The Husseiniya threshold resolves the biggest tribal conflict in Basra that has lasted for years

[Butifldrm]

 

2018/07/16 12:57

•  

Al-Hadithi: Demonstrations affect the government's ability to attract investments

 

 

BAGHDAD / Masala: Saad al-Hadithi, spokesman for Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, said Monday, July 16, 2018, that solving the problems of the southern provinces is not linked to the will of the government, indicating that it can not be solved and completed in months. 

Al-Hadithi said that "the demonstration is a right guaranteed by the Constitution and we stress and emphasize the importance of respecting it, but at the same time we say that overriding the public establishment and state property and companies operating in the province leads to negatively affect the ability of the government to attract investments and the primary goal of bringing investments. Of jobs ".

He added that "the government deals positively with the demands of the demonstrators and provide the best services and rehabilitation of infrastructure and urban life and the government had during the previous period priorities and was the initial war on terrorism with all the meaning of the war and all the necessary resources and capabilities of financial and administrative and organizational and logistical and the threat that threatens Baghdad and the provinces and had The highest priority and succeeded the security forces and the armed forces to achieve victory and then began the government work towards providing services and provide infrastructure and improve the living conditions of the Iraqi citizen in all the provinces of Iraq. 

He stressed that "the government has faced another challenge in addition to the challenge of the war on terrorism The challenge is the existence of an unprecedented financial crisis in Iraq after the formation of the government so that the imports of the Iraqi government to a third of what it was before the formation of the government and this greatly affected the ability of the government to complete strategic projects and service Promote the reality of the Iraqi citizen. "

He added that "despite the challenges, the government has worked in the framework of the possibilities available to it to seek the international community and international partners to carry out projects through soft loans and already allocated about 50% of the Japanese loan for projects in Basra and the lion's share of the British loan was also for projects in the province of Basra within the framework of Water projects, electricity projects and other services. " 

He pointed out that "these projects can not be completed in months, where it takes years to solve the problems of Basra and others that need long-term strategic solutions and these need complex procedures and time to achieve and to cooperate with international partners to provide financial support and therefore the process is not related only to the will The Iraqi government can not be completed in weeks or months. "

He explained that "we now have a project on water desalination, where the ministerial committee, which was commissioned to visit Basra to start the launch of a desalination plant with a capacity of 3 thousand cubic meters and this part of the strategic direction set by the government." 

He added that "the government has been able in the past days and since the start of the protests in Basra to allocate about 3 thousand megawatts in the province of Basra and no longer go any electrical energy outside the province in addition to our quest with the Iranian side to provide the province with another 400 megawatts across the Basra line Khrshnao and this leads to an increase Seeking processing at a daily rate of 16 hours to 20 hours in the province of Basra. " 

"The government has already given privacy to the province when it provided more of its quota than other Iraqi provinces because of high temperatures and high humidity," he said.

Regarding the other services, he stressed that "the government is working to address them in the field of water through increased water releases in the Bida water project and through linking the water project and the network of water pipes in the province of Basra." 
He pointed out that "the government is keen to respond positively and in the framework of its pursuit of this response, where the Prime Minister during a meeting with the President of the Basra Oil Company on the status of a mechanism to accommodate the degrees of functional estimated about 10 thousand degrees and functional. 

"The government is seeking to respond to the demands of the demonstrators, but the government was not relaxed was facing the threat of terrorism and did not have sufficient financial imports and this impact on the ability of the government to implement investment projects and service major." 

He explained that "

Follow the obelisk

http://almasalah.com/ar/news/144136/الحديثي-التظاهرت-تؤثرعلى-قدرة-الحكومة-في-جذب-الاستثمارات

[blueskyline]

Thank You and GM Buti ..Al hadithi ofcourse they affect investments..

[TexasMike1958]

10 hours ago, yota691 said:

Abadi calls for using other means instead of bullets to disperse demonstrators

Sunday 15 July 2018 - 11:52 PM

 

 

Prime Minister Haider Abadi on Sunday called for the use of other means instead of bullets to disperse the demonstrators.

"Our main battle is to be ready to confront the terrorists, the need to confront the attacks on state institutions, and those who do not confront the defense of state institutions are considered backward," Abbadi said in a speech to security ministers and heads of the security services.

"We need accurate intelligence to isolate the real citizens who demand their rights from those who attack state institutions and burn them," he said, adding that "organized crime is trying to pour oil into the fire."

Abadi called for "the use of other means instead of live bullets to disperse the demonstrators," pointing out that "non-use of live bullets does not mean not to address."

Basra and most of the central and southern governorates are witnessing demonstrations to demand better service conditions and the elimination of unemployment.

 

What other means could they use????  Hmmmm....perhaps RV their currency so they can use their money for something other than a dartboard

[newbieDA]

Came out 20 minutes ago

 

 

[yota691]

With the continuation of the demonstrations .. Basra registered about 140 thousand unemployed

03:34 - 16/07/2018

 

 

 

Basrah - Mawazine News The Human Rights Commission in Basra, on Monday, the registration of about 140 thousand unemployed, with the continuation of demonstrations demanding job opportunities and improve services in the province. 
"The number of registered unemployed is 139,500 unemployed, or 60 percent," said the head of the branch, Mahdi al-Tamimi, at a press conference held today. 
He added that "the demands of the demonstrators in the province is to provide employment opportunities for the unemployed, and the Commission supports their legitimate rights," noting that "Basra is the most areas of the world in violation of life, which is water for drinking, whether for humans, animals and plants." 
He noted that "the Commission is following with concern the process of dismantling sit-ins or protests, and that excessive use of force through firing and excessive use of tear gas and excessive use of physical force clubs and sticks against demonstrators."
"Demonstrators are peaceful, but some of the protesters and saboteurs who want to influence the peaceful demonstration have been registered and derailed." 
The province of Basra and several southern provinces, since last week demonstrations calling for the provision of jobs and improve the reality of services, especially electricity and drinking water, Vtm demonstrators cut roads leading to oil companies in Basra. 
A committee set up by the government to follow up the situation in Basra announced the provision of 10,000 jobs for the unemployed in the province, noting that the application will begin within a week.

