,000 barrels per day, in addition to possible large amounts of gas in the western region that may turn Iraq into one of the largest natural gas producers in the Middle East region," he added.
"The delegation expressed desire to transport gas through the joint Arab pipeline that passes through a number of Arab countries: Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and through Turkey towards the EU," he also said, noting that the delegation expressed interest in importing the whole production. "Large steps have been taken towards concluding the agreement and the EU delegation is interested in participating to develop Iraq’s oil fields," the spokesman affirmed.
"Ekas is one of the fields included in the ministry's development plan. It has a production capacity of 100,000 barrels per day, in addition to possible large amounts of gas in the western region that may turn Iraq into one of the largest natural gas producers in the Middle East region," he added.
"The delegation expressed desire to transport gas through the joint Arab pipeline that passes through a number of Arab countries: Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and through Turkey towards the EU," he also said, noting that the delegation expressed interest in importing the whole production. "Large steps have been taken towards concluding the agreement and the EU delegation is interested in participating to develop Iraq’s oil fields," the spokesman affirmed.
Labels: E.U., Ekas field, Hussain al-Shahristani, Iraqi natural gas
Delicate negotiations for U.S. forces to clear way into Sadr City
Security
(The Washington Post) - The US military is engaged in delicate negotiations inside Sadr City to clear the way for a gradual push in coming weeks by more American and Iraqi forces into the volatile Shiite enclave of more than 2 million people, one of the most daunting challenges of the campaign to stabilise Baghdad.
So sensitive is the problem of the sprawling slum--heavily controlled by militiamen loyal to anti-American cleric Moqtada Al Sadr - that Gen. David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq, personally approves all targets for raids inside the Baghdad district, military officers said.
Lacking sufficient troops so far to move deeper into Sadr City, the military has cautiously edged into the southern part, conducting searches and patrols, handing out supplies and using offers of economic aid to try to overcome resistance. Meanwhile, US Special Operations forces and other US and Iraqi troops have detained militia leaders in an effort to weaken their organisation.
As additional US forces flow into Baghdad this month and next, the plan is to step up the presence of US and Iraqi troops in Sadr City, US commanders said in interviews over the past three weeks. "More US forces are needed in Sadr City to establish greater control, with Iraqi forces. We have to be matched," Col. Billy Don Farris, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade and senior US officer for the area.
Commanders say they intend to use political negotiations to gain peaceful entry into the district, bringing with them Iraqi forces and reconstruction projects. US officials hope "to take Sadr City without a shot fired," said Maj. Gen. Joseph Fil, the senior US general overseeing Baghdad.
But negotiations have had setbacks, with key players shot or intimidated. Farris, the lead American officer in the talks, was evacuated from Iraq and is recovering after being shot in the leg May 3 in a different part of Baghdad, his spokesman said last week.
If political avenues are exhausted, the US military has formulated other options, including plans for a wholesale clearing operation in Sadr City that would require a much larger force, but commanders stress that this is a last resort.
"A second Fallujah plan exists, but we don't want to execute it," a military officer in Baghdad said, referring to the US military offensive in November 2004 to retake the insurgent stronghold of Fallujah in Iraq's western Anbar province. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak with reporters.
So sensitive is the problem of the sprawling slum--heavily controlled by militiamen loyal to anti-American cleric Moqtada Al Sadr - that Gen. David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq, personally approves all targets for raids inside the Baghdad district, military officers said.
Lacking sufficient troops so far to move deeper into Sadr City, the military has cautiously edged into the southern part, conducting searches and patrols, handing out supplies and using offers of economic aid to try to overcome resistance. Meanwhile, US Special Operations forces and other US and Iraqi troops have detained militia leaders in an effort to weaken their organisation.
As additional US forces flow into Baghdad this month and next, the plan is to step up the presence of US and Iraqi troops in Sadr City, US commanders said in interviews over the past three weeks. "More US forces are needed in Sadr City to establish greater control, with Iraqi forces. We have to be matched," Col. Billy Don Farris, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade and senior US officer for the area.
Commanders say they intend to use political negotiations to gain peaceful entry into the district, bringing with them Iraqi forces and reconstruction projects. US officials hope "to take Sadr City without a shot fired," said Maj. Gen. Joseph Fil, the senior US general overseeing Baghdad.
But negotiations have had setbacks, with key players shot or intimidated. Farris, the lead American officer in the talks, was evacuated from Iraq and is recovering after being shot in the leg May 3 in a different part of Baghdad, his spokesman said last week.
If political avenues are exhausted, the US military has formulated other options, including plans for a wholesale clearing operation in Sadr City that would require a much larger force, but commanders stress that this is a last resort.
"A second Fallujah plan exists, but we don't want to execute it," a military officer in Baghdad said, referring to the US military offensive in November 2004 to retake the insurgent stronghold of Fallujah in Iraq's western Anbar province. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak with reporters.
Labels: Col. Billy Don Farris, Maj. Gen. Joseph Fil, Sadr City, U.S. military
Iraqi police find two more bodies in U.S. military uniform
Security
(Voices of Iraq) - Babel police said two more bodies believed to be of the kidnapped U.S. soldiers were found on Wednesday near a bank of the River Euphrates in al-Masayeb area. “Babel police patrols today found two bodies believed to be from the two kidnapped U.S. soldiers near the Euphrates bank in al-Masyeb area,” the source, who asked not to be named, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
He added, “the bodies bore marks of torture with their heads smashed. They wore the U.S. military-style uniform.” The source said “the two bodies were handed over to the U.S. forces at the location where they were found.” U.S. forces immediately cordoned off the area, he also said.
No word has been heard so far from the U.S. army on the incident. Earlier on Wednesday, Babel police found a body believed to of a kidnapped U.S. soldier. Last week, a U.S. vehicle patrol was attacked just south of Baghdad where six soldiers and an Iraqi interpreter were killed and the three service members were kidnapped.
He added, “the bodies bore marks of torture with their heads smashed. They wore the U.S. military-style uniform.” The source said “the two bodies were handed over to the U.S. forces at the location where they were found.” U.S. forces immediately cordoned off the area, he also said.
No word has been heard so far from the U.S. army on the incident. Earlier on Wednesday, Babel police found a body believed to of a kidnapped U.S. soldier. Last week, a U.S. vehicle patrol was attacked just south of Baghdad where six soldiers and an Iraqi interpreter were killed and the three service members were kidnapped.
Labels: Missing U.S. troops, Mussayab
Iraqi VP meets with Kurdistan's PM on draft oil law, Kirkuk
Politics
(Voices of Iraq) - Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdul Mahdi met with Kurdistan Prime Minister Negervan al-Barazani on oil draft law and Kirkuk in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, Mahdi's office said on Wednesday. "Vice President Adel Abdul Mahdi discussed with Iraq's Kurdistan Premier Negervan al-Barazani several political, security and economic issues, including oil draft law and the implementation of the Iraqi constitution's Article 140 on normalizing the situation in Kirkuk city," Mahdi's office said in a statement received by the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
Iraqi cabinet adopted a draft law on oil investment in Iraq including Kurdistan region and sent it to the Iraqi parliament for debate and voting. The proposed law gives the central government in Baghdad more powers to control investment contracts of oil in the country, a matter rejected by Kurds who demand more jurisdictions be given to the local government when conducting contracts with companies concerning oil in the region.
Also the Kurds urged Iraqi leaders to implement Article 140 of the Iraqi constitution regarding the statues of oil-rich-Kirkuk. Kurds claim that the former regime had changed the demographic distribution of the population by alluring more Arabs to settle in Kirkuk and drive out Kurds during 70-80s. Article 140 stipulates that situation in Kirkuk should be normalized as it was before the alleged Arab migration to the city, to conduct a census and to hold a referendum to decide whether or not the city would join Kurdistan region.
Kirkuk, 250 km northeast of Baghdad, is a mixed city of Arabs, Kurds and Torkmans.
According to the statement, Abdul Mahdi said "we have no differences as to the agreed principles but we need to work out solid mechanisms to secure the good implementation of the article." The meeting also touched upon issues related to the budget of the Kurdish local fighters (Peshmerga) within the Iraqi national budget, the statement added.
"Both sides stressed the importance of continuing concerted efforts to gain security and stability as well as supporting the ongoing political process in the country," the statement added. Abdul Mahdi, according to the statement, said "we should adhere at the mechanisms set up by the constitution to solve all disputable issues."
Iraqi cabinet adopted a draft law on oil investment in Iraq including Kurdistan region and sent it to the Iraqi parliament for debate and voting. The proposed law gives the central government in Baghdad more powers to control investment contracts of oil in the country, a matter rejected by Kurds who demand more jurisdictions be given to the local government when conducting contracts with companies concerning oil in the region.
