Iraq .. Barham Salih sets the specifications for the next prime minister

[yota691]

Najaf sets next Thursday a date to withdraw confidence from the government and parties

2019-11-26

Activists in the province of Najaf, announced Tuesday that the segments of the earners, merchants and shopkeepers in the province will announce a general strike next Thursday under the slogan "withdraw confidence from the government and parties"
and published writer and poet Faris Haram They will announce a major strike next Thursday under the slogan “No confidence in the government and parties”.
He added, “The big market, Sadiq Street, Zain Al Abidin Street, Al Rasool Street, Al Tusi Street, Al Madinah Road, Khan Al Mukhdar, Abu Sakhir Street and Al Quds neighborhood food complexes will be part of the general strike.”

https://mobile.twitter.com/farisharram/status/1199303191638298624?s=12

[yota691]

Barzani and a British official stress the opportunity to give Abdul-Mahdi the implementation of reforms

Policy

2019-11-26 | 07:28

 

 

2,793 views

 

Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi has given Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi an opportunity to implement the reform package, the head of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Masroor Barzani, and the director of the Middle East and North Africa division at the British Foreign Office, Stephanie al-Qaq, said Tuesday.

Barzani's office said in a statement received by Alsumaria News that the latter "met with the Director of the Middle East and North Africa Department at the British Foreign Office Stephanie Al-Qaq and the accompanying delegation. Stressing that instability in the country is not in the interest of the Iraqis in general and the region as a whole. "

 

 

"It was stressed that the Iraqi prime minister should be given an opportunity to respond to the legitimate and legal demands of the demonstrators and implement the reform packages," the statement said.

[6ly410]

 

[6ly410]

 

[umbertino]

Murals of Baghdad: the art of protest – in pictures

 

Protests against the Iraqi government have drawn a deadly response from security forces. With 300 lives lost in less than two months, demonstrators are now taking spray paint to concrete walls in an attempt to sketch out their vision for a brighter future..............

 

 

Tue 26 Nov 2019 07.00 GMT

Arabic translation by Rana Haddad

 

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/gallery/2019/nov/26/murals-of-baghdad-the-protest-art-in-pictures

[trident]

World News14 minutes ago. Reuters

'When will the bloodshed stop?' - notes and prayers on Iraq's Wall of Wishes

The small white post-it note was stuck to the wall amid thousands of other sticky squares, each bearing a wish, a comment or a prayer for the future of Iraq.

[umbertino]

Iraqi Scholar Sinan Antoon: Anti-Government Protests Have Led to “Reclaiming of Iraqi Identity”

 

November 26, 2019

 

 

https://www.democracynow.org/2019/11/26/sinan_antoon_iraq_protests_us_occupation

 

 

 

 

 

 

[trident]

A protester rests in front of a political mural. It’s entitled ‘The new generation’

Photograph: Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP via Getty Images

[trident]

Iraq Pulse

Iraqi government responds to protests by digging in

Ali Mamouri November 25, 2019

 

After nearly two months of protests in Iraq, the government is using excessive force on demonstrators and not giving in to their demands.

 

REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily

Iraqi demonstrators are seen near Iraqi security forces during ongoing anti-government protests, in Baghdad, Iraq, Nov. 25, 2019.

 

Even as the death toll from recent protests rises, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi assured world and regional leaders that the situation in Iraq is under control. The government, he said, is committed to human rights and to protecting the protesters.

During a visit to Iraq, US Vice President Mike Pence said Nov. 23 that Abdul Mahdi “assured me that they were working to avoid violence or the kind of oppression we see taking place, even as we speak, in Iran.”

“He pledged to me that they would work to protect and respect peaceful protesters as … part of the democratic process here in Iraq,” Pence added.

During several phone calls in the last few days, Abdul Mahdi assured Qatar Emir Tamim bin Hamad, Kuwait Emir Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah and Jordanian Prime Minister Omar Razzaz that the Iraqi government is committed to protecting the protesters and avoiding the use of violence against them.

