Thursday, June 07, 2007
INM daily summary – 7 June2007
Scroll down for full articles.
- On the third day of an oil strike in southern Iraq, the Iraqi military has surrounded oil workers and the prime minister has issued arrest warrants for the union leaders, sparking an outcry from supporters and international unions.
- Turkey says it is ready for dialogue with Kurdish leaders in neighboring northern Iraq if they stop supporting the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
- Yesterday, Turkey sent more military troops and tanks to their border with Iraq in a situation that a Turkish newspaper described as preparations against Kurdish insurgents in northern Iraq.
- The Islamic Army in Iraq said Wednesday it has reached a cease-fire with al-Qaida in Iraq.
- In a surprise move has that has stunned political observers, the Kurdish flag was on Tuesday raised over the Kurdistan regional parliament in place of the Iraqi flag.
- The Iraqi Government and the Iraqi Ministry of Oil announces the Iraq Petroleum 2007, International Investment in the Iraqi Oil Industry under the New Hydrocarbon Law, 8-10 September, Hyatt Regency Hotel, Dubai.
- Following the great success of Iraq Telecom 2006 CWC are delighted to announce that ‘Iraq Telecom 2007' will be held in London on 3-5 September.
- The British ambassador to Iraq has appealed for the release of five kidnapped Britons who were seized by armed militia.
- Prime Minister-designate Gordon Brown should not withdraw British troops from Iraq, the war-torn country's foreign minister said Thursday as he cautioned that it is important not to show insurgents any sign of weakness.
- Sheikh Jalal Al Din Al Saghier, an Alliance Parliament member, criticized calls on the government to resign.
- Parliament sources expect that today will witness the announcement of a new political front that will include members of the Accord, Dialogue, and Reconciliation and Freedom Fronts.
- Tribal affairs advisors to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki met with militant leaders within the last few weeks, agreeing to 80 per cent of their requests, reports said on Thursday.
- A spokesperson for the Jordanian Ministry of Trade and Industry stated that the minister along with his Iraqi counterpart have initiated discussions for the set up of a free trade zone amid the two states.
- Security round-up.
Round-up of violence across Iraq
Security
Roundup of violence in Iraq - Wednesday 6 June 2007 - McClatchy Newspapers
The daily Iraq violence report is compiled by McClatchy Newspapers Special Correspondent Hussein Kadhim 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 1100 GMT on Thursday:
MOSUL - A suicide truck bomber killed nine people and wounded 22 in an attack on the police headquarters in the town of Rabae near the Syrian border, police said.
BAGHDAD - U.S. and Iraqi soldiers detained 16 suspected insurgents during raids in the Sadr City district of Baghdad, the U.S. military said. It said those detained were suspected of facilitating the transport of explosives and other weapons from Iran to Iraq.
TIKRIT - Police arrested Salam Mulla Mustafa, a local al Qaeda leader, and four of his aides in Tikrit, 175 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - Iraqi soldiers killed eight suspected insurgents and arrested 40 others in different parts of Iraq over the past 24 hours, the Iraqi military said.
NEAR TIKRIT - A roadside bomb targeted a senior police officer's convoy near Tikrit, 175 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad, police said. Two of the officer's bodyguards were wounded.
NEAR RAMADI - At least six people were wounded, including one policeman, in an attempted attack by a suicide truck bomber on a police checkpoint near Ramadi, west of Baghdad, police said. Police opened fire and blew up the truck before it reached its target.
MAHMUDIYA - Police found two bodies with bullet wounds and showing signs of torture near the town of Mahmudiya, 30 km (20 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
FALLUJA - Police found five bodies, all tortured and shot, in farmland 12 km (8 miles) north of Falluja, police said. The five men were kidnapped by gunmen from Falluja three days ago.
MOSUL - A suicide truck bomber killed nine people and wounded 22 in an attack on the police headquarters in the town of Rabae near the Syrian border, police said.
BAGHDAD - U.S. and Iraqi soldiers detained 16 suspected insurgents during raids in the Sadr City district of Baghdad, the U.S. military said. It said those detained were suspected of facilitating the transport of explosives and other weapons from Iran to Iraq.
TIKRIT - Police arrested Salam Mulla Mustafa, a local al Qaeda leader, and four of his aides in Tikrit, 175 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - Iraqi soldiers killed eight suspected insurgents and arrested 40 others in different parts of Iraq over the past 24 hours, the Iraqi military said.
NEAR TIKRIT - A roadside bomb targeted a senior police officer's convoy near Tikrit, 175 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad, police said. Two of the officer's bodyguards were wounded.
NEAR RAMADI - At least six people were wounded, including one policeman, in an attempted attack by a suicide truck bomber on a police checkpoint near Ramadi, west of Baghdad, police said. Police opened fire and blew up the truck before it reached its target.
MAHMUDIYA - Police found two bodies with bullet wounds and showing signs of torture near the town of Mahmudiya, 30 km (20 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
FALLUJA - Police found five bodies, all tortured and shot, in farmland 12 km (8 miles) north of Falluja, police said. The five men were kidnapped by gunmen from Falluja three days ago.
Iraq, Jordan discuss setting up free trade zone
Regional
(MENAFN) - A spokesperson for the Jordanian Ministry of Trade and Industry stated that the minister along with his Iraqi counterpart have initiated discussions for the set up of a free trade zone amid the two states.
He went on to say that the action was part of the aim to increase bilateral and economic support between the two countries and that Jordan plans to make special economic ties in all aspects with Iraq. It is noteworthy that an Iraqi technical team will visit Jordan in the near future to straighten out all impediments that hinder the bilateral relations between the two countries.
He went on to say that the action was part of the aim to increase bilateral and economic support between the two countries and that Jordan plans to make special economic ties in all aspects with Iraq. It is noteworthy that an Iraqi technical team will visit Jordan in the near future to straighten out all impediments that hinder the bilateral relations between the two countries.
Labels: free trade zone, Iraq, Jordan
Iraq agrees to majority of militias' demands
Politics
(Khaleej Times) - Tribal affairs advisors to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki met with militant leaders within the last few weeks, agreeing to 80 per cent of their requests, reports said on Thursday. State-run Al Sabah newspaper reported that “the communications between the two sides indicated that many militias are ready to play a positive role in Iraqi political life.”
The report said that the militias had “expressed their opposition towards Al Qaeda terrorist network’s actions and its ideology, which doesn’t conform with the Iraqis’ culture.” The demands of the militias presented during the talks, the report says, were “positive and attainable” and that “80 per cent of these requests will be met.”
Some militias, according to Al Sabah, needed to feel “a sense of security with regard to their political participation and how their members will be dealt with after they will have been disarmed.”
The report said that the militias had “expressed their opposition towards Al Qaeda terrorist network’s actions and its ideology, which doesn’t conform with the Iraqis’ culture.” The demands of the militias presented during the talks, the report says, were “positive and attainable” and that “80 per cent of these requests will be met.”
Some militias, according to Al Sabah, needed to feel “a sense of security with regard to their political participation and how their members will be dealt with after they will have been disarmed.”
Labels: Al Qaeda, militias, politics
Accord Front And Dialogue Front Are Splitting to form new party
Politics
(Bayyna Al Jadidah Newspaper) - 6 JUN - Parliament sources expect that today will witness the announcement of a new political front. The new political front will include members of the Accord, Dialogue, and Reconciliation and Freedom Fronts. The sources said, “Abd Mutlak Al Jabouri will lead the new political front. The purpose in creating this new political front is to oppose sectarianism and to help find solutions for the crises of the citizens. The Accord Front and National Front often work against the government and they are also sectarian fronts.”
(Al Mowaten Newspaper) - 6 JUN - The sources expect the new political front will include 15 Parliament members and this front will be empty of Baathists and sectarian people who are controlled by Sunni people. This front will work to find real solutions for Iraq’s citizens; also, this bloc will include 15 Parliament members. Saadi Al Barazanchi, a Kurdish Islamic Union Parliament member said that the Union will freeze its relationship with the new front and they are critical of the formation of this front. On Tuesday Barzanchi added, “We are so angry about the creation of this front because it includes former members of the Saddam regime and because intelligence from foreign countries paid for these members to create the front to work against the Iraqi people’s benefits.”
Labels: Abd Mutlak Al Jabouri, Iraqi Accord Front, Kurdish Islamic Union, National Dialogue Front
UIA member criticises calls for government to resign
Politics
(Al Mowaten Newspaper) - 6 JUN - The SICI spokesman announced that they were surprised by the announcement of a new political front on April 29, 2007. The spokesman said “The new bloc was created by powers and people already participating in the political process and the government. I criticize calls to return the Saddamists and former security members to government positions in exchange for removing the militia from their current security positions. This is the militia which fought against the Saddam regime and participated in releasing Iraq from the crimes of Saddam.”
Sheikh Jalal Al Din Al Saghier, an Alliance Parliament member, criticized calls on the government to resign. He said on Tuesday, “The crisis will not be solved by calling on the government to resign because the circumstances are very difficult and any government instead of this government cannot do anything more than this government is providing. This government wants to restore security and stability to this country. The solution is that all the powers should be committed to build this country through agreements.” Some political parties demand Al Maliki’s government resign as their protest of the difficult situation in Iraq.
Sheikh Jalal Al Din Al Saghier, an Alliance Parliament member, criticized calls on the government to resign. He said on Tuesday, “The crisis will not be solved by calling on the government to resign because the circumstances are very difficult and any government instead of this government cannot do anything more than this government is providing. This government wants to restore security and stability to this country. The solution is that all the powers should be committed to build this country through agreements.” Some political parties demand Al Maliki’s government resign as their protest of the difficult situation in Iraq.
Labels: former security forces, Saddamists, Sheikh Jalal Al Din Al Saghier, SICI
Iraqi foreign minister asks Brown not to withdraw British troops
Security
(AFP) - Prime Minister-designate Gordon Brown should not withdraw British troops from Iraq, the war-torn country's foreign minister said Thursday as he cautioned that it is important not to show insurgents any sign of weakness. "We hope that the new prime minister, Mr Brown, is also a friend of Iraq and of the Iraqi people, and will not take any spectacular decisions," Hoshyar Zebari told AFP.
Brown is set to replace Prime Minister Tony Blair, one of the architects of the Iraq war, on June 27 after a decade as finance minister under him. "I believe there is the impression that he is seeking to differentiate himself from Mr Blair, and that one of the points is Iraq," Zebari said. "We must really reinforce the international coalition. The stakes are too important for all of us, which is why we hope that right now our friends in Great Britain and in the British government will remain at our sides."
The Blair government has already pledged to bring home about 1,600 troops from Iraq this year, reducing the country's force there to about 5,500. The Times newspaper published an interview with Zebari in which he expressed identical views. He also said although the situation was bad in Basra, where most British troops are based, it is not as bad as Baghdad.
"It needs better governance... The police force there is weak, the military is weak, the city council is not united," Zebari told The Times. He said the key question that had to be answered before British troops could be withdrawn was about the readiness of the Iraqi security forces to take their place. "Are we there or not? That is the question. By the time the British will make their decision whether to reduce, to draw down, that formula has to be correct."
Zebari also addressed the matter of whether Iraqi MPs want foreign troops in the country, noting that his government would be arguing in parliament that they are still needed. He noted that support for troop deployments in Iraq from voters in Britain and the United States is waning, telling the paper: "If you take all this, of course it is very significant."
Brown is set to replace Prime Minister Tony Blair, one of the architects of the Iraq war, on June 27 after a decade as finance minister under him. "I believe there is the impression that he is seeking to differentiate himself from Mr Blair, and that one of the points is Iraq," Zebari said. "We must really reinforce the international coalition. The stakes are too important for all of us, which is why we hope that right now our friends in Great Britain and in the British government will remain at our sides."
The Blair government has already pledged to bring home about 1,600 troops from Iraq this year, reducing the country's force there to about 5,500. The Times newspaper published an interview with Zebari in which he expressed identical views. He also said although the situation was bad in Basra, where most British troops are based, it is not as bad as Baghdad.
"It needs better governance... The police force there is weak, the military is weak, the city council is not united," Zebari told The Times. He said the key question that had to be answered before British troops could be withdrawn was about the readiness of the Iraqi security forces to take their place. "Are we there or not? That is the question. By the time the British will make their decision whether to reduce, to draw down, that formula has to be correct."
Zebari also addressed the matter of whether Iraqi MPs want foreign troops in the country, noting that his government would be arguing in parliament that they are still needed. He noted that support for troop deployments in Iraq from voters in Britain and the United States is waning, telling the paper: "If you take all this, of course it is very significant."
Labels: Basra, British military, Gordon Brown, Hoshyar Zibari, Iraq
British ambassador to Iraq appeals for release of kidnapped Brits
Security
(BBC) - The British ambassador to Iraq has appealed for the release of five kidnapped Britons who were seized by armed militia. The five men were seized on May 29 from Baghdad's Finance Ministry by gunmen believed to be the Mehdi Army militia. British Ambassador Dominic Asquith has now issued a statement in English and Arabic, appealing for information.
He said he was "greatly concerned" about the men, whose families were "deeply worried". One of the five has been named as 28-year-old Alec MacLachlan, from Llanelli in Wales. The search for Mr MacLachlan and his four companions is continuing in Sadr City, a suburb of the Iraqi capital.
The area is a stronghold for the Mehdi Army. It is being searched by both US and Iraqi troops. Mr Asquith said: "I am greatly concerned about these five men. "Their families are deeply worried not to have news of them. "I ask those holding them to release them so they may return to their families.
"We have people here in Iraq who are ready to listen to any person about this incident, or any person who may be holding these men and who may wish to communicate." The men - a computer expert and four bodyguards - were taken from the building by kidnappers wearing police uniforms who staged the capture without firing a shot, according to senior Iraqi officials.
He said he was "greatly concerned" about the men, whose families were "deeply worried". One of the five has been named as 28-year-old Alec MacLachlan, from Llanelli in Wales. The search for Mr MacLachlan and his four companions is continuing in Sadr City, a suburb of the Iraqi capital.
The area is a stronghold for the Mehdi Army. It is being searched by both US and Iraqi troops. Mr Asquith said: "I am greatly concerned about these five men. "Their families are deeply worried not to have news of them. "I ask those holding them to release them so they may return to their families.
"We have people here in Iraq who are ready to listen to any person about this incident, or any person who may be holding these men and who may wish to communicate." The men - a computer expert and four bodyguards - were taken from the building by kidnappers wearing police uniforms who staged the capture without firing a shot, according to senior Iraqi officials.