[10 YEARS LATER]

This is what happens when corruption, corrupts completely and the regular folks have finally had enough. Sure, there’s the belligerents agitating and creating chaos in hopes of further disruption: at its core however, the people have just plain had enough of being bent over, screwed over, fleeced & sheared like sheep. 

[DinarDavo]

Time to share the wealth.    

[js214]

On ‎7‎/‎15‎/‎2018 at 7:12 AM, ChuckFinley said:

This is absolutely correct in my book. All these gurus and intel guys know less than we do. We stay the course here and we will see the fruits of our labor. 

Comforting getting that subtle confirmation from you Chuck that My thinking is along these same lines.. 

[Pitcher]

Iran tries to exploit Iraqi protests, but faces a severe backlash

 

 

Iran is still attempting to make use of the mass protests currently staged in many Iraqi province in order to carry out its scheme regarding halting oil exports in the Gulf region, especially in Iraq.

 

Observers said that Iran is not only responsible for cutting electricity and water in the south, but it also inciting Basra's residents against oil companies operating there because they are not recruiting them.

 

The observers pointed out that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani threats that process of preventing oil companies in the Gulf from working and exporting their oil would start from southern Iraq prove that Iran is standing behind the crisis.

Analysts stressed that Iran is playing a "dirty game" as the mullah's regime has promised to spread chaos in the region to disrupt oil sales in the Gulf.

 

On the other hand, the Iraqis' chants against the Iranian regime and its affiliated militias unmasked the ugly face of Iran and uncovered its corruptive policies.

 

Some protesters set tires on fire and tried to break into the Badr militia, a Shiite political party and paramilitary force that “perhaps the single most powerful Shi'ite paramilitary group” fighting in Iraq.

 

Shiite community's spiritual leader, the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, has claimed his solidarity with the protesters, saying they faced an “extreme lack of public services” such as electricity in the suffocating summer heat.

 

At the same time, He also called on the Iraqi protesters to express their opinions in a peaceful and civilized way so as not to allow some foreign bodies to exploit the crisis and to carry out acts of sabotage.

 

But, he already knows that such vandalisms were committed by Iran Militia in Iraq and Syria (IMIS)-affiliated terrorists, some of whom have been already arrested.

 

Hundreds of Iraqis stormed the airport and halted air traffic in the Shia holy city of Najaf, extending protests.

 

In Amara, protesters occupied the headquarters of the provincial governorate, threw stones at branches of the Shia Dawa party and the powerful Badr militia, which has close ties to Iran, and beat up policemen.

 

Observers said that these protests uncovered the corruptive Iranian Regime, accusing it of misleading the Iraqi people.

 

Burning the headquarters of Shiite parties, which were controlling the political matters in the Iraqi arena proves the Iraqis' awareness of the Iranian malicious intentions, observers added.

The current wave of protests serves as a caution about repeated waves of protest and a rising tide of anger that could put the country on a path to undesirable consequences.

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/29544/Iran-tries-to-exploit-Iraqi-protests-but-faces-a-severe-backlash5

[Pitcher]

A source in the Iraqi cabinet said on Monday that Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi will adopt a number of measures during the next cabinet meeting in order to contain the ongoing protests.

 

The source pointed out that the prime minister will dismiss a number of executive officials, especially after news spread about the dismissal of Minister of Electricity, Qasim al-Fahadawi.

 

He added that Abadi will hold meetings with the governors of the central and southern provinces to discuss with them fund allocation.

 

A number of Iraqi cities, including Basra, Maysan, Dhi Qar, Babil, Diwaniyah, Wassit and Karbala are witnessing mass demonstrations and sit-ins in protest against shortage of jobs, electricity, water and basic services.

 

Some demonstrators broke into and attacked several local government headquarters in these provinces during the current period.

 

Activists expressed concern the IRGC militia exploits the ongoing turmoil to spread terror and hamper oil transfers.

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/29543/Abadi-to-adopt-measures-to-contain-protests-source

[Pitcher]

Well-informed sources said on Monday that security forces have launched a large-scale arrest campaign against Maysan protesters.

A number of Iraqi cities, including Basra, Maysan, Dhi Qar, Babil, Diwaniyah, Wassit and Karbala are witnessing mass demonstrations and sit-ins in protest against shortage of jobs, electricity, water and basic services.

Some demonstrators broke into and attacked several local government headquarters in these provinces during the current period.

Activists expressed concern that the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps militia exploits the ongoing turmoil to spread terror and hamper oil transfers.

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/29537/Large-scale-arrest-campaign-launched-against-Maysan-protesters

[yota691]

Demonstrations in Iraq .. Burning images of Khomeini and Khamenei in Basra

 

• 7/16/2018
  Activists in social networking sites said on Sunday (July 15th) that citizens in Basra burned pictures of Khamenei and Khomeini and demanded that religious authorities issue fatwas against government officials of the Iranian regime.

  The demonstrators in Muthanna province, Iraq on Sunday evening (July 15th) offices of the Dawa party headed by Nuri al-Maliki and the Badr Organization headed by Hadi al-Ameri under the title of corrupt and misguided parties affiliated to the Iranian regime. They also destroyed the Samawah TV station of Badr Organization.

