Strategic Expert: The Value Of The Iraqi Dinar Will Decrease In Relation To The US Dollar As Oil Falls !

[DinarThug]

Iraqi protesters stand firm, say corruption worse than coronavirus

 

 March 7, 2020

 

BAGHDAD — A group of protesters in Saadoun Tunnel under Tahrir Square in the center of Baghdad were chanting on Friday night, March. 6, calling on Coronavirus to come to Iraq and take revenge from the militias and corrupt politicians who killed them during the 5 months of protests.

"Listen to us Corona, come and visit the thieves who stole our wealth, come and take revenge from who stole our dreams, we only loved our homeland but they killed us," protesters were chanting. 

Despite the rapid spread of the coronavirus in Iraq, protesters have maintained a steady presence in Baghdad's Tahrir Square and other public areas, with no sign of intent to retreat or scale back their demonstrations.

On March 5, hundreds of university students in Basra took part in a rally, chanting, “Politicians are the real virus,” “Corruption is the real virus” and “You are the corona,” in reference to the politicians the protesters accuse of being loyal to Iran instead of Iraq. Basra has been the site of several other rallies as well, demanding the border with Iran be closed after many cases of the virus were traced to people coming from Iran.

The Ministry of Health reported a third death from the coronavirus and three new cases of infection March 5, increasing the total number of people infected to 40. Most of the COVID-19 cases have been linked to neighboring Iran, where 107 people have died in the worst outbreak in the Middle East with a reported 3,500 infected.

In the southeast of the country next to Iran, the local Basra government has closed schools and universities in the province until the mid-March and is expected to extend the closures after that. The central government in Baghdad plans to implement the same measurements for the rest of Iraq and the Health Ministry ordered the closure of cafes, restaurants and cinemas to prevent the spread of the virus. Many religious institutions all over the county have canceled gatherings until further notice.

Despite all the precautions, the protesters who have been gathering in the squares and streets during the last five months in most of Iraq's central and southern cities are not staying home.

Not only are the protesters holding firm, but more people are joining their ranks. On March 1, as Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi missed the deadline to form his Cabinet, thousands of protesters from Dhi Qar, Wasit, Karbala, Najaf, Babil and other parts of southern Iraq joined the protesters in Baghdad and moved toward the Green Zone, where the parliament and most of the government buildings are located. Some of them are from Sunni areas such as Salahuddin, northern Baghdad, and Anbar province.

Activist Khalil al-Assadi from Nasiriyah, who has remained in Baghdad’s Tahrir Square since attending the March 1 rally, told Al-Monitor, “I am going to die either way, from the virus or fighting against the government, but at least I know I'll have died fighting for change rather than from a virus at home.”

“The death toll from the virus is much lower than the number of casualties killed by pro-Iranian militias during the last five months,” he added.

Nearly 700 people have been killed and about 30,000 wounded since the protests began in October. 

Distrust toward the Iraq health care system has led some protesters not to take the authorities' advice seriously. Iraq’s health care system, which once had the highest medical standards among the Middle Eastern countries, has declined significantly due to decades of wars, sanctions, corruption and political crises.

Yusuf Mikhaiel, a Christian protester and a medic from Baghdad, told Al-Monitor, “Iraq's Ministry of Health is pathetic, dysfunctional and underfunded. The virus will eventually spread everywhere, due to years of negligence and government corruption.” He added, “The real virus is the government.”

The protesters accuse the government of hiding the actual numbers of those infected and the virus' transmission from elsewhere to Iraq.

“Iran is a state of liars. It lied about the numbers of casualties in the anti-government protests, lied about the Ukrainian airplane for four days and is lying about coronavirus now as well,” tweeted Iraqi activist Ahmed Fawzi, adding, “Iran is the reason for the virus' spread in Iraq and everywhere in the region.”

“Iran's regime is always lying about everything, just like the Iraqi government — Iran puppets,” another Iraqi protester tweeted Feb. 23.

The protesters' strong feelings against Iran's influence in Iraq have contributed to the formation of conspiracy theories. Some believe that the virus was intentionally transmitted from Iran to Iraq to end the protests.

“The government uses coronavirus as an excuse to end the protests. They tried everything — snipers, live bullets, tear gas, abduction and so on and on — but they failed,” said Yasamin Mustafa, a teenage protester from Basra. “They are now finding another way to stop us, but they will fail again.”