Labels: Alec MacLachlan, British hostages, Dominic Asquith, Ministry of Finance, Sadr City
Iraq Telecom 2007 to be held in London
Conference
Following the great success of Iraq Telecom 2006 CWC are delighted to announce that ‘Iraq Telecom 2007' will be held in London on 3-5 September. The conference will again be held under the patronage of H.E. Mohammed Tawfik Allawi The Iraqi Minister of Communications, who will head a delegation of senior officials from the Ministry.
Iraq Telecom 2007 is the ideal place for you to hear first-hand from representatives from the Ministry of Communications about plans for the further development of Iraq’s Telecommunications network and the investment opportunities available in this dynamic sector. The event also presents a unique opportunity to network with current and incumbent operators in Iraq and discuss their experiences, strategies and lessons learned.
The agenda will cover the different technologies for data, voice, wireless and satellite services and their role in securing the success of your business in Iraq. Iraq Telecoms 2006 was exceptionally well received by a high number of senior professionals from many sectors of the telecoms market place.
Following the great success of Iraq Telecom 2006 CWC are delighted to announce that ‘Iraq Telecom 2007' will be held in London on 3-5 September. The conference will again be held under the patronage of H.E. Mohammed Tawfik Allawi The Iraqi Minister of Communications, who will head a delegation of senior officials from the Ministry.
Iraq Telecom 2007 is the ideal place for you to hear first-hand from representatives from the Ministry of Communications about plans for the further development of Iraq’s Telecommunications network and the investment opportunities available in this dynamic sector. The event also presents a unique opportunity to network with current and incumbent operators in Iraq and discuss their experiences, strategies and lessons learned.
The agenda will cover the different technologies for data, voice, wireless and satellite services and their role in securing the success of your business in Iraq. Iraq Telecoms 2006 was exceptionally well received by a high number of senior professionals from many sectors of the telecoms market place.
Labels: Iraq Telecom 2007, Ministry of Communications, Mohammed Tawfik Allawi
Conference date set for new hydrocarbon law
Conference
On behalf of the Iraqi Government and the Iraqi Ministry of Oil, CWC Associates Limited is delighted to announce the key strategic event: Iraq Petroleum 2007, International Investment in the Iraqi Oil Industry under the New Hydrocarbon Law, 8-10 September, Hyatt Regency Hotel, Dubai. H.E. Dr. Hussain Al Shahristani, Minister of Oil will be leading a delegation from the Ministry. The conference will be the first major international oil conference after the endorsement of the new hydrocarbon law.
The conference will provide a unique opportunity for the international investment community to raise questions on the hydrocarbon law and the new Iraqi Oil policy. Structured to maximise dialogue between Iraqi decision makers and their international counterparts, this conference will explore the risks and the problems as well as the opportunities facing the Iraqi oil industry.
The conference will provide a unique opportunity for the international investment community to raise questions on the hydrocarbon law and the new Iraqi Oil policy. Structured to maximise dialogue between Iraqi decision makers and their international counterparts, this conference will explore the risks and the problems as well as the opportunities facing the Iraqi oil industry.
Labels: conference, Dubai, Hussain al-Shahristani, international investment, Iraqi oil industry, new hydrocarbon law
Kurdish flag raised over Kurdistan regional parliament
Kurdistan
(AKI) - In a surprise move has that has stunned political observers, the Kurdish flag was on Tuesday raised over the Kurdistan regional parliament in place of the Iraqi flag. At a ceremony attended by parliament speaker Adnan al-Mufti, party and local officials, al-Mufti's deputy and co-ruling Kurdish Democratic Union party (KDP) member Kamal Kirkuki raised the distinctive red, yellow, green and white Kurdish flag by pressing an electronic button: an unprecedented event in the history of the Kurdish people.
The 80-square metre flag could be seen fluttering over the six-floor regional parliament building from a distance of eight kilometres. Previously, the Iraqi flag - red, white and black horizontal stripes, with three green stars and the words Alluh Akbar (God is Great) could be seen in its place.
Last September, regional president Massoud Barzani, issued a decree banning the Iraqi flag - introduced in 1968 after the Baath party coup - from offices and schools. The decree says only the Kurdish flag can hang from government buildings and checkpoints, but it allows for the Iraqi flag at "official functions", but without the religious phrase.
Generally welcomed by Kurds in the area, who view the Iraqi flag as a symbol of the oppressive former Baathist regime, Barzani's decree riled members of tribes belonging to Iraqi's Arab ethnic majority in Kurdistan and areas bordering the region. Many consider Barzani's decree as the start of a bid for de facto independence by the Kurdistan region. The authorities in Kurdistan have always rejected the Iraqi flag, preferring instead to fly the flag introduced in 1958 after Iraq - previously a monarchy - became a republic.
The regional parliament in May 2006 approved a single administration, uniting two rival parties , Barzani's KDP and the rival Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) to run a unified government. The KDP and the PUK have divided up most of the cabinet posts between them, with five of the 32 going to other parties. The PUK had run Suleimaniya province, one of the three provinces in the oil-rich region, while the KDP had run the other two provinces of Erbil and Dohuk.
The 80-square metre flag could be seen fluttering over the six-floor regional parliament building from a distance of eight kilometres. Previously, the Iraqi flag - red, white and black horizontal stripes, with three green stars and the words Alluh Akbar (God is Great) could be seen in its place.
Last September, regional president Massoud Barzani, issued a decree banning the Iraqi flag - introduced in 1968 after the Baath party coup - from offices and schools. The decree says only the Kurdish flag can hang from government buildings and checkpoints, but it allows for the Iraqi flag at "official functions", but without the religious phrase.
Generally welcomed by Kurds in the area, who view the Iraqi flag as a symbol of the oppressive former Baathist regime, Barzani's decree riled members of tribes belonging to Iraqi's Arab ethnic majority in Kurdistan and areas bordering the region. Many consider Barzani's decree as the start of a bid for de facto independence by the Kurdistan region. The authorities in Kurdistan have always rejected the Iraqi flag, preferring instead to fly the flag introduced in 1958 after Iraq - previously a monarchy - became a republic.
The regional parliament in May 2006 approved a single administration, uniting two rival parties , Barzani's KDP and the rival Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) to run a unified government. The KDP and the PUK have divided up most of the cabinet posts between them, with five of the 32 going to other parties. The PUK had run Suleimaniya province, one of the three provinces in the oil-rich region, while the KDP had run the other two provinces of Erbil and Dohuk.
Labels: Adnan al-Mufti, Iraqi flag, Kamal Kirkuki, Kurdish flag, Massoud Barzani
Islamic Army in Iraq says cease-fire reached with al-Qaeda in Iraq
Insurgency
A Sunni insurgent group said Wednesday it has reached a cease-fire with al-Qaida in Iraq. The claim comes as the conflict between the Islamic Army in Iraq and al-Qaida in Iraq, which is also Sunni, has intensified in recent months. Last week, the two groups were believed to have clashed in the Baghdad neighborhood of Amariyah.
"This agreement is based on a cease-fire between the two parties that bans all armed acts and all other activities that could cause attrition," Ibrahim al-Shimmari, spokesman for the Islamic Army in Iraq, told Al-Jazeera television in a telephone interview. "The armistice started at dawn Wednesday."
Al-Jazeera showed a copy of the cease-fire, which stipulated "halting all escalation, including media" and "establishing a judicial committee on pending issues between the two parties." Al-Shimmari said the cease-fire "aims to safeguard Islamic blood and not give a chance to Iraq's enemies from America and Iran." "We hope that relations between the Islamic Army and al-Qaida return to the early days of jihad (holy struggle) when we were very close to those brothers," al-Shimmari added.
Divisions among Iraq's extremists became more apparent two months ago when Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, who heads the al-Qaida front group Islamic State in Iraq, urged militants in an audiotape to stop fighting one another and unite against American forces. He told rival groups he wanted to end their disagreements and vowed to punish any of his fighters who kill other militants.
The Islamic State in Iraq announced a 10-member shadow government "Cabinet" in April as an alternative to the U.S.-backed, Shiite-led administration of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The conflict came to a head when al-Shimmari said he did not recognize al-Qaida's claim to a state. He told Al-Jazeera television in an April interview that there could be no state "under crusader occupation." In an interview with Al-Jazeera in April, al-Shimmari accused al-Qaida of killing 30 members of the Islamic Army.
"This agreement is based on a cease-fire between the two parties that bans all armed acts and all other activities that could cause attrition," Ibrahim al-Shimmari, spokesman for the Islamic Army in Iraq, told Al-Jazeera television in a telephone interview. "The armistice started at dawn Wednesday."
Al-Jazeera showed a copy of the cease-fire, which stipulated "halting all escalation, including media" and "establishing a judicial committee on pending issues between the two parties." Al-Shimmari said the cease-fire "aims to safeguard Islamic blood and not give a chance to Iraq's enemies from America and Iran." "We hope that relations between the Islamic Army and al-Qaida return to the early days of jihad (holy struggle) when we were very close to those brothers," al-Shimmari added.
Divisions among Iraq's extremists became more apparent two months ago when Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, who heads the al-Qaida front group Islamic State in Iraq, urged militants in an audiotape to stop fighting one another and unite against American forces. He told rival groups he wanted to end their disagreements and vowed to punish any of his fighters who kill other militants.
The Islamic State in Iraq announced a 10-member shadow government "Cabinet" in April as an alternative to the U.S.-backed, Shiite-led administration of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The conflict came to a head when al-Shimmari said he did not recognize al-Qaida's claim to a state. He told Al-Jazeera television in an April interview that there could be no state "under crusader occupation." In an interview with Al-Jazeera in April, al-Shimmari accused al-Qaida of killing 30 members of the Islamic Army.
Labels: Al Qaeda in Iraq, Ibrahim al-Shimmari, Islamic Army in Iraq
New Military Forces On Iraqi-Turkish Border
Region, Security
(Mashriq Newspaper) - 6 JUN - Yesterday, Turkey sent more military troops and tanks to their border with Iraq in a situation that a Turkish newspaper described as preparations against Kurdish insurgents in northern Iraq. CNN Turkish media said that forty tanks being transported by truck left the Turkish Army bases in Ankara and moved to Baatman Governorate on the Iraqi / Turkish border. They added that the transfer of these forces were simultaneous with a Turkish military operation against the PKK in southeast Turkey near the Iraq border. Turkey has started search operations supported by helicopters and artillery in the areas near the Iraqi / Turkish border in an effort to eradicate the PKK members and prevent them from infiltrating into Turkey.
Labels: Baatman Governorate, northern Iraq, PKK, tanks, Turkey
Turks ready for dialogue with Kurds
Region, Security
Turkey says it is ready for dialogue with Kurdish leaders in neighboring northern Iraq if they stop supporting the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). The announcement was made by Foreign Ministry spokesman Levent Bilman. Meanwhile, Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, the Iraqi government, and the commander of Iraqi border guards on the northern frontier have denied an AP report saying that several thousand Turkish troops crossed into northern Iraq early today to chase Kurdish guerrillas. AP had quoted unnamed Turkish military officials.
Labels: Levent Bilman, PKK, Turkey
Iraqi military surrounds Iraq Pipelines Union on strike in Basra
Oil
(UPI) - On the third day of an oil strike in southern Iraq, the Iraqi military has surrounded oil workers and the prime minister has issued arrest warrants for the union leaders, sparking an outcry from supporters and international unions. "This will not stop us because we are defending people's rights," said Hassan Jumaa Awad, president of IFOU. As of Wednesday morning, when United Press International spoke to Awad via mobile phone in Basra at the site of one of the strikes, no arrests had been made, "but regardless, the arrest warrant is still active." He said the "Iraqi Security Forces," who were present at the strike scenes, told him of the warrants and said they would be making any arrests.
The arrest warrant accuses the union leaders of "sabotaging the economy," according a statement from British-based organization Naftana, and said Maliki warned his "iron fist" would be used against those who stopped the flow of oil. IFOU called a strike early last month but put it on hold twice after overtures from the government. Awad said that at a May 16 meeting, Maliki agreed to set up a committee to address the unions' demands.
The demands include union entry to negotiations over the oil law they fear will allow foreign oil companies too much access to Iraq's oil, as well as a variety of improved working conditions. "Apparently they promise but they never do anything," Awad said, confirming reports the Iraqi Oil Ministry would send a delegation to Basra.
"One person from the Ministry of Oil accompanied by an Iraqi military figure came to negotiate the demands. Instead it was all about threats. It was all about trying to shut us up, to marginalize our actions," Awad said. "The actions we are taking now are continuing with the strike until our demands are taken in concentration."
The strike by the Iraq Pipelines Union in Basra started Monday, instigated by a decision by the Iraq Pipelines Company to stop regular bonuses to workers. It is part of a larger picture, however, of 17 different demands laid out -- beginning last month -- to the Iraq Oil Ministry and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki by the Iraq Federation of Oil Unions.
Since the strike began, two small pipelines delivering oil products to Baghdad and other cities have been closed, as has a larger pipeline that sends gas and oil to major cities, including Baghdad, and utilities. The strike started with domestic pipelines transporting oil and oil products, but Iraq's top oil unionist says it will soon encapsulate the 1.6 million barrels per day of oil Iraq sends to the global market.
Basra, home to much of Iraq's 115 billion barrels of oil -- the third-largest reserves in the world -- is also Iraq's main port. Awad said the unions will continue to restrict all oil exports, which bring in 93 percent of Iraq's federal budget funds. Such a move, combined with the choking off of much-needed supplies of transportation, cooking and heating fuels, is what the unions hopes to use as leverage against Maliki.
Awad said "the atmosphere here is full of tension," and added that he wants to pressure the government to agree to their demands, not topple an already-weak Maliki government. "At the end we are hoping that the situation will not go that way," Awad said.
Manfred Warda, general secretary of the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions, Wednesday sent a letter to Maliki condemning his tactics in addressing the strike. The Brussels-based International Trade Union Confederation and London-based Trades Union Congress have also condemned the military action and arrest warrants. A top official with the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine & General Workers' Union said his contacts say the strike had been toned down while negotiations were underway, but has not ended.
Kamil Mahdi, an Iraqi economist on Middle East affairs at the University of Exeter, said Maliki's swing from agreement with the unions to a military presence and warrants is "very surprising," and arresting the leaders won't quell the workers' demands. "It may be the opposite. These are people who are highly respected in the community," he said. If the strike isn't stopped soon, "the effect on the global oil market will certainly be felt."