  An Iraqi security source said two demonstrators were killed during clashes with police and security forces on Sunday (July 15th) in the city of Sulaymaniyah. The source added that the people in Samawah tried to seize the building of the court and the security forces opened fire on them.  

  Government buildings stormed by Iraqi demonstrators

  Contrary to the government's announcement to take action to contain the unrest in the southern Iraqi cities, on Sunday the protests continued in the cities and people tried to storm the headquarters of the government and oil installations.

  In the center of Basra, protesters stormed the governorate building but police dispersed them using tear gas. Four people were also injured when they were shot by police who tried to disperse the demonstrators. People tried to storm the Zubayr oil facility south-west of Basra, but security forces prevented them. During these confrontations, a number of reporters were exposed to respiratory problems following the firing of tear gas by the Iraqi security forces.

     

[yota691]

Today .. Recommendations of the Governmental Committee on the table of the Council of Ministers

17/7/2018 12:00 am    Baghdad / Al-Sabah  accelerated the measures aimed at providing the basic services advocated by the demonstrators in a number of central and southern governorates, especially after the end of the ministerial committee to consider these demands, the preparation of its report on the reality of those services, and submit its recommendations to the Council of Ministers, which is expected to Making important decisions after discussing these recommendations at its regular meeting on Tuesday.  While Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi reiterated yesterday the "right of the people to claim their rights and improve services," he pointed out that "it is our duty to meet them, to respond to demands made in a peaceful manner and to isolate the abusers."  The president promised to exert every effort to support the interests of the people of Basra, especially in the economic, functional and environmental fields. "Our people have the right to demand their rights, to improve services, to meet them, to respond to demands that are made peacefully and to isolate the offended," Abbadi said during a visit to the headquarters of the Popular Propaganda Organization. The courage of its fighters and the precious sacrifices made by the rest of the security forces to achieve victory and rescue the people of liberated areas and defend them and all Iraqis ».    He called on the security forces that have achieved victory and security in their unity to contribute to support the campaign of construction and reconstruction that we are aiming to achieve and that the state of unity and cooperation between citizens and security services continues. In the meantime, the government media cell announced that the ministerial committee formed to consider the needs of the province of Basra, has completed the preparation of its report on the reality of services in this province, and raised its recommendations to the Council of Ministers for discussion at a regular meeting on Tuesday.  A number of measures will be taken regarding the service file in Basra and the rest of the central and southern governorates, including those related to the water, electricity, health and public services sectors and providing job opportunities for the unemployed in accordance with the plans and procedures for urgent, medium and long term priorities   and population density. The spokesman of the Ministry of Oil Assem Jihad said during a press conference of the government media cell at the headquarters of the Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, the stability of production and exports of oil from southern Iraq and the continued flow of those exports with high flow, while the spokesman of the Ministry of Health, Saif Al-Badr, Dozens of security forces during the riots that accompanied the demonstrations in the cities of central and southern Iraq, most of them received treatment in government hospitals, indicating the targeting of an ambulance during the provision of medical services to the injured, the driver was killed, while his assistant was   seriously injured.

[Butifldrm]

 

2018/07/16 23:55

•  

Government action package: equitable distribution of energy levels and the release of job grades

 

 

BAGHDAD / A source in the Council of Ministers, Monday 16 July 2018, the adoption of the President of the Council Haider Abadi, a package of new procedures during the next cabinet meeting.

The source said in a press statement followed by the "Masala" that "the Prime Minister Haider Abadi after he issued his new decisions on Basra and fired degrees of employment and financial allocations from the emergency reserve for Basra, and now headed to implement under his supervision and follow-up."

He added that "the most prominent of these packages is the use of wide powers of the energy and electricity sector in order to distribute energy levels in a fair manner, and the formation of a committee to oversee the projects to be implemented in Basra in accordance with the new financial allocations of about $ 2 billion, and the referral of executives in the southern provinces to integrity, And to prioritize the government on agreements with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank regarding the fiscal policy of austerity imposed by the two parties mentioned.

"Abadi will hold new meetings with the central and southern governors to market the financial allocations in the correct manner."

And witnessed the southern provinces, new protests for the seventh day in a row, clashes between demonstrators and security forces and acts of sabotage targeting the headquarters of parties and attempts to break into administrative headquarters and others, which led to the deaths and injuries.

Follow the obelisk 

 

http://almasalah.com/ar/news/144192/حزمة-اجراءات-حكومية-توزيع-عادل-لمستويات-الطاقة-واطلاق-درجات-وظيفية

 

 

[Pitcher]

At least seven people have been injured in the oil-rich Iraqi city of Basra after police fired tear gas and water cannon at protesters rallying for better services and employment opportunities, police and activists have said.

In the latest in a week of daily protests against corruption and poor governance, hundreds of Iraqis gathered outside Basra's main provincial government building on Sunday, before the situation quickly turned violent and security forces began firing in the air and used tear gas and water cannon.

"Some protesters tried to storm the building," one police source told Reuters news agency.

"We prevented them by using water cannons and tear gas."

According to the source, nineteen members from the security forces were wounded by stone-throwing protesters.

Activist Laith Hussein said the protesters numbered in the "thousands," and managed to force the closure of the vital Umm Qasr port on the Gulf and roads leading to major oil fields to the north and west of Basra.

The mounting anger comes at a sensitive time as Iraqi politicians struggle to form a government following a May 12 parliamentary election tainted by allegations of fraud.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is heading a fragile caretaker government until a new one can be formed, has announced that his government would release funds to Basra for water, electricity and health services in the suffocating summer heat.

WATCH: Protests rage in Iraq over poor public services, unemployment (2:11)

Earlier this week, he announced investments worth $3bn for Basra province, as well as promises to provide jobs, housing, schools and services.