Yet security forces attacked protesters with tear gas and bullets in Najaf, Nasiriyah, Basra and Baghdad on Nov. 25. No official death toll has been announced. At least 13 protesters were killed in Baghdad, Basra and Nasiriyah on Nov. 24.

It is clear the Iraqi government is not willing to undertake any serious reforms to satisfy the protesters' demands. Instead, it is working on alternative plans to end the protests with minimum reforms. What are these plans and how is the government implementing them?

Escalation of violence

Despite the prime minister's assurances that the government is committed to protecting the protesters, it is estimated that 400 protesters have been killed and more than 14,000 wounded, based on tallies from the Iraqi Human Rights Commission and the Iraqi Health Ministry.

Al-Monitor learned that Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei attended a meeting in Tehran Nov. 21 with Falih al-Fayadh, the head of the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU); Hadi al-Amiri, the head of the Badr Organization; Mohammad Hashimi, the head of the prime minister's office; and Javad Shahrestani, a representative of Iraq's top Shiite cleric Ali Sistani.

According to a source who attended the meeting, Khamenei asked the attendees to work together to stop the protests, even if it requires extreme levels of violence.

“Iran would not give up Iraq and would not allow to reduce its influence in Iraq,” Khamenei said, according to the same source.

Khamenei asked Shahrestani to pass a message to Sistani, asking him to stop supporting and protecting the protesters.

In response to this message, a Sistani representative, Sheikh Abdul Mahdi Karbalai, said during last Friday's sermon, “Bloodshed will overthrow any political system and will lead to the replacement of the government with a completely new one.”

A top cleric in Najaf, speaking to Al-Monitor, denied that a representative from Sistani's office had attended a meeting with Khamenei.

In an interview with al-Ghad TV Nov. 24, Iraqi parliament member Faiq Ali al-Sheikh said that during a high-ranking security meeting attended by several top security leaders, all attendees agreed that the protests must be stopped, even if the death toll surpasses a thousand.

Propaganda against the protesters

From the onset of the protests, Iran and its allies in Iraq — including Fayadh and Sheikh Qais Khazali, the head of Asaib Ahl al-Haq — have accused the protesters of being affiliated with and supported by the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Following Pence's visit to Iraq, several pro-Iran forces — such as the Sadiqoun bloc, which is affiliated with Asaib Ahl al-Haq, and the Babylon faction within the PMU — slammed the United States for interfering in Iraqi matters. They deemed the visit an attempt to overthrow the Iraqi government.

Pro-Iran forces on social media have posted accusations that the protests are affiliated with the Baath Party. In the same vein, their posts on Facebook and Twitter spread fear that the protests are paving the way for the rise of the Baath Party and the Islamic State. 

Abdul Mahdi and other governmental figures are considering vandalism by the protesters as terrorist actions to allow the government to respond to protests with maximum force and to ensure harsh punishments for anyone arrested, including the death penalty.

Using unidentified forces

To suppress the demonstrations without taking responsibility, unidentified forces have been deployed by unknown sources to shoot protesters and abduct movement leaders and activists.  

During the protests in early October, snipers targeted protesters from the tops of public buildings in Baghdad, raising the death toll from about 50 to 150.

The Iraqi prime minister admitted in October that unknown forces are indeed confronting protesters. Other Iraqi officials like the defense minister have made similar admissions.

Since then, these forces have expanded their operations in different cities. They identify the protesters' leaders and the most prominent activists and abduct them. Last week in Nasiriyah, 33 people were arrested in this way, according to the city's lawyers' syndicate. However, the number of total arrests in the city exceeded 100, according to protesters.

Several reports state that the detainees have been tortured and asked to stop participating in the protests. Al-Monitor contacted several detainees who were released. They confirmed the poor treatment, stating that they were humiliated and sometimes tortured. They were only released after signing an agreement stating they would no longer participate in the protests. They also confirmed that the forces did not identify themselves. The detainees were not able to identify where they were detained or the identities of the forces.

Limiting media access

Iraq's National Communications and Media Commission shut down the Iraqi offices of 17 media outlets — including al-Arabia Hadath, Dijla, Rashid, Fallujah, Hona Baghdad, al-Sharqia, al-Hurra and NRT — to prevent them from covering the protests.