The arrest warrant accuses the union leaders of "sabotaging the economy," according a statement from British-based organization Naftana, and said Maliki warned his "iron fist" would be used against those who stopped the flow of oil. IFOU called a strike early last month but put it on hold twice after overtures from the government. Awad said that at a May 16 meeting, Maliki agreed to set up a committee to address the unions' demands.
The demands include union entry to negotiations over the oil law they fear will allow foreign oil companies too much access to Iraq's oil, as well as a variety of improved working conditions. "Apparently they promise but they never do anything," Awad said, confirming reports the Iraqi Oil Ministry would send a delegation to Basra.
"One person from the Ministry of Oil accompanied by an Iraqi military figure came to negotiate the demands. Instead it was all about threats. It was all about trying to shut us up, to marginalize our actions," Awad said. "The actions we are taking now are continuing with the strike until our demands are taken in concentration."
The strike by the Iraq Pipelines Union in Basra started Monday, instigated by a decision by the Iraq Pipelines Company to stop regular bonuses to workers. It is part of a larger picture, however, of 17 different demands laid out -- beginning last month -- to the Iraq Oil Ministry and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki by the Iraq Federation of Oil Unions.
Since the strike began, two small pipelines delivering oil products to Baghdad and other cities have been closed, as has a larger pipeline that sends gas and oil to major cities, including Baghdad, and utilities. The strike started with domestic pipelines transporting oil and oil products, but Iraq's top oil unionist says it will soon encapsulate the 1.6 million barrels per day of oil Iraq sends to the global market.
Basra, home to much of Iraq's 115 billion barrels of oil -- the third-largest reserves in the world -- is also Iraq's main port. Awad said the unions will continue to restrict all oil exports, which bring in 93 percent of Iraq's federal budget funds. Such a move, combined with the choking off of much-needed supplies of transportation, cooking and heating fuels, is what the unions hopes to use as leverage against Maliki.
Awad said "the atmosphere here is full of tension," and added that he wants to pressure the government to agree to their demands, not topple an already-weak Maliki government. "At the end we are hoping that the situation will not go that way," Awad said.
Manfred Warda, general secretary of the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions, Wednesday sent a letter to Maliki condemning his tactics in addressing the strike. The Brussels-based International Trade Union Confederation and London-based Trades Union Congress have also condemned the military action and arrest warrants. A top official with the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine & General Workers' Union said his contacts say the strike had been toned down while negotiations were underway, but has not ended.
Kamil Mahdi, an Iraqi economist on Middle East affairs at the University of Exeter, said Maliki's swing from agreement with the unions to a military presence and warrants is "very surprising," and arresting the leaders won't quell the workers' demands. "It may be the opposite. These are people who are highly respected in the community," he said. If the strike isn't stopped soon, "the effect on the global oil market will certainly be felt."
Labels: Basra, Hassan Jumaa Awad, IFOU, Iraq Pipelines Union, Iraqi military, Oil Ministry, oil workers, strikes
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
INM daily summary – 6 June 2007
Scroll down for full articles.
- At least seven people were killed and 25 wounded when bombs in two parked cars exploded in quick succession in a Shi'ite district in northeastern Baghdad on Wednesday, police said.
- A suicide car bomber struck a group of tribal chiefs who opposed al-Qaida, killing at least 18 in a market area near Fallujah.
- Iraqi politicians have passed a resolution requiring the government to seek parliamentary permission before asking the UN to extend the mandate for US-led forces in Iraq.
- More than 4 million Iraqis have now been displaced by violence in the country, the U.N. refugee agency said Tuesday, warning that the figure will continue to rise.
- Three tribal leaders in the northern city of Mosul have been gunned down by unidentified assailants.
- The restive Doura quarter of Baghdad has been under siege for nearly two weeks and residents say they are running out of basic items and amenities.
- Employees of the Public Corporation for Mines in Duhuk went on several days strike on Tuesday, protesting their low salaries, a source from the corporation said.
- Vice-Chairman of the Investment Committee in the Iraqi Parliament demanded the Kuwaiti government cancel Iraq debts resulting from policies of the previous government.
- A local representative of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the reclusive spiritual leader of Iraq's Shi'ite majority, was gunned down outside his home, Sistani's office and police said on Wednesday.
- After more than a week of the Shiite leader Moqtada Al Sadr's re-emergence, it seems that parts of a Shiite slum in Baghdad are concerned about his return.
- Monty Mobile is pursuing the extension of its coverage, and has just signed an agreement with Korek Telecom, the first operator in Erbil.
- SOC-SMG of Minden, NV has been awarded a $14,611,783.01 contract for Diyala Internal Security Services.
- The British and American military presence in Iraq is worsening security across the region and should be withdrawn quickly, the UK's former ambassador to Washington warned yesterday.
- Strategic Response Initiatives LLC, a small defense contractor at the Watervliet Arsenal, has put together a team of experts who will help train hazardous materials workers in Iraq.
- Turkey said on Wednesday it had no plans at present to send troops into northern Iraq to crush Kurdish rebels there, but it indicated this remained an option in the future.
Round-up of violence across Iraq
Security
Roundup of violence in Iraq - Tuesday June 5 2007 - 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 0730 GMT on Wednesday:
BAGHDAD - At least seven people were killed and 25 wounded when bombs in two parked cars exploded in quick succession in Kadhimiya, a Shi'ite district of north-eastern Baghdad, police said.
NAJAF - A local representative of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the reclusive spiritual leader of Iraq's Shi'ite majority, was gunned down outside his home on Tuesday, Sistani's office and police said.
BAIJI - Gunmen killed a police officer in a drive-by shooting in the oil refinery city of Baiji, 180 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad on Tuesday, police said.
MOSUL - One police officer was killed and another wounded when gunmen attacked their patrol in Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - At least seven people were killed and 25 wounded when bombs in two parked cars exploded in quick succession in Kadhimiya, a Shi'ite district of north-eastern Baghdad, police said.
NAJAF - A local representative of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the reclusive spiritual leader of Iraq's Shi'ite majority, was gunned down outside his home on Tuesday, Sistani's office and police said.
BAIJI - Gunmen killed a police officer in a drive-by shooting in the oil refinery city of Baiji, 180 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad on Tuesday, police said.
MOSUL - One police officer was killed and another wounded when gunmen attacked their patrol in Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.
Turkey says no present plans to attack northern Iraq
Region
(Reuters) - Turkey said on Wednesday it had no plans at present to send troops into northern Iraq to crush Kurdish rebels there, but it indicated this remained an option in the future. Media speculation is high of a possible cross-border operation against rebels of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which uses mainly Kurdish northern Iraq as a base from which to launch attacks in Turkey.
Parliament, now in recess ahead of July 22 elections, would have to reconvene to authorise any military operation beyond Turkey's borders. Asked if the Foreign Ministry was readying documents for such a move, spokesman Levent Bilman told a news conference: "At this time there is no work on such an authorisation, but Turkey is ready for anything at any time."
The Turkish army has said its big buildup of troops and tanks near the border with Iraq is a routine seasonal operation intended to combat PKK rebels inside Turkey or trying to enter. On Monday, European Union officials visiting Ankara said they had discussed the media reports with their hosts but said Turkey gave no indication that an operation was being planned.
The United States and Iraq have both urged Turkey not to send troops, saying the problem could be best resolved by diplomatic means. They fear military action could destabilise the most peaceful and prosperous region of war-ravaged Iraq.
Bilman told the weekly news conference Ankara was not opposed to talks with Iraqi Kurdish authorities, but said they must show they are taking concrete steps against the PKK. "Turkey is not a country that has ever excluded dialogue. We need positive signals in order to be able to take steps on a dialogue. This means the launch of serious action against the PKK," Bilman said.
Turkey is furious with U.S. and Iraqi authorities for failing to crack down on the estimated 4,000 PKK rebels in northern Iraq. Ankara blames the PKK for the deaths of more than 30,000 people in Turkey since the group launched its armed campaign for an ethnic homeland in the impoverished southeast region in 1984.
Parliament, now in recess ahead of July 22 elections, would have to reconvene to authorise any military operation beyond Turkey's borders. Asked if the Foreign Ministry was readying documents for such a move, spokesman Levent Bilman told a news conference: "At this time there is no work on such an authorisation, but Turkey is ready for anything at any time."
The Turkish army has said its big buildup of troops and tanks near the border with Iraq is a routine seasonal operation intended to combat PKK rebels inside Turkey or trying to enter. On Monday, European Union officials visiting Ankara said they had discussed the media reports with their hosts but said Turkey gave no indication that an operation was being planned.
The United States and Iraq have both urged Turkey not to send troops, saying the problem could be best resolved by diplomatic means. They fear military action could destabilise the most peaceful and prosperous region of war-ravaged Iraq.
Bilman told the weekly news conference Ankara was not opposed to talks with Iraqi Kurdish authorities, but said they must show they are taking concrete steps against the PKK. "Turkey is not a country that has ever excluded dialogue. We need positive signals in order to be able to take steps on a dialogue. This means the launch of serious action against the PKK," Bilman said.
Turkey is furious with U.S. and Iraqi authorities for failing to crack down on the estimated 4,000 PKK rebels in northern Iraq. Ankara blames the PKK for the deaths of more than 30,000 people in Turkey since the group launched its armed campaign for an ethnic homeland in the impoverished southeast region in 1984.
Labels: Levent Bilman, northern Iraq, PKK, Turkey
Defense contractor gets Iraq hazmat contract
Contracts
(The Business review) - Strategic Response Initiatives LLC, a small defense contractor at the Watervliet Arsenal, has put together a team of experts who will help train hazardous materials workers in Iraq. In assembling the training team, Strategic Response Initiatives chose experts from the United States and Canada with knowledge about specific subject areas. The team with work with Iraqi fire service personnel, training them to respond to chemical and biological hazards, car bombs, and other issues. Strategic Response Initiatives is also providing equipment to be used by the newly trained Iraqi workers under a $675,000 contract.
Labels: defense contractor, hazmat, Strategic Response Initiatives LLC
Former U.K. ambassador to Washington calls for Iraq troop withdrawal
Security
(The Guardian) - The British and American military presence in Iraq is worsening security across the region and should be withdrawn quickly, the UK's former ambassador to Washington warned yesterday. Sir Christopher Meyer acknowledged that leaving Iraq would be "painful", but said the mission was not worth the death of one more serviceman. "I personally believe that the presence of American and British and coalition forces is making things worse, not only inside Iraq but the wider region around Iraq. The arguments against staying for any greater length of time themselves strengthen with every day that passes," Sir Christopher said.
He added: "I think the Iraqis are in fact sorting themselves out - often bloodily - independent of what we're doing."
The former diplomat, posted in Washington in the run-up to the 2003 invasion, was giving evidence to the Iraq Commission in London. The cross-party group - modelled on America's Iraq Study Group - was set up by the Foreign Policy Centre thinktank and Channel 4 to examine possible options for Britain's future role.
British commanders in Iraq have drawn up a plan for the withdrawal of almost all UK troops within 12 months, as one of several options to be presented to Gordon Brown when he takes over as prime minister. But Sir Christopher said Mr Brown was unlikely to announce a unilateral troop withdrawal that was not coordinated with the United States.
He acknowledged that foreign policy decisions were always "fraught with risk". But asked about criticisms of withdrawal, he replied: "It always seemed to me this was one of the key moral arguments in Iraq, that however bad things were ... the overriding requirement for us was to be able to say to parents and relatives in Britain, your sons and daughters did not die in vain. I think we have now crossed the line - we now have to say the mission is no longer worth another life of a British or American serviceman."
Sir Christopher's controversial book, DC Confidential, argued that the coalition failed to plan for securing and rebuilding Iraq in the aftermath of the invasion. Sir Richard Dannatt, head of the army, said last year that the British should "get ourselves out sometime soon because our presence exacerbates the security problems".
Oliver Burch, of Christian Aid, told the commission that reconstruction efforts by the military had made the work of aid agencies harder in some ways. It meant military operations were run alongside humanitarian work. "For that reason those who do not like the coalition forces do not like NGOs either," he said. The commission, chaired by Lord King, Lord Ashdown, and Lady Jay will report in mid-July after hearing evidence from a range of military and policy experts.
He added: "I think the Iraqis are in fact sorting themselves out - often bloodily - independent of what we're doing."
The former diplomat, posted in Washington in the run-up to the 2003 invasion, was giving evidence to the Iraq Commission in London. The cross-party group - modelled on America's Iraq Study Group - was set up by the Foreign Policy Centre thinktank and Channel 4 to examine possible options for Britain's future role.
British commanders in Iraq have drawn up a plan for the withdrawal of almost all UK troops within 12 months, as one of several options to be presented to Gordon Brown when he takes over as prime minister. But Sir Christopher said Mr Brown was unlikely to announce a unilateral troop withdrawal that was not coordinated with the United States.
He acknowledged that foreign policy decisions were always "fraught with risk". But asked about criticisms of withdrawal, he replied: "It always seemed to me this was one of the key moral arguments in Iraq, that however bad things were ... the overriding requirement for us was to be able to say to parents and relatives in Britain, your sons and daughters did not die in vain. I think we have now crossed the line - we now have to say the mission is no longer worth another life of a British or American serviceman."
Sir Christopher's controversial book, DC Confidential, argued that the coalition failed to plan for securing and rebuilding Iraq in the aftermath of the invasion. Sir Richard Dannatt, head of the army, said last year that the British should "get ourselves out sometime soon because our presence exacerbates the security problems".
Oliver Burch, of Christian Aid, told the commission that reconstruction efforts by the military had made the work of aid agencies harder in some ways. It meant military operations were run alongside humanitarian work. "For that reason those who do not like the coalition forces do not like NGOs either," he said. The commission, chaired by Lord King, Lord Ashdown, and Lady Jay will report in mid-July after hearing evidence from a range of military and policy experts.
Labels: Sir Christopher Meyer, troop withdrawal, U.K., U.S.
$14 mn. security contract for Diyala awarded
Contracts
(FedBizOpps) - Under award number W91GDW-07-C-4005, SOC-SMG of Minden, NV won a $14,611,783.01 contract for Diyala Internal Security Services on June 02, 2007 from the Department of the Army, Multi-National Forces Iraq, Joint Contracting Command Iraq, JCCIA Theater-Wide Requirements Division (TWR), DIRECTORATE OF CONTRACTING REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL PALACE.