But so far, the protesters have ignored his concessions and taken the unusual step of attacking local government headquarters and buildings belonging to powerful Shiamilitias.

On Friday, they stormed and set fire to office buildings used by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's Islamic Dawa Party, the Iranian-backed Al-Badr Organisation and the Shia Supreme Islamic Council Party, leading to the imposition of a curfew.

Al-Abadi, who also serves as the country's commander-in-chief of the armed forces, dispatched reinforcement soldiers from both the Counter Terrorism Service and the Army's Ninth Division to Basra late on Saturday and placed security forces there on high alert.

Qassim al-Araji, Iraq's Interior Minister, told Al Jazeera that the government would not tolerate attacks against state institutions.

"Our duty is to provide security for all Iraqis, and also to listen to the demands and salute all protesters, but those who assault the institutions of the state and the security forces and its investments, disrupt the aspirations of the people, should be held to account."

There are no real lines of communication between the two sides with the government doing nothing except holding talks while the prime minister is making promises which he is not implementing

Empty promises

Ranked the joint tenth-most corrupt country in the world by Transparency International, southern areas of Iraq has been gripped by protests over lack of jobs, the rising cost of living and an absence of basic services. 

The region is home to the oil fields that account for the vast majority of the more than three million barrels of oil Iraq exports every day. Yet, it remains underdeveloped and has suffered from chronic power outages, poor water quality and uncollected waste.

Rampant electricity cuts have also exacerbated a sweltering heat wave, with Basra seeing temperatures exceed 48 degrees Celsius in recent days.

Saad Jawad, a professor of political science at the London School of Economics, said if there were no "concrete steps" taken by the government, protests would continue to flare.

Jawad said that the protests against the Shia-led government were taking place in Iraq's Shia provinces, and that al-Abadi was politically "weak" in finding a solution.

"There are no real lines of communication between the two sides with the government doing nothing except holding talks while the prime minister is making promises which he is not implementing.

"The numbers of protesters and increasing and they are even threatening the Green Zone in Baghdad, Jawad told Al Jazeera from the UK capital.

"If the people don't see concrete improvements in their lives that satisfy their demands - improvements in electricity, employment, services and actions against corrupt officials - they won't stand down. 

"The government needs to address their grievances."

On Friday, protesters got a boost from Iraqi's top Shia leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who offered solidarity with the people during a sermon.

"Basra is number one in providing the country with financial revenue," said Abdel Mahdi al-Karbalai, the representative of al-Sistani.

"It is the number one in the number of martyrs and those who have been wounded in the fight against the Islamic State. So it is not fair, indeed it is not acceptable, that this governorate is one of Iraq's poorest."

 

 

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/07/iraq-deadly-basra-protests-spread-cities-180716161530993.html

•  

[Butifldrm]

Details of what Abadi said to a delegation of the people of Najaf

3 hours ago

Viewing
NRT
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi told a delegation of Najaf residents on Monday that there are those who want sabotage so that Najaf can retreat economically, indicating that security is the basis of life.

"During his meeting with a delegation of Najaf residents, Abadi stressed his support for peaceful demonstration, expression of opinion and demands, so that the performance of the state is sound and serves the citizens," the prime minister's press office said in a statement on July 16, 2018.

"Abadi pointed out the importance of the real demands, but there are those who want sabotage so that Najaf will retreat economically and not be reached by businessmen and investors," the statement said, noting that "security is the basis of life."

"We have taken a decision to cancel the previous administration of Najaf airport and the flights have returned to the airport," he said.

"Iraq has gone through dangerous conditions by occupying its land, but it has returned stronger than the former security, military and economic steadfastness of the Iraqis and their unity, and transferred the state from the demise to victory and liberation and force . "

"The demands of the people of Najaf regarding electricity, water, agriculture, job opportunities, health and other demands have been discussed and solutions have been found," the statement said.

 

http://www.nrttv.com/AR/News.aspx?id=2407&MapID=2

[Pitcher]

Over the last few days, Iraq’s southern provinces have witnessed widespread protests, with some turning violent. Protesters voiced legitimate demands, but also attacked vital public facilities, such as Najaf International Airport, leading to the suspension of its operations. Offices of political parties were also attacked in what appeared to be a continuation of the political violence taking place elsewhere in Iraq following the May 12 parliamentary elections.

There are two key actors that have an interest in destabilizing Iraq: Daesh and Iran. They feed on each other’s presence and maintain a distant marriage of convenience as they seek to maintain their influence in Iraq.

In last week’s column, I discussed Daesh’s attempts at regrouping in Iraq and elsewhere. The post-election uncertainty has delayed stabilization, feeding popular discontent. More than $30 billion was promised by allies at the international reconstruction conference held in Kuwait in February, but only a limited amount has been delivered due to that uncertainty.

Today, I will address Iran’s direct destabilizing role in Iraq and its interest in stoking the current chaos.

Keeping Iraq under its control would be Tehran’s first option but, if that does not happen, the second best option would be to keep it ungovernable.

Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg

Iran’s interests are multifold. Keeping Iraq under its control would be Tehran’s first option but, if that does not happen, the second best option would be to keep it ungovernable. An independent Iraq would gravitate toward its Arab neighbors and the West, while a chaotic Iraq would keep it dependent on Iran and its proxies.

The most immediate concern for Iran is how to deal with US sanctions. Iraq could help blunt the sanctions’ bite by providing a surreptitious loophole in sanction implementation that Iran could use. As happened in the past, a chaotic Iraq would make it easier to smuggle in banned material and send out exports, including oil.

In addition, a pro-Iranian government could help Tehran deal with its restive western provinces, which have been a main center for anti-regime disturbances.