Also the Kurds urged Iraqi leaders to implement Article 140 of the Iraqi constitution regarding the statues of oil-rich-Kirkuk. Kurds claim that the former regime had changed the demographic distribution of the population by alluring more Arabs to settle in Kirkuk and drive out Kurds during 70-80s. Article 140 stipulates that situation in Kirkuk should be normalized as it was before the alleged Arab migration to the city, to conduct a census and to hold a referendum to decide whether or not the city would join Kurdistan region.
Kirkuk, 250 km northeast of Baghdad, is a mixed city of Arabs, Kurds and Torkmans.
According to the statement, Abdul Mahdi said "we have no differences as to the agreed principles but we need to work out solid mechanisms to secure the good implementation of the article." The meeting also touched upon issues related to the budget of the Kurdish local fighters (Peshmerga) within the Iraqi national budget, the statement added.
"Both sides stressed the importance of continuing concerted efforts to gain security and stability as well as supporting the ongoing political process in the country," the statement added. Abdul Mahdi, according to the statement, said "we should adhere at the mechanisms set up by the constitution to solve all disputable issues."
Labels: Adel Abdul Mahdi, Article 140, draft oil law, Kirkuk, Negervan al-Barazani, Peshmerga
Vice President meets Sistani
Politics
(Voices of Iraq) - Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdul Mahdi arrived in Najaf on Wednesday morning and met with top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. Abdul Mahdi is due to take part in a conference, organized by the Islamic University in Najaf, on the current electricity situation in the Shiite province of Najaf. Five Iraqi ministers will attend the conference, media spokesman for the Najaf province, Ahmed Daabeil said. Najaf is the first Shiite sacred city as it hosts the shrine of the Shiite first Imam Ali, cousin of Prophet of Muhammed. It is located about 160 km southwest of Baghdad.
Labels: Adel Abdul Mahdi, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, electricity, Najaf
Former security forces reluctant to report to MOI
Politics
(Azzaman) - Many members of the former security forces are reluctant to join the Interior Ministry for fear of retaliation. The ministry, in a bid to accommodate former security forces, has given those residing in Iraq 60 days to report to its offices if they were willing to join the new security organs. Those living outside Iraq have 90 days to report.
The measure, according to Lt. Gen. Abdulkarim Khalifa, is part of government plans to reverse a U.S.-sponsored decree which disbanded the former army, security organizations and other institutions which served under the regime of Saddam Hussein.
Many in Iraq and abroad believe the decree was one of the main catalysts to fuel violence and the growing insurgency against U.S. occupation troops. But the move is drawing harsh criticism from several political factions and former security personnel themselves.
The measure, according to Lt. Gen. Abdulkarim Khalifa, is part of government plans to reverse a U.S.-sponsored decree which disbanded the former army, security organizations and other institutions which served under the regime of Saddam Hussein.
Many in Iraq and abroad believe the decree was one of the main catalysts to fuel violence and the growing insurgency against U.S. occupation troops. But the move is drawing harsh criticism from several political factions and former security personnel themselves.
Some political factions, particularly those dominated by Iraqi Shiites, see the move as an attempt to resurrect former security organs and members of Saddam Hussein’s Baath party. They are keen to keep the so-called policy of debaathification under which Baath party members are not allowed to take up government positions or join the armed forces.
On the other hand, many former Baath party members fear that once they register with the Interior Ministry their identity will be exposed and as a result become easy targets for ‘death squads’ bent on liquidating former army, police and security officers.
On the other hand, many former Baath party members fear that once they register with the Interior Ministry their identity will be exposed and as a result become easy targets for ‘death squads’ bent on liquidating former army, police and security officers.
Labels: former security forces, Lt. Gen. Abdulkarim Khalifa, Ministry of Interior
Maliki asks parliament to approve new cabinet ministers
Politics
(AP) - Iraq's prime minister asked Parliament Thursday to approve six new Cabinet members to replace a group which resigned last month on the orders of radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Al-Sadr ordered his ministers to quit the government over Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's refusal to call for a timetable for U.S. withdrawal. The anti-American cleric went into hiding in Iran last February when the Baghdad security crackdown was launched.
In Parliament, al-Maliki thanked al-Sadr for giving him the "authority to choose the ministers." He told the chamber, which will decide in a vote Sunday, that all six were independent "not because we have something against parties, but we were keen on their being independent because that was one of the conditions put for the selection."
Al-Maliki was upset because there were not enough legislators to approve his choices on the spot, and was instead forced to delay the vote by three days. He admitted that he took a long time in choosing them, but said it was the result of the time needed to review the candidates history. Describing them as technocrats, he said none had any record of corruption.
He also announced a future Cabinet reshuffle, but said he had not yet received any proposals for candidates from the parties that make up his government. "Some blocs want to change their ministers, and some ministers we want to change. It is not a shame to talk about a Cabinet reshuffle because we seek the best" people, al-Maliki told Parliament.
The new six candidates included one woman, Khiloud Sami, who has been proposed for the post of state minister for provincial affairs. Although the religious affiliation of the six were not announced, all had traditionally Shiite names. The six are Sabah Rasoul for Health ministry, Ali al-Bahadli for Agriculture, Amir Abdul-Jabbar for Transportation, Thamir Jafar al-Zubaidi for the Civil Society Ministry, and Zuhair Mohammed Ali Sharba for the Tourism and Antiquity ministry.
In Parliament, al-Maliki thanked al-Sadr for giving him the "authority to choose the ministers." He told the chamber, which will decide in a vote Sunday, that all six were independent "not because we have something against parties, but we were keen on their being independent because that was one of the conditions put for the selection."
Al-Maliki was upset because there were not enough legislators to approve his choices on the spot, and was instead forced to delay the vote by three days. He admitted that he took a long time in choosing them, but said it was the result of the time needed to review the candidates history. Describing them as technocrats, he said none had any record of corruption.
He also announced a future Cabinet reshuffle, but said he had not yet received any proposals for candidates from the parties that make up his government. "Some blocs want to change their ministers, and some ministers we want to change. It is not a shame to talk about a Cabinet reshuffle because we seek the best" people, al-Maliki told Parliament.
The new six candidates included one woman, Khiloud Sami, who has been proposed for the post of state minister for provincial affairs. Although the religious affiliation of the six were not announced, all had traditionally Shiite names. The six are Sabah Rasoul for Health ministry, Ali al-Bahadli for Agriculture, Amir Abdul-Jabbar for Transportation, Thamir Jafar al-Zubaidi for the Civil Society Ministry, and Zuhair Mohammed Ali Sharba for the Tourism and Antiquity ministry.
Labels: cabinet reshuffle, Moqtada Al-Sadr, Nouri Al-Maliki
Iranian forces shell guerilla hide-out in northern Iraq
Security, Iran
(AFP) - Iranian forces bombarded northern Iraq's rugged Qandil mountains with mortars Wednesday, targeting Kurdish guerrillas, a local official said. The barrage lasted much of the day and targeted several villages, said Hussein Ahmed, the mayor of Bashdar, one of the targeted villages. "I expect there will be both human and material losses, but I do not know right now the extent of the damage," he told reporters.
The snow-capped Qandil mountains run along Iraq's border with both Turkey and Iran, and are home to separatist guerrillas from the anti-Iranian faction Pejak, an offshoot of Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK), which opposes Turkey.
The movements have fought for decades for the autonomy of the Kurdish people, though recently they claim to have abandoned violence in favor of a peaceful solution. Turkey has threatened to invade the northern Iraqi PKK haven if their activities are not reigned in by the Iraqi Kurdish regional government, while Iran frequently shells the area.
The snow-capped Qandil mountains run along Iraq's border with both Turkey and Iran, and are home to separatist guerrillas from the anti-Iranian faction Pejak, an offshoot of Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK), which opposes Turkey.
The movements have fought for decades for the autonomy of the Kurdish people, though recently they claim to have abandoned violence in favor of a peaceful solution. Turkey has threatened to invade the northern Iraqi PKK haven if their activities are not reigned in by the Iraqi Kurdish regional government, while Iran frequently shells the area.
Labels: Iranian forces, mortar rounds, Pejak, Qandil mountains
Body of missing U.S. soldier identified
Security
(AP) - Thousands of U.S. and Iraqi troops fanned out across the fields of southern Iraq in scorching temperatures Thursday as the military said it remained determined to find two missing U.S. soldiers after the body of a third was pulled from a river. The military confirmed Thursday that the body found a day earlier in the Euphrates River south of Baghdad was that of Pfc. Joseph Anzack Jr., who had been missing since militants ambushed his unit nearly two weeks ago.
A commanding officer identified the remains recovered from the river, but DNA tests were still pending, military officials told Anzack's family. Anzack, 20, vanished along with the two other soldiers after their combat team was ambushed May 12 about 20 miles outside Baghdad. Five others, including an Iraqi, were killed in the ambush, subsequently claimed by al-Qaida.
