Iraq informs the Iranian Chargé d'Affairs of his refusal to bomb Iran to US bases and considers it a violation of sovereignty

[Butifldrm]

 

01/20/2020 13:40

• Views 52
• Section: Iraq
•  

Salvation Front: The response of the American forces will be harsh and decisive at the same time

Baghdad / Obelisk: The leadership of the Salvation and Development Front, Ethel Nujaifi, Thursday, January 02, 2019, stressed that the United States' response to storming its embassy in Baghdad will be both tough and decisive.

Al-Nujaifi said in an interview followed by the obelisk, "The statements of the American Defense Secretary, Mark Asper, were clear about the response to the attack operation that affected their embassy in Baghdad, expecting the response to be harsh and decisive at the same time."

He added that "the coming days will witness a more severe position than the United States, while the armed factions will relax and give in."

On Tuesday morning, December 31, 2019, massive demonstrations broke out in protest against the strikes launched by the United States, last Sunday, to locations of the Hezbollah Brigades in the borderlands of Iraq and Syria, which resulted in the killing of at least 25 people, while they set up sit-in tents in front of Embassy.

On Wednesday, January 1, 2019, the PMF called on the protesters, located near the American embassy, in the Green Zone in the center of the capital, Baghdad, to withdraw.

Follow the obelisk

http://almasalah.com/ar/news/185135/جبهة-الإنقاذ--رد-القوات-الأمريكية-سيكون-قاسيا-وحاسما-بالوقت-ذاته

 

 

[Butifldrm]

 

'Iran is not afraid': Why Tehran dismisses US threats over Iraq

As war of words between Washington and Tehran escalates, analysts explain why the Islamic Republic will not back down.

by Ali Younes

17 hours ago

 

United States soldiers keep watch on the US embassy compound in Baghdad, Iraq on January 1, 2020 [Adrian Weale/Handout via Reuters]

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In a sharply worded response to United States President Donald Trump, who alleged Iranian involvement in a rare protest at the US embassy compound in Baghdad, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued an equally strong response - saying Tehran will openly confront any country that threatens its national interests.

Demonstrators who sympathise with or belong to the Iran-backed Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation Forces, or PMF), breached the outer walls of the heavily fortified US embassy compound in the Iraqi capital on Tuesday, setting parts of its perimeter on fire - an angry reaction to deadly US air raids days earlier against Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militia associated with PMF.

Trump on Tuesday warned he would hold Iran responsible "for lives lost, or damage incurred, at any of our facilities".

On Wednesday, Khamenei said during a public event in Tehran: "For one thing, you are damned wrong because this matter has nothing to do with Iran.

"If Iran decides to confront a country, it will do so openly. But everyone must know that we are strongly committed to the country's interests and we shall not hesitate to intervene and deal a blow to any party who attempts to pose a threat to the country."

Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs meanwhile used diplomatic channels to summon a Swiss envoy representing US interests in Tehran, and issued a "strong protest against warmongering statements."

The ministry's statement attempted to distance Iran from events in neighbouring Iraq, saying "Iraq is an independent country". 

It also described language by US officials against Iranian influence in Iraq as a "violation of the United Nations Charter".

Mohammad Marandi, head of the North American studies department at the University of Tehran, told Al Jazeera: "Iranians don't take the American threats very seriously because a military confrontation with Iran would not mean a victory for the US.

"The price of any American attack against Iran would be too high, and the cost to the entire region would be even higher."

Marandi argued that the US, having spent "trillions of dollars on the conflict in Iraq, which was a total failure, wants to use Iran as a scapegoat to justify its failure.

"Iranians will not accept to being treated as a scapegoat and Iran is not afraid of the US."

Hussein Royvaran, who teaches international relations at the University of Tehran, told Al Jazeera that Iranians reject Washington's threats against their country because it was the US that "violated Iraqi sovereignty and killed Iraqi members of Hashd al-Shaabi", which he described as an official Iraqi military unit.

He said that the US has "committed a crime" in Iraq and should bear the consequences of its actions, referring to the protest around the US embassy compound - which came to an end on Wednesday as demonstrators left the area. 

Royvaran said the US has military bases in Iraq and enjoys political sway in the country, meaning Washington's remarks about Iranian influence should be viewed with caution.

"American officials think that Iran should just protect the American bases in Iraq, something Iran will never do.

"The US is waging an economic war against Iran," he said, in reference to punishing US sanctions against Iran after the US pulled out of a landmark nuclear agreement last year.

Rejecting US references to the Hashd al-Shaabi as "Iranian proxies" or "mercenaries", Marandi said Iran helped establish and arm the paramilitary force in order to defeat ISIL (ISIS), a group that emerged only after the "US destroyed Iraq" following the toppling of Saddam Hussein in 2003.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/01/afraid-analysts-dismiss-threats-iraq-200101172345472.html

[yota691]

100 Marines, 2 Apaches being sent to secure US Embassy in Iraq from Iran-backed group

 

A CH-47 Chinook carries U.S. Soldiers, assigned to 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division, Pennsylvania National Guard, Multi-National Division - Baghdad, out of Camp Taji, Iraq, Sept. 6, 2009. (Pfc. Ali Hargis/Joint Combat Camera Center Iraq)

DECEMBER 31, 2019 LAURA WIDENER

 

 

The Pentagon has directed at least 100 Marines to reinforce the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on Tuesday following violent protests that have sent U.S. diplomats into hiding.