Iraq’s elections on May 12 did not give any political party a majority to form a new government, but they did produce some hopeful indications that Iraqis wanted a new, independent direction for their country, free of corruption and divisive politics. Voters gave the lead to groups and politicians who advocated such a direction.

The biggest number of parliamentary seats (54) went to a coalition headed by the cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr, who is fiercely opposed to Iran and outside meddling in general. A pro-Iranian coalition came in second (47 seats), while incumbent Prime Minister Haider Abadi came in third with 42 seats for his coalition. The remainder of the 329 seats were divided among many smaller political, tribal, ethnic and religious lists and individual candidates.

Any future government will have to govern through a coalition, but analysts quickly concluded that the results meant Iran would lose its favored political position in Iraq. That was Tehran’s conclusion as well, it appears. As the election results started coming out and Iran feared it might lose some of its influence in Baghdad, it dispatched officials to try and influence the choice of prime minister and the shape of the future government.

Iran’s moves, combined with recent violence directed against anti-Iranian groups — including the offices of a member of Al-Sadr’s bloc in Baghdad — have complicated the formation of the new government. The longer that impasse continues, the greater the chances that Iran will succeed in derailing the process or producing an unfavorable outcome for Iraq. Dispatching Gen. Qassem Soleimani to Iraq to shore up Iranian support is a bad sign. He is no ordinary political adviser, but the head of the Quds Force, the most notorious wing of Iran’s military that has spread chaos and mayhem throughout the region.

A key demand of the protesters is the restoration of electricity in southern provinces. That electricity used to be supplied by Iran, but was cut off last week. Iran claims it did so because bills had not been paid, but the timing is curious.

Last Friday, Iraq’s electricity ministry said the portion of the national power supplied by Iran had been cut off and that the decision would exacerbate the yearly shortages experienced in the hot summer months. The ministry said the Iranian move had “directly and negatively affected the number of hours” of available electricity in the southern cities of Basra, Nasiriyah and Amara.

In addition to Soleimani’s meddling in the process of forming a coalition government, pro-Iranian militias have also stepped up to the plate in an attempt to poison the atmosphere. The Kata’ib Sayyid Al-Shuhada militia, one of the most notorious groups operating under the Popular Mobilization Forces banner, declared its support for the Houthis in Yemen. The group has been fighting in Iraq and in Syria and has adopted a violent sectarian approach. Abu Walaa Al-Walai, the group’s leader, said in a widely circulated video that he and his militia were ready to fight alongside the Houthis.

At the same time, protesters in the southern provinces have anti-Kuwait and anti-Saudi sentiments, threatening to attack Kuwait first and Saudi Arabia second. Kuwait has already announced that it is taking precautions to protect its borders after protesters attacked border facilities on the Iraqi side. Kuwaiti analysts are also sounding the alarm lest the conflict in southern Iraq spill over the border or, worse, lead to a repeat of previous Iraqi attacks against Kuwait, most recently in 1990.

It is important to take the threats against Kuwait seriously to avoid a repeat of previous mistakes. In 1990, Kuwaiti authorities and others underestimated the danger signs coming from Iraq, leading to disastrous miscalculations, a war costing thousands of lives, and the reshaping of the regional political landscape.

Iraq has a clear choice: Either to become an independent, stable and prosperous nation at peace with its neighbors and free of terrorism and sectarian violence; or to remain at the service of Iranian regional ambitions. Iraq has a long and glorious history and should not be reduced to serving as a pawn for Iran in its confrontation with the US.

 

 

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1339801

[yota691]

An ambiguous Iranian position appears in the background of the uprising in southern Iraq

- 7 Minutes Ago

Iran, which has been absent from major events in Iraq for the last 15 years, is ambiguously highlighted in the wave of mass protests shaking the Iraqi regions, by stopping the export of electricity to the areas at the height of the heat wave, which means contributing to fueling the situation and the complexity of the task of the Government Baghdad is its ally.

BAGHDAD - The apparent emergence of social and service demands at the forefront of the ongoing protests in Iraq has not been overshadowed by the deep political backgrounds and dimensions of this uprising, which seems close to its end despite urgent government measures to quell it.

The Iranian role that has inflated Iraq over the past 15 years has not been relegated to the authority of Baghdad, led by parties with wide ties to Iran, but in triggering the protests, when Tehran cut off electricity in southern Iraq at the height of the heat wave, The need for electric power.

Iran has often been indirectly present in previous protests and fury on the Iraqi street, as the ruling parties in the country, responsible for the deterioration of its situation and its decline in various fields, are Iranian-backed parties, and even protesters who have already included Iran with their slogans of anger.

Sources close to Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi's government say people in this government are shocked and bitter about Iran's tough stance on the electricity issue.

A few days ago, the Minister of Electricity Qasem Fahdawi was sent to Tahra to try to persuade the Iranian authorities to re-export energy to Iraq, albeit circumventively pending the protests calm down, but the minister's efforts were unsuccessful.

Fahdawi announced on Monday the development of an alternative plan to import electricity from Iran, referring in a press statement to the announcement by the Iranian side that it was unable to restore the four supply lines to service again.

The Iraqi minister did not address the reasons that led Iran to stop the supply of electricity to Iraq, but officials in his ministry linked the Iranian decision to the debts accumulated on the Iraqi government due to the import of electricity from Iran.

Observers seemed to be skeptical that Iran's position on the electricity issue was ambiguous, as Tehran did not make an effort to rescue its allies in Baghdad at a critical time, in which threats could undermine the foundations of the existing regime that Iran itself helped establish.