In a statement, the National Syndicate of Journalists of Iraq said that the decision marked a culmination of the government's “efforts to crack down on freedom of press."

Furthermore, the internet has been cut or slowed down to limit protesters' access to social media and to prevent news coverage of violence against protesters.

The Iraqi government, like the Iranian government, is betting on the time factor, hoping that the protesters will become scared and exhausted and eventually just return home.

 

[dinarham]

T o corrupt government officials: When protesters have found their way into your livingrooms ,it will be too late to negotiate . Look at history .

[3n1]

Trident thanks for the pulse readings of Iraq i realize its just a couple of articles in a sea of articles relating to the current pro citizen uprisings in the country all the years i have followed along its one major situation after another for once i'd like to see the GOI proactive to avoid some of the mayhem for whatever reason they simply do not think that way or its such a colossal mess at every level in iraq , im really not sure they are capable of governing themselves could be why someone has always ruled over them imo currently i just dont see a flourishing free market society explosion happening  , not sure where this is all leading for iraq .... all the best dv'ers 

[6ly410]

 

[Butifldrm]

 

2019/11/26 21:40

• The number of readings 1522
• Section: Iraq
•  

Political blocs: huge funds from the Gulf to support "sabotage" in the demonstrations

Baghdad / Obelisk: MP of the conquest Alliance Mohammed Baldway, Tuesday, November 26, 2019, that "big money" entered Iraq through remittances from Gulf countries and the United States to support the "engineers" in the demonstrations, he said, while accusing these countries Standing behind the kidnapping and killing of activists and demonstrators to overthrow the Iraqi government.

Al-Baldawi said that "America and a number of Gulf countries led by the UAE are working to support a number of political figures to create chaos in the country and divert the path of demonstrations to other tracks," adding, "Large money entered Iraq through remittances from the UAE, Kuwait and America to support some of the affiliated figures For these states, the architects among the demonstrators. "

A member of the Fatah Alliance led by Hadi al-Amiri, that "the recent statement of the United States of America, which confirmed the existence of kidnapping and physical liquidation of civilian activists and a number of demonstrators and journalists, an attempt to escalate and overthrow the government and Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi," accusing "US and Gulf-backed" to "stand Behind kidnappings and physical killings. "

 Since October 25, Baghdad, and several central and southern provinces, have witnessed protests, including clashes, the burning of some political headquarters, the use of live bullets, tear gas and Molotov cocktails.

The Obelisk

http://almasalah.com/ar/news/182936/كتل-سياسية-أموال-طائلة-من-الخليج-لدعم-التخريب-في-التظاهرات

 

 

[horsesoldier]

I imagine the GOI's plan is to simply continue " business as usual " ergo - foot dragging, sand bagging with an attitude of dismissiveness & indifference; with the expectation that (1) Iraq continues with the slaughter in the streets until it succumbs to all out Civil War . . . which would mean in their minds, they could carry on with " business as usual " - INDEFINITELY  

 

( - - - or until the citizens slaughter the Politicians. Perhaps the military would stage a coup . . . that's possible.)

 

OR  (2) They do the right thing ( like in yesterday ) and deliver on each and everyone of the Demonstrators demands WITHOUT EXCEPTION . . . meaning the arrest of all corrupted & sent to the rock pile for life/retrieving ALL the stolen $$$$$ etc. etc. etc   

 

 

[fancy]

First time in history that I know of that the Iraqis citizens are demanding change, and in such a viral way. Grassroots movement. I'm going to go ahead and say it, I'm not surprised if there is a third party in the demonstrations that will push this even further, it is a change were looking for.

[yota691]

Two provinces in Iraq announce the suspension of official working days for two days

Iraq - Archive

 26 November 2019 08:14 PM

Direct: Dhi Qar province of Iraq announced the suspension of official work for two days, in the province, which is witnessing demonstrations against the economic situation and unemployment in the country.

The governor of Dhi Qar said on Tuesday that the official working hours will be suspended on Wednesday and Thursday, according to the Iraqi News Agency "conscious".