Following a State Department request for protection at the embassy, the Marines were approved by Iraqi Security Forces and deployed via Chinook helicopters with two Apache attack helicopters providing air support, U.S. Central Command spokesman Mike Lawhorn told Military Times.

 

The Marines are reportedly from Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force-Crisis Response-Central Command, a ground force deployed to the Middle East that specializes in crisis response, U.S. officials told Military.com.

 

 

Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) spokesman Col. Myles Caggins posted a video online of AH-64 Apache helicopters dropping flares over the embassy.

VIDEO: AH-64 Apaches protect @USEmbBaghdad. “We have taken appropriate force protection actions to ensure the safety of American citizens…and to ensure our right of self-defense. We are sending additional forces to support our personnel at the Embassy.”~@EsperDoD  pic.twitter.com/amABHBAOcL

— OIR Spokesman Col. Myles B. Caggins III (@OIRSpox) December 31, 2019

 

- ADVERTISEMENT -

 

Other unconfirmed videos on social media show what appears to be Chinooks and Apaches flying over the embassy.

Two #USArmy Aviation UH-60M utility helicopters followed by two CH-47F Chinook heavy transport helicopters transferred more #US Marines to the embassy and then evacuated unknown people from the #US embassy building in #Baghdad two hours ago. Here they are  pic.twitter.com/DxGaUXiIRO

— Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) December 31, 2019

 

Another video claims to show U.S. Marines taking defensive positions on the roof of the embassy.

#Baghdad #Iraq Video muestra a Marines de los Estados Unidos tomando posiciones defensivas en el techo de uno de los edificios de la Embajada de EEUU en Irak. Se espera que el destacamento de protección sea reforzado con más militares en las próximas horas pic.twitter.com/Ku0O0dlV63

— Webinfomil.com (@Webinfomil) December 31, 2019

 

Video from earlier Tuesday had shown some Marines already inside the embassy standing guard while protesters yelled outside.

 

In a three-part tweet, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper confirmed that protection measures were underway.

“The Department of Defense is working closely with the State Department to ensure the security of our Embassy and personnel in Baghdad,” Esper said.

The Department of Defense is working closely with the State Department to ensure the security of our Embassy and personnel in Baghdad.

— Secretary of Defense Dr. Mark T. Esper (@EsperDoD) December 31, 2019

 

“We have taken appropriate force protection actions to ensure the safety of American citizens, military personnel and diplomats in country, and to ensure our right of self-defense. We are sending additional forces to support our personnel at the Embassy,” Esper continued.

“As in all countries, we rely on host nation forces to assist in the protection of our personnel in country, & we call on the Gov’t of Iraq to fulfill its international responsibilities to do so. The US continues to support the Iraqi people & a free, sovereign, & prosperous Iraq,” he added.

As in all countries, we rely on host nation forces to assist in the protection of our personnel in country, & we call on the Gov’t of Iraq to fulfill its international responsibilities to do so. The US continues to support the Iraqi people & a free, sovereign, & prosperous Iraq.

— Secretary of Defense Dr. Mark T. Esper (@EsperDoD) December 31, 2019

 

The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad was stormed by pro-Iranian protesters early Tuesday, less than two days after the U.S. carried out airstrikes on five sites belonging to the Iran-backed Iraqi militia, Kata’ib Hezbollah.

The protesters set fire to the embassy’s perimeter, smashed windows and doors, and marched and chanted while shouting “death to America” and “down, down America.”

 

Embassy employees and diplomats were forced to flee the location and are now in hiding.

The U.S. airstrikes conducted on Sunday came in response after the Kata’ib Hezbollah militia launched a 30+ rocket attack on the K1 military base near Kirkuk, Iraq, which left one U.S. defense contractor dead, and four other U.S. service members injured, according to a Pentagon statement.

The U.S. airstrikes killed 25 militia members and injured 51, and the militia vowed to strike back on the U.S. in revenge.

[yota691]

01/20/2020 04:14:56 PM 66

Planes loaded with hundreds of American soldiers land at Kuwait Airport and others fly over the sky of Baghdad

 

Baghdad / Al-Ghad Press:

A security source said, today, Thursday, that planes loaded with hundreds of American soldiers landed in Kuwait airport and others flew over the sky of Baghdad.

The source told Al-Ghad Press, that the American Black Hawk plane continues to fly low over the sky of Baghdad, while the US military transport planes successively landed on the ground of Kuwait International Airport, coming from the United States.

He added that the leadership of the special squad prevented the entry of wheels into the street of the American embassy, with the exception of the residents of the residential complex opposite it, with the deployment of anti-terrorist and federal police forces in front of the embassy building.

 

[yota691]

Pictures .. US paratroopers are going to secure the embassy in Baghdad

Policy

2020-01-02 | 03:56

 

19,842 views

The US Army Paratroopers left for an immediate reaction force, Fort Bragg base in the United States, heading to Iraq to secure the US embassy in Baghdad.

According to media reports, the US forces transferred to Iraq join the 2nd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division. They were flown from the US base via the C-17 transport plane.

 

The US Defense Secretary, Mark Esber, announced, on Wednesday, that Washington sent about 750 soldiers to secure the American embassy in Iraq immediately after the demonstration, and confirmed that there are additional forces from the 82nd Airborne Division ready to send in the next few days.