Some analysts have argued that deeper and more complex calculations are behind Iran's decision to cut off power supplies to southern Iraq, where the country's most important oil wells are, pushing residents of these areas, already angry at their poor conditions, to the upsurge and confusion of oil production and exports. Means a shake-up in the global oil market, and thus a warning to the United States determined to stifle Iranian oil exports, that Tehran has papers to confuse the global market and raise prices to astronomical levels.

On the other hand, observers see developments in Iraq and around it, that Tehran is suffering during the current period of weakness and confusion because of the increasing US pressure on them, and that it does not really have many means and possibilities to help the Iraqi authorities to cope with the confusing situation.

Figures in the government of Abbadi are shocked by the Iranian decision to stop the export of electricity to Iraq in this critical circumstance

They say that Iran's limited role in extending effective aid to Baghdad was clearly demonstrated during the Kuwait International Conference for the Reconstruction of Iraq, which was held last February. Iran has not made any contribution to the 30 billion dollars pledged by the participating countries.

For the second time, the Baghdad government turned to Kuwait in the hope of assistance, through a telephone conversation between Prime Minister Haider Abadi and the Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who expressed his country's readiness, as reported by the official Kuwaiti news agency "KUNA", "to provide all support Possible for brotherly Iraq to be able to overcome the events. "

The situation in southern Iraq was of no concern to the authorities of Kuwait, whose interests were to ensure calm and security in Iraqi areas adjacent to Kuwaiti territory.

The financial cost of the measures pledged by Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi to meet protesters' demands for services and job creation was about $ 3 billion, a huge sum compared to Iraq's difficult financial situation.

While Iraqi circles expect the Iraqi prime minister to go to Arab and foreign countries to help save the money, the same circles assert that Iran is completely excluded from contributing because of its difficult financial situation and perhaps also its complex political calculations towards the Iraqi arena.

The demonstrations in Iraq on Monday, the second week, in a protest movement witnessed violence resulted in dead and wounded, highlighting the social distress suffered by a large part of this country, which was exhausted by 15 years of bloody conflicts.

Thousands went out in two new protest demonstrations Monday morning in the provinces of Diyala and Dhi Qar in eastern and southern Baghdad, according to correspondents AFP.

For the protesters who attacked the headquarters of the various political parties in all the southern provinces, where they burned some of them or cast pictures of the politicians themselves, the other major problem is corruption.

They assert that since the US invasion of Iraq, which overthrew its former regime 15 years ago, the ruling class has seized public funds and natural resources and deprived Iraqis of basic service and infrastructure projects, although Shiite parties loyal to Iran are mainly in Iraq.

The Arabs

[yota691]

Protests increase pressure on Abadi

- 35 Minutes Ago

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Popular protests in southern Shi'ite-dominated Iraq are looming over corruption, poor services and unemployment on their tenth day, throwing heavy weight on Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi amid a complete inability of his government to calm protesters.

This comes amid different scenarios on the response to the demands of the protesters, most notably the dismissal of electricity ministers Qassim al-Fahdawi and water resources Hassan al-Janabi to absorb anger, and accelerate the political forces to form a new government to fill the political vacuum that occurred after the general elections last July.

The protests included most cities in oil-rich central and southern Iraq, where public income is at a low level. The violence has overshadowed the protest scene from the start, a sign that the population is fed up with the corruption of political parties.

Under the influence of the protest, the interests of the political parties united with the interests of the various organs of the State, both of which were the object of the anger of the demonstrators in different regions.

It was clear to the political class that the controversy generated by electoral fraud charges had diminished in favor of the future of the protest movement.

Activists say the interests of Iraq's political parties involved in corruption are declared targets of the protests.

The activists compare the standard of living of Gulf residents to the standard of living in Baghdad. They say that "the Gulf oil around the population there to the kings and princes, while turning the Iraqi oil to the poor."

Therefore, many calls to the demonstrators to refrain from disrupting the pumping of oil and not getting close to the state institutions or oil installations are not heard.

From the first moment, various political parties tried to ride the wave of protest, unleashed by a power outage. But the protesters proved their political independence when they burned the headquarters of a number of parties in Najaf, Amara, Samawah and Nasiriyah.

The Iraqi government sought to limit the impact of the protests and prevent their expansion, and cut off Internet service in all regions of the country.

Although the disruption of the Internet has clearly affected the ability of activists to coordinate their efforts to organize demonstrations, the impact has been reversed in some areas, pushing many of the population to the street.

The government's blocking of the Internet was a clear indication of the great decline in Iraq's political class.

The Ministry of Communications attempted to justify the interruption of service by cutting off some supply lines, in conjunction with the widening protest movement.

Political sources in Baghdad told the Arabs that "the demonstrations have become a source of horror for many politicians and officials in the country, especially with the continuing news that protesters burned party headquarters and houses owned by political figures."

The sources added that "dozens of senior politicians and Iraqi officials transferred their families through Baghdad International Airport to Beirut and Istanbul, in anticipation of any emergency."

She explained that there is a rising political trend in Baghdad, pushing for the conclusion of negotiations to form a new government quickly, in anticipation of increased pressure of protest and out of control.

Observers rule that escalating protests in various provinces of Iraq could bring down the government not only because the Abbadi government is hiding in the fortified Green Zone walls, but because the Iraqi government does not recognize the legitimacy of the government.

The sources discuss information on the possibility of announcing quickly the ratification of the results of the general elections, and start urgent consultations followed by the convening of the new parliament and the announcement of the new cabinet cabins.

The sources confirm that the Prime Minister informed the large political parties that the estimates of state institutions confirm that the protest movement is on the way to widening, asking to set aside their differences aside to unify the situation in the face. Abadi exploited the escalating protest to dismiss Najaf airport board, claiming that it was among the protesters' demands.