"We can confirm that we have recovered the remains of Pfc. Anzack," Lt. Col. Josslyn Aberle, a military spokeswoman, said Thursday. Aberle denied reports that a second body had been found and was being examined to determine if it was that of another of the missing soldiers. "The reports of a second set of remains being found is a false report," she said.
Thousands of U.S. and Iraqi forces have been involved in the search for the soldiers ambushed and captured May 12. Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, the chief U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, said the remains, later identified as those of Anzack, were recovered by Iraqi police. Witnesses said police using civilian boats searched for other bodies on the river in Musayyib, about 40 miles south of Baghdad, and U.S. troops intensified their presence on a nearby bridge as helicopters flew overhead, witnesses said.
Hassan al-Jibouri, 32, said he saw the body with head wounds and whip marks on its back floating on the river Wednesday morning. He and others then alerted police. The remaining missing soldiers are Spc. Alex R. Jimenez, 25, and Pvt. Byron W. Fouty, 19.
A commanding officer identified the remains recovered from the river, but DNA tests were still pending, military officials told Anzack's family. Anzack, 20, vanished along with the two other soldiers after their combat team was ambushed May 12 about 20 miles outside Baghdad. Five others, including an Iraqi, were killed in the ambush, subsequently claimed by al-Qaida.
"We can confirm that we have recovered the remains of Pfc. Anzack," Lt. Col. Josslyn Aberle, a military spokeswoman, said Thursday. Aberle denied reports that a second body had been found and was being examined to determine if it was that of another of the missing soldiers. "The reports of a second set of remains being found is a false report," she said.
Thousands of U.S. and Iraqi forces have been involved in the search for the soldiers ambushed and captured May 12. Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, the chief U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, said the remains, later identified as those of Anzack, were recovered by Iraqi police. Witnesses said police using civilian boats searched for other bodies on the river in Musayyib, about 40 miles south of Baghdad, and U.S. troops intensified their presence on a nearby bridge as helicopters flew overhead, witnesses said.
Hassan al-Jibouri, 32, said he saw the body with head wounds and whip marks on its back floating on the river Wednesday morning. He and others then alerted police. The remaining missing soldiers are Spc. Alex R. Jimenez, 25, and Pvt. Byron W. Fouty, 19.
Labels: Lt. Col. Josslyn Aberle, Missing U.S. troops, Mussayab, Pfc. Joseph J. Anzack Jr., Pvt. Byron W. Fouty, Spc. Alex R. Jimenez
70 per cent of foreign insurgents arrested in Iraq come from Gulf countries
Security
(AP) - Seventy percent of foreign insurgents arrested in Iraq came from Persian Gulf countries via Syria where they were provided with forged passports, an Iraqi intelligence officer said in a published report Wednesday. "They, according to their own confessions, gather in mosques in the said (Gulf) states to travel to Syria using their passports, taking with them phone numbers of individuals waiting for them there," Brig. Gen. Rashid Fleih, the assistant undersecretary for intelligence of Iraq's Interior Ministry, told Kuwait's Al-Qabas daily in an interview.
Fleih did not provide more specific details about the alleged insurgents or which countries they came from. But he said once in Syria, the alleged insurgents were transported to the al-Qaim border area where they were provided with new passports after their old ones were destroyed, Fleih said in an interview from Baghdad.
U.S. and Iraqi officials claim Syria does not do enough to prohibit people of different nationalities from crossing its 380-mile border with Iraq to join the ranks of al-Qaida and other insurgent or terrorist groups there. Damascus denies the allegations and says it is doing all it can to stop them.
The Iraqi intelligence officer did not say where the other 30 percent of insurgents in custody came from. A large percentage of insurgents fighting in Iraq are Iraqi. Iraq's other neighbor Iran, is suspected of aiding Iraqi Shiite fighters with training, money and weapons. Tehran denies the accusations.
Once in Iraq, the insurgents were provided with forged Iraqi documentation and money to buy cars which they rig with booby traps, Fleih told the newspaper. He also accused Baathist followers of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein of offering the foreign insurgents information about targets. "In brief, there is clear intelligence cooperation between them," Fleih told the newspaper.
Fleih did not provide more specific details about the alleged insurgents or which countries they came from. But he said once in Syria, the alleged insurgents were transported to the al-Qaim border area where they were provided with new passports after their old ones were destroyed, Fleih said in an interview from Baghdad.
U.S. and Iraqi officials claim Syria does not do enough to prohibit people of different nationalities from crossing its 380-mile border with Iraq to join the ranks of al-Qaida and other insurgent or terrorist groups there. Damascus denies the allegations and says it is doing all it can to stop them.
The Iraqi intelligence officer did not say where the other 30 percent of insurgents in custody came from. A large percentage of insurgents fighting in Iraq are Iraqi. Iraq's other neighbor Iran, is suspected of aiding Iraqi Shiite fighters with training, money and weapons. Tehran denies the accusations.
Once in Iraq, the insurgents were provided with forged Iraqi documentation and money to buy cars which they rig with booby traps, Fleih told the newspaper. He also accused Baathist followers of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein of offering the foreign insurgents information about targets. "In brief, there is clear intelligence cooperation between them," Fleih told the newspaper.
Labels: Brig. Gen. Rashid Fleih, foreign insurgents, Persian Gulf countries
U.N. Security Council approves $3 mn. transfer for Iraq
U.N.
(AP) - The U.N. Security Council approved the transfer of more than $3 million in oil-for-food revenue to meet Iraq's U.N. arrears and dues. The Iraqi government requested the transfer - approved Wednesday - of funds from the escrow account for the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, known as UNMOVIC, which was responsible for chemical, biological and missile inspections in Iraq.
Under the U.N. oil-for-food program, Iraq was allowed to sell oil provided the proceeds went primarily to buy humanitarian goods and pay reparations from the 1991 Gulf War that followed Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. But a small percentage of the money was also used to pay for weapons inspections by UNMOVIC and to buy spare parts for the oil industry.
While the program helped Iraqis cope with U.N. sanctions, an independent investigation concluded it was corrupted by bureaucrats, oil tycoons and Saddam Hussein after the former Iraqi leader was allowed to choose the buyers of Iraqi oil and the sellers of humanitarian goods.
Saddam's successors have been lobbying to have the Security Council stop using the country's oil revenue to pay compensation to war victims and the salaries of U.N. weapons inspectors - and to have all money remaining in the U.N.'s oil-for-food accounts transferred to the Development Fund for Iraq. A May 7 letter from Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to the council indicated that the current balance in UNMOVIC's escrow account stands at about $66.4 million.
At a formal meeting Wednesday, the council approved the transfer of $2.5 million to the U.N. Industrial Development Organization to pay off the Iraqi government's arrears and another $694,771 to pay Iraq's contribution to the regular U.N. budget, the peacekeeping budget, U.N. tribunals and U.N. renovations. Once those transfers are made, the oil-for-food account will have a balance of about $63.1 million.
Council diplomats said the five permanent council members - the U.S., Britain, France, Russia and China - are close to agreement on a plan to transfer most of the money in the escrow account to Iraq, but they have not yet agreed on how to wrap up UNMOVIC's operation. The diplomats spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks have been private. Britain's U.N. Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry said Wednesday he expected an agreement on UNMOVIC very soon, but refused to give any details.
Under the U.N. oil-for-food program, Iraq was allowed to sell oil provided the proceeds went primarily to buy humanitarian goods and pay reparations from the 1991 Gulf War that followed Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. But a small percentage of the money was also used to pay for weapons inspections by UNMOVIC and to buy spare parts for the oil industry.
While the program helped Iraqis cope with U.N. sanctions, an independent investigation concluded it was corrupted by bureaucrats, oil tycoons and Saddam Hussein after the former Iraqi leader was allowed to choose the buyers of Iraqi oil and the sellers of humanitarian goods.
Saddam's successors have been lobbying to have the Security Council stop using the country's oil revenue to pay compensation to war victims and the salaries of U.N. weapons inspectors - and to have all money remaining in the U.N.'s oil-for-food accounts transferred to the Development Fund for Iraq. A May 7 letter from Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to the council indicated that the current balance in UNMOVIC's escrow account stands at about $66.4 million.
At a formal meeting Wednesday, the council approved the transfer of $2.5 million to the U.N. Industrial Development Organization to pay off the Iraqi government's arrears and another $694,771 to pay Iraq's contribution to the regular U.N. budget, the peacekeeping budget, U.N. tribunals and U.N. renovations. Once those transfers are made, the oil-for-food account will have a balance of about $63.1 million.
Council diplomats said the five permanent council members - the U.S., Britain, France, Russia and China - are close to agreement on a plan to transfer most of the money in the escrow account to Iraq, but they have not yet agreed on how to wrap up UNMOVIC's operation. The diplomats spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks have been private. Britain's U.N. Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry said Wednesday he expected an agreement on UNMOVIC very soon, but refused to give any details.