Found in:CIVIL SOCIETY, HEALTH AND MEDICINE

Hassan Ali Ahmed is an Iraqi academic who focuses on Iraq’s international relations and foreign policy.

Read more: LINK

[DinarThug]

Iraq's Falcon Intelligence Cell wants to root out corruption

 

March 7, 2020

 

BAGHDAD — “Terrorism generates corruption and corruption generates terrorism,” stressed Abu Ali al-Basri in his soft-spoken but acutely focused voice.

Basri leads Iraq's elite Falcon Intelligence Cell, which was created to focus on extremist groups including Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS). The counterterrorism intelligence unit has become better known after some high-profile cases and successes in recent years.

Basri told Al-Monitor in a Baghdad interview in late February 2020 that the unit has also at times been involved in corruption cases linked to terrorism.

Only on extremely rare occasions does Basri grant in-person interviews to journalists. His real identity, name and identifying details must remain a secret for security reasons.

This reporter was previously granted another interview with him in mid-July 2019, when he discussed mainly the hunt for IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as well as intelligence exchanges between different countries leading to key arrests and killings.

Basri claimed the Falcon Intelligence Cell had arrested some 2,500 people for involvement in IS in the last six months of 2019 and 2,600 others for cases linked to terrorism “such as kidnappings and killings” not related to IS.

He said some of the 1,500 alleged IS members handed over to Iraq who had been caught and imprisoned in territory currently held by the Syrian Democratic Forces last year turned out not to be of Iraqi origins, such as a Chinese national, a Palestinian, a Tunisian and two Iranians.

“But since they committed crimes against Iraqis on Iraqi soil, they are being tried and sentenced here,” he said.

IS members who escaped capture continue to be found and arrested, and attacks attributed to the terrorist group, though less frequent, continue to occur in Iraq.

Basri said the province of Salahuddin, followed by other areas between Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and Iraqi central government territory, including Diyala and Kirkuk, were where the greatest concentration of IS-linked groups and individuals are located and are at the highest risk for attacks.

Basri said Anbar in western Iraq along the Syrian border has a lower risk and has seen fewer attacks. IS was concerned that some of the shepherds in the mostly desert region “may be our sources,” and IS thus no longer trusted the area as much, he added.

He cautioned, however, that “there is a large number of IS supporters currently in the KRG, but they are not active for the time being," adding that the Falcon Intelligence Cell had arrested “one or two” Iranians from the Ahwaz region who had crossed into Iraq and were involved with IS in 2019.

Former IS leader and Iraqi national Baghdadi blew himself up after being cornered by the United States during an Oct. 26 raid in the Idlib province in northwestern Syria. IS confirmed his death Oct. 31 and named a new leader they referred to as Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Quraishi.

The organization claimed the man was part of the Qureishi lineage and thus related to the Prophet Muhammad.

Basri confirmed, however, that a Jan. 2020 article was correct in stating that his real name was Amir Mohammed Abdul Rahman al-Mawli al-Salbi — a Turkman from Tal Afar with family members in Turkey.

He said the name announced by IS was an attempt to make the leader seem more palatable to followers expecting him to be of the Qureishi.

Basri said Salbi had been in Mosul prior to when IS took control of the city in June 2014, and he had been more "takfiri," or extremist, than Baghdadi in terms of accusing other Muslims of apostasy. When asked to cite an example, he said Salbi had wanted all teachers who had worked with the Iraqi government to be executed. The intel chief said the new IS leader is “absolutely” in Syria.

Basri noted that the Falcon Intelligence Cell can carry out arrests only after getting a judicial order to do so.

But prison capacity in the country is limited, he said, and often the Falcon Intelligence Cell ends up holding those it has arrested in its own detention facilities longer than necessary — the unit carries out arrests, investigations and interrogations, but the prisoners should be moved to a regular prison afterward — simply because there is “no space left in prisons under the Justice Ministry.”

Basri said collaboration between US and Iraqi forces had stalled for a period of time after the Jan. 3 killing of Iranian Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis sparked tensions, but it has fully resumed.

Over two years after the official declaration by then-Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in December 2017 that IS had been defeated in the country, some of the focus has shifted to the ways in which terrorist groups fund their activities and recruitment.

Abadi had announced in December 2017 that a “war on corruption” would begin. However, ongoing anti-government protests across central and southern Iraq that began in October have focused on this very issue, which is that corruption is still rife across the country.

Basri said the Falcon Intelligence Cell could take on a greater role in fighting corruption and another similarly structured tactical team should be formed if not.