The Russian Sputnik agency published pictures and video clips showing the American army sending a group of special forces "Marines" to the headquarters of the American embassy in Baghdad to secure the embassy headquarters after storming it from protesters protesting against America targeting the headquarters of the crowd in Iraq.

US officials said that the Pentagon last Tuesday sent about 100 American Marines to the American embassy in Baghdad to enhance security after Iraqi protesters, angry at the American air raids on Iranian-backed "Popular Mobilization" forces in Iraq and Syria, stormed the embassy complex.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[yota691]

02-01-2020 02:18 PM

Strategic expert: The Iraqi government is part of the US-Iran problem

 

 

Baghdad / news

Hussein Allawi, professor of national security at the University of Al-Nahrain, confirmed that the Iraqi government does not have the solutions to end the US-Iranian crisis.

Allawi said in a statement to the BBC, "The matter now in Iraq is very difficult and the issue of sovereignty is a relative issue," noting that "the Iraqi government is part of the problem and not the solution."

"There was supposed to be political reform, but it did not happen and the country after the war needed early elections in order to produce a new force and a new order for the country," he said.

He continued that "Iraq is now facing a great ordeal, either to be with the state or with the current of non-state, and this trend is the opposite of society."

And that "the Iraqi political forces now use the pressure forces on society by inserting it into the American-Iranian conflict, and this makes us bear a lot."

He continued, "We have paid a lot of blood in regional wars, for which Iraq has no interest except that it is the will of the authority."

[Butifldrm]

 

01/20/2020 11:51

• Views 1169
• Section: Iraq
•  
•  

Analysis: The American Consulate in Erbil, the likely alternative to its embassy in Baghdad, is a deliberate step to avenge the federal capital

Baghdad / Obelisk: After the demonstrators' attempts to storm the American embassy in Baghdad, the United States is building a consulate that is considered the largest in the world in Erbil Governorate after coordination with the Kurdistan Regional Government.

And media sources said, "The United States of America, in coordination with the Kurdistan Regional Government, continues to complete construction work for a new consulate in the city of Erbil, instead of the current location located in the commercial and crowded area of Ainkawa."

Observers believe that Washington will continue to focus its diplomatic and political representation in Erbil, due to the fear of the security situation in the federal capital, Baghdad, as well as that there is a desire to downplay Baghdad, in retaliation for the events of the demonstrations and attempts to storm the US embassy there, and to suggest that Erbil is Always a suitable and accommodating alternative to the American diplomatic and security presence.

She added, "The new location is located on the main road between the city of Erbil and the city of Pirmam, which is the city where the President of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Masoud Barzani, resides and is close to the tourist resort of Salahuddin."

She continued, "The cost of the new consulate project is $ 795 million, according to the information, and the consulate will be the largest in the world with an area of 200 thousand square meters, which includes residential complexes, schools, specialized playgrounds, water and nylon laboratories, water circulation, restaurants, and places to serve the citizens and auditors," And meeting rooms, swimming pools, gardens, and others, "indicating that" they are very heavily fortified in terms of security. "

The sources pointed out that "the work of the new consulate takes about three years, but after the recent events, the number of employees in the American contracting company has been increased, to exceed more than a thousand people for the sake of speedy completion."

She indicated, "The new consulate is one of the largest multiple embassies of the United States in many countries of the world, and this land has been allocated by the Kurdistan Regional Government, to serve as a second embassy in the event of any outbreaks of tensions in Baghdad, and the difficulty of access to care or auditors for the capital, as it is It serves as a point of contact with international organizations that carry out community work inside the liberated areas, due to the difficulty of their contact with the main embassy in Baghdad.

What about the American embassy in Baghdad?

A report by Fox News describes that the US embassy in Baghdad is the largest in the world, as it is the same size as the Vatican City, and the embassy was established on an area of 104 acres.

The embassy opened in January 2009, after a series of construction operations costing more than 750 million dollars, as it accommodated about 16,000 employees and contractors.

The embassy complex is located on the Tigris River, west of the 14th of July Bridge. It consists of 21 buildings, with an area of approximately 80 soccer fields, making it larger than the United Nations Complex in New York.

Marines protect the US embassy in Baghdad, which has strengthened its building structures more than two and a half times the number of other embassies, in addition to containing five high security entrances and an emergency entrance.

The engineering design of the embassy was not published publicly, but it was designed with capabilities that guarantee it self-sufficiency in energy and water, in light of the electricity and water cuts in Baghdad, and the security disturbances that erupt from time to time.

The fence surrounding the embassy is at least 9 feet high, and is made of reinforced concrete that is strong enough to disperse the force of the blast from a car bomb, missile, or mortar attack.

From the inside, the embassy was exceptionally fortified, as it was designed as an American fortress against biological bombs.

How did the popular crowd respond to the Washington attacks?

Last Tuesday, Iraqi demonstrators passed the fortified American embassy gates in the Green Zone surrounded by a fairy aura of protection, political and diplomatic importance, and the blatant symbol of American influence in Iraq since 2003, when the US administration built this huge building, in great care. To remind the Iraqis that it was the American forces that ousted Saddam Hussein’s regime, and that it is their right to remain in this country.