Labels: oil-for-food, U.N. Security Council, UNMOVIC
27 killed by car bomber at funeral
Security
(Reuters) - At least 27 people were killed and dozens wounded on Thursday when a suicide bomber in a car packed with explosives drove into a crowd of mourners at a funeral in Falluja, west of Baghdad, police said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack in Falluja in Iraq's restive western Anbar province, but police said the funeral was being held for a local businessman opposed to Sunni Islamist al Qaeda.
The group is waging a campaign of bombings and shootings against Sunni Arab tribal leaders, politicians and others in western Anbar province who have formed an alliance against them. The bomber targeted mourners in a funeral procession for Allawi al-Isawi, a local contractor in Falluja, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad, who was killed earlier on Thursday, police officer Jamal Anfous said.
As mourners walked down a main street holding aloft Isawi's coffin, the bomber drove into the crowd and blew himself up. A doctor at a local hospital, Ahmed al-Ani, said 27 were killed and more than 30 wounded.
The commander of U.S. troops in Anbar, a stronghold of the Sunni Arab-led insurgency, said last week that al Qaeda accounted for 75 percent of militants in and around Falluja.
The group is waging a campaign of bombings and shootings against Sunni Arab tribal leaders, politicians and others in western Anbar province who have formed an alliance against them. The bomber targeted mourners in a funeral procession for Allawi al-Isawi, a local contractor in Falluja, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad, who was killed earlier on Thursday, police officer Jamal Anfous said.
As mourners walked down a main street holding aloft Isawi's coffin, the bomber drove into the crowd and blew himself up. A doctor at a local hospital, Ahmed al-Ani, said 27 were killed and more than 30 wounded.
The commander of U.S. troops in Anbar, a stronghold of the Sunni Arab-led insurgency, said last week that al Qaeda accounted for 75 percent of militants in and around Falluja.
Labels: Allawi al-Isawi, Fallujah, suicide car bomber
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
INM daily summary – 23 May 2007
Scroll down for full articles.
- A report released recently by Refugees International calls the flight of Iraqis from war-torn areas for regions of greater security within Iraq "the world's fastest growing displacement crisis."
- Iraqi police found the body of a man who was wearing what appeared to be a U.S. military uniform and had a tattoo on his left hand floating in the Euphrates River south of Baghdad on Wednesday morning.
- An Iraqi parliamentary committee has failed to finalise an agreement on amending key articles in the constitution.
- Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki warned Tuesday that Iraq's fight against terror will be "open-ended and long" and called for the creation of "salvation councils" across the country to bring together Iraqis to fight al-Qaida militants.
- From hiding, possibly in Iran, U.S. nemesis and radical anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr is believed to be honing plans to sweep into the power vacuum made all the more intense by news that his chief Shiite rival has lung cancer.
- The provincial authorities in Amara have signed a contract for the construction of a tourist town with the aim of turning this southern city reputed for its marshes and ancient Mesopotamian sites into a tourist attraction.
- During a meeting of the Iraqi List in Jordan, Allawi demanded that his list’s members make the decision to withdraw from Al Maliki’s government promising them that there will be large regional support in many sectors.
- The Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation said that about nine million Iraqis are living under the poverty line according to a sociological survey conducted by the Central Body for Statistics.
- The Turkish forces are now next to the Iraqi border and there are some special units that have already entered 5 km into Iraq near Dahuk.
- Iraq agreed to increase oil exports directly to Iran via a new pipeline in the south, though export capacity in the north remains stuck.
- The Islamic State of Iraq claimed the attempted assassination of former deputy Iraqi Prime Minister Ahmed Chalabi.
- Security round-up.
- Vice President Tariq Al Hashimi said, “Iraq will participate in the meeting which will be held between the US and Iran at the end of this month in Baghdad.”
Vice President To Dar Al Salam: Iraq Will Participate In Iranian-American Talks
Regional
(Dar Al Salam Newspaper) - 22 MAY - Vice President Tariq Al Hashimi said, “Iraq will participate in the meeting which will be held between the US and Iran at the end of this month in Baghdad.” Al Hashimi said at the Economic Conference held in Jordan, “The Accord Front is discussing with all political fronts on how to resolve the problems in Iraq. We call for a review of the security ministries. We have many choices and we will choose one of these options if dialogue fails.”
Al Hashimi also said, “We confirm that we have many options but now we are talking with all political fronts. We will withdraw from the government if our dialogue fails but withdrawing is not our goal. We will use it as a policy tool to send a message to our brothers in the political process. Our message is: ‘what is happening now is not serving anyone.’”
Al Hashimi confirmed that Iraq will participate in the American-Iranian talks. Iraq received an invitation to attend this meeting. He said, “We will not accept the US holding a meeting with Iraq’s neighboring states without Iraq in attendance, especially when the meeting will discuss Iraqi affairs. We received an official date for the meeting.”
Al Hashimi also said, “We confirm that we have many options but now we are talking with all political fronts. We will withdraw from the government if our dialogue fails but withdrawing is not our goal. We will use it as a policy tool to send a message to our brothers in the political process. Our message is: ‘what is happening now is not serving anyone.’”
Al Hashimi confirmed that Iraq will participate in the American-Iranian talks. Iraq received an invitation to attend this meeting. He said, “We will not accept the US holding a meeting with Iraq’s neighboring states without Iraq in attendance, especially when the meeting will discuss Iraqi affairs. We received an official date for the meeting.”
Al Hashimi also said, “The Accord Front is holding discussions with the other political fronts and maybe we will form a new political front but this matter is still under discussion.” Al Hashimi spoke about the proposed oil law and said, “The Accord Front is against some items of the new oil law but the new oil law will allow foreign oil companies to invest in Iraq.”
Labels: Iran, Iraqi Accord Front, Tariq al-Hashimi, U.S.
Round-up of violence across Iraq
Security
08:52 AM EDT By Laith Hammoudi, McClatchy Newspapers
The daily Iraq violence report is compiled by McClatchy Newspapers in Baghdad from police, military and medical reports. This is not a comprehensive list of all violence in Iraq, much of which goes unreported. It’s posted without editing as transmitted to McClatchy’s Washington Bureau.
(Reuters) - Following are security developments in Iraq at 0830 GMT on Wednesday:
* denotes new or updated item.
* MANDALI - A bomber wearing a suicide vest killed 20 people and wounded 30 in a cafe in Mandali, about 100 km (60 miles) northeast of Baghdad on Wednesday, police said.
JBELA - At least three people were killed and nine wounded by a suicide car bomber in a popular market in the town of Jbela, near Iskandariya, 40 km south of Baghdad, police spokesman Captain Muthana al-Maamouri said.
BAGHDAD - U.S. forces killed two insurgents, detained 19 others and uncovered a cache of Iranian money and bomb-making materials during a raid in the Sadr City district of northeastern Baghdad, the U.S. military said.
BAGHDAD - The bodies of 33 people were found shot in different districts of Baghdad on Tuesday, police said. Twenty- seven of them were found in the predominantly Sunni Arab western Karkh side of Baghdad.
ANBAR - Two U.S. marines were killed on Tuesday while conducting combat operations in Anbar Province in western Iraq, the U.S. military said.
KUT - The bodies of five people were retrieved from two rivers near the city of Kut, 170 km (100 miles) southeast of Baghdad on Tuesday, police said.
KHAN BANI SAAD - Three children were killed and three wounded in a mortar attack in the town of Khan Bani Saad, near Baquba, 65 km north of Baghdad, police said.
RIYADH - A roadside bomb targeting a police patrol wounded four policemen on Tuesday in the town of Riyadh, 60 km southwest of Baghdad, police said.
KHAN BANI SAAD - An Iraqi officer was killed and three other soldiers wounded in clashes with gunmen in the town of Khan Bani Saad on Tuesday, police said.
BAGHDAD - A suicide car bomber targeting a police patrol killed a policeman and wounded three others in Doura district of southern Baghdad, police said.
SAMAWA - The bodies of five Shi'ite men were brought to Samawa on Tuesday. Dozens of Shi'ites then began throwing stones at a Sunni mosque in protest at the killing of the five men, the assistant to the mosque's imam said.
* denotes new or updated item.
* MANDALI - A bomber wearing a suicide vest killed 20 people and wounded 30 in a cafe in Mandali, about 100 km (60 miles) northeast of Baghdad on Wednesday, police said.
JBELA - At least three people were killed and nine wounded by a suicide car bomber in a popular market in the town of Jbela, near Iskandariya, 40 km south of Baghdad, police spokesman Captain Muthana al-Maamouri said.
BAGHDAD - U.S. forces killed two insurgents, detained 19 others and uncovered a cache of Iranian money and bomb-making materials during a raid in the Sadr City district of northeastern Baghdad, the U.S. military said.
BAGHDAD - The bodies of 33 people were found shot in different districts of Baghdad on Tuesday, police said. Twenty- seven of them were found in the predominantly Sunni Arab western Karkh side of Baghdad.