“As the Falcon Cell, we have earned a very good reputation over the years” in fighting terrorism and even in “protecting women” through tracking down men trying to blackmail women online through inappropriate personal photos and videos, he said.

“No one can fight IS if they are corrupt,” he said, “and the cell worked hard for years and was successful.”

He noted he had raised the idea with the government but has not yet received a response.

 

Found in: INTELLIGENCE AND ESPIONAGE, ISLAMIC STATE, CORRUPTION AND NEPOTISM

 

 

Shelly Kittleson is a journalist specializing in the Middle East and Afghanistan. Her work has been published in several international, US and Italian media outlets.

Read more: link

 

Edited March 9, 2020 by DinarThug

[DinarThug]

LINK

The work adopts an electronic system for auditors

 

 

 

09:45 - 09/03/2020

 

 

On Monday, the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs directed its departments in Baghdad and all provinces to adopt the electronic system for completing transactions.

The Minister of Labor, Bassem Abdel-Zaman, said in a statement reported by the newspaper “Al-Sabah”, which was viewed by him / the information, that “the departments of the ministry in all governorates have been directed to the necessity of adopting the electronic system in order to complete the transactions of citizens, in addition to adopting it in the administrative work of the ministry’s departments and bodies.”

Abdel-Zaman said, “The National Center for Occupational Health and Safety and the Information Technology Center were directed to the necessity of operating the electronic system in a manner that guarantees the safety of citizens who come to the Ministry and workers alike from the transmission of the Corona virus.”

Abdul Zaman added, “The work in the ministry’s departments will be based on a professional vision that guarantees safety for all through the adoption of the electronic system for completing citizens’ transactions and preparing special electronic forms for this purpose, to be approved within the daily reviews through modern software prepared in this regard.” 
 

Edited March 9, 2020 by DinarThug

[DinarThug]

Bank rate cut

 

Monday 09 March 2020

 

Mostafa Mohamed Ibrahim 

Commercial banks aim to profit which is the first goal in their work, so banks are known as the place where surplus units meet with deficit units, meaning that they employ money from savers to investors; that is, they withdraw interest from investors and provide them To savers in exchange for the interest difference between the two parties, so the interest rate (McKinnon) is defined as the price of giving up liquidity

The work of commercial banks depends mainly on the interest rate through the banking operations that it performs, such as loans and advances granted to citizens, employees, companies, investors or contractors in exchange for interest, which is the primary goal of the business of the commercial bank.

Recently, efforts and demands have emerged from both the public and the Parliamentary Finance Committee to reduce bank interest rates on loans and advances, especially loans and advances granted by the Rafidain and Al-Rasheed banks, which are the backbone of government banking transactions because they account for almost a third of the total deposits of government assets. It is the responsibility of the board of directors of the Commercial Bank and not the central bank primarily, because the central bank sets upper and lower limits for bank interest and the bank does not exceed these limits until it is not subject to legal accountability and banking supervision. N accepted the Central Bank of Iraq, and this is one of the duties of the Banking Supervision Department at the Iraqi Central Bank .

Commercial banks should study this proposal well, especially after proposing several initiatives by commercial banks to achieve benefits on these initiatives in various forms, as loans and advances are important banking operations as credit facilities promoted by the commercial bank and the bank interest rate varies from Bank to another according to the credit policy of that bank, as the interest rate on loans and advances to the Rafidain Bank for the year 2019 reached 5% after it was in previous years 9%, while the interest rate on bank loans to the Rashid Bank reached 4% after it was in the years Previous 8%.

Finally, reducing the interest rate on bank loans and advances will reap the fruits of the banks further, which increases the demand by the public for cash credit and the relationship will be direct. At the same time, the bank will achieve two benefits. On the other hand, the credit risk will increase, and here the bank must undertake the process of granting credit in a more focused way.

LINK

[DinarThug]

The US Congress allocates $ 8 billion to fight Corona

Monday 09 March 2020

Washington / Nafi Naji

 

 The growth of the US economy remains "steadfast", due to the high consumption spending that is based on strong job growth and wage growth, "but the fear of Corona virus after diagnosing more than a hundred injuries and recording more than 11 deaths in several states, including Washington, as well as the announcement Emergencies in California, New York, Los Angeles, etc., forced the House of Representatives (Congress) to allocate $ 8.3 billion to efforts to combat the virus, and the Federal Reserve made an emergency cut of interest rates due to the spread of the said virus.