The company is a security contractor whose personnel generally have U.S. Special Operations backgrounds, and their web site notes their status as a 5-Star rated security company in the Iraqi theater. Their primary mission to this point has involved the challenging task of providing security support to US Defense Contractors who recover and dispose of Captured Enemy Ammunition (CEA) from the Hussein regime's numerous and large stores within Iraq.
Labels: contract, Diyala, security, SOC-SMG
Monty Mobile signs agreement with Korek Telecom
Business, Telecommunications
(AME Info FZ LLC) - Monty Mobile is pursuing the extension of its coverage, and has just signed an agreement with Korek Telecom, the first operator in Erbil, the capital of Kurdistan - Iraq. The agreement permits Monty Mobile to develop the MMS coverage of Korek Telecom, and to include a number of new countries to its existing coverage.
Monty Mobile will thus provide Korek Telecom with its hubbing proficiency through its MMS/SMS gateway, covering comprehensive international messaging, and allowing Korek Telecom to benefit from uncovered destinations through one single agreement.
"We can no longer decide on the limits of our network coverage, it is our duty to open up more countries and more continents, and give subscribers the right to choose any destination around the globe", said Mr. Mountasser Hachem, Monty Mobile's CEO. Monty Mobile being a unique MMS aggregator and a member of the GSM association, provides state-of-the-art MMS and SMS Nerworking service supporting the most recently developed technologies and standards.
Monty Mobile will thus provide Korek Telecom with its hubbing proficiency through its MMS/SMS gateway, covering comprehensive international messaging, and allowing Korek Telecom to benefit from uncovered destinations through one single agreement.
"We can no longer decide on the limits of our network coverage, it is our duty to open up more countries and more continents, and give subscribers the right to choose any destination around the globe", said Mr. Mountasser Hachem, Monty Mobile's CEO. Monty Mobile being a unique MMS aggregator and a member of the GSM association, provides state-of-the-art MMS and SMS Nerworking service supporting the most recently developed technologies and standards.
Labels: Erbil, Korek Telecom, MMS, Monty Mobile, Mountasser Hachem
Sadr City residents concerned about al-Sadr's return
Security, Politics
(Gulf News) - After more than a week of the Shiite leader Moqtada Al Sadr's re-emergence, it seems that parts of a Shiite slum in Baghdad are concerned about his return. People's anxiety has grown after the kidnapping of five Britons from the Iraqi Finance Ministry building in Palestine Street close to the Shiite neighbourhood of Sadr City where Mahdi Army militants are fortified. The abduction led to a joint Iraqi-American and British security operation against the district. The armed clashes have expanded to the southern province of Diwaniya.
Hamza, a citizen of Sadr City, told Gulf News, "Frankly, we do not want trouble in the city because people are distressed and stop their work everyday due to the security imposed by American forces, besides American helicopter raids claiming the lives of many civilians." He added, "Al Sadr's statements are patriotic yet they escalate the confrontation with Americans and make conditions in the neighbourhood very difficult and miserable."
According to statistics released by the Iraqi Health Ministry, raids by American warplanes continued every night since the outset of the security plan and each raid destroys two houses and kills at least eight civilians per day in the Al Sadr neighbourhood, which is inhabited by more than two million people who live under the poverty level.
Rahim, who lives in the Hay Al Khaleej district, said: "I live in a neighbourhood known for its allegiance to the Mahdi Army and most of its young people, including myself, are involved in this army. After the return of Moqtada Al Sadr, I noticed my mother's concern every time I leave the house."
Hamza, a citizen of Sadr City, told Gulf News, "Frankly, we do not want trouble in the city because people are distressed and stop their work everyday due to the security imposed by American forces, besides American helicopter raids claiming the lives of many civilians." He added, "Al Sadr's statements are patriotic yet they escalate the confrontation with Americans and make conditions in the neighbourhood very difficult and miserable."
According to statistics released by the Iraqi Health Ministry, raids by American warplanes continued every night since the outset of the security plan and each raid destroys two houses and kills at least eight civilians per day in the Al Sadr neighbourhood, which is inhabited by more than two million people who live under the poverty level.
Rahim, who lives in the Hay Al Khaleej district, said: "I live in a neighbourhood known for its allegiance to the Mahdi Army and most of its young people, including myself, are involved in this army. After the return of Moqtada Al Sadr, I noticed my mother's concern every time I leave the house."
Labels: Mahdi Army, Moqtada Al-Sadr, Sadr City
Sistani aide killed
Security
(Gulf News) - A local representative of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the reclusive spiritual leader of Iraq's Shi'ite majority, was gunned down outside his home, Sistani's office and police said on Wednesday. Raheem Al Hasnawi, who represented Sistani in the town of Al Mishkhab, 40 km north of the holy Shi'ite city of Najaf, was killed late on Tuesday, they said.
A spokesman for Sistani's office said three gunmen riding in a car shot Hasnawi outside his home in Al Mishkhab. "He was killed immediately," the spokesman said. An Iraqi security source said Hasnawi was shot in the head and chest. There was no immediate indication about who was responsible for the killing.
Sistani is the sponsor of the ruling United Alliance bloc to which Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki and other Shi'ite political leaders belong. He is acknowledged as the patron of a delicately structured Shi'ite political movement which also includes anti-American cleric Moqtada Al Sadr's political movement.
A spokesman for Sistani's office said three gunmen riding in a car shot Hasnawi outside his home in Al Mishkhab. "He was killed immediately," the spokesman said. An Iraqi security source said Hasnawi was shot in the head and chest. There was no immediate indication about who was responsible for the killing.
Sistani is the sponsor of the ruling United Alliance bloc to which Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki and other Shi'ite political leaders belong. He is acknowledged as the patron of a delicately structured Shi'ite political movement which also includes anti-American cleric Moqtada Al Sadr's political movement.
Labels: Al Mishkhab, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Raheem Al Hasnawi
Iraqi parliament demands Kuwait cancels debts from former regime
Finance
(Iraq Directory) - Vice-Chairman of the Investment Committee in the Iraqi Parliament demanded the Kuwaiti government cancel Iraq debts resulting from policies of the previous government, and confirmed Iraq's need for nearly $200 billion to restore economic infrastructure such as asphalt, petrochemical, cement and other plants.
Abdul Hadi Hassani said, "We call on the Kuwaiti government to cancel its debt on Iraq because it is now investing the oil fields of southern Rumaila wells which are located 94% on Iraqi territory and 6% on Kuwaiti territory." [Ed. Note: this was one of Saddam's excuses for invading Kuwait.]
He pointed out, "Kuwaiti oil production for the southern Rumaila fields is up to 8,500 barrels of oil per day, while Kuwaiti production amounts to 350,000 barrels a day."Hassani explained, "the Kuwaiti side is digging wells for horizontal extraction of oil from Iraqi territory, in particular in the Rumaila oilfields overlapping southern Iraq and northern Kuwait, making it easy to draw oil to the adjacent Kuwaiti wells."
He added, "Shortly Iraq's total debt will fall after the 80% cancellation commitments at the recent Sharm el-Sheikh conference." Hasani said, "Iraqi people and the current government are not responsible for the [odious] debts resulting from the arms purchases of the former regime, used to build military bases and arsenals that burdened and indebted the country." .
He called on Arab countries to cancel these debts and added, "We don't count on Egypt to cancel Iraqi debt because it is not a rich capitalist country, rather a poor one living on external assistance provided by states like the United States of America."
Abdul Hadi Hassani said, "We call on the Kuwaiti government to cancel its debt on Iraq because it is now investing the oil fields of southern Rumaila wells which are located 94% on Iraqi territory and 6% on Kuwaiti territory." [Ed. Note: this was one of Saddam's excuses for invading Kuwait.]
He pointed out, "Kuwaiti oil production for the southern Rumaila fields is up to 8,500 barrels of oil per day, while Kuwaiti production amounts to 350,000 barrels a day."Hassani explained, "the Kuwaiti side is digging wells for horizontal extraction of oil from Iraqi territory, in particular in the Rumaila oilfields overlapping southern Iraq and northern Kuwait, making it easy to draw oil to the adjacent Kuwaiti wells."
He added, "Shortly Iraq's total debt will fall after the 80% cancellation commitments at the recent Sharm el-Sheikh conference." Hasani said, "Iraqi people and the current government are not responsible for the [odious] debts resulting from the arms purchases of the former regime, used to build military bases and arsenals that burdened and indebted the country." .
He called on Arab countries to cancel these debts and added, "We don't count on Egypt to cancel Iraqi debt because it is not a rich capitalist country, rather a poor one living on external assistance provided by states like the United States of America."
Labels: Abdul Hadi Hassani, debt, Kuwait, oil production, Rumaila field
Mine employees go on strike in Dahuk
(Voices of Iraq) - Employees of the Public Corporation for Mines in Duhuk went on several days strike on Tuesday, protesting their low salaries, a source from the corporation said. "Contracted employees went on strike today because of their low salaries compared to their counterparts in Sulaimaniya," Nouzad Abdullah, a protester, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
"Around 210 employees took part in the strike that will continue until their demands are accepted," Abdullah added. "The strike will harm the work of the corporation, especially after the workers in Arbil's branch started to experience the same problem," he added.
The chairman of the corporation in Duhuk, Engineer Uwaynan Youssef, said earlier that the region tops Iraq's regions in terms of the spread of landmines, noting that workers managed to remove 1,579 land mines and 1,074 cluster bombs during a year.
"Around 210 employees took part in the strike that will continue until their demands are accepted," Abdullah added. "The strike will harm the work of the corporation, especially after the workers in Arbil's branch started to experience the same problem," he added.
The chairman of the corporation in Duhuk, Engineer Uwaynan Youssef, said earlier that the region tops Iraq's regions in terms of the spread of landmines, noting that workers managed to remove 1,579 land mines and 1,074 cluster bombs during a year.
Labels: Duhuk, Public Corporation for Mines, strikes, Uwaynan Youssef
Doura besieged by U.S.-Iraqi troops
Security
(Azzaman) - The restive Doura quarter of Baghdad has been under siege for nearly two weeks and residents say they are running out of basic items and amenities. Doura is an anti-U.S. stronghold where armed groups have had the upper hand for years. Repeated U.S. assaults have failed to dislodge the rebels, most of them adhering to the strict rules of Islam.
Most Christians have left the district following threats of kidnapping or killing. Doura’s four churches and three monasteries have been evacuated with U.S. troops turning two of them into barracks. But the remaining residents say U.S. military operations and sieges have turned their quarter into a big prison. They say shops have been closed and people cannot leave their homes with U.S. snipers occupying roofs of high buildings.
Iqbal Abdullah said the military cordon prevents civil servants from going to work and has made it impossible for students to join school. “The Doura area is besieged by U.S. and Iraqi troops. I have not been able to go to work for nearly two weeks. The troops prevent people from walking or moving from one place to another,” she said.
Saad Mohammed, a taxi driver, said he had not been able to drive for all this period. “The Doura area is under complete siege. There are no shops, no pharmacy, and no clinic. There is no electricity or water. We are passing through real tragedy,” he said. Omer Ahmad said the troops would not even allow a person to shop from other areas. “The forces in Doura do not allow residents to even walk in the district. Several people have been either injured or killed by snipers as they tried to leave their homes,” he said.
Doura is one of the most violent quarters of Baghdad. The rebels have imposed strict Islamic jurisprudence on the population which included a sizeable Christian minority.
Most Christians have left the district following threats of kidnapping or killing. Doura’s four churches and three monasteries have been evacuated with U.S. troops turning two of them into barracks. But the remaining residents say U.S. military operations and sieges have turned their quarter into a big prison. They say shops have been closed and people cannot leave their homes with U.S. snipers occupying roofs of high buildings.
Iqbal Abdullah said the military cordon prevents civil servants from going to work and has made it impossible for students to join school. “The Doura area is besieged by U.S. and Iraqi troops. I have not been able to go to work for nearly two weeks. The troops prevent people from walking or moving from one place to another,” she said.
Saad Mohammed, a taxi driver, said he had not been able to drive for all this period. “The Doura area is under complete siege. There are no shops, no pharmacy, and no clinic. There is no electricity or water. We are passing through real tragedy,” he said. Omer Ahmad said the troops would not even allow a person to shop from other areas. “The forces in Doura do not allow residents to even walk in the district. Several people have been either injured or killed by snipers as they tried to leave their homes,” he said.
Doura is one of the most violent quarters of Baghdad. The rebels have imposed strict Islamic jurisprudence on the population which included a sizeable Christian minority.
Labels: Doura, U.S.-Iraqi security forces, violence
Tribal leaders gunned down in Mosul
Security, Tribal
(Azzaman) - Three tribal leaders in the northern city of Mosul have been gunned down by unidentified assailants. Attacks on tribal chiefs in Iraq, particularly in the Sunni-dominated areas of central and northern Iraq have increased recently. The attacks come following reports that certain tribes were no longer willing to provide refuge for al-Qaeda-linked insurgents and some had mobilized their armed men to have them flushed from their areas.
But it seems the group is too strong to be beaten by Iraqi tribes and its members are reported to be murdering the chiefs of any tribe standing against them. In the northern city of Mosul, three leaders of major tribes have been killed. The first, Shaikh Khanim Ibrahim al-Sabaawi, was leader of the powerful al-Sabaawi tribe. Earlier unidentified gunmen had killed Khanim al-Hadi of al-Aqidat tribe and Ghazi al-Hanash of Tai tribe.
Reports that they were liquidated by al-Qaeda still need to be independently verified but eyewitnesses say the three chiefs were shot and killed by unknown assailants.
But it seems the group is too strong to be beaten by Iraqi tribes and its members are reported to be murdering the chiefs of any tribe standing against them. In the northern city of Mosul, three leaders of major tribes have been killed. The first, Shaikh Khanim Ibrahim al-Sabaawi, was leader of the powerful al-Sabaawi tribe. Earlier unidentified gunmen had killed Khanim al-Hadi of al-Aqidat tribe and Ghazi al-Hanash of Tai tribe.
Reports that they were liquidated by al-Qaeda still need to be independently verified but eyewitnesses say the three chiefs were shot and killed by unknown assailants.