He attributed the governor of Dhi Qar, the decision to "maintain civil peace," as he described. 

According to the agency "conscious", the province of Muthanna - which is the second largest province in Iraq in terms of space - decided to suspend official working hours on Wednesday and Thursday, but only in schools.

It is noteworthy that the State of Iraq has been demonstrating since last October in several places of the country in protest against the economic situation, unemployment and low level of services, resulting in deaths and injuries, which forced the authorities to take a number of economic and legislative reforms.

[yota691]

 

Iraq: A new law to fight corruption to appease the disaffected street

 

BAGHDAD - Peace dry, Mohammed Ali

November 27, 2019

 

On the impact  of the demonstrations that permeated throughout Iraq  , passed  parliament Iraqi law "graft", known in Iraq as "Where did you get this," after nearly two years of tension between the political blocs because of some of its paragraphs dealing with the powers of the Integrity Commission and the courts competent to follow Assets of the suspect's funds and relatives, and to address banks to disclose financial receivables, in addition to the retroactive application of the law since 2003 until now.

According to observers of the "New Arab", although the law applies to all  Iraqis, as with other laws, but it was actually established or approved specifically for the ruling political class in the country, the impact of demonstrations as an additional measure to alleviate the curse of the street.

Although the law contains provisions that some see as important, the lesson of enforcement and enforcement, according to observers, while others consider that the law could have been more severe to suit the situation of Iraq, which needs a great effort to root out the growing corruption.

The law adopted by the parliament, about 20 items, the most prominent of which provides for the follow-up funds of state employees from the Director-General and above, and considered any funds owned by him is not commensurate with his official salary, suspicious and is investigated automatically.

The law also provides for the opening of an investigation of all the funds of the official earned after he took office, provided that the official is required to provide a statement of financial disclosure, from time to time, and be held accountable if it is proved that he has bank accounts or real estate in a country outside Iraq, not disclosed in advance, as held accountable On any funds whose origin has not been established and the court has the right to confiscate them.

The judiciary or prosecutors are authorized to open an investigation with current and former officials about their sources of wealth from 2003 to the present, which is considered the most important and strongest point in law.

The law also prohibits the official from appointing relatives and acquaintances or assigning them to work that results in financial benefit. It also prohibits trade or related work. Penalties of the law reach life imprisonment and confiscation of movable and immovable property.

But there are those who question the possibility of implementation in light of the consensus and political deals that prevented the opening of files of corruption, which has cost the Iraqi state hundreds of billions of dollars in less than 12 years, according to unofficial estimates.

Mohammed Awni, a member of the Iraqi Bar Association, told Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed that the law, if applied effectively, guarantees several things, especially the recovery of funds of at least $ 100 billion from officials and politicians in a short time, and the prosecution of the corrupt faster.

He adds: "The law will control the movement of remittances abroad, whether through banks or private companies, which can reduce the leakage of hard currency from the country, and it tightens the politicians and officials circle of corruption and prevent them from business and brokerage.

However, the most important issue is: Will the law be implemented or not? ".

Mohammed al-Ghazi, an MP in the Iraqi parliament, told Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed that "the legislation of the law at present is an excellent step and an achievement for the demonstrators, although it was supposed to start in previous sessions."

"The law will limit the influence of the ruling figures on the money and chase the money that has been looted as well," Ghazzi said. .

"The street has lost confidence in the political forces, which in turn have lost all the tools of reform, so there is no choice but to implement the law or we will reach a more dangerous stage," Issa al-Karimawi, a member of the civil current, told Al-Arabi al-Jadeed. It is the popular pressure that brought the law back to the forefront.

Some fear the law can be circumvented in its paragraphs, and attempts to empty it from its real content, said a member of the Parliamentary Integrity Committee, Abdul Rahim al-Shammari: "There are satanic ways in the process of stealing money and laundering and taking commissions, so we hope that the law will keep pace with these methods and able to detect ".

Legal experts believe that these laws do not end the rampant corruption in Iraq, but it may only curb it. In this context, the legal expert, Tarek Harb, told the "New Arab", that "whatever laws and provisions do not end corruption in Iraq," noting that "the law (where you get this) may limit it, but does not eliminate the phenomenon Completely, because of the magnitude of corruption in the country.