Abadi repeatedly tried to extend the central government's authority over airport revenues and security requirements from aircraft and other searches, but failed.

In fact, the airport, which generates annual revenues estimated at millions of dollars, controls two people. The first belongs to Nuri al-Maliki's wing of the Dawa party and the second is a former dissident of the Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

Transport Minister Kazem al-Hamami said the airport, which had stopped altogether after being stormed by protesters last week, returned to work on a new board of directors without naming its members.

Sources say the "Arabs" that "Abadi may be forced to offer some quick sacrifices to relieve the pressure of the demonstrations a little," explaining that "may overthrow the electricity minister Kassem Fahdawi and water resources Hassan al-Janabi, if the protests continued."

In addition to the problem of electricity suffered by Iraqis in general, the people of Basra complain, in particular, the extension of the tongue saline inside the Shatt al-Arab because of the low level of water releases in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. This expansion has caused scarcity of drinking water and has severely damaged agriculture.

An Iraqi political observer ridiculed expectations that the minister of electricity would resign. "The resignation of his resignation minister is an unrealistic bet. In fact, the minister is in office not for his competence to be held accountable if there is a failure or a flaw in the performance of his duties, Represents his political and partisan bloc in the government. "

The observer added in a statement to the "Arabs", "It is known that the parties involved in the government can not give up one of them share of what can be called a curse for any reason," recalling that "the ministers have already escaped and never one of the ministers to resign , Regardless of the calamity that his presence in the office poses to the people. Which applies to the current Minister of Electricity, which the government did not blame him or the reasons for the deterioration of the security situation.

"If Abadi showed some kind of goodwill in his attempt to respond to some of the protesters' demands by allocating funds for service projects, that theoretical response does not oblige him to do anything. He knows he is leaving office soon, because there is a Shiite consensus on his departure, and he knows it well. Which drives him to play with papers that do not condemn him in the lost time left to him. "

The Arabs

[yota691]

New provinces protest in Iraq .. Burning images of Khomeini

Published: 17/07/2018

 

 

 

 

 

Baghdad: «Gulf», agencies

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi security forces dispersed protesters in various parts of Basra on Monday as protests erupted for the second week in southern and central cities, while Karbala witnessed tight security measures in key and secondary areas and streets, Extensive arrests by security forces, including dozens of activists and demonstrators. Interior Minister Qasim al-Araji revealed that 261 officers and members of the security services were injured during the protests in a number of governorates and called on the demonstrators to give the government a chance to provide their demands after the arrival of their message. 
Media sources in Basra said that "a security force dispersed protesters gathered near the port of Umm Qasr commercial, and arrested a number of them," indicating that "another security force dispersed other protesters in the area of Haritha, north of the province."
Officials at the Iraqi port of Umm Qasr said the main gates had been reopened at the port near Basra, three days after protesters closed due to unemployment and poor government services in southern cities. 

 

Three officials said activities in the port had resumed after negotiations with the protesters. According to Iraqi police and energy sources, about 200 demonstrators gathered at the entrance to the field of Sayba gas in the south of the country. 
Thousands went out in two new protest demonstrations yesterday morning in the provinces of Diyala and Dhi Qar, east and south of Baghdad. 
In Najaf, the Iraqi Minister of Transport Kazem Vanjam al-Yamami, after arriving at Najaf airport, prepared the airport to receive flights.
In the province of Maysan, activists confirmed that the security forces that arrived from Baghdad to the province, the arrest of more than 150 people during and after the protests in several areas of the province. They said that "the governor of Maysan Ali Douai, filed another lawsuits against 12 young people from the coordination of the civil demonstrations that begin every Friday, on charges of inciting the governor," indicating that "one of the suits extended to the head of the lawyers in the province." In Karbala, a security source said that «the security forces carried out a campaign of mass arrests against demonstrators in Karbala». 
He added that «one of the demonstrators in Karbala died, yesterday afternoon, the wounds sustained by the security forces, which used live bullets». 
Witnesses said that security forces reinforced with military vehicles deployed last night, near the service buildings and local government offices and roads leading to religious places, in anticipation of the start of popular demonstrations in the province of Karbala.
In the meantime, Araji said in a press conference held in the city of Karbala, yesterday: «We have 261 injured in the security forces between the officer and associate in the ongoing demonstrations, a number of areas of Iraq», pointing out that «38 members and officers were attacked by demonstrators in Karbala . 
"We did not allow the attack on the associates, and for the engineers who belong to known parties, we will follow them," he said, addressing the protesters. "Your message arrived and gave the government a chance to meet your demands." 
An Iraqi security source said that «the final outcome of the demonstrations in Karbala, reached 37 wounded security forces, as well as three dead».

 

 

[3n1]

1 hour ago, yota691 said:

"If Abadi showed some kind of goodwill in his attempt to respond to some of the protesters' demands by allocating funds for service projects, that theoretical response does not oblige him to do anything. He knows he is leaving office soon, because there is a Shiite consensus on his departure, and he knows it well. Which drives him to play with papers that do not condemn him in the lost time left to him. "

 

 

If u think this is a train wreck , watch what'll happen if Maliki and iran gain more control again ....... cheers , thanks yota

[yota691]

Kurdish bloc calls on the United Nations to place Iraq under international tutelage

Release Date: 2018/7/17 8:59 • 389 times read

[Ayna-Baghdad] 
A member of the Kurdish Change Bloc, Hoshyar Abdullah, called on the United Nations to place Iraq, including the Kurdistan region under international tutelage.