Meantime, pressure on Iraqi Christians in Mosul is mounting with armed groups warning that they will either turn to Islam or leave. Mosul is one of Iraq’s main Christian centers. Many of the city’s numerous churches and monasteries have been abandoned with the largest portion of the nearly 150,000-Christian community forced to flee. Early this week, a priest and three deacons were killed as they left their church.
Labels: al-Aqidat tribe, al-Sabaawi tribe, Ghazi al-Hanash, Iraqi Christians, Khanim al-Hadi, Mosul, Shaikh Khanim Ibrahim al-Sabaawi, Tai tribe, tribal leaders
UNHCR - over four million Iraqis displaced by violence
Humanitarian
(AP) - More than 4 million Iraqis have now been displaced by violence in the country, the U.N. refugee agency said Tuesday, warning that the figure will continue to rise. The number of Iraqis who have fled the country as refugees has risen to 2.2 million, said Jennifer Pagonis, spokeswoman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees. A further 2 million have been driven from their homes but remain within the country, increasingly in "impoverished shanty towns," she said.
Pagonis said UNHCR is receiving "disturbing reports" of regional authorities doing little to provide displaced people with food, shelter and other basic services. "Individual governorates inside Iraq are becoming overwhelmed by the needs of the displaced," Pagonis told reporters in Geneva, where UNHCR has its headquarters.
More than half of Iraq's 18 governorates are preventing displaced people from entering their territories, either by stopping them at checkpoints or by refusing to register them for food aid and other basic services.
Astrid van Genderen Stort of UNHCR said checkpoints are increasing in northern governorates, specifically along the "green line" that divides Kurdish-controlled zones from the rest of the country. Displaced people are also being stopped on the roads leading out of the cities of Karbala and Najaf, which are both south of Baghdad and considered holy by Shiite Muslims.
While many of the checkpoints were originally established for security reasons, they are being increasingly used to prevent displaced Iraqis from moving around the country, van Genderen Stort said. Almost half of all displaced people have no access to official food distribution programs, according to U.N. estimates.
Most of those uprooted from their homes come from Baghdad and its surrounding districts. More than 85 percent of the Iraqis displaced within the country have moved to central and southern regions, Pagonis said.
She said about 30,000 Iraqis continue to flee each month to Syria, which is now housing 1.4 million Iraqi refugees. Another 750,000 are in Jordan.
While Iraq's neighbors are bearing the bulk of the refugee burden, few Iraqis are being welcomed into countries farther away, particularly in Europe, Pagonis said. The Bush administration says it will allow up to 7,000 Iraqis to settle permanently in the U.S. - up from 202 in 2006 - by the end of September and will pay more to help Iraq's neighbors cope with the surge of refugees. UNHCR hopes to find a permanent home for 20,000 Iraqi refugees by the end of the year.
Pagonis said UNHCR is receiving "disturbing reports" of regional authorities doing little to provide displaced people with food, shelter and other basic services. "Individual governorates inside Iraq are becoming overwhelmed by the needs of the displaced," Pagonis told reporters in Geneva, where UNHCR has its headquarters.
More than half of Iraq's 18 governorates are preventing displaced people from entering their territories, either by stopping them at checkpoints or by refusing to register them for food aid and other basic services.
Astrid van Genderen Stort of UNHCR said checkpoints are increasing in northern governorates, specifically along the "green line" that divides Kurdish-controlled zones from the rest of the country. Displaced people are also being stopped on the roads leading out of the cities of Karbala and Najaf, which are both south of Baghdad and considered holy by Shiite Muslims.
While many of the checkpoints were originally established for security reasons, they are being increasingly used to prevent displaced Iraqis from moving around the country, van Genderen Stort said. Almost half of all displaced people have no access to official food distribution programs, according to U.N. estimates.
Most of those uprooted from their homes come from Baghdad and its surrounding districts. More than 85 percent of the Iraqis displaced within the country have moved to central and southern regions, Pagonis said.
She said about 30,000 Iraqis continue to flee each month to Syria, which is now housing 1.4 million Iraqi refugees. Another 750,000 are in Jordan.
While Iraq's neighbors are bearing the bulk of the refugee burden, few Iraqis are being welcomed into countries farther away, particularly in Europe, Pagonis said. The Bush administration says it will allow up to 7,000 Iraqis to settle permanently in the U.S. - up from 202 in 2006 - by the end of September and will pay more to help Iraq's neighbors cope with the surge of refugees. UNHCR hopes to find a permanent home for 20,000 Iraqi refugees by the end of the year.
Labels: IDPs, Iraqi refugees, UNHCR
Iraqi parliament votes on UN mandate for foreign troops
Politics
(Al Jazeera) - Iraqi politicians have passed a resolution requiring the government to seek parliamentary permission before asking the UN to extend the mandate for US-led forces in Iraq. The measure was approved on Tuesday and reflects a growing disenchantment with the US-backed government. The Sadrist-drafted resolution passed with a vote of 85 to 59.
The members of parliament voted along party lines, with Sunnis joining the bloc loyal to Muqtada al-Sadr, a Shia leader, and another Shia party at odds with the leadership. Supporters of Nuri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, opposed the resolution.
The UN mandate for foreign forces in Iraq has already been extended until December 31 at al-Maliki's request, so Tuesday's parliamentary action is not expected to have any immediate effect. However, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, a Sunni parliament speaker, said: "If the government wants to extend the presence of the multinational forces, it has to come to us in the parliament to convince us first."
The effort mirrors the rivalry George Bush, the US president, faces with the Democratic-led congress, which has urged the administration to bring troops home.The UN Security Council voted on November 28 to extend the mandate of the multinational force, but it has also authorised a review of that mandate by June 15 or earlier if requested by the Iraqi government.
Al-Maliki has said he wants Iraqi forces to take over the country's security, but he has refused to demand a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign forces. George Bakus, an aide to al-Maliki, said: "I think the situation is clear ... when the Iraqi troops are ready and can control the country, the government will ask the multinational forces to leave."
Only 144 of the 275 members of the Iraqi parliament were present for the vote, but that was enough for a quorum. Adnan Dulaimi, of the Sunni Accordance Front, supported the measure, along with the Sadrists and members of the Fadhila party - which recently broke off from the Shia-led United Iraqi Alliance. Nassir al-Issawi, a Sadrist politician, said: "This was the first step in implementing our political goal which is the withdrawal of the occupation forces.''
Those opposed included Kurdish legislators and members of other mainstream Shia parties, including al-Maliki's Dawa party and the Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq. Mahmoud Othman, a Kurdish politician, objected to the resolution and said that "it is supposed that extension of the mandate of the forces should go with completing building the Iraqi forces''.
Jalaluddin al-Saghir, a Shia cleric from the Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq, said the resolution was an additional obstacle for the government. "The government was at least supposed to be consulted before such a resolution was approved,'' he said. "Those who voted for the resolution had political aims."
The members of parliament voted along party lines, with Sunnis joining the bloc loyal to Muqtada al-Sadr, a Shia leader, and another Shia party at odds with the leadership. Supporters of Nuri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, opposed the resolution.
The UN mandate for foreign forces in Iraq has already been extended until December 31 at al-Maliki's request, so Tuesday's parliamentary action is not expected to have any immediate effect. However, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, a Sunni parliament speaker, said: "If the government wants to extend the presence of the multinational forces, it has to come to us in the parliament to convince us first."
The effort mirrors the rivalry George Bush, the US president, faces with the Democratic-led congress, which has urged the administration to bring troops home.The UN Security Council voted on November 28 to extend the mandate of the multinational force, but it has also authorised a review of that mandate by June 15 or earlier if requested by the Iraqi government.
Al-Maliki has said he wants Iraqi forces to take over the country's security, but he has refused to demand a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign forces. George Bakus, an aide to al-Maliki, said: "I think the situation is clear ... when the Iraqi troops are ready and can control the country, the government will ask the multinational forces to leave."
Only 144 of the 275 members of the Iraqi parliament were present for the vote, but that was enough for a quorum. Adnan Dulaimi, of the Sunni Accordance Front, supported the measure, along with the Sadrists and members of the Fadhila party - which recently broke off from the Shia-led United Iraqi Alliance. Nassir al-Issawi, a Sadrist politician, said: "This was the first step in implementing our political goal which is the withdrawal of the occupation forces.''
Those opposed included Kurdish legislators and members of other mainstream Shia parties, including al-Maliki's Dawa party and the Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq. Mahmoud Othman, a Kurdish politician, objected to the resolution and said that "it is supposed that extension of the mandate of the forces should go with completing building the Iraqi forces''.
Jalaluddin al-Saghir, a Shia cleric from the Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq, said the resolution was an additional obstacle for the government. "The government was at least supposed to be consulted before such a resolution was approved,'' he said. "Those who voted for the resolution had political aims."
Labels: Fadhela party, Iraqi Accord Front, Moqtada Al-Sadr, Nouri Al-Maliki, UN mandate, UNSC
Suicide bomber targets tribal chiefs
Insurgency, Tribal
(AP) - A suicide car bomber struck a group of tribal chiefs who opposed al-Qaida, killing at least 18 in a market area near Fallujah. Tuesday's attack underscored the difficulties facing Sunni leaders in trying to wrest control of Anbar province from the terror network. Much of the al-Buissa tribe has formed an alliance against al-Qaida in Iraq, which has alienated more moderate Sunnis with its brutality and dependence on foreign fighters. The U.S. military has touted the alliance, the Anbar Salvation Council, as a success in its efforts to stabilize the country.
The bomb exploded in a pickup truck next to where the elders were trying to solve a tribal dispute in Amiriyah, 40 miles west of Baghdad, police said. The driver of the pickup had gained access to the market area by saying he needed to buy some watermelons, said Ahmed al-Issawi, 40, an owner of a food store there.
The bomb exploded in a pickup truck next to where the elders were trying to solve a tribal dispute in Amiriyah, 40 miles west of Baghdad, police said. The driver of the pickup had gained access to the market area by saying he needed to buy some watermelons, said Ahmed al-Issawi, 40, an owner of a food store there.
At least 18 people were killed and 15 were wounded, according to U.S. Marine Maj. Jeff Pool, a military spokesman for the area. An al-Buissa tribal chieftain, Abbas Mohammed, said the violence would not deter the local leaders from their fight against al-Qaida. "We expected such attacks after we cleaned our area of al Qaida members," Mohammed said. "Despite these attacks, we will go on in chasing al-Qaida elements."
Labels: Abbas Mohammed, Al Qaeda in Iraq, al-Buissa tribe, Anbar Salvation Council, Fallujah, Maj. Jeff Pool, suicide bomber, tribal leaders
Twin bombs kill seven in Baghdad
Security
(Reuters) - At least seven people were killed and 25 wounded when bombs in two parked cars exploded in quick succession in a Shi'ite district in northeastern Baghdad on Wednesday, police said. The cars were parked by the roadside near a central square in Kadhimiya. The bombs went off about two minutes apart, police said.
The first exploded close to al-Zahra square, a commercial area in central Kadhimiya. The second bomb exploded near a parking lot, commonly used by shoppers, close to a women's jail.
Thousands of extra U.S. and Iraqi troops have been deployed in Baghdad and other areas as part of a security crackdown aimed at averting all-out sectarian civil war between majority Shi'ites and minority Sunni Arabs dominant under Saddam Hussein. U.S. military officials have said those forces now control about a third of Baghdad's neighborhoods. The crackdown began in mid-February. The number of targeted sectarian killings fell during the early stages of the crackdown but has begun to rise again, military officials say. Large-scale bombings, many blamed on Sunni Islamist al Qaeda, remain common.
The first exploded close to al-Zahra square, a commercial area in central Kadhimiya. The second bomb exploded near a parking lot, commonly used by shoppers, close to a women's jail.
Thousands of extra U.S. and Iraqi troops have been deployed in Baghdad and other areas as part of a security crackdown aimed at averting all-out sectarian civil war between majority Shi'ites and minority Sunni Arabs dominant under Saddam Hussein. U.S. military officials have said those forces now control about a third of Baghdad's neighborhoods. The crackdown began in mid-February. The number of targeted sectarian killings fell during the early stages of the crackdown but has begun to rise again, military officials say. Large-scale bombings, many blamed on Sunni Islamist al Qaeda, remain common.
Labels: al-Zahra square, car bombs, Kadhimiya
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
INM daily summary – 5 June 2007
Scroll down for full articles.
- Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih told Al-Arabiyah television that all political parties in Iraq agree that the current political landscape in Iraq must change, the news channel reported on June 1.
- Salah Al Mutlaq, the leader of the National Dialogue Front which has 11 seats in the Parliament, demands the Americans and Al Maliki readjust the entire political process.
- Sheikh Abd al-Sattar Abu Rishah, head of the Al-Anbar Salvation Council, told the London-based "Al-Hayat" that the Islamic State of Iraq may have more weapons than the Iraqi Army.
- Police opened fire Tuesday morning on a black-clad woman as she walked toward police recruits, detonating a suicide bomb she had strapped to her body, the Iraqi Interior Ministry reported.
- According to an Iraqi government employee, who asked to remain anonymous, Muslim terrorist groups are being tipped off about Iraqi and US troop movements.
- While joint forces cordon the Dora area, conflicts between Al Qaida and other killer groups such as the 1920 Revolutionary Battalions and the Islamic Army have increased.
- A general amnesty will be considered ahead of the national reconciliation project set up by the Iraqi government, MP Hassan al-Saneed said on Monday.
- An Iraqi Parliamentarian from the Kurdistan Coalition said on Monday that a number of parliamentarian blocs' objection to the candidates for the vacant portfolios led to a delay in the lawmakers' voting.
- Muslim scholars announced on Monday the establishment of an Islamic union aims at stopping bloodshed and sectarian violence in Iraq.
- Ras Al Khaimah will host the 'Iraq First International Convention for the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises' on June 7- 8, 2007.
- A Supreme Reconciliation Committee member, Saad Yousif, has revealed that some Baathist members close to Izzat Al Douri have begun negotiations with the government.
- The Islamic State of Iraq, an umbrella insurgent group comprised of al-Qaeda in Iraq and others, and its official distributor and producer of multimedia, al-Furqan Foundation for Media Production, produced a 10:41 minute video of the planning and attack of an operation in southern Baghdad where three American soldiers were captured.
- Muqtada Al Sadr refuses to open a direct dialogue with the American forces and accused the US of attempting to assassinate him.
- Security round-up.
Round-up of violence across Iraq
Security
Roundup of daily violence, Monday 4 June 2007 - 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 0800 GMT on Tuesday:
* denotes new or updated item.