 

 

Preliminary data from the International Finance Institute also showed that portfolio managers withdrew $ 9.7 billion from emerging market shares last February amid growing fears of a proliferation of corona, which sparked widespread sales of high-risk assets.

 

Corona fight

The US House of Representatives was able to pass a bill to allocate $ 8.3 billion to support efforts to combat Corona Virus (Covid-19) with the approval of an overwhelming majority of 415 members in exchange for the rejection of only two members, to move now to the Senate for ratification before President Trump signed 

on him.

The Republicans in the US Senate expressed their support for spending billions of dollars in these efforts, and the legislation is expected to be issued in the coming days, as it is hoped to allocate (3) billion dollars to develop drugs and vaccines, while $ 2.2 billion will be allocated for prevention and preparations 

Highlighted.

In this regard, President Donald Trump revealed his support for what the Congress will approve after the country recorded more than 100 cases of coronavirus and at least 11 deaths.

 

Emergency reduction

Contrary to what was usual about two weeks before its regular meeting, the Federal Reserve announced an emergency rate cut in the face of increased economic risks due to the spread of Corona virus. The Bank's Policy Development Committee unanimously decided to reduce the main interest rate by half a percentage point to between 1.0 and 1.25 points.

This reduction reflects the increasing fears of the effects of the spread of Corona virus in the American and global economies, after the interruption of supply chains linked to China epidemic.

The Federal Open Market Committee said in a statement that the Central Bank "is closely monitoring developments and their impacts on economic expectations, and will use its tools and act appropriately to support the economy." However, she stressed that the fundamentals of the economy are "still strong" even though "Corona virus" poses risks that are constantly exposed to Economist activity. . "

Airline losses

As the virus continues to spread across the United States, major domestic airlines, such as United Airlines, Delta and JetBlue, have forced emergency domestic traffic, and thousands of flights have canceled billions of dollars in losses.

New restrictions on air transport and fears of travelers from approaching others also dealt a severe blow to travel companies, prompting the International Air Transport Authority (IATA) to forecast a loss of more than one hundred billion dollars, according to some Estimates.

 

Close factories

And near the same event, the famous American sports equipment maker closed the company, "Nike", its main regional headquarters in the Netherlands, after some employees were infected with HIV.

And "Nike" announced that its European headquarters near the Dutch capital Amsterdam will be closed temporarily after it was proven that one of the employees was injured. With the virus. 

The company employs about 2,000 workers in Hilversum, noting that deep cleaning of the headquarters is permitted before resuming its opening again.

 

Exodus of $ 9.7 billion

Because of Corona’s complications, preliminary data for the International Finance Institute indicated that portfolio managers withdrew $ 9.7 billion from emerging market shares last February amid growing fears of the spread of the virus, which sparked widespread sales of high assets. 

Risks.

The Institute revealed that the losses manifested in Asia and Latin America have reached the total outflows from stock and bond markets in developing economies to $ 11.9 billion since the beginning of the year compared to inflows of $ 35.7 billion for the same period of 2019.

Asian stock markets lost $ 4.5 billion, while Latin America funds lost $ 3.8 billion in February.

 

slowing down

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development warned that the outbreak of the Corona virus was pushing the global economy towards the worst slowdown since the global financial crisis, calling on governments and central banks to fight that to avoid a further Economist decline .

The organization said in an update of its forecasts that the world economy is on the verge of growth of 2.4% this year, the lowest since 2009 and a decrease from expectations at 2.9% issued last November.

The Paris-based Policy Forum predicted that the global economy will recover in 2021 to register 3.3% growth, assuming that the epidemic begins to recede in China during the first quarter of the year, provided that other outbreaks are moderate and Contain.

However, the organization warned that if the virus spreads across Asia, Europe and North America, global growth could drop to a low of 1.5% this year.

The chief economist of the organization, Lawrence Boone, stated that governments need to support health systems by increasing wages or tax exemptions for workers who work overtime and short-term work programs for companies that suffer from low demand.

At the same time, central banks can transmit reassurance messages in financial markets that are under pressure by expressing readiness for a more easy monetary policy and by providing liquidity to banks if needed.

LINK

[DinarThug]

Sumaisem told Obelisk: The central bank put up $ 250 million to prevent the collapse of the dinar ... and the deficit of $ 51 billion ... and then what?

 

3/9/2020 11:15:02 AM  

 

 

----------------------------------- 

Baghdad / Obelisk: Economist Salam Smaism, on Monday, 9 March 2020,

 

considered Iraq and Iran to be one of the biggest losers in the oil price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia, and this caused a major economic blow on them.