 

[Butifldrm]

Amri and Khazali militias kidnap the injured from hospitals and Basra tribes announce a general strike

 Wednesday, November 27, 2019

save  Print 

 

 

 

 

 

Baghdad - Writings

According to human rights centers, one paramedic of the demonstrators confirmed that armed militias belonging to Iranian men in Iraq carried out large-scale kidnappings of those injured in the demonstrations.

According to the medic's assertions, which were circulated in a video on Wednesday, November 27, 2019, the kidnapping of the militias of the Badr organization led by Hadi al-Amiri, and Asaib headed by Qais al-Khazali to the wounded protesters, stressing the need to protect them and not stay in hospitals without insurance.

 

 

 

Meanwhile, the tribes of Basra announced on Thursday (November 28th) a general strike across the province, calling for the closure of oil ports, with demonstrators give the local authorities in the governorate 7 days to dismiss the police chief of Basra after the fall of a number of martyrs in the past few days.

 

 

 Go to the home page

https://kitabat.com/news/مليشيات-العامري-والخزعلي-تختطف-مصابي/

[Butifldrm]

Political

Wednesday, November 27, 2019 02:02 PM

| Number Of Hits: 72

 

 

For the 33rd day .. Demonstrators of Tahrir Square demand the dismissal of the government and early elections

 

BAGHDAD / Demonstrators continued to flock to Tahrir Square in central Baghdad on Wednesday, as the sit-in continues in the 33rd square in a row to demand the dismissal of the government, the identity of the killers of the demonstrators, their trial and early parliamentary elections under international supervision after amending the election law and replacing the election commission.

A source told "Eye of Iraq News," that Tahrir Square witnessed, on Wednesday morning, a large turnout in the number of demonstrators, especially students who announced the continuation of civil disobedience for the current week, pointing out that "normal conditions in Tahrir Square as well as in the building of the Turkish restaurant, which The protesters call it "Mount Uhud" where it is still under the control of the protesters.

Since Friday, October 25, Baghdad and nine other provinces have witnessed large-scale protests demanding the dismissal of the government and bringing the killers of the demonstrators to justice and work for early elections under international supervision. The demonstrators were subjected to it.

The religious authority in Iraq considered that this uprising is the first of the fraudulent ballot boxes in expressing the will of the people and choosing them to represent them. At any time the legitimacy of the ruler fell. Finished 2

http://aynaliraqnews.com/index.php?aa=news&id22=127388

[yota691]

US activist supports the demonstrators of Iraq to challenge the "soda can"

Release date:: 2019/11/27 15:58 • 32 times read

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - US activist John Felson on Wednesday launched an "Iraqi soda can" challenge to support protesters, calling on Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch to take part in the challenge.

"Tear gas canisters are the new favorite way to kill civilians in Iraq," Felson said in a circular today. "Imagine a bullet the size of a soda can hit you!"
"If you want to see the strength of human will in the face of injustice, look at the Iraqi youth who went out to demonstrate peacefully since the beginning of October, demanding rights and justice.
The challenge of "Iraqi Soda" or "#IraqiSodaChallenge" is to put a soda can of teargas near the head and take a picture and post it on social media to clarify the idea of the size of the bombs suffered by demonstrators in Iraq, which often hit their bodies.
Felson appeared in a video as he strolled the streets of Hollywood carrying the Iraqi flag, to show people about the demonstrations taking place in Iraq and the corresponding violence that led to many casualties among the demonstrators.

[trident]

39 minutes ago, yota691 said:

On the impact  of the demonstrations that permeated throughout Iraq  , passed  parliament Iraqi law "graft", known in Iraq as "Where did you get this," after nearly two years of tension between the political blocs

 

40 minutes ago, yota691 said:

The law adopted by the parliament, about 20 items, the most prominent of which provides for the follow-up funds of state employees from the Director-General and above, and considered any funds owned by him is not commensurate with his official salary, suspicious and is investigated automatically.