* ISKANDARIYA - Four policemen were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near a police station in Iskandariya, 40 km (25 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
* JBELA - Gunmen shot and killed Abdul Raheem Nayef, the local head of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's political movement in Jbela, 65 km (40 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
* BAGHDAD - Four suspected insurgents were detained during raids in northeast Baghdad, the U.S. military said. The four were suspected of arranging the transportation of roadside bombs and other weapons from Iran to Iraq, the military said.
BAGHDAD - Three police commandos were wounded when they shot dead a female suicide bomber who was trying to detonate herself near a recruitment centre in eastern Baghdad, police said. The policemen were wounded when the bomber's vest exploded.
BAGHDAD - The bodies of 28 people were found shot in different areas of Baghdad on Monday, police said.
DIWANIYA - Four civilians were wounded in clashes between gunmen and U.S. soldiers in Diwaniya, 180 km (110 miles) south of Baghdad, on Monday, police said.
BAGHDAD - Four policemen were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near a police patrol on Monday in Doura district in southern Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - One person was killed and eight wounded in mortar attacks in two different districts in southern and southwestern Baghdad on Monday, police said.
* denotes new or updated item.
* ISKANDARIYA - Four policemen were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near a police station in Iskandariya, 40 km (25 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
* JBELA - Gunmen shot and killed Abdul Raheem Nayef, the local head of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's political movement in Jbela, 65 km (40 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
* BAGHDAD - Four suspected insurgents were detained during raids in northeast Baghdad, the U.S. military said. The four were suspected of arranging the transportation of roadside bombs and other weapons from Iran to Iraq, the military said.
BAGHDAD - Three police commandos were wounded when they shot dead a female suicide bomber who was trying to detonate herself near a recruitment centre in eastern Baghdad, police said. The policemen were wounded when the bomber's vest exploded.
BAGHDAD - The bodies of 28 people were found shot in different areas of Baghdad on Monday, police said.
DIWANIYA - Four civilians were wounded in clashes between gunmen and U.S. soldiers in Diwaniya, 180 km (110 miles) south of Baghdad, on Monday, police said.
BAGHDAD - Four policemen were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near a police patrol on Monday in Doura district in southern Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - One person was killed and eight wounded in mortar attacks in two different districts in southern and southwestern Baghdad on Monday, police said.
Al Sadr Threatens Armed Uprising And Accuses Americans Of Attempting To Assassinate Him
Politics, Security
(Azzaman Newspaper) - 4 JUN - Muqtada Al Sadr refuses to open a direct dialogue with the American forces and accused the US of attempting to assassinate him. During an interview with the Independent Newspaper on Sunday, Sadr said, “The Americans tried to kill me but they failed and I am sure that they still want to eliminate me. I am a free Muslim Iraqi and I want to help the Iraqi people and for this reason the Americans hate me."
"The Americans want me to have a direct dialogue with them but there is nothing to negotiate about because the Americans are occupiers and thieves, and they should have a withdrawal schedule to leave this country. We need to know when they will do this. We are fighting an enemy stronger than us but we are on the right side even if this means that we will die because Islam encourages us to die with dignity instead of in shame.”
Al Sadr warned, “There will be a new armed uprising” in response to the Iraqi / British / American operations against the Sadr Movement and Mahdi Army. He said, “The occupiers keep attempting to provoke us but I have issued orders to start an armed resistance. We are patient and wise but we will fight the occupation and the killing. I am confirming that my movement will be like Hezbollah in Lebanon and I believe that Hezbollah and the Mahdi Army are two faces on one coin fighting on one front against the devil.”
About the recent clashes between Mahdi Army and the Badr organization, Muqtada said, “It was a misunderstanding, we have had discussions and communicated with the other side to prevent any more clashes.” About Iran, Muqtada confirmed he rejects any Iranian interference in Iraqi issues and he is against the Iranian / American negotiations about Iraq. Also, he confirmed that Iraqi issues will be solved by Iraqis.”
About the recent clashes between Mahdi Army and the Badr organization, Muqtada said, “It was a misunderstanding, we have had discussions and communicated with the other side to prevent any more clashes.” About Iran, Muqtada confirmed he rejects any Iranian interference in Iraqi issues and he is against the Iranian / American negotiations about Iraq. Also, he confirmed that Iraqi issues will be solved by Iraqis.”
Labels: assassination, Hezbollah, Mahdi Army, Moqtada Al-Sadr, U.S. forces, uprising
Islamic State of Iraq releases video of attack on abducted U.S. soldiers
Security
(SITE) - The Islamic State of Iraq, an umbrella insurgent group comprised of al-Qaeda in Iraq and others, and its official distributor and producer of multimedia, al-Furqan Foundation for Media Production, produced a 10:41 minute video of the planning and attack of an operation in southern Baghdad where three American soldiers were captured. The video was issued to jihadist forums on Monday, June 4, 2007.
Titled, “Clash and Capturing Three Americans in the Governorate of Baghdad”, the video presents itself as a propaganda piece aimed at showing the failure and alleged refusal of the American military and U.S. President George W. Bush to care for the blood of its soldiers. Three American soldiers, Pvt. Byron Wayne Fouty, Spc. Alex Ramon Jimenez, and Pfc. Joseph Anzack, were captured following a clash between the Mujahideen of the Islamic State and an American patrol in al-Mahmoudiya on May 12, 2007; one of the soldiers, Anzack, was confirmed killed when his body was discovered in the Euphrates Rivers.
Narration speaks condescendingly of the American military and its refusal to heed the warnings of the Islamic State of Iraq to cease their search for the soldiers, else they would be killed, and explains that the soldiers conducting the search abused Muslims. Thus, the narrator explains that the soldiers were announced dead to end the search.
Other portions of the video include the field commander of the brigade explaining the plan of attack, footage of the nighttime attack, and the response of the U.S. military in conducting a search for the captured as reported by al-Jazeera Arabic television. Items allegedly taken as plunder and personal effects from the soldiers from the scene of the attack include a pistol, VISA and Mastercard, fifty-dollar bills and Iraqi currency, clippings, and other identification. The final scene shows the identification cards of Pvt. Fouty and Spc. Jimenez with text written above reading: “Bush is responsible for the captured”. The status of the two captured soldiers, Pvt. Fouty and Spc. Jimenez, could not be verified.
Narration speaks condescendingly of the American military and its refusal to heed the warnings of the Islamic State of Iraq to cease their search for the soldiers, else they would be killed, and explains that the soldiers conducting the search abused Muslims. Thus, the narrator explains that the soldiers were announced dead to end the search.
Other portions of the video include the field commander of the brigade explaining the plan of attack, footage of the nighttime attack, and the response of the U.S. military in conducting a search for the captured as reported by al-Jazeera Arabic television. Items allegedly taken as plunder and personal effects from the soldiers from the scene of the attack include a pistol, VISA and Mastercard, fifty-dollar bills and Iraqi currency, clippings, and other identification. The final scene shows the identification cards of Pvt. Fouty and Spc. Jimenez with text written above reading: “Bush is responsible for the captured”. The status of the two captured soldiers, Pvt. Fouty and Spc. Jimenez, could not be verified.
Labels: Al-Furqan Foundation, Islamic State of Iraq, Mahmoudiya, Pfc. Joseph J. Anzack Jr., Pvt. Byron W. Fouty, Spc. Alex R. Jimenez
Reconciliation Committee Member Reveals There Are Negotiations Between Baathists Close To Al Douri And The Government
Politics
(Al Mowaten Newspaper) - 4 JUN - A Supreme Reconciliation Committee member, Saad Yousif, has revealed that some Baathist members close to Izzat Al Douri have begun negotiations with the government. These Baathists include one who is wanted. Yousif added that if these negotiations are successful, the government will allow these Baathists to participate in the political process, including in elections.
The “Assoo” Kurdish newspaper reported that the negotiations are between the PM and the Baathist group led by Al Douri in order to achieve reconciliation between the government and this group. Assoo added, based on sources close to Al Maliki, that Al Maliki established a supreme committee to run these negotiations. The Baathists are represented in the negotiations by former Iraqi Air Force Captain, Abid Mohammed Falah. The sources added that these negotiations are under Al Maliki’s personal supervision and are attended by the MOI and MOD Ministers in the Green Zone.
Labels: Abid Mohammed Falah, Baathists, government, Izzat Al Douri, negotiations, Reconciliation Committee
Convention to be held in Ras Al Khaimah for Iraqi small and medium businesses
Business
(AME Info FZ LLC) - Ras Al Khaimah will host the 'Iraq First International Convention for the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises' to be held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, and organised by Iraq First, a not- for- profit organisation launched by KGL Investment Company, at the Al Hamra Fort Hotel in Ras Al Khaimah on June 7- 8, 2007.
The groundbreaking initiative will be attended by H.E Dr. Adil Abdul Mehdi, Vice President of Iraq, and will bring together the Provincial Governors and entrepreneurs from across Iraq and international investors with the aim to foster the development of SMEs in Iraq and thereby contributing to the Iraq's overall economic development.
'The presence of elected Iraqi Provincial Governors, who have been recently awarded the authority to grant investment licenses by a parliamentary decree, highlights the importance of this opportunity to meet with a large concentration of top caliber decision makers representing Iraq, who will be brought together for the first time in such a unique convention,' she added.
Iraq First has received around 359 projects from Iraqi entrepreneurs encompassing many business fields- from hotels to water bottling plants to cement block factories as well a wide range of other businesses which will be presented to the Arab and International investors in addition to International Lending Organisations during the two- day convention.
Aleast five MoU's would be signed for the establishment of new businesses, including setting up of ceramic sanitary ware factories and liquefied oxygen factory, among others, at the convention. The rest of the projects will be followed up to a final conclusion with an expectation to complete the initiation of over 20 projects for the year 2007.
The groundbreaking initiative will be attended by H.E Dr. Adil Abdul Mehdi, Vice President of Iraq, and will bring together the Provincial Governors and entrepreneurs from across Iraq and international investors with the aim to foster the development of SMEs in Iraq and thereby contributing to the Iraq's overall economic development.
'The presence of elected Iraqi Provincial Governors, who have been recently awarded the authority to grant investment licenses by a parliamentary decree, highlights the importance of this opportunity to meet with a large concentration of top caliber decision makers representing Iraq, who will be brought together for the first time in such a unique convention,' she added.
Iraq First has received around 359 projects from Iraqi entrepreneurs encompassing many business fields- from hotels to water bottling plants to cement block factories as well a wide range of other businesses which will be presented to the Arab and International investors in addition to International Lending Organisations during the two- day convention.
Aleast five MoU's would be signed for the establishment of new businesses, including setting up of ceramic sanitary ware factories and liquefied oxygen factory, among others, at the convention. The rest of the projects will be followed up to a final conclusion with an expectation to complete the initiation of over 20 projects for the year 2007.
Labels: Adil Abdul Mahdi, convention, Ras Al Khaimah, small and medium enterprise
Muslim scholars establish Islamic Union in Iraq to stop violence
Politics
(Voices of Iraq) - Muslim scholars announced on Monday the establishment of an Islamic union aims at stopping bloodshed and sectarian violence in Iraq. The founding conference for the Union of Muslim Scholars in Iraq, which was held in Baghdad under the title "Muslim scholars unity symbol for Iraqi people unity" and attended by more than 130 religious characters, including Sunnis, Shiites and Kurdish leaders, agreed to leave the union membership open for all Iraqi scholars.
The conference urged in a statement "all Iraqi religious scholars inside and outside the country to join the new union during a conference due to be held in Sulaimaniya in Kurdistan region within the upcoming days." They considered "Mecca Pledge Document", a document signed by Iraqi scholars of all sects in last September in Mecca of Saudi Arabia, as the ground for Sunnis and Shiites to preserve holy places and stop murders and sectarian violence, underlining "the necessity to maintain Iraq's unity."
Several Iraqi religious leaders signed in Mecca last year "the Mecca Document" calling for "banning the slaughtering of Iraqis regardless of their religious and sectarian affiliation." The document also called for bridging the gap between the Sunni and Shiite Muslims and underlined the gravity of the sectarian crimes that were being committed.
The statement strongly denounced the "terrorist attacks and the administrative corruption in the country."It also criticized "the bombing attack that took place in Shiite holy shrines in Samarra." The participants called upon all political blocs to solve their political disputes and to find ways to end the foreign presence in Iraq. They urged religious leaders in Najaf, Azhar in Egypt and the Organization of Islamic Conference to support the new union's efforts to end the Iraqi crisis.
The conference urged in a statement "all Iraqi religious scholars inside and outside the country to join the new union during a conference due to be held in Sulaimaniya in Kurdistan region within the upcoming days." They considered "Mecca Pledge Document", a document signed by Iraqi scholars of all sects in last September in Mecca of Saudi Arabia, as the ground for Sunnis and Shiites to preserve holy places and stop murders and sectarian violence, underlining "the necessity to maintain Iraq's unity."
Several Iraqi religious leaders signed in Mecca last year "the Mecca Document" calling for "banning the slaughtering of Iraqis regardless of their religious and sectarian affiliation." The document also called for bridging the gap between the Sunni and Shiite Muslims and underlined the gravity of the sectarian crimes that were being committed.
The statement strongly denounced the "terrorist attacks and the administrative corruption in the country."It also criticized "the bombing attack that took place in Shiite holy shrines in Samarra." The participants called upon all political blocs to solve their political disputes and to find ways to end the foreign presence in Iraq. They urged religious leaders in Najaf, Azhar in Egypt and the Organization of Islamic Conference to support the new union's efforts to end the Iraqi crisis.
Labels: Islamic union, Mecca Pledge Document, Union of Muslim Scholars in Iraq
Blocs opposing new candidates delay reshuffle
Politics
(Voices of Iraq) - An Iraqi Parliamentarian from the Kurdistan Coalition said on Monday that a number of parliamentarian blocs' objection to the candidates for the vacant portfolios led to a delay in the lawmakers' voting. "The Sadrist bloc, lawmakers loyal to the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, argued that the candidates are not independent or technocratic enough," Mahmoud Othman told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
Six ministers, from the Sadrist bloc, withdrew from the government in mid April and the Shiite cleric Sadr authorized the Iraqi Prime Minister to select alternatives from the qualified independent characters. The Sadrist bloc, a main component of the Shiite parliamentary bloc, has 30 seats out of the 275-seat parliament.