 Sumaisem said in an interview with "Obelisk" that the central bank put 250 million dollars, Monday, March 9, 2020, for trading in order to control the currency market and prevent the collapse of the Iraqi dinar.

And Smisim continued: The budget was not deliberately approved, and the corrupt people prepared it at the price of $ 56 a barrel of oil, which is now falling to $ 33 and an approximate deficit of more than $ 51 billion!

She added: No one dares to ask: What then? The Iraq treasury will be emptied, and who is responsible?

And Sumaisim considered that Iraq is a victim of the war in oil prices launched by Saudi Arabia after the collapse of the Russia deal.

Sumaisem said that Saudi Arabia is flooding the world oil markets with oil to punish Russia for its refusal to reduce OPEC prices, while Russia's economy, which depends on oil revenues, faces a major crisis.

Oil prices tumbled in global markets after Saudi Arabia decided to increase supplies in a price war with Russia after an agreement between OPEC and Moscow collapsed, as well as regional and global stock exchanges and oil and aviation stocks collapsed against the backdrop of a price war and fears of an outbreak of the Corona virus.

The head of the Center for Political Thinking, Ihsan al-Shammari, said on Monday, March 9, 2020 that the decline in oil prices will cast a shadow on the level of Iraqi per capita income, fully blaming the government of Adel Abdul Mahdi for the implications of this decline and its impact on Iraq's economic future.

Obelisk

 

 

http://almasalah.com/ar/news/189077/ Smsim-for-the-obelisk-central-bank-subtract-250-million-dollars-to prevent the collapse of the dinar-and-deficit-51-billion-dollars-and what-after- that

[DinarThug]

LINK

Because of Corona .. stop the presence of investors in the hall
of the Iraq Stock Exchange

 

 

9th March, 2020

The Iraq Stock Exchange issued a decision Monday to stop the presence of investors in the market hall.

A statement of the market received / Mawazine News / a copy of it, that "the Iraq Stock Exchange decided to stop the presence of investors in the market hall."

The statement added, "This came in compliance with the decision of the Health Crisis Cell and the prevention of gathering in public places," adding that "the decision will continue until March 21, 2020 or any other day decided by the Crisis Cell."

He pointed out, "The market receives the auditors, provided they adhere to the requirements of public health." 

########

 

LINK

Book of the Iraq Stock Exchange to the respected investors in the closed investor hall until 3/9/2020

 

PDF Translation......

 

To the respected investors Close the investor hall until 3/21/2020 We offer you our best regards. . In compliance with the decisions of the Crisis Cell and for cooperation in preventing the spread of any virus, and based on the decision of the Board of Governors in Al-Faiq, it was decided  1. Closing of the investor hall only until March 21, 2020 or any later date, the crisis cell approved the health of all. 2. Stock trading sessions are continuing from 9:30 am and canceling 12 noon through the remote trading network via the electronic system from the headquarters of the 42 licensed brokerage companies. All 3 brokerage departments are open to those who have a review or treatment in my family without stopping with a necessity. References: Conditions in halls and movies are observed daily, to ensure the highest degree of compliance

 

############

LINK

 

The stock market closes the investor hall until March 21

 

9th March, 2020

 

The Stock Exchange decided to close the Investors Hall until March 21, in compliance with the decisions of the Crisis Cell

The Stock Exchange said in a statement, on Monday, received by the "Economy News", that "in compliance with the decisions of the Crisis Cell and for the sake of health and prevention, it was decided to close the investor hall to March 21, 2020 or any later date decided by the cell

The statement pointed out that trading continues "in securities through the network (remote trading via the electronic system) from the stations of the 42 brokerage firms

The statement stressed that the stock exchange will continue to receive "auditors for those who have a waiver, legal divestment, or executive judicial treatment, taking into account public health requirements

[jeepguy]

Thanks for the information thuggie, 

 

[jeepguy]

So if all those joker's read this, 

Maybe they will get the money correct for the

Exchange rates ...  Close to 1 to 1 ...

[DinarThug]

LINK

Significant losses on the US Wall Street, and the suspension
of trading for 15 minutes

 

 

 

9th March, 2020

 

 

Trading on the US Wall Street stopped temporarily for 15 minutes after trading indicators fell to more than 7%.

Global stock prices and bond yields fell after an agreement between OPEC and Russia to cut oil production failed, causing crude oil prices to fall to their historic lowest.