 

42 minutes ago, yota691 said:

if it is proved that he has bank accounts or real estate in a country outside Iraq, not disclosed in advance, as held accountable On any funds whose origin has not been established and the court has the right to confiscate them.

 

And the mot relevant quote:

43 minutes ago, yota691 said:

However, the most important issue is: Will the law be implemented or not? ".

 

[6ly410]

Iraq protesters block roads to raise pressure for sweeping reform

An Iraqi demonstrator wears a mask during ongoing anti-government protests in Baghdad, Iraq November 27, 2019. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani

1 Hours Ago

 

http://nrttv.com/En/News.aspx?id=17955&MapID=2

 

SULAIMANI — Protesters blocked roads with burning tyres in southern Iraq and clashed with police in Baghdad on Wednesday (November 27), aiming to disrupt the economy and jolt complacent authorities into meeting their demands for an overhaul of corrupt governance.

In Iraq’s southern oil capital of Basra, demonstrators prevented government employees getting to work by installing concrete barriers painted as mock-up coffins of relatives killed in weeks of unrest, a Reuters witness said.

Security forces shot dead more demonstrators overnight. In the holy city of Kerbala, south of Baghdad, they used live ammunition against protesters, killing two.

Near Basra one protester died of wounds from gunfire, police and medics said, bringing the toll since unrest broke out on Oct. 1 to 344 people dead nationwide.

“First we were demanding reform and an end to corruption,” said Ali Nasser, an unemployed engineering graduate protesting in Basra.

“But after the government started killing peaceful protesters we won’t leave before it’s been toppled together with the corrupt ruling class.”

Government reform has amounted to little more than a handful of state jobs for graduates, stipends for poor people and vague promises of electoral reform which lawmakers have barely begun discussing.

“The reforms are just words. We want actions. We’ve had 16 years of words without actions. We have been robbed for 16 years,” said Alia, a 23-year-old medical student.

Iraq’s large and mainly peaceful protests are the most complex challenge to a Shia Muslim-dominated ruling class that has controlled state institutions and patronage networks since a 2003 US-led invasion toppled Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein.

Young, mostly Shia protesters say politicians are corrupt and blame them for Iraq’s failure to recover from decades of conflict and sanctions despite two years of relative calm following the defeat of Islamic State.

Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi expressed concern over both the violence and the financial toll of unrest in a televised cabinet meeting late on Tuesday, but mostly blamed unidentified saboteurs for the damage.

“There have been martyrs among protesters and security forces, many wounded and arrested ... we’re trying to identify mistakes” made by security forces in trying to put down the protests, he said.

“The blocking of ports has cost billions of dollars ... and many buildings have been burned,” he said.

Protesters have repeatedly blocked traffic into Iraq’s main commodities port near Basra this month and have tried to surround the Central Bank in Baghdad, apparently determined to cause economic disruption where simple calls for removal of the government have failed.

The government is moving slowly in enacting any kind of change. Promises of electoral reform and an early general election have yet to be ratified by parliament, and the political class has closed ranks in the face of a significant challenge to its grip on power.

(NRT Digital Media/Reuters)

 

[6ly410]

 

[6ly410]

 

Parliamentary services for "Al-Ahd News": laws of important projects will be voted on within the legislative reforms

By mustafa k 27/11/2019 10:47 AM | Read

http://alahadnews.net/index.php/permalink/190148.html

Ahd News - Baghdad

A member of the Parliamentary Services Committee, Abbas Yaber Al-Atafi, announced that there are not a few of the important service bills that are   It will be voted on in the coming sessions.

The emotional told the "Covenant News", on Wednesday, "one of the most prominent bills will be voted on within the reform measures launched by the House of Representatives."  

He added that "there are bills within the other parliamentary committees will be included both according to its importance during the coming sessions."

He stressed that "all important laws that will be voted on by the House of Representatives reform laws consistent with the demands of the demonstrators."  

[3n1]

5 hours ago, 6ly410 said:

 

 

Great to see the big screens Okie harped on about forever being used for the intended purpose ...just jesting dv 

cheers 410