ANBAR - Two U.S. marines were killed on Tuesday while conducting combat operations in Anbar Province in western Iraq, the U.S. military said.
KUT - The bodies of five people were retrieved from two rivers near the city of Kut, 170 km (100 miles) southeast of Baghdad on Tuesday, police said.
KHAN BANI SAAD - Three children were killed and three wounded in a mortar attack in the town of Khan Bani Saad, near Baquba, 65 km north of Baghdad, police said.
RIYADH - A roadside bomb targeting a police patrol wounded four policemen on Tuesday in the town of Riyadh, 60 km southwest of Baghdad, police said.
KHAN BANI SAAD - An Iraqi officer was killed and three other soldiers wounded in clashes with gunmen in the town of Khan Bani Saad on Tuesday, police said.
BAGHDAD - A suicide car bomber targeting a police patrol killed a policeman and wounded three others in Doura district of southern Baghdad, police said.
SAMAWA - The bodies of five Shi'ite men were brought to Samawa on Tuesday. Dozens of Shi'ites then began throwing stones at a Sunni mosque in protest at the killing of the five men, the assistant to the mosque's imam said.
Labels: car bomb, Jbela, Khan Bani Saad, Kut, Mandali, mortar rounds, policemen, Riyadh, Sadr City, Samawa, suicide bomber, weapons cache
Islamic State of Iraq claims assassination attempt on Chalabi
Security
(SITE) - The Islamic State of Iraq, in five of their several communiqués issued between Monday, May 21, 2007, and yesterday, claims the attempted assassination of former deputy Iraqi Prime Minister Ahmed Chalabi, three operations allegedly resulting in a total number of thirty-nine American casualties, and a “bold and strange” operation executed by the Mujahideen in al-Mosul. Also, al-Furqan Foundation for Media Production, the official distributor and producer of multimedia for the Islamic State, issued a one-minute video depicting the detonation of an improvised explosive device (IED) on an American Hummer in the area of Abu Thar al-Ghafari in Diyala.
The assassination attempt on Chalabi by the Islamic State of Iraq occurred yesterday and involved the firing of mortar shells at an area in Bahrez, in Diyala, followed by gunfire. Attacks listed by the group against American forces took place in Baquba and al-Tahrir in Diyala and al-Ameriya in Baghdad, between May 16-17 and May 19. In one of these attack, an IED containing a “very explosive” substance was detonated on the soldiers in Baghdad, striking a vehicle and “inside were the cross worshippers who were fuel for this burning fire”.
In al-Mosul on Wednesday, May 16, the “strange” operation which the Islamic State claims involved the Mujahideen dressing as male nurses and infiltrating a hospital to free six detainees from their group, two of which were to be executed by the enemy. According to the message the Mujahideen killed the guards watching their members and escaped the hospital quickly without any person noticing.
The assassination attempt on Chalabi by the Islamic State of Iraq occurred yesterday and involved the firing of mortar shells at an area in Bahrez, in Diyala, followed by gunfire. Attacks listed by the group against American forces took place in Baquba and al-Tahrir in Diyala and al-Ameriya in Baghdad, between May 16-17 and May 19. In one of these attack, an IED containing a “very explosive” substance was detonated on the soldiers in Baghdad, striking a vehicle and “inside were the cross worshippers who were fuel for this burning fire”.
In al-Mosul on Wednesday, May 16, the “strange” operation which the Islamic State claims involved the Mujahideen dressing as male nurses and infiltrating a hospital to free six detainees from their group, two of which were to be executed by the enemy. According to the message the Mujahideen killed the guards watching their members and escaped the hospital quickly without any person noticing.
Labels: Ahmed Chalabi, Al-Furqan Foundation, Bahraz, Islamic State of Iraq, Mosul
Iraq to increase oil exports to Iran through new pipeline
Oil
(UPI) - Iraq agreed to increase oil exports directly to Iran via a new pipeline in the south, though export capacity in the north remains stuck. Iraq oil minister Hussein Al Shahristani and Hasan Kazemi Qomi, the Iranian ambassador to Iraq, struck the deal, according to a top ministry spokesman. "The two agreed to lay the oil pipeline from southern Iraq to Abadan region in Iran in order to export more than 200,000 barrels per day [bpd] of Iraqi crude oil to Iran according to crude oil international prices," Issam Jihad told reporters.
The Voices of Iraq news agency reports that the oil will be used in Iran's refineries. While Iraq has 115 billion barrels of proven reserves, the third-most in the world, production is struggling at 2 million bpd and exports at 1.6 million bpd. This is caused not by a lack of export capacity, at least in the south, but by old, misused, and often attacked infrastructure. Tens of billions of dollars are needed to fix the system, which has suffered under the current occupation and its fighting, and Saddam Hussein worked the sector too hard without proper upkeep. Prewar production was around 2.6 million bpd and experts say that the sector could handle much more.
All of Iraq's exports come from the south, mostly from the Persian Gulf port of Basra. A pipeline in the north, from Kirkuk to Ceyhan, Turkey, has been attacked so often it is no longer considered viable. The investment would come from Iraqi coffers or foreign firms. Oil revenue funds more than 93 percent of the federal budget, though much of it goes to security. International oil companies are waiting for the parliament to pass an oil law before it knows what access it has to the oil.
Labels: Abadan region, Hasan Kazemi Qomi, Hussain al-Shahristani, Iran, oil exports
Turkish forces have entered Iraq near Dahuk
Security, Kurdistan, Turkey
(Al Bayyna Newspaper) - 22 MAY - Al Baynna Newspaper has been informed through its own sources that the military leadership has ordered the Turkish military to be prepared to enter Iraqi territory. The Turkish forces are now next to the Iraqi border and there are some special units that have already entered 5 km into Iraq near Dahuk.
This military activity follows a large military operation that occurred April 8th, 2005, which was called, “Broom Sweeper,” against the PKK. The Turkish forces are now in Shornak Province on the Turkish border. Around 20,000 additional troops have joined those already in Silobi along the Iraqi-Turkish border. Information confirms from Jizra city that tanks from the 23rd Armored Brigade have passed through the city to the Iraqi border and are supported by tens of Cobra and Sikorsky helicopters.
The Turkish paramilitary has intensified its operations in the Ghabar and Judi Mountains. Special Turkish Airborne troops have dropped on Harimiya, Missa, and Wadhithaba cross-roads in order to block these roads to rebels who are trying to escape. Information also mentions that Turkish Intelligence has erred because the groups of PKK fighters who had been in northern Iraq have already left because of pressure from the Iraqi central and Kurdistan region governments. These PKK fighters who have already fled will now use urban tactics against the Turkish forces in southern Turkey.
Labels: 23rd Armored Brigade, cobra helicopter, Ghabar and Judi Mountains, PKK, Shornak Province, Sikorsky helicopters, Turkish forces
Nine million Iraqis are living under the poverty line
Economy
(Iraq Directory) - The Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation said that about nine million Iraqis are living under the poverty line according to a sociological survey conducted by the Central Body for Statistics.
An official source at the ministry said that "this survey was conducted on different samples in all governorates; results showed that more than nine million Iraqis are living under the poverty line because a large proportion of them depend on food subsidies and subsidized basic commodities such as fuel, with many Iraqi markets not working regularly.”
An official source at the ministry said that "this survey was conducted on different samples in all governorates; results showed that more than nine million Iraqis are living under the poverty line because a large proportion of them depend on food subsidies and subsidized basic commodities such as fuel, with many Iraqi markets not working regularly.”
He added, "The Central Body for Statistics entered the results of this survey into the future plans of the Ministry of Planning, in order to reduce rates of poverty and help Iraqi families rise above the poverty line,” and pointed out, "There are many training programs under a number of ministries to provide jobs for the unemployed, thus attempting to eliminate unemployment, a significant cause of poverty.” The latest economic studies confirmed earlier that poverty in Iraq is rising continuously due to the lack of plans and projects in all governorates to reduce poverty.
Labels: Central Body for Statistics, Iraq, poverty, survey
Allawi Guarantees Arab And Regional Support For Coup Against Al Maliki
Politics
(Al Mada Newspaper) - 22 MAY - During a meeting of the Iraqi List in Jordan between the 17th and 19th of May, which was headed by Ayad Allawi and that was attended by Adnan Al Pachachi, Mahdi Al Hafidh, Ayad Jamal Al Din, Falah Al Naqib, Maysoun Al Damlouji, and others, Allawi demanded that his list’s members make the decision to withdraw from Al Maliki’s government promising them that there will be large regional support in many sectors.
Allawi adopted this position because of the political crisis in Iraq as well as because of the dominating political entity’s continuing of its sectarian agenda and its insistence to marginalize other entities from participating in the political process. Participants said that the meeting was devoted to discussing the political situation in Iraq which needs extraordinary steps. Sources said that Allawi confirmed that his political activities are supported by some Arab and regional countries, such as Jordan, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Libya, Egypt, Turkey, Yemen, and Syria.