"A number of the parliament's members left the session when it was presented for discussion, which led to lack of quorum," Othman also said.
"The last session was attended by 171 members, but they were busy discussing issues on protecting the parliament's building and when the time came to vote for the reshuffle, only 110 members were present and it was not sufficient according to the constitution to vote for a reshuffle which necessitate the presence of no less than 138 members," he explained.
"The vacant ministries are important as most offer services and there should be an understanding between the blocs to settle the whole issue," the lawmaker noted. He voiced hope over settling the issue in Tuesday's session.
Six ministers, from the Sadrist bloc, withdrew from the government in mid April and the Shiite cleric Sadr authorized the Iraqi Prime Minister to select alternatives from the qualified independent characters. The Sadrist bloc, a main component of the Shiite parliamentary bloc, has 30 seats out of the 275-seat parliament.
"A number of the parliament's members left the session when it was presented for discussion, which led to lack of quorum," Othman also said.
"The last session was attended by 171 members, but they were busy discussing issues on protecting the parliament's building and when the time came to vote for the reshuffle, only 110 members were present and it was not sufficient according to the constitution to vote for a reshuffle which necessitate the presence of no less than 138 members," he explained.
"The vacant ministries are important as most offer services and there should be an understanding between the blocs to settle the whole issue," the lawmaker noted. He voiced hope over settling the issue in Tuesday's session.
Labels: Kurdistan Coalition, Mahmoud Othman, Sadrist bloc
General amnesty to be considered ahead of national reconciliation project
Politics
(Voices of Iraq) - A general amnesty will be considered ahead of the national reconciliation project set up by the Iraqi government, MP Hassan al-Saneed from the Shiite United Iraqi Coalition (UIC), who is also Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's advisor, said on Monday.
"A general amnesty is expected to be announced by the Iraqi government as part of its plans for national reconciliation and in a way that guarantees that pardoned prisoners do not return to crime," al-Saneed told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
According to al-Saneed, the Iraqi government has developed a new strategy that aims to stimulate greater political participation and open dialogue with armed groups that have expressed interest in joining the political process.
The new strategy will also propose a cabinet reshuffle involving ministries that have direct contact with the public and amendments to Baghdad's security plan, and will discuss Iraq's relations with its neighbors, national security and the issue of borders, al-Saneed added.
"A general amnesty is expected to be announced by the Iraqi government as part of its plans for national reconciliation and in a way that guarantees that pardoned prisoners do not return to crime," al-Saneed told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
According to al-Saneed, the Iraqi government has developed a new strategy that aims to stimulate greater political participation and open dialogue with armed groups that have expressed interest in joining the political process.
The new strategy will also propose a cabinet reshuffle involving ministries that have direct contact with the public and amendments to Baghdad's security plan, and will discuss Iraq's relations with its neighbors, national security and the issue of borders, al-Saneed added.
Labels: armed groups, cabinet reshuffle, general amnesty, Hassan al-Saneed, national reconciliation
Dora Under Cordon…Conflicts Between Insurgent Groups Are Increasing
Security
(Al Mada Newspaper) - 4 JUN - While joint forces cordon the Dora area (the Tuma, Mualamin, Iskan, Abu Dcshir, Athorin and Zahour areas). These areas are witnessing a tense quiet from new conflicts between Al Qaida and the joint forces. Conflicts between Al Qaida and other killer groups such as the 1920 Revolutionary Battalions and the Islamic Army have increased. Three days ago, Al Qaida killed two young Sunni men in the Iskan area because the two victims criticized Al Qaida’s behavior.
Also, a few weeks ago Al Qaida stole the houses and family cars of Sunni families who rejected to work with Al Qaida. On another side, artillery is still being fired at the Buaitha and Abu Dcshir areas from unknown locations. Most of Dora’s families hope that the security forces succeed in eliminating all the terrorist groups. They also demand the government fix the electricity problem and clean the trash from the area. Dora residents said that the current cordon by the security forces has helped to decrease the violence but there is still some violence there.
Labels: Al Qaeda, Dora, Islamic Army, the 1920 Revolution Brigades
Terrorists being tipped off on U.S.-Iraqi troop movements
Security
(AINA) - According to an Iraqi government employee, who asked to remain anonymous, Muslim terrorist groups are being tipped off about Iraqi and US troop movements. In one incident in the besieged Assyrian neighborhood of Dora, where al-Qaeda entered in early March and began imposing Islamic law on the Christian Assyrians (also known as Chaldeans and Syriacs), the terrorists had advance knowledge. According to the government employee, "even before the Americans come in the terrorists are informed and they leave, as happened in Dora, where up to 1000 cars left at midnight. At 6 AM the next morning, the Americans came but the terrorists were not there."
Labels: Al Qaeda, Dora, Iraqi-U.S. force, terrorist groups
Female suicide bomber stopped by police
Security
(AP) - Police opened fire Tuesday morning on a black-clad woman as she walked toward police recruits, detonating a suicide bomb she had strapped to her body, the Iraqi Interior Ministry reported. "She didn't obey the guards' orders to stop and they shot her and she immediately blew up," ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. The woman was dead at the scene.
Khalaf said the would-be bomber was wearing a black abaya, the traditional Islamic cloak, as she headed toward the recruiting center in the Canal area of eastern Baghdad at about 10 a.m. A police officer at the scene, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to talk to the media, said three police recruits were lightly injured. Although suicide bombings regularly claim scores of victims in Iraq's sectarian violence, female bombers remain relatively rare.
In other violence Monday, a Shiite Muslim cleric affiliated with the anti-American Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr was shot and killed as his drove his automobile in Jibala, a town 40 miles south of Baghdad, police said.
A police officer identified the victim as Sheik Abdul-Rahim Mohammed Naief, in charge of the al-Sadr office in Jibala. Police and local residents accused Sunni extremists from nearby villages of being behind the 7:30 a.m. attack. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity since he wasn't authorized to speak with the media.
Khalaf said the would-be bomber was wearing a black abaya, the traditional Islamic cloak, as she headed toward the recruiting center in the Canal area of eastern Baghdad at about 10 a.m. A police officer at the scene, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to talk to the media, said three police recruits were lightly injured. Although suicide bombings regularly claim scores of victims in Iraq's sectarian violence, female bombers remain relatively rare.
In other violence Monday, a Shiite Muslim cleric affiliated with the anti-American Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr was shot and killed as his drove his automobile in Jibala, a town 40 miles south of Baghdad, police said.
A police officer identified the victim as Sheik Abdul-Rahim Mohammed Naief, in charge of the al-Sadr office in Jibala. Police and local residents accused Sunni extremists from nearby villages of being behind the 7:30 a.m. attack. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity since he wasn't authorized to speak with the media.
Labels: female suicide bomber, Moqtada Al-Sadr, police recruits, Sheik Abdul-Rahim Mohammed Naief
Leader of Anbar salvation Council says Islamic State of Iraq may have more weapons than the Iraqi Army
Security, Tribal
(RFE/RL) - Sheikh Abd al-Sattar Abu Rishah, head of the Al-Anbar Salvation Council, told the London-based "Al-Hayat" that the Islamic State of Iraq may have more weapons than the Iraqi Army, the daily reported on June 2. Abu Rishah said that based on the tribes' seven months of fighting the Islamic State in Al-Anbar Governorate, it appears the group "has large armament capabilities, equal to the Iraqi security forces' [capabilities] and even exceeds them."
He contended that the Islamic State systematically looted stockpiles in Al-Iskandariyah, Al-Taji, Al-Mahmudiyah, and Al-Fallujah after the Hussein regime collapsed in 2003. Meanwhile, tribal leader Sattay al-Anzi from Karbala told the daily that militias and insurgent groups have benefited from a strong arms trade due to Iraq's porous borders. "Al-Amarah and Al-Basrah cities have become main outlets for smuggling weapons from Iran and Kuwait," he added.
Labels: Anbar Salvation Council, Islamic State of Iraq, Sattay al-Anzi, Sheikh Abd al-Sattar Abu Rishah, weapons
Al Mutlaq Demands Al Maliki Resign And Encourages Everyone To Stop The Bloodshed In Iraq
Politics
(Azzaman Newspaper) - 4 JUN - Salah Al Mutlaq, the leader of the National Dialogue Front which has 11 seats in the Parliament, demands the Americans and Al Maliki readjust the entire political process. Yesterday, in Amman, during a press conference Al Mutlaq said “Because of the insistence of having this political process, tens of Iraqis and occupiers are killed everyday. The occupier should rethink the political process and the government should do the same thing because this process is not good for their people. Al Maliki should say to the Parliament, “This is my plan, this is my government and this is what I want from you; either accept it or accept my resignation.”
The Prime Minister should make this brave decision. The current government is not capable of leading this country. It is a government built on political entities and people who came for revenge and to eliminate others. Today we need people who can begin national reconciliation. If we have a comparison of the situations before the political process we will see that the situation before was better. He finished saying, “Shame on every politician if he stays in the government and the parliament and without doing anything to stop the Iraqi bleeding.”
Labels: National Dialogue Front, national reconciliation, Nouri Al-Maliki, Salah Al Mutlaq
Kurds stress need for a non-sectarian united government
Politics
(RFE/RL) - Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih told Al-Arabiyah television that all political parties in Iraq agree that the current political landscape in Iraq must change, the news channel reported on June 1. "We undoubtedly have observations about the performance of the government," he said, speaking about the Kurdish position. "The political, sectarian, and nationalist quota system produced a government that is not on the required level in various fields." Salih said that parliament might consider a no-confidence vote. "Iraq has a parliamentary system, and alliances change every now and then," he said.
Referring to former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's efforts to gain support for a nonsectarian-based national-unity government, Salih said: "Iyad Allawi is our friend [and] we have good relations. He discussed this issue [of a new front] with the Kurdish leaders. We stressed the need to have an alliance for the moderates in Iraq and in the Iraqi parliament.... We believe in the need to bring these forces together so that they can serve as a political base for rule in Iraq. Talks were held on this issue with Iyad Allawi and other leaders in the [United Iraqi] Alliance and the Iraqi Accordance Front and we continue to discuss this issue."
Labels: Barham Salih, Iyad Allawi, no-confidence vote, politics
Monday, June 04, 2007
INM daily summary – 4 June 2007
Scroll down for full articles.
- Turkey will deliver a report to the United Nations this week spelling out its concerns about militant Kurdish separatists in Iraq and reaffirming its legal right to take action against them.
- U.S.-led forces have control of fewer than one-third of Baghdad's neighborhoods despite thousands of extra troops nearly four months into a security crackdown.
- After years using outside contractors to tend to the needs of its Iraq bases, the US military is now building zones outside its army posts so Iraqi businesses can actually benefit from their presence.
- Senior British officers in Iraq have produced plans to speed up the withdrawal of troops, allowing the vast majority of the UK's 5,500 troops to return home within 12 months or less.
- Bomb blasts severely damaged a bridge linking a highway from Baghdad with the northern city of Kirkuk on Saturday, the police and witnesses said, heightening tensions between Arabs and Kurds and forcing traffic to detour through some of the most dangerous areas of Diyala Province.
- Web sites often used by al Qaeda-linked groups said on Monday they would soon show the abduction of three Americans, apparently referring to three U.S. soldiers who went missing in Iraq last month after a clash.
- Washington's ambassador to Iraq hinted Sunday that the United States was open to granting amnesty to former Al-Qaeda insurgents who fought against it in the blood-soaked country.
- The militia believed to have seized five British hostages in Baghdad last week has called for UK forces in southern Iraq to be confined to base.
- Kurdistan comes first out of all Iraq's regions with the highest number of landmines, the Iraqi Kurdistan anti-landmine authority – Dahuk Branch said on Sunday.
- Security round-up.
- The U.S. military in Iraq has begun issuing American M-16 rifles to some Iraq troops in exchange for their AK-47 rifles.
U.S. military issues M-16 rifles to some Iraqi troops
Security
HOW THE RIFLES COMPARE
(McClatchy Newspapers) - The U.S. military in Iraq has begun issuing American M-16 rifles to some Iraq troops in exchange for their AK-47 rifles, the cheap and sturdy weapon that currently hangs from the shoulder of virtually every Iraqi soldier, police officer, insurgent and militiaman.
U.S. military officials describe the switch, part of a $2 billion arms purchase for the country's fledgling security soldiers, as a modernization and a vote of confidence in Iraqi troops. The M-16 requires more care than the rugged and familiar AK-47, and demands a better-trained soldier.
That confidence extends only so far, however. With Iraq's security services infiltrated by both Sunni Muslim insurgents and Shiite militias, the U.S. military is requiring that each Iraqi soldier turn in his AK-47, take four days of training, and be photographed with the serial number of his new M-16.
Because the two weapons use different size ammunition, U.S. and Iraqi military leaders hope the change will staunch the flow of ammunition to bad guys. No one, though, thinks the AK-47 or its bullets will vanish from the war-torn Iraqi landscape any time soon.
"The different ammunition will prevent stealing," said Haida Mahmoud, a 31-year-old member of an Iraqi army quick response team in Wasit province southeast of Baghdad. "Now we only get half of the ammunition we should because the other half is stolen."
The AK-47 was developed in the Soviet Union in 1947 by Mikhail Kalashnikov - its name is an abbreviation for Automatic Kalashnikov-1947 - and is renowned for its ease of operation and ability to withstand miserable conditions. The M-16, which U.S. troops began using during the Vietnam War, is considered more accurate and lighter, but also more complicated to keep clean and operate.
U.S. military officials estimated before the war that between 1 million and 7 million AK-47s were in private hands in Iraq. Some reportedly sold for as little as $10. The number of Kalashnikovs only grew when the Iraqi military collapsed and many troops walked off with their AK-47s - some to defend their homes, others to fill arsenals of sectarian militias or insurgent groups.
At the same time, Iraq's porous borders with Syria and Iran make easy smuggling routes for small arms.
"The Middle East, and Iraq in particular, is awash in both AK-47s and AK-47 ammo," said Charles Heyman, a retired British infantry officer and the editor of Armed Forces of the United Kingdom. "It's not going away."
Still, Heyman said that arming Iraqi soldiers with the same weapons as the Americans they're fighting alongside is a savvy logistical move.
The U.S. troop surge that began three months ago, and the companion effort to increase security in Baghdad, puts U.S. and Iraqi soldiers together in what the military calls "joint security stations." Those work something like neighborhood precinct stations where American and Iraqi troops often share living quarters and supplies.