"We support and support the demands of the demonstrators in all Iraqi provinces and urge them to demand the political class corrupt and failing their legitimate rights, we assure the Iraqi street that the ruling political class in Iraq, including The Kurdistan Region is completely incapable of advancing any step towards improving the living and service conditions of citizens and meet their legitimate demands in a free and dignified life like the peoples of the world. " 
Abdullah explained that "the only solution to the advancement of living conditions, service, health and social lies in the departure of the ruling political class and influential parties in Iraq, including the Kurdistan region, because it derived its legitimacy from the rigged elections and wants to stay in power by any means and at any price, and if there is no solution In sight".
He pointed out that "the living situation in the region is not less bad than it is in Baghdad and the southern provinces, as there are no salaries in the region for the past four years and there is a boiling situation in the street, and all the reasons that led to the southern uprising are also in the provinces of the region, A repressive police force in the provinces of the province governing people with fire and iron. "
He called on the United Nations to "intervene urgently and put an end to the ruling political class in Iraq, which deals with the demonstrators unarmed repressive manner," stressing the "need to internationalize the file of the administration of Iraq and placed under the tutelage of the UN because there is no hope for the Iraqi citizen to obtain the most basic rights in this country Rich and full of wealth and classified at the same time as the worst in all parts of the world, especially after repeated the same old faces, which are trying to form the largest bloc to stay heavy on the issuance of Iraqis over the next four years, "as he put it.

[yota691]

Baghdadiya sends a letter to the United Nations to protect and support the demonstrators in Iraq

 2018-07-16 16:34:53 

His Excellency Mr. Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations

                                                       A message to you and from you to the peoples of the world who love good and peace.

 The people of Iraq are being subjected to horrific abuses by firing live ammunition, cutting off communications and Internet services, and preventing journalists from reaching the real numbers of victims, casualties and detainees.

Government forces kill peaceful protesters in front of the silence of the international community and the United Nations, which is still the guardian of democracy in the country and Iraqis in the provinces of Basra, Dhi Qar, Maysan, Muthanna, Najaf, Babil, Wasit, Qadisiyah and Baghdad. They demand safe drinking water and hospitals providing medicine for children with cancer. Electricity, but they were opened to open gun nozzles from the security services!

The Iraqi people appeal to you to appeal to the United Nations and the international community to stop the genocide committed by the world in order to govern Iraq. This is why we have sent a humanitarian appeal to you and through you to the peoples of the world and all human rights organizations.

The Iraqi people are waiting for the role of the international community in rescuing them from the violations they are now experiencing. The dozens are falling victim as we write this call to you.

Baghdadiya Media Group

Baghdad, 17-7-2018

[yota691]

The government promises to provide safe drinking water in Basra after two months

Editorial date: 2018/7/17 14:14 • 57 times read

(Baghdad: Al Furat News) The head of the ministerial committee in charge of improving the service situation in the province of Basra announced the intensification of contacts with specialized companies to process urgent orders for stations for the liquidation and supply of potable water, including mobile and commercial stations, as well as receiving a number of offers to implement urgent service projects for the people of the province.

The head of the ministerial committee in charge of oil minister Jabbar al-Allaibi said in a statement to the media cell of the government received the agency {Euphrates News} a copy of it, "and through his meetings and intensive contacts is working to encourage international specialized companies to accelerate the contracting with the concerned parties away from bureaucracy and routine and instructions and corruption and bargaining and conflict And the political intersections and narrow interests that have blocked many of the service projects urgent for the people of the province over the past years. 
He stressed "all concerned concerned the need to leave the methods and mechanisms sterile and backward, and put the interest of the homeland and the citizen above all considerations." 
"A number of specialized companies have indicated their readiness to set up mobile and mobile water treatment plants in the province of Basra, with a record period of no more than two months, during which they provide large quantities of potable water."
"All this will be presented to the Council of Ministers to take the necessary decisions in order to expedite the implementation of these vital and necessary projects in the short period to come." 
The head of the ministerial committee that "one of the Kuwaiti companies have initiated pumping large quantities of drinking water per day to the province of Basra until the installation of new water purification units in a number of districts and districts and villages of the province of Basra, praising the initiative of brothers in promoting bilateral relations. 
"The committee is working to address the necessary and urgent needs to maintain through realistic solutions that are among the priorities that aim at upgrading the services provided to the people of the province," concluded Allaibi.

[Butifldrm]

• Politician

Raed Fahmy reveals for "information" details of the meeting of leaders of the political blocs on the demonstrations

10:47 - 17/07/2018

 

Information / Baghdad ..

Revealed the secretary of the Iraqi Communist Party Raed Fahmi, on Tuesday, the details of the meeting of leaders of political blocs yesterday evening to discuss the files of protest demonstrations taking place in the country, while stressing that the meeting stressed the need to take decisive action against corrupt, "privatized," pointed out that the meeting urged the importance of speeding In the completion of counting and manual sorting and the formation of the next government.

Fahmi said in a statement to the "/ information", "The meeting of leaders of political blocs in the office of Prime Minister Haider Abadi, on Monday evening, saw the examination of the demands of the demonstrators and the reasons behind the situation and the gap between the government and the public," stressing that "it was recognized that the political class failed To meet many aspirations, which led to a state of hopelessness, especially among young people. "

Fahmi, who was present at the meeting, said that "during the meeting, emphasis was placed on taking decisive action against the corrupt individuals who were involved in financial and administrative corruption," noting that "it was warned that some wanted to pass certain agendas exploiting the state of popular anger."

Fahmi, a senior leader in the Alliance of the Suron, stressed that "the meeting stressed the need to accelerate the completion of counting and sorting and the formation of the next government because many of the current issues will be the responsibility of the next government," noting that "including the things that were also discussed grades and how Distribute them and prevent some entities from confiscating them. " Ending / 25

http://www.almaalomah.com/2018/07/17/326804/