The meeting also discussed the formation of a new political front to face the Iraqi situation and the inclusion of the National Dialogue Front in this new front as well as the inclusion of Khalaf Al Aliyan’s political entity. Information also states that there is an understanding with some members from Fadhila Party, the Sadr Movement, the Islamic Party, as well as some Kurds, “such as Arshad Zebari, who is well known as being one of Saddam’s mules.”
The meeting was also attended by the former Deputy PM, Abid Mutlak Al Jabouri. Leaders from the Iraqi List said that the meeting and side discussions were focused on mobilizing efforts to be utilized to dissolve the current political coalitions. Political sources in Amman expressed Allawi’s lack of confidence in the seriousness of the Islamic Party to take important steps toward this new political front. They also mentioned that Allawi is unsure of the Sadr Movement’s intentions regarding this new front.
The meeting also discussed the formation of a new political front to face the Iraqi situation and the inclusion of the National Dialogue Front in this new front as well as the inclusion of Khalaf Al Aliyan’s political entity. Information also states that there is an understanding with some members from Fadhila Party, the Sadr Movement, the Islamic Party, as well as some Kurds, “such as Arshad Zebari, who is well known as being one of Saddam’s mules.”
The meeting was also attended by the former Deputy PM, Abid Mutlak Al Jabouri. Leaders from the Iraqi List said that the meeting and side discussions were focused on mobilizing efforts to be utilized to dissolve the current political coalitions. Political sources in Amman expressed Allawi’s lack of confidence in the seriousness of the Islamic Party to take important steps toward this new political front. They also mentioned that Allawi is unsure of the Sadr Movement’s intentions regarding this new front.
These points were confirmed by Dr. Ali Al Adib, a Shiite Alliance member, when he said that the discussions between Allawi and the Sadr Movement were unsuccessful. These sources also said that there were two points of view during the Amman meeting. The first was Allawi’s point of view that was focusing on withdrawing from Al Maliki’s government in the next week. The second view of Al Pachachi was that the withdrawal from the government must be parallel with the announcement of the new political front.
Some participants, who have good relations with some Arab countries, believe that for support to continue from the Gulf countries, they must withdraw and announce the new front. The same participants confirmed that there is security and political coordination among these countries to develop assistance for Allawi’s plan.
Some observers say that the Iraqi List’s leadership is searching for any position in the government regardless of the higher national interest for Iraq.
Other observers, who are outside the government, believe that what is developing is intended to destroy the current political infrastructure in Iraq which confirms that if the current government wants to face this coup, it must take certain steps regarding the economic, political and security situations. The current government must also minimize sectarianism. These observers add that the government should also look toward open and secret dialogue with those in and outside of Iraq.
Some Iraq List members said that this political development is related to Cheney’s failure in convincing the Arab countries to support the political process in Iraq. Regarding Fadhila Party, some sources are saying that there has been a dialogue between it and Alllawi’s list. Meanwhile, Al Adib said that Fadhila Party is reconsidering its position regarding the Shiite Alliance and it will likely return to the Alliance in the next few days.
Some participants, who have good relations with some Arab countries, believe that for support to continue from the Gulf countries, they must withdraw and announce the new front. The same participants confirmed that there is security and political coordination among these countries to develop assistance for Allawi’s plan.
Some observers say that the Iraqi List’s leadership is searching for any position in the government regardless of the higher national interest for Iraq.
Other observers, who are outside the government, believe that what is developing is intended to destroy the current political infrastructure in Iraq which confirms that if the current government wants to face this coup, it must take certain steps regarding the economic, political and security situations. The current government must also minimize sectarianism. These observers add that the government should also look toward open and secret dialogue with those in and outside of Iraq.
Some Iraq List members said that this political development is related to Cheney’s failure in convincing the Arab countries to support the political process in Iraq. Regarding Fadhila Party, some sources are saying that there has been a dialogue between it and Alllawi’s list. Meanwhile, Al Adib said that Fadhila Party is reconsidering its position regarding the Shiite Alliance and it will likely return to the Alliance in the next few days.
Labels: coup, Fadhela party, Iraqi List, Iyad Allawi
Authorities in Amara sign contract for construction of 'tourist town'
(Azzaman) - The provincial authorities in Amara have signed a contract for the construction of a tourist town with the aim of turning this southern city reputed for its marshes and ancient Mesopotamian sites into a tourist attraction. The town to be built on the banks of the Tigris River will include a modern hotel, houses, a supermarket and playgrounds.
The authorities say the relative quiet in the Province of Missan of which Amara is the capital has encouraged them to go ahead with plans to build modern tourist infrastructure in the area. In the province are the remains of the Sumerian civilization which flourished in southern Iraq nearly 5,000 years ago. The Sumerians were the world’s most literate people in their time. To them are attributed the invention of writing and the wheel.
The authorities say the relative quiet in the Province of Missan of which Amara is the capital has encouraged them to go ahead with plans to build modern tourist infrastructure in the area. In the province are the remains of the Sumerian civilization which flourished in southern Iraq nearly 5,000 years ago. The Sumerians were the world’s most literate people in their time. To them are attributed the invention of writing and the wheel.
Al-Sadr believed to be planning to take advantage of power vacuum
Politics
(AP) - From hiding, possibly in Iran, U.S. nemesis and radical anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr is believed to be honing plans to sweep into the power vacuum made all the more intense by news that his chief Shiite rival has lung cancer. And he's betting the U.S. won't keep its troops in Iraq much longer. Al-Sadr aides and loyal lawmakers have told The Associated Press the cleric's ambitions mean he will avoid taking on the Americans militarily as he did in 2004, when his Mahdi Army militia fought U.S. forces to a standstill.
Instead, the 33-year-old cleric plans to keep up the drumbeat of anti-American rhetoric, consolidate political gains in Baghdad and the mainly Shiite south, and quietly foster even closer ties with neighboring Iran and its Shiite theocracy. The strategy is based in part on al-Sadr's belief that Washington will soon start pulling out troops or draw them down significantly, leaving behind a huge hole in Iraq's security and political power structure, al-Sadr's associates said.
Iraqi Defense Minister Abdul-Qader al-Obeidi told reporters Monday that Iraq's military is drawing up plans in case U.S.-led forces leave the country quickly. "The army plans on the basis of a worst-case scenario so as not to allow any security vacuum," al-Obeidi said. "There are meetings with political leaders on how we can deal with a sudden pullout." It was unclear whether al-Obeidi was referring to routine contingency planning, or if his remarks reflected a new realization among Iraqi leaders that the days of American support may be numbered.
Al-Sadr also believes, his associates said, that Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government may not last much longer, given its failure to improve security, services and the economy. A government collapse is certain to be followed by a political realignment in which the Sadrist movement stands a good chance of emerging as the main player. Al-Sadr's loyalists have 30 of parliament's 275 seats.
The six lawmakers and aides spoke to the AP in separate interviews over the past week. Several agreed to speak of the movement's future only on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss strategy with outsiders. They stuck to broad outlines, declining to be drawn into specifics. "We gave the government a historic opportunity, but al-Maliki did not use it and that's why we are preparing for a state led by the Sadrist movement," said an al-Sadr political aide who is among those who spoke on condition of anonymity. "An Islamic state led by the Sadrists is our future," he said.
Instead, the 33-year-old cleric plans to keep up the drumbeat of anti-American rhetoric, consolidate political gains in Baghdad and the mainly Shiite south, and quietly foster even closer ties with neighboring Iran and its Shiite theocracy. The strategy is based in part on al-Sadr's belief that Washington will soon start pulling out troops or draw them down significantly, leaving behind a huge hole in Iraq's security and political power structure, al-Sadr's associates said.
Iraqi Defense Minister Abdul-Qader al-Obeidi told reporters Monday that Iraq's military is drawing up plans in case U.S.-led forces leave the country quickly. "The army plans on the basis of a worst-case scenario so as not to allow any security vacuum," al-Obeidi said. "There are meetings with political leaders on how we can deal with a sudden pullout." It was unclear whether al-Obeidi was referring to routine contingency planning, or if his remarks reflected a new realization among Iraqi leaders that the days of American support may be numbered.
Al-Sadr also believes, his associates said, that Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government may not last much longer, given its failure to improve security, services and the economy. A government collapse is certain to be followed by a political realignment in which the Sadrist movement stands a good chance of emerging as the main player. Al-Sadr's loyalists have 30 of parliament's 275 seats.
The six lawmakers and aides spoke to the AP in separate interviews over the past week. Several agreed to speak of the movement's future only on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss strategy with outsiders. They stuck to broad outlines, declining to be drawn into specifics. "We gave the government a historic opportunity, but al-Maliki did not use it and that's why we are preparing for a state led by the Sadrist movement," said an al-Sadr political aide who is among those who spoke on condition of anonymity. "An Islamic state led by the Sadrists is our future," he said.