Supporters of the popular crowd, who received air strikes from US aircraft, chose, last week, from the embassy, an opportunity to respond to the attack, and they succeeded in reaching its gates and going up to the protection towers, and marginalizing security glass windows in them, as a picture of prominent politicians and security leaders participating in the demonstrations demonstrated in front of The embassy, which prompted the US Secretary of State to describe them as "participating in the attack on the embassy," as US President Donald Trump spoke, said that highly-trained American forces and advanced equipment are now in the possession of the embassy.

The American statements reveal the extreme importance that Washington attaches to the embassy, while it seemed clear that the demonstrators loyal to the popular crowd chose the embassy as a confrontation area with Washington.

Embassy events will cast a shadow over Iraqi-American relations, and Washington will seek to respond to Iraqi leaders, whom Washington believes are linked to the embassy attack, which complicates the crisis that erupted at a time when popular demonstrations against the political system in Iraq continue.

Because of this synchronization, there are those who believe that the matter will lead to new demonstrations in Iraq against the United States and its supporters, parallel to the demonstrations of Tahrir Square and the cities of Iraq demanding reform.

Obelisk

http://almasalah.com/ar/news/185129/تحليل-قنصلية-أمريكا-بأربيل-البديل-المرجح-لسفارتها-ببغداد-خطوة-مقصودة--للانتقام-من-العاصمة-الاتحادية

[Pitcher]

1 hour ago, Butifldrm said:

The cost of the new consulate project is $ 795 million, according to the information, and the consulate will be the largest in the world with an area of 200 thousand square meters, which includes residential complexes, schools, specialized playgrounds, water and nylon laboratories, water circulation, restaurants, and places to serve the citizens and auditors," And meeting rooms, swimming pools, gardens, and others

 

Thanks for this article Butifldrm.  I don’t believe the US will be leaving Iraq any time soon.

[new york kevin]

It's my thought that the issues involving the GOI, the Iranian  backed militias/proxy armies, and the US interests and capabilities in Iraq , are so complicated that it paralyzes the GOI at every level; faith wise, economically, security and proximity in the region wise. The GOI is darned if they do and darned if they don't do something. Something, such as really defending our embassy in Baghdad.  Eliminating all non-federally authorized armed militias in country ... foreign or domestic, or a combination there of. The easy answer is move the Embassy to a more secured location. Then let the US Armed Forces go and eliminate the armed militia groups ... all of them ... starting with these guys. All while the official stance of the GOI is ... the US is over stepping their authority and must end all agression before the GOI is drawn into a regional conflict. Which in my opinion they already are in one. At least as long as these  militias attack US interests at will, without the GOI doing a darn thing about it.

[siberian_shaddow]

According to Pompeo there are no plans to be pulling out of Iraq, we aren't going anywhere. As you see now were bringing in more and i assume that most likely will be staying there for awhile. just as we see the dinar as our investment, The US see's Irag as a very big investment, who ever controls the oil there holds a hand of ace's in a card game.

[yota691]

02-01-2020 05:17 PM

Newspaper: Washington will not stand idly by over Iran's measures that endanger Americans' lives

 

 

 

Baghdad - news

The United States of America confirmed that it will not stand idly by about the moves of Iran and its forces inside Iraq, especially as it endangers the lives of the Americans to danger, pointing to the strikes it has directed against the Hezbollah factions in Iraq.

And on the escape of the American ambassador to Baghdad, Washington confirmed, "The latter was on a personal trip previously scheduled more than a week ago, and the reports that he spoke about his disappearance are incorrect. He will return to the embassy."

"The Independent Arabia" quoted US State Department spokesperson Erica Chusano as saying and his "news" follower that "I have threatened the attacks that took place against an Iraqi facility, American forces, and this is what has continued to happen for weeks, noting that" this was not the first group of Attacks against this particular Iraqi facility and other facilities, endangering American lives.

"These strikes were a decisive response that clarifies what President Donald Trump has been saying for months, which is that we will not stand by and watch as Iran takes measures that endanger the lives of the American people," she noted.

And she stressed that "Iran and its unified forces in Iraq must stop the agency and stop attacks on the United States and coalition forces and respect the sovereignty of Iraq to avoid any additional defensive actions by American forces."

[yota691]

02-01-2020 06:21 PM

The Secretary of Defense: We will launch preemptive strikes against the factions planning to launch attacks against our forces

 

 

Baghdad - news

US Defense Secretary Mark Esber said Thursday that the United States of America will launch preemptive strikes against armed factions planning to launch attacks against our forces and interests in Iraq.

"We will regret any further provocative action," he added, noting that "we will not see enough movement from Iraq to hold those involved in the attacks accountable."

He noted that "the United States of America is ready to launch pre-emptive strikes against any faction planning to launch attacks against our forces or our interests, expecting" more attacks in the coming days and they will regret it! "

In the same context, the head of the American Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mark Millie, affirmed that we "have sufficient combat forces inside the embassy in Baghdad," ruling out the possibility of storming the American embassy in Baghdad.

[Bama Girl]

My belief is IF we were foolish enough to pull completely out of Iraq, Iran, Russia, and/or ISIS would quickly fill the void and cause more havoc in the Middle East. We simply cannot leave Iraq and maintain any semblance of peace in the area.    

[Pitcher]

We aren’t leaving Iraq.  We have a huge new Embassy in Erbil.  I’m sure we closed Baghdad down for safety reason because of what is going down right now. They ought to let the Iranian creeps take the compound in Baghdad and the MOAB it into tiny little pieces.  