To keep them armed with incompatible weapons would be like issuing half an office staff Windows-based computers and the rest iMacs. Heyman said dumping the Kalashnikovs, then, streamlines operations. It also will make it more difficult for insurgents to make use of weapons that they capture or steal from official Iraqi arsenals.
Weapons theft has been rampant in Iraq. The Iraq Study Group report issued last year found "there are ample reports of Iraqi police officers participating in training in order to obtain a weapon, uniform, and ammunition for use in sectarian violence."
The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction concluded in a November 2006 audit that only 2 percent of the serial numbers were recorded of more than 500,000 U.S. weapons legally transferred to the country. Those weapons ranged from pistols to rocket launchers.
"The United States has no idea what happened to the majority of weapons it brought into the country," said Rachel Stohl, a senior analyst and small arms specialist for the Center for Defense Information. "We do know these weapons, in conjunction with the millions already in the country left from Saddam's era, are being used to perpetuate the violence and continued instability throughout Iraq."
Publicly, Iraqi defense officials and troops call the switch an endorsement of what they say is their growing professionalism. "We are modernizing our Army and this is the more modern weapon," said Maj. Gen. Majid Jwad, one of the Iraqis who test-fired both guns and weighed in on the decision.
Already, more than 1,000 Iraqi soldiers have made the switch to the $1,000 rifles, with three-fourths of the cost paid by the Iraqi government. The first M-16s, and M-4s for officers, have been placed with Iraqi troops who're working in concert with American troops in Baghdad. None has been given to police units, which are considered less reliable and more corrupt. But eventually their day will come, too.
Soldiers have to adapt to some differences. The Kalashnikov can fire its entire magazine with a single pull of the trigger. The M-16 - in a reflection of Americans' preference for precision soldiering - tops out at three-shot bursts. "We can't just hand them out from the back of a truck and say, `Hey, here's your weapon,'" said Col. David Dornblaser, a security assistance officer helping the Iraqis with their foreign arms buys. But the switch will be worth it, he said, because trafficking the new rifles will be difficult. Someone out of uniform carrying an M-16 would more obviously be toting a stolen weapon.
HOW THE RIFLES COMPARE
(McClatchy Newspapers) - The U.S. military in Iraq has begun issuing American M-16 rifles to some Iraq troops in exchange for their AK-47 rifles, the cheap and sturdy weapon that currently hangs from the shoulder of virtually every Iraqi soldier, police officer, insurgent and militiaman.
U.S. military officials describe the switch, part of a $2 billion arms purchase for the country's fledgling security soldiers, as a modernization and a vote of confidence in Iraqi troops. The M-16 requires more care than the rugged and familiar AK-47, and demands a better-trained soldier.
That confidence extends only so far, however. With Iraq's security services infiltrated by both Sunni Muslim insurgents and Shiite militias, the U.S. military is requiring that each Iraqi soldier turn in his AK-47, take four days of training, and be photographed with the serial number of his new M-16.
Because the two weapons use different size ammunition, U.S. and Iraqi military leaders hope the change will staunch the flow of ammunition to bad guys. No one, though, thinks the AK-47 or its bullets will vanish from the war-torn Iraqi landscape any time soon.
"The different ammunition will prevent stealing," said Haida Mahmoud, a 31-year-old member of an Iraqi army quick response team in Wasit province southeast of Baghdad. "Now we only get half of the ammunition we should because the other half is stolen."
The AK-47 was developed in the Soviet Union in 1947 by Mikhail Kalashnikov - its name is an abbreviation for Automatic Kalashnikov-1947 - and is renowned for its ease of operation and ability to withstand miserable conditions. The M-16, which U.S. troops began using during the Vietnam War, is considered more accurate and lighter, but also more complicated to keep clean and operate.
U.S. military officials estimated before the war that between 1 million and 7 million AK-47s were in private hands in Iraq. Some reportedly sold for as little as $10. The number of Kalashnikovs only grew when the Iraqi military collapsed and many troops walked off with their AK-47s - some to defend their homes, others to fill arsenals of sectarian militias or insurgent groups.
At the same time, Iraq's porous borders with Syria and Iran make easy smuggling routes for small arms.
"The Middle East, and Iraq in particular, is awash in both AK-47s and AK-47 ammo," said Charles Heyman, a retired British infantry officer and the editor of Armed Forces of the United Kingdom. "It's not going away."
Still, Heyman said that arming Iraqi soldiers with the same weapons as the Americans they're fighting alongside is a savvy logistical move.
The U.S. troop surge that began three months ago, and the companion effort to increase security in Baghdad, puts U.S. and Iraqi soldiers together in what the military calls "joint security stations." Those work something like neighborhood precinct stations where American and Iraqi troops often share living quarters and supplies.
To keep them armed with incompatible weapons would be like issuing half an office staff Windows-based computers and the rest iMacs. Heyman said dumping the Kalashnikovs, then, streamlines operations. It also will make it more difficult for insurgents to make use of weapons that they capture or steal from official Iraqi arsenals.
Weapons theft has been rampant in Iraq. The Iraq Study Group report issued last year found "there are ample reports of Iraqi police officers participating in training in order to obtain a weapon, uniform, and ammunition for use in sectarian violence."
The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction concluded in a November 2006 audit that only 2 percent of the serial numbers were recorded of more than 500,000 U.S. weapons legally transferred to the country. Those weapons ranged from pistols to rocket launchers.
"The United States has no idea what happened to the majority of weapons it brought into the country," said Rachel Stohl, a senior analyst and small arms specialist for the Center for Defense Information. "We do know these weapons, in conjunction with the millions already in the country left from Saddam's era, are being used to perpetuate the violence and continued instability throughout Iraq."
Publicly, Iraqi defense officials and troops call the switch an endorsement of what they say is their growing professionalism. "We are modernizing our Army and this is the more modern weapon," said Maj. Gen. Majid Jwad, one of the Iraqis who test-fired both guns and weighed in on the decision.
Already, more than 1,000 Iraqi soldiers have made the switch to the $1,000 rifles, with three-fourths of the cost paid by the Iraqi government. The first M-16s, and M-4s for officers, have been placed with Iraqi troops who're working in concert with American troops in Baghdad. None has been given to police units, which are considered less reliable and more corrupt. But eventually their day will come, too.
Soldiers have to adapt to some differences. The Kalashnikov can fire its entire magazine with a single pull of the trigger. The M-16 - in a reflection of Americans' preference for precision soldiering - tops out at three-shot bursts. "We can't just hand them out from the back of a truck and say, `Hey, here's your weapon,'" said Col. David Dornblaser, a security assistance officer helping the Iraqis with their foreign arms buys. But the switch will be worth it, he said, because trafficking the new rifles will be difficult. Someone out of uniform carrying an M-16 would more obviously be toting a stolen weapon.
Labels: AK-47, Iraqi Army, M-16 rifles, M-4 rifles, U.S. military
Round-up of violence across Iraq
Security
Roundup of Iraq Violence -- Sunday, June 3, 2007 - 6/03/2007
(McClatchy News) - At least 14 people died in violence in Diyala province, nine of them in a car bombing in the town of Baladruz and five by execution at a fake checkpoint in Ghalbiya. Thirty-one bodies were found on Baghdad streets.
(Reuters) - Following are security developments in Iraq at 1100 GMT on Monday:
* denotes new or updated item.
* BAGHDAD - A bomb planted inside an ambulance killed one person and wounded three others in the Bab al-Muadham area of central Baghdad, police said.
* YUSUFIYA - A roadside bomb targeting a police patrol killed one policeman and wounded three others near the town of Yusufiya, 15 km (10 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
* MOSUL - A roadside bomb exploded near a fuel truck, wounding the driver and setting the truck on fire in Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.
* BAGHDAD - The Iraqi army killed seven insurgents and arrested 57 others during the past 24 hours in different areas of Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb killed three people and wounded eight in Zaafaraniya district of southern Baghdad, police said.
MOSUL - A suicide truck bomber wounded two guards at the house of a local police brigadier near Mosul, police said.
MOSUL - Gunmen killed a Chaldean Catholic priest and three of his assistants in Mosul on Sunday, police said on Monday.
TAJI - A suicide car bomber killed three Iraqi soldiers and wounded three at a checkpoint near Taji, 20 km (9 miles) north of Baghdad, on Sunday, an Iraqi military source said.
* denotes new or updated item.
* BAGHDAD - A bomb planted inside an ambulance killed one person and wounded three others in the Bab al-Muadham area of central Baghdad, police said.
* YUSUFIYA - A roadside bomb targeting a police patrol killed one policeman and wounded three others near the town of Yusufiya, 15 km (10 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
* MOSUL - A roadside bomb exploded near a fuel truck, wounding the driver and setting the truck on fire in Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.
* BAGHDAD - The Iraqi army killed seven insurgents and arrested 57 others during the past 24 hours in different areas of Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb killed three people and wounded eight in Zaafaraniya district of southern Baghdad, police said.
MOSUL - A suicide truck bomber wounded two guards at the house of a local police brigadier near Mosul, police said.
MOSUL - Gunmen killed a Chaldean Catholic priest and three of his assistants in Mosul on Sunday, police said on Monday.
TAJI - A suicide car bomber killed three Iraqi soldiers and wounded three at a checkpoint near Taji, 20 km (9 miles) north of Baghdad, on Sunday, an Iraqi military source said.
Kurdistan has the most landmines out of all Iraq's regions
Kurdistan
(Iraq Updates) - Kurdistan comes first out of all Iraq's regions with the highest number of landmines, the Iraqi Kurdistan anti-landmine authority – Dahuk Branch said on Sunday. "Authority staff managed to remove 1,532 anti-personnel landmines, 47 anti-armor landmines and 1,074 cluster and fissile bombs in a year," Eng. Uwainan Youssef told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
"The area cleared of landmines this year reached 321,519 square meters, in addition to 12,978 square meters cleared using sweepers," he said, adding that 3,251,154 square meters have been examined by bomb squads.
Youssef said 53 villages benefited from the authority's work, noting that landmines were removed from a large area covering 10 fields where oil pipelines are laid.
"We have not scanned for any internationally banned unexploded bombs but we have detonated several phosphoric bombs, which are highly dangerous, in the area of Bishapour near the Iraqi-Syrian-Turkish border triangle," said the Iraqi explosives expert.
"The area cleared of landmines this year reached 321,519 square meters, in addition to 12,978 square meters cleared using sweepers," he said, adding that 3,251,154 square meters have been examined by bomb squads.
Youssef said 53 villages benefited from the authority's work, noting that landmines were removed from a large area covering 10 fields where oil pipelines are laid.
"We have not scanned for any internationally banned unexploded bombs but we have detonated several phosphoric bombs, which are highly dangerous, in the area of Bishapour near the Iraqi-Syrian-Turkish border triangle," said the Iraqi explosives expert.
Labels: Bishapour, Iraqi Kurdistan anti-landmine authority, Kurdistan, landmines, phosphoric bombs
Mahdi Army calls for Brits in Basra to be confined to base
Security
(The Times) - The militia believed to have seized five British hostages in Baghdad last week has called for UK forces in southern Iraq to be confined to base. Representatives of the Mahdi Army of Moqtada al-Sadr, the radical Shi’ite cleric, have demanded an immediate end to patrols in Basra and attempts to kill its leaders, according to one well connected but unconfirmed source.
They are also seeking the release of nine Mahdi officials from British and American custody, including Sheikh Abdul al-Hadi Darraji, Sadr’s chief spokesman, who was detained by US troops in January. In public statements the Iranian-backed Mahdi Army has denied that it abducted the British computer expert and four security guards captured in an audacious raid on Iraq’s finance ministry last Tuesday.
However, according to a senior Iraqi government source, one of Sadr’s officials visited Nouri al-Maliki, the prime minister, on Wednesday night. The official said the men were “safe and sound” but would not be freed until the Mahdi demands were met, the source added. Maliki is said to have responded by urging that the hostages be freed immediately and promising that an agreement would follow.
As the hunt for the hostages intensified, an SAS major in charge of about 300 British special forces in Baghdad was playing a leading role. The British team comprised around 80 SAS men, 120 para-troopers from the Special Forces Support Group and 100 intelligence experts including members of the Special Reconnaissance Regiment. The intelligence effort was augmented by a small team from MI6.
Early sweeps of Baghdad were focused on Sadr city, a sprawling Shi’ite slum with 2m inhabitants. One Mahdi Army source said that as a result the hostages had been transferred to Diyala province, between Baghdad and the Iranian border.
The meeting in Maliki’s office followed an approach by an Iraqi MP allied to the Mahdi Army, who offered to introduce what one source called a “Sadrist mediator”. He is said to have called for the curbs on British forces after they supported an Iraqi operation in which Abu Qadir, the militia’s leader in Basra, was shot dead.
They are also seeking the release of nine Mahdi officials from British and American custody, including Sheikh Abdul al-Hadi Darraji, Sadr’s chief spokesman, who was detained by US troops in January. In public statements the Iranian-backed Mahdi Army has denied that it abducted the British computer expert and four security guards captured in an audacious raid on Iraq’s finance ministry last Tuesday.
However, according to a senior Iraqi government source, one of Sadr’s officials visited Nouri al-Maliki, the prime minister, on Wednesday night. The official said the men were “safe and sound” but would not be freed until the Mahdi demands were met, the source added. Maliki is said to have responded by urging that the hostages be freed immediately and promising that an agreement would follow.
As the hunt for the hostages intensified, an SAS major in charge of about 300 British special forces in Baghdad was playing a leading role. The British team comprised around 80 SAS men, 120 para-troopers from the Special Forces Support Group and 100 intelligence experts including members of the Special Reconnaissance Regiment. The intelligence effort was augmented by a small team from MI6.
Early sweeps of Baghdad were focused on Sadr city, a sprawling Shi’ite slum with 2m inhabitants. One Mahdi Army source said that as a result the hostages had been transferred to Diyala province, between Baghdad and the Iranian border.
The meeting in Maliki’s office followed an approach by an Iraqi MP allied to the Mahdi Army, who offered to introduce what one source called a “Sadrist mediator”. He is said to have called for the curbs on British forces after they supported an Iraqi operation in which Abu Qadir, the militia’s leader in Basra, was shot dead.
Labels: Abu Qadir, Basra, British hostages, Diyala, Mahdi Army, Nouri Al-Maliki, Sheikh Abdul al-Hadi Darraji