"We want an Islamic system," said Nassar al-Rubaie, a Sadrist lawmaker. "We want a presidential system that will produce someone with a power similar to that of a Muslim caliph." On Tuesday, Sadrist lawmakers met with Sunni Arab tribal leaders leading a fight against militants from al-Qaida in Iraq in the western Anbar province. In a joint statement, the two sides called for local elections to be held soon and for Iraq's rival political blocs to rise above their differences.
"We believe that the Sadrist movement is an independent and nationalist movement that we are ready to cooperate with," said Omar Abdul-Sattar, a lawmaker from the Iraqi Islamic Party, the nation's largest Sunni group.
"We believe that the Sadrist movement is an independent and nationalist movement that we are ready to cooperate with," said Omar Abdul-Sattar, a lawmaker from the Iraqi Islamic Party, the nation's largest Sunni group.
Labels: Abdul-Qader al-Obeidi, Iraqi Islamic Party, local elections, Moqtada Al-Sadr, Omar Abdul-Sattar Mahmud, Sunni tribal leaders
Al-Maliki calls for tribes to help fight Al-Qaeda
Politics
(AP) - Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki warned Tuesday that Iraq's fight against terror will be "open-ended and long" and called for the creation of "salvation councils" across the country to bring together Iraqis to fight al-Qaida militants. In a televised address marking the first anniversary of his Shiite-dominated government, al-Maliki also warned unnamed foreign parties that they would pay a "high price" of their own security for meddling in Iraq.
"I call on the faithful and patriotic clans and civil society organizations to set up national salvation councils in all of Iraq's provinces and stand by the armed forces in the fight against terrorism which is targeting Iraq's territory, people and heritage," said the Shiite prime minister. His call appeared to be for the creation of councils modeled after an alliance of Sunni Arab clans which banded together in the western Anbar province to drive al-Qaida in Iraq militants from their areas. The tactic seems to have worked, with Ramadi, the provincial capital, no longer under extremist control.
Steps are under way to copy the Anbar formula in Diyala province northeast of Baghdad where al-Qaida is known to be active. Attacks against U.S. and Iraqi troops as well as Shiite civilians have been increasing there.
He also warned Iraqi groups, which again he did not name, against forging alliances with foreign powers, saying that doing so would turn Iraq into a battlefield for regional and international powers to settle their scores.
Al-Maliki, however, warned that he would not allow his efforts to achieve national reconciliation to be hijacked by those who want to turn it into "a bridge for the return of murderers and criminals ... the new Iraq has no place for the Baath Party whose history is full of coups, conspiracies, crime and genocide."
In a thinly veiled reference to Sunni Arab politicians critical of the U.S.-Iraqi security push in Baghdad, now in its fourth month, the prime minister asked the judiciary to start legal proceedings against those whom he said were seeking to undermine the reputation of the armed forces. They should be charged with inciting hatred and sectarian divisions as well as condoning terrorism, he said.
"I call on the faithful and patriotic clans and civil society organizations to set up national salvation councils in all of Iraq's provinces and stand by the armed forces in the fight against terrorism which is targeting Iraq's territory, people and heritage," said the Shiite prime minister. His call appeared to be for the creation of councils modeled after an alliance of Sunni Arab clans which banded together in the western Anbar province to drive al-Qaida in Iraq militants from their areas. The tactic seems to have worked, with Ramadi, the provincial capital, no longer under extremist control.
Steps are under way to copy the Anbar formula in Diyala province northeast of Baghdad where al-Qaida is known to be active. Attacks against U.S. and Iraqi troops as well as Shiite civilians have been increasing there.
He also warned Iraqi groups, which again he did not name, against forging alliances with foreign powers, saying that doing so would turn Iraq into a battlefield for regional and international powers to settle their scores.
Al-Maliki, however, warned that he would not allow his efforts to achieve national reconciliation to be hijacked by those who want to turn it into "a bridge for the return of murderers and criminals ... the new Iraq has no place for the Baath Party whose history is full of coups, conspiracies, crime and genocide."
In a thinly veiled reference to Sunni Arab politicians critical of the U.S.-Iraqi security push in Baghdad, now in its fourth month, the prime minister asked the judiciary to start legal proceedings against those whom he said were seeking to undermine the reputation of the armed forces. They should be charged with inciting hatred and sectarian divisions as well as condoning terrorism, he said.
Labels: national salvation council, Nouri Al-Maliki, tribes
Parliamentary committee fails to finalise agreement on amendment of constitution
Government
(Reuters) - An Iraqi parliamentary committee has failed to finalise an agreement on amending key articles in the constitution, one of the political benchmarks Washington says are important to end sectarian violence. After six months of talks, the constitutional reform committee had been expected to present parliament with a final draft of their recommendations on Tuesday.
Committee members said they would ask political leaders to deal with sensitive issues such as sharing Iraq's oil wealth more equitably and ending a ban on former members of Saddam Hussein's party members holding public office. "We have agreed on some articles but there are sensitive issues which need an agreement among the political leaders," said Saleem al-Jubouri, a member of the Accordance Front, the biggest Sunni political bloc in parliament.
The changes are aimed at bringing Sunni Arabs, who make up the backbone of the insurgency, more firmly into the political process. U.S. President George W. Bush, under pressure to show tangible progress in the four-year-old war, has pushed Iraqi leaders to agree power-sharing legislation. Jubouri said Sunni Arab and Shi'ite members of the committee disagreed with a Kurdish demand to allow regions to distribute oil income rather than the central government.
Some lawmakers from the ruling Shi'ite community, which was oppressed during Saddam's rule, are virulently opposed to former Baathists taking up government jobs. Non-Arab Kurds, also persecuted under Saddam's pan-Arab policies, resist wording on the Arab identity of Iraq. Sunni Arabs fear federalism will allow Kurds in the north and Shi'ites in the south, where Iraq's oil reserves lie, to break away into their own states. Sunni Arabs live mostly in central and western Iraq, which is poor in oil.
Jubouri said that one area of disagreement was the status of the ethnically mixed city of Kirkuk which sits atop one of the world's richest oilfields. The current constitution says Iraq should hold a referendum on the final status of Kirkuk this year. While Kurds claim Kirkuk as part of Kurdistan, Arabs oppose this. Another official in the committee said Arab members -- Shi'ites and Sunnis -- proposed making Kirkuk a separate region and dropping the idea of the referendum, which Kurds would anyway be likely to win.
Committee members said they would ask political leaders to deal with sensitive issues such as sharing Iraq's oil wealth more equitably and ending a ban on former members of Saddam Hussein's party members holding public office. "We have agreed on some articles but there are sensitive issues which need an agreement among the political leaders," said Saleem al-Jubouri, a member of the Accordance Front, the biggest Sunni political bloc in parliament.
The changes are aimed at bringing Sunni Arabs, who make up the backbone of the insurgency, more firmly into the political process. U.S. President George W. Bush, under pressure to show tangible progress in the four-year-old war, has pushed Iraqi leaders to agree power-sharing legislation. Jubouri said Sunni Arab and Shi'ite members of the committee disagreed with a Kurdish demand to allow regions to distribute oil income rather than the central government.
Some lawmakers from the ruling Shi'ite community, which was oppressed during Saddam's rule, are virulently opposed to former Baathists taking up government jobs. Non-Arab Kurds, also persecuted under Saddam's pan-Arab policies, resist wording on the Arab identity of Iraq. Sunni Arabs fear federalism will allow Kurds in the north and Shi'ites in the south, where Iraq's oil reserves lie, to break away into their own states. Sunni Arabs live mostly in central and western Iraq, which is poor in oil.
Jubouri said that one area of disagreement was the status of the ethnically mixed city of Kirkuk which sits atop one of the world's richest oilfields. The current constitution says Iraq should hold a referendum on the final status of Kirkuk this year. While Kurds claim Kirkuk as part of Kurdistan, Arabs oppose this. Another official in the committee said Arab members -- Shi'ites and Sunnis -- proposed making Kirkuk a separate region and dropping the idea of the referendum, which Kurds would anyway be likely to win.
Labels: Article 140, Baathists, constitutional reform committee, federalism, Iraqi constitution, Kirkuk, oil
Iraqi police find body in U.S. military uniform in Euphrates
Security
(AP) - Iraqi police found the body of a man who was wearing what appeared to be a U.S. military uniform and had a tattoo on his left hand floating in the Euphrates River south of Baghdad on Wednesday morning, and one Iraqi official said it was one of three missing American soldiers. The man had been shot in the head and chest, Babil police Capt. Muthana Khalid said. He said Iraqi police turned the body over the U.S. forces.
The report of the body found was confirmed by a senior Iraqi army officer in the Babil area. He told The Associated Press that the body found in the river was that of an American soldier. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media. The discovery of the body in Musayyib, about 40 miles south of Baghdad in Babil Province, came as U.S. troops and Iraqi forces continued their massive search for the three soldiers abducted May 12 in an ambush on their patrol near Mahmoudiya, about 20 miles south of Baghdad.