[yota691]

Iraq .. News about Marines' arrest by Qais Khazali and Hadi Al-Amri
01/03/2020 4:53 AM

Qais Khazali
  

It was reported that US Marines arrested the leader of the "Alliance of Fate" Hadi al-Amiri, and the Secretary-General of "Asaib Ahl al-Haq", Qais al-Khazali, in the Jadriya area, a residential city in Baghdad, according to Al Arabiya.

Earlier, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday accused Al-Amri and Khazali of masterminding the attack on the American embassy in the capital, Baghdad, and published their photos on his Twitter account.

"The attack was organized by the terrorists Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and Qais al-Khazali, and Iranian agents Hadi al-Amiri and Faleh al-Fayyad incited him," the US minister said.

[yota691]

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Statement by Secretary of Defense Dr. Mark T. Esper as Prepared

JAN. 2, 2020

 

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Last Friday, the Iranian-backed militia Kata'ib Hizbollah or KH launched yet another attack against American forces in Iraq, resulting in the death of one American civilian, and injuries to four American service members, as well as two of our partners in the Iraqi Security Forces. This continues a string of attacks against bases with U.S. forces and Iraqi Security Forces. KH has a strong linkage to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Quds Force and has received lethal aid, support, and direction from Iran.

 Over the last couple of months Iranian-backed Shia militias have repeatedly attacked bases hosting American forces in Iraq.  These attacks have injured our partners in the Iraqi Security Forces, but fortunately Americans were not casualties of these attacks until last week. On November 9th, Iranian-backed Shia militias fired rockets at Q-West Air Base located in North-West Iraq.  On December 3rd, they conducted a rocket attack against Al Asad Air Base, and on December 5th, they launched rockets against Balad Air Base.  Finally, on December 9th, these same militia groups fired rockets at the Baghdad Diplomatic support Center located on the Baghdad International Airport.  It is clear that these attacks are being directed by the Iranian regime, specifically IRGC leadership.

In response, U.S. leaders have repeatedly warned the Iranians and their Shia militia proxies against further provocative actions. At the same time, we have urged the Iraqi government to take all necessary steps to protect American forces in their country. I personally have spoken to Iraqi leadership multiple times over recent months, urging them to do more.

After the attack last Friday, at the direction of the President, U.S. forces launched defensive strikes against KH forces in Iraq and Syria. These attacks were aimed at reducing KH's ability to launch additional attacks against U.S. personnel and to make it clear to Iran and Iranian-backed militias that the United States will not hesitate to defend our forces in the region.

On Tuesday, December 31st, at the instigation of Shia militias, violent rallies of members of these militias outside the American embassy in Baghdad resulted in damage to exterior entry facilities and buildings at the embassy compound. We know it was Iranian-backed Shia militias because key leaders were spotted in the crowd and some militia members showed up wearing their uniforms and carried the flags of their militia, including KH.  We continue to urge the Iraqi government to prevent further escalation. Leaders of the Iraqi government have condemned the attack on the U.S. embassy, including the Iraqi president, prime minister, foreign minister, and speaker of the parliament.  Additionally, regional and international partners have condemned the attacks on U.S. facilities, including Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Bahrain in the region, and the E.U., Germany, France, and others around the globe.

On Tuesday, to ensure the security of the Americans at the embassy in Baghdad, we immediately deployed Marines from Kuwait who arrived at the embassy in a matter of hours. We also deployed a battalion of the 82nd Airborne Division to ensure that we can provide additional defensive support to the embassy in Baghdad or elsewhere in the region as needed.

Let me speak directly to Iran and to our partners and allies. To Iran and its proxy militias: we will not accept continued attacks against our personnel and forces in the region. Attacks against us will be met with responses in the time, manner, and place of our choosing. We urge the Iranian regime to end their malign activities.

To our partners and allies: we must stand together against the malign and destabilizing actions of Iran. The 81 nations and member organizations of the Defeat ISIS Coalition are in Iraq and Syria, and cooperating around the globe to defeat ISIS.  We have worked closely with our partners in the Iraqi Security Forces and Syrian Democratic Forces to roll-back the so-called ISIS caliphate in Iraq and Syria and liberated millions of Iraqis and Syrians. NATO nations are also in Iraq to assist with building the capabilities of the Iraqi Security Forces.  Unlike the Iranians who continue to meddle in Iraq's internal affairs and seek to use corruption to further Tehran's malign influence, the United States and our allies are committed to an independent, stable, secure, and sovereign democratic Iraq that addresses the aspirations and needs of the Iraqi people, who we see protesting for these very things and objecting to Iran's malign influence. We call on our friends and allies to continue to work together to reduce Iran's destabilizing influence so Iraq is governed by Iraqis without this interference in its internal affairs.

[yota691]

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Statement by the Department of Defense

JAN. 2, 2020

 

---

At the direction of the President, the U.S. military has taken decisive defensive action to protect U.S. personnel abroad by killing Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. 

General Soleimani was actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service members in Iraq and throughout the region. General Soleimani and his Quds Force were responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American and coalition service members and the wounding of thousands more. He had orchestrated attacks on coalition bases in Iraq over the last several months – including the attack on December 27th – culminating in the death and wounding of additional American and Iraqi personnel. General Soleimani also approved the attacks on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad that took place this week.  

This strike was aimed at deterring future Iranian attack plans. The United States will continue to take all necessary action to protect our people and our interests wherever they are around the world.

[yota691]

Esper: Kataeb Hezbollah Will 'Likely Regret' Further Provocative Behavior

JAN. 2, 2020 | BY C. TODD LOPEZ , DOD NEWS

U.S. forces in Iraq were attacked Dec. 27 near Kirkuk by Kataeb Hezbollah, a group with links to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's Quds Force. The attack, which involved 31 rockets fired, killed one American civilian contractor and injured four American service members as well as two partners in the Iraqi security forces, Defense Secretary Dr. Mark T. Esper said.

"The U.S. military responded, and took defensive actions by striking KH bases in western Iraq and western Syria, striking a combination of the command and control

or weapons caches with considerable effect," Esper said during a press gaggle in the Pentagon today. "The attacks were quite successful."

 

 

 

In the wake of the KH attack, the defense department has deployed an infantry battalion —  about 750 soldiers —  from the Immediate Response Force of the 82nd Airborne Division to the U.S. Central Command area of operations. Additional forces from the IRF prepared to deploy over the next several days, the defense secretary said.

"They are deploying to the region to, on order, reinforce our facilities and to protect our personnel in the region as called upon, and obviously they have the capability to perform other missions as well, as need be," Esper said.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Mark A. Milley described the forces from the 82nd Airborne as a "general-purpose unit," on a defensive mission, adding that such a unit exists precisely for the types of situations it was called upon to respond to.

 

 

 

"It's going over there, it's going to be in Kuwait, and they may have follow-on missions in other places," Milley said. "But their purpose is defensive in nature, to defend U.S. personnel, equipment and facilities."

The chairman said other U.S. forces have been alerted, though no decision has yet been made to deploy those forces. "But there are a variety of forces that are alerted and prepared if necessary depending on the situation, as we move forward," Milley said.

Esper said "provocative behavior" by Iranian-backed Shia militias has been ongoing for several months. The Dec. 27 attack was the latest, he said, adding that while he believes the attacks may continue, the U.S. is ready.

 

 

 

"They've been shooting rockets, indirect fire, any type of things, attacking our bases for months now," the defense secretary said.

"In the last two [months] alone we've [had] nearly a dozen attacks against U.S. forces, against our coalition partners. So do I think they may do something [else?] Yes. And they will likely regret it. And we are prepared to exercise self-defense, and we are prepared to deter further bad behavior from these groups, all of which are sponsored, and directed and rescued by Iran," Esper said.

Related Transcript: Press Gaggle by Secretary Esper and Chairman Milley

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Washington is changing its strategy from a gradual withdrawal to a redeployment in Iraq

- Two Hours Ago

BAGHDAD - The Pentagon has warned Iran and its militia allies in Iraq that they will regret targeting the US embassy in Baghdad.

The US Secretary of Defense, Mark Esber, stressed that his country expects new attacks from factions loyal to Iran, but he vowed to make Tehran regret, if it did so.

"We have been witnessing provocations for months ... Do I think they might do something?" Esber said in a press statement. The answer is yes. They will most likely regret it, ”he vowed to hold those involved in attacks on US forces accountable.

The attack by elements of the popular crowd on the US embassy in Baghdad on Tuesday canceled plans to reduce the number of US soldiers in Iraq, while diplomatic sources said that the missions of five countries, including Britain and Sweden, are considering suspending their activities in Iraq, after the recent developments in the Green Zone.

And until about two months before the attack on the embassy, Washington and Baghdad were discussing plans to reduce the number of American soldiers, who numbered more than five thousand, in light of the reduced risk posed by ISIS in the region.

Over the past few weeks, US forces have moved additional equipment from temporary bases in the center and south of the country to Ain al-Assad, in the far west of Anbar, near the border with Syria.

Last July, Iraqi military personnel spoke of the fact that the United States' plans for a long-term military stay in Iraq primarily include the Ain al-Assad base, and do not include other bases in the Arab part of Iraq, with a broad presence in the Kurdish part.

But the American plans changed from Tuesday, when the Washington embassy in the heavily fortified Green Zone in central Baghdad was attacked by the Popular Mobilization Forces, which resulted in the burning of parts of the Foreign Information Building, and led to the complete evacuation of all diplomatic personnel and service workers in the United States Mission in Iraq .

Iraqi diplomatic sources said that the United States stopped negotiations to reduce the number of its forces in Iraq, while US Defense Secretary Mark Esber announced that “750 American soldiers will go to the Middle East immediately, in response to an attack by pro-Iranian militia elements on the United States embassy building in the Green Zone amid Baghdad". Esber said he had not seen enough movement from Iraq to confront Iranian-backed groups and that he should hold accountable those involved in attacks on American forces.

The Pentagon announced that it had sent Marines "coming from Kuwait to reinforce the US embassy building in Baghdad", and attached the announcement with pictures of the aircraft taking off and arriving at the embassy building, while the Central Command of the US Armed Forces confirmed, "The deployment of costly US Marines On a mission by the Air Force and the Navy for special purposes and responding to crises in Iraq to enhance security at the American embassy and ensure the safety of American citizens. ”

Iraqi military sources for the "Arabs": the actual number of American soldiers in Iraq at the beginning of the year 2020 exceeded six thousand

And Iraqi military sources revealed to "the Arabs" that the actual number of American soldiers in Iraq at the beginning of the year 2020 exceeded six thousand, confirming the presence of nearly 400 American civilians in different locations in the country.