The U.S. military said in an e-mail that it was looking into the report, but could not confirm it. In an interview with the Army Times newspaper last week, Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, said he believed at least two of the missing soldiers were alive. "As of this morning, we thought there were at least two that were probably still alive," he said in the interview, which was posted on the newspaper's Web site on Saturday. "At one point in time there was a sense that one of them might have died, but again we just don't know."
The report of the body found was confirmed by a senior Iraqi army officer in the Babil area. He told The Associated Press that the body found in the river was that of an American soldier. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media. The discovery of the body in Musayyib, about 40 miles south of Baghdad in Babil Province, came as U.S. troops and Iraqi forces continued their massive search for the three soldiers abducted May 12 in an ambush on their patrol near Mahmoudiya, about 20 miles south of Baghdad.
The U.S. military said in an e-mail that it was looking into the report, but could not confirm it. In an interview with the Army Times newspaper last week, Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, said he believed at least two of the missing soldiers were alive. "As of this morning, we thought there were at least two that were probably still alive," he said in the interview, which was posted on the newspaper's Web site on Saturday. "At one point in time there was a sense that one of them might have died, but again we just don't know."
Labels: Missing U.S. troops, Mussayab
Intense food shortages in Kurdistan force refugees to return to dangerous areas
Humanitarian
(Refugees International) - A report released recently by Refugees International calls the flight of Iraqis from war-torn areas for regions of greater security within Iraq "the world's fastest growing displacement crisis." The report details the humanitarian disaster faced by internally displaced people (IDPs) in Northern Iraq, and criticizes the U.N. and U.S. and Iraqi governments for failing to respond adequately and for losing the trust of the Iraqi people.
The report says approximately 12 percent of Iraq's population is expected to be internally displaced by the end of this calendar year. Even those who have landed in the most secure regions, such as the Kurdish region in Northern Iraq, are now facing intense food shortages as well as a lack of jobs, affordable housing and school access. As a result, many are forced to return to the areas from which they came, despite the security threat. The report, which focuses on the three most stable states in the Kurdish region of Northern Iraq includes U.N.H.C.R. estimates that 727,000 Iraqis have been displaced since the 2006 bombing of Samarra. In total, 1.9 million Iraqis have been uprooted-including 1 million before 2003-but remain within the country; more than two million Iraqis have fled the country altogether. The report outlines eight steps that international agencies could take to address humanitarian problems on the ground.
Labels: IDPs, Iraqi refugees, Kurdistan, Refugees International
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
INM daily summary – 22 May 2007
Scroll down for full articles.
- Local government officials and representatives of Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr signed an 11-point cease-fire agreement in Al-Qadisiyah Governorate on May 20, Iraqi media reported.
- A parked car bomb ripped through a crowded outdoor market in southwestern Baghdad on Tuesday, killing 25 people.
- U.S. soldiers raided suspected safehouses near the Euphrates River south of Baghdad on Monday in their search for three captured comrades but found them empty after the militants apparently were tipped off and fled, a military spokesman said.
- Eyewitnesses in Yousifiya say that they believe that the three US soldiers have been killed by their kidnappers.
- Iraq is planning to buy small oil tankers with specifications that will enable them to navigate easily through terminals on the Gulf and the Shat al-Arab Waterway.
- Attacks targeting the national grid have plunged most of Baghdad into total darkness, the Ministry of Electricity said.
- Clashes occurred between the Mahdi Army and the British forces in Basrah and with the American forces in Kut.
- Iraq's defence ministry will buy new weapons worth more than 1.5 billion dollars (1.11 billion euros), including helicopters and US rifles, the minister announced on Monday.
- A member of the Kurdistan Coalition parliamentary bloc called on Monday political parties and blocs to adopt Kurdistan's national reconciliation experiment, considering it valid for application in other parts of Iraq.
- Iraqi politician, Ahmed Al Chalabi, has survived an assassination attempt during his visit to Diyala Province.
- Following consultation with senior officials from the Iraqi government, the Kurdistan Regional Government and the US Embassy Baghdad the organisers have said it is necessary to reschedule the Iraq Oil, Gas, Petrochemical & Electricity Summit for 2-4 September 2007.
- The World Bank has just appointed a new country head for Iraq despite security and corruption concerns, according to a leaked document.
- Security round-up.
Round-up of violence across Iraq
Security
Roundup of Violence in Iraq -- Monday, 21 May 2007 - 08:37 AM EDT By Mohammed al Dulaimy, McClatchy Newspapers. In Baghdad, an IED killed three Iraqi soldiers. Twenty-four unidentified bodies were found. In Diyala, gunmen attacked a minibus, killing five, including a 4-year-old child.
(Reuters) - Following are security developments in Iraq at 1045 GMT on Tuesday:
* denotes new or updated item.
BAGHDAD - At least 25 people were killed and 60 wounded when a car bomb exploded near a popular market in the Amil district in southwestern Baghdad, police said.
* NEAR BAQUBA - Gunmen wearing Iraqi army uniforms at a fake checkpoint killed a family of six, including four children, in a town near Baquba, 65 km (40 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - At least four college students were killed and 25 wounded in a mortar attack at Ibn al-Haitham college in Adhamiya district in northern Baghdad, police said.
RIYADH - The bodies of two Arbil airport employees were found shot and tortured in the town of Riyadh, 60 km (40 miles) southwest of Kirkuk, police said.
BAGHDAD - U.S. forces detained 15 suspected insurgents, including two alleged insurgent cell leaders, during raids around Iraq targeting al-Qaeda, the U.S. military said.
NEAR GARMA - U.S. forces killed nine insurgents in a ground and air attack and freed 12 hostages held near the town of Garma, about 50 km (35 miles) west of Baghdad, the U.S. military said.
MAHMUDIYA - One person was killed and five wounded, all from the same family, by a mortar round in the town of Mahmudiya, about 30 km (20 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
HAWIJA - A roadside bomb killed one person and wounded another near the town of Hawija, 70 km (40 miles) southwest of Kirkuk, police said.
BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb exploded near a police station, killing one person and wounding three others in Zayouna district in eastern Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb wounded five people in Mansour district in western Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - The bodies of 24 people were found shot in different districts of Baghdad on Monday, police said.
BAGHDAD - Two people were killed and 15 wounded by a mortar round in al-Shurta al-Rabiae district in southwestern Baghdad on Monday, police said.
BAGHDAD - A car bomb killed one person and wounded five in al-Iskan district in western Baghdad on Monday, police said.
BASRA - One British soldier was killed when gunmen attacked a military fuel truck on Monday in Basra, 550 km (340 miles) south of Baghdad, the British military said.
* denotes new or updated item.
BAGHDAD - At least 25 people were killed and 60 wounded when a car bomb exploded near a popular market in the Amil district in southwestern Baghdad, police said.
* NEAR BAQUBA - Gunmen wearing Iraqi army uniforms at a fake checkpoint killed a family of six, including four children, in a town near Baquba, 65 km (40 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - At least four college students were killed and 25 wounded in a mortar attack at Ibn al-Haitham college in Adhamiya district in northern Baghdad, police said.
RIYADH - The bodies of two Arbil airport employees were found shot and tortured in the town of Riyadh, 60 km (40 miles) southwest of Kirkuk, police said.
BAGHDAD - U.S. forces detained 15 suspected insurgents, including two alleged insurgent cell leaders, during raids around Iraq targeting al-Qaeda, the U.S. military said.
NEAR GARMA - U.S. forces killed nine insurgents in a ground and air attack and freed 12 hostages held near the town of Garma, about 50 km (35 miles) west of Baghdad, the U.S. military said.
MAHMUDIYA - One person was killed and five wounded, all from the same family, by a mortar round in the town of Mahmudiya, about 30 km (20 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
HAWIJA - A roadside bomb killed one person and wounded another near the town of Hawija, 70 km (40 miles) southwest of Kirkuk, police said.
BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb exploded near a police station, killing one person and wounding three others in Zayouna district in eastern Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb wounded five people in Mansour district in western Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - The bodies of 24 people were found shot in different districts of Baghdad on Monday, police said.
BAGHDAD - Two people were killed and 15 wounded by a mortar round in al-Shurta al-Rabiae district in southwestern Baghdad on Monday, police said.
BAGHDAD - A car bomb killed one person and wounded five in al-Iskan district in western Baghdad on Monday, police said.
BASRA - One British soldier was killed when gunmen attacked a military fuel truck on Monday in Basra, 550 km (340 miles) south of Baghdad, the British military said.
Labels: Adhamiyah, Amil, Baqouba, Basra, car bomb, Garma, gunmen, Hawija, hostages, Mahmoudiya, Mansour, mortar rounds, Riyadh, roadside bombs