Since last Tuesday evening, US Army Apache helicopters have been flying over the Green Zone, while one of them has thrown enlightening disks over Baghdad's Tahrir Square, the main protest center against the political class linked to Iran, on Wednesday evening.

Many expected that the United States would resort to flight when the pro-Iranian Shiite militias escalated pressure in Iraq, but the American response was surprising. Instead of evacuation and closure, the American forces deployed a large number of their soldiers on the roofs of most of the tall buildings in the Washington embassy in Baghdad, in conjunction with the continued flight of planes. Apache.

An officer in the Iraqi Ministry of Defense said that helicopters circled early Thursday morning, in a low and heavy manner over the Green Zone in central Baghdad, in conjunction with the power cuts, noting that "the Marines carried an airdrop at the American embassy and combed the building."

Observers believe that Washington accepts the Iranian challenge message in Baghdad by besieging the American embassy and burning parts of it, but it is bent on confrontation this time.

The hypothesis of the growing American interest in the Iraqi file witnessing an open confrontation with Iran is reinforced by the announcement of the US State Department that Minister Mike Pompeo canceled a week-long trip to Ukraine and four other countries on Wednesday, following a crowd attack on the American embassy in Baghdad. The resigned Prime Minister, Adel Abdul-Mahdi, appeared in an unenviable position, as he watched members of the official forces chanting in the name of Iran in front of the American Embassy in Baghdad, led by his main partners in his government, Hadi al-Amiri, leader of the Badr Organization, and Qais al-Khazali, leader of the movement. B. the right people and Faleh al-Fayad, leader of the popular crowd and the leader of a tender movement.

Commentators were surprised that the Commander in Chief of the armed forces, Adel Abdul-Mahdi, allowed his Popular Mobilization Forces according to the Iraqi constitution to carry out this attack on the embassy of a foreign country, chanting the name of Iran and its leaders, and uploading pictures of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the prominent leader of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, Qassem Soleimani.

The "Arabs" learned that the embassies of five countries, including Britain and Sweden, have notified the Iraqi government that they are planning to suspend their operations in Baghdad, against the backdrop of the crowd's attack on the American embassy.

Diplomatic sources said, knowing the details of the consultations between Baghdad and the embassies mentioned, that the resigned Prime Minister tried to offer great guarantees so that the five countries would not implement their threat, but he was met with skepticism about his pledges.

It seems clear to the observers that Adel Abdul-Mahdi no longer possesses a tool for governing Iraq, after the real powers and powers transferred to the pro-Iranian militia leaders.

Informed political sources said that Abdul-Mahdi told Hezbollah Brigades and Popular Mobilization leaders that he would leave the post of prime minister vacant and embarrass them if they did not end the protest play in front of the American embassy inside the Green Zone, noting that the crowd leaders fulfilled the prime minister's desire to reduce the great embarrassment surrounding him.

Observers considered that what happened was a scandal on more than one level, as the incident proved that the popular crowd is not an institution affiliated with the Iraqi state and it does not command the orders of the Commander in Chief of the armed forces, noting that the slogans raised or written on the walls revealed that the crowd factions do not bear any loyalty My country is even loyal to Iran and to figures like Khamenei and Soleimani.

This makes saying the “patriotism” of the crowd something contrary to the truth, which was recognized by embassy attackers, led by faction leaders.

The attack, starting from the moment entering the Green Zone until the moment when one of the embassy gates was burned, undoubtedly, revealed that the crowd dominated the government forces charged with protecting that area and that the facilities provided to the attackers were in fact a blatant expression of the crowd's penetration of government security services and did not This is no secret to the prime minister, as the National Security Adviser, Faleh al-Fayyad, is himself the head of the crowd who led the attack.

These facts not only place the outstanding Abdul-Mahdi government in a critical angle, but they also cast doubt on the possibility of an alternative national government with the ability to extend its control over conditions inside Iraq.

An Iraqi political observer said that in the presence of a strong military establishment affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, such as the PMF, which was able to expand within the joints of the Iraqi state, the decision would be purely Iranian.

The observer added in a statement to "Arabs" that this situation requires the United States and other major countries to take measures that would secure the safety of their diplomatic missions, including the possibility of diplomatic missions moving to Erbil in order to perform their duties.

The Arabs

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Satellite Images of US Air Strikes in Iraq Released
34,981 views•Dec 30, 2019

 

VOA News
695K subscribers
The U.S. Defense Department released satellite video, Monday, December 30, of their air strikes in Iraq and Syria against the Kataib Hezbollah militia group, Sunday, killing at least 25 militia fighters.
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READ MORE: An Iran-backed militia threatened revenge Monday in response to U.S. airstrikes against its positions in Iraq and Syria, which killed at least 25 people.
 
The warning from Kataeb Hezbollah came as Iran's foreign minister condemned the U.S. attacks as violating Iraqi sovereignty and amounting to an act of terrorism.
 
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper confirmed the airstrikes in comments to reporters late Sunday. He said U.S. fighter jets hit three Kataeb Hezbollah targets in western Iraq and two others in eastern Syria.
 
Esper identified the targets as weapons storage and command and control facilities.
 
The airstrikes were carried out in response to a rocket attack Friday on an Iraqi military base in northern Iraq that killed a U.S. defense contractor.

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The United States of America calls on its citizens to leave Iraq "immediately"

The US embassy in Iraq

 January 3, 2020 02:25 PM

Mubasher: The United States Embassy in Baghdad called on its citizens to leave Iraq immediately.

This came hours after the United States of America announced that "the American army, under the direction of President Donald Trump, carried out the strike that killed Soleimani, " the commander of the Quds Force in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.

"Soleimani was actively involved in developing plans to attack American diplomats and soldiers in Iraq and the region. General Soleimani and the Qods Force were responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Americans and coalition forces and the wounding of thousands of others," the Pentagon said.

The Pentagon added that Soleimani agreed to the attack on the US embassy in Iraq this week.

He stressed that the strike was aimed at deterring any future attack plans for Iran, and that the United States of America would continue to take all necessary steps to protect its citizens and interests wherever it was around the world.

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The start of the arrival of the American military reinforcements to the embassy in Baghdad

Last update: Friday, 8 Jumada I 1441 AH - 03 January 2020 KSA 15:11 - GMT 12:11
Publication date: Friday 8 Jumada I 1441 AH - 03 January 2020 KSA 14:25 - GMT 11:25

Source: Washington - AFP

Iraqi soldiers guard the entrance to the American embassy in Baghdad

 

A US military official confirmed today, Friday, the arrival of "American military reinforcements to secure" the American embassy in Baghdad, after it was attacked by Iraqi militias last week.

The US military official told "Agence France Presse" that about 750 American soldiers have started arriving at the Washington embassy in Baghdad to secure it. He added: "The soldiers will go to the United States embassy to help the Marines that had arrived in the past days ."

 

It is noteworthy that the American embassy in Baghdad was attacked, last Tuesday, by supporters of Iraqi factions affiliated with the popular crowd and loyal to Iran, including the Iraqi Hezbollah Brigades, which lost more than 20 elements in American strikes, last Sunday, to bases in the city of Qaim Iraqi and in Syria.

The protesters also burned an embassy gate, cracking a security post and surveillance cameras.

On Wednesday, Marines landed inside the embassy . Later, the US Secretary of Defense, Mark Esber, announced that the Pentagon would "immediately send about 750 additional soldiers to the Middle East," in response to the recent events in Iraq.

Soleimani killing

In a related context, the American military official told "Agence France Presse" that the commander of the Quds Force in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, Qassem Soleimani, was killed at dawn today, Friday, in Baghdad, "with a precise blow from an American drone." He explained that the drone plane targeted two cars at Baghdad airport.

The commander of the Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani, and the deputy head of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Organization, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, were killed at dawn today, Friday, in a US attack on their car near Baghdad International Airport. Samer Abdullah, son-in-law of Imad Mughniyeh, who was the military commander of the Lebanese Hezbollah and who was assassinated in Syria in 2008, was killed in the same strike. The husband of the daughter of Qasim Soleimani, Muhammad Reda al-Jabri, director of the ceremonies of the popular crowd at the airport, Hassan Abd al-Hadi and Muhammad al-Shaibani were also killed. Ali Haider is a popular crowd.

Soleimani was the delegate of Tehran to Iraq, Syria and Lebanon to coordinate with armed groups loyal to Iran in these countries.

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04-01-2020 01:22 AM

Security forces seize missiles and platforms in Baghdad

 

 

Baghdad / Al-
Ikhbaria : A security source said, on Saturday, that two anti-missile missiles were found towards the Green Zone, under the Mohammed Qasim Bridge.
The source told "Al-Ikhbaria" that "a security force was able to seize two missiles and a launch pad before they were launched towards the Green Zone."
He added, "An anti-explosive force arrived at the accident site and was able to dismantle the missiles without causing any damage."

 

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07-01-2020 01:08 AM

Urgent: US ground, air, and reinforcements link the Taji base

 

 

Baghdad / Al-Ikhbaria:
Security expert Hisham Al-Hashemi revealed, on Monday, that American military convoys entered the Taji camp, as well as landing military aircraft with additional equipment.
Hashemi said in a statement to "Al-Ikhbaria" that "everyone is busy discussing the message of the American forces to the Iraqi joint command" draft "withdrawal" correct "and" inaccurate "and" unauthorized for publication "as claimed by the US Secretary of Defense.
He added, during this period, several American convoys entered the Taji camp, north of Baghdad, and cargo aircraft landed with additional equipment.

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3 Katyusha rockets landed inside the Green Zone in Baghdad

Urgent - archive

 January 09, 2020 12:50 AM

Direct: Sky News Arabia reported the fall of 3 Katyusha rockets inside the heavily fortified Green Zone in central Baghdad, which includes the US embassy headquarters, government buildings, and foreign diplomatic missions.

According to the channel, witnesses heard the sound of the explosions in the center of the capital, followed by the sound of sirens in the green zone.

Witnesses reported that the blasts were the strongest in a series of attacks on the Green Zone.

Iran has launched a number of ballistic missiles at the Iraqi Ain al-Assad air base, which includes units of the US military.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard has claimed responsibility for firing missiles at US bases, warning Washington of the consequences of the response, according to Iranian news agencies.

And Iraq is witnessing security tensions, after the Pentagon announced last Friday morning, the killing of the commander of the Quds Force in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Qassem Soleimani, and Abu Mahdi, the leader of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization, in a missile attack on a drone, targeting their car on the road to Baghdad International Airport.