S&P 500 futures fell as much as 5% on Sunday evening, while the Dow futures fell more than 1,200 points, or about 4.7%, and Nasdaq composite futures fell 4.8%.

Sales in the Asia Pacific region also fell, with the Australian S & P / ASX 200 index closing 7.3% lower on Monday, the biggest drop for the index since October 2008. The Japanese Nikkei 225 Index fell 5.1% to the lowest level Close to him more than a year ago. South Korea's Kospi fell 4.2%, in the biggest loss since October 2018.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 3.5% in the afternoon trade, leading to the biggest drop for the index in more than a year, and although the Shanghai Composite Index was the best performer among major indices in Asia, it also fell by 2.9%.

US 10-year Treasury yields fell to less than 0.5%, hitting its lowest level.

Financial markets in the Gulf countries also fell on Monday, as the Kuwaiti market index decreased by 10.29%, prompting the first market to stop trading.

While the main index in the Saudi "Tadawul" market fell by 8.14%, the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange index decreased by 8.7%, the Dubai Financial Market Index by 8.41%, and the Qatar Stock Exchange index by 9.38%.

The impact of global markets comes after the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia hit oil markets with a price war against Russia, following the latter's refusal to keep pace with OPEC efforts to reduce oil production and save the troubled market of the Corona virus. 

[horsesoldier]

Nothing but excuses-summer hits, they’ll close because it’s “ so hot “ heat rashes reaches epidemic proportions. 

[DinarThug]

LINK

Trump: Saudi Arabia and Russia disagreement over
oil prices and false news caused the decline in the energy market

 

 

9th March, 2020

US President Donald Trump considered the reason for the decline in the global energy market due to the dispute between Saudi Arabia and Russia over oil prices and what he described as "false news."

"Saudi Arabia and Russia disagree about the prices and flow of oil. This is and the false news is the reason for the market's downturn," Trump said, in a tweet posted on his official account on Twitter.

Nevertheless, the US president stressed, in another tweet, that "the decline in gasoline prices is good for the consumer."

[DinarThug]

LINK

Disruption of all regional institutions due to Corona

 

 

09/3/2020 16:20:16

 

The Kurdistan Regional Government has suspended all government institutions from March 11 to the 26th of this month as a precautionary measure to confront the Corona virus.
 

The provinces of the province had recorded several infections with the Coruna virus.

 

 

################

 

The Kurdistan Region is permanently suspended in all Government Institutions from March 11 to 26   
 LINK

[navira]

Nothing ....nothing....nothing....and yes u guessed it.....nothing

[DinarThug]

20 minutes ago, navira said:

Nothing ....nothing....nothing....and yes u guessed it.....nothing

Thanks For Nothing Sgt Bro !  

 

 

     

 

Edited March 9, 2020 by DinarThug

[Laid Back]

“Kurdistan Regional Government has suspended all government institutions from March 11 to the 26th of this month”

Perfect timing for an RV in March 22/2020.

just saying 

Go RV

[horsesoldier]

Convenient-yet another “ reason “ to do, well, not allot 

[DinarThug]

LINK

The first official comment on the fate of salaries after the decline in oil

 

 

 

09/3/2020 2020 14:52:09

 

 

The head of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Haitham al-Jubouri, denied discussing salary cuts due to low oil prices.
 

On Monday, oil prices tumbled about 30 percent to $ 35 and sometimes less after Saudi Arabia lowered its official price for selling crude and set plans for a significant increase in oil production next month, to start a price war even as the spread of the Corona virus causes eroding demand growth. Global.

Prices fell by about a third after Saudi Arabia's move after Russia refused to implement another major production cut proposed by OPEC to stabilize crude markets, which were affected by fears of the economic impact of the Corona virus.

Raised significant decline in oil prices in Iraq worried about the staff and the salaries of retirees amid doubts the government's ability to secure because of the large state's dependence on imports. 

[DinarThug]

The lost hope ... from Baghdad to Beirut

 

- 13 Hours Past

 

 

It is difficult to talk about political exits in Iraq, especially in light of Muhammad Tawfiq Allawi's failure to pass the government he formed in the House of Representatives. Sunnis, Kurds, and Shiites were able to form a barrier against a government whose purpose was only to confirm that Iran was still controlling the political game in Iraq, and that it had the last word since the Bush administration handed the country over to a plate of silver in 2003. More than that, it turned out that There is a complete refusal that Muqtada al-Sadr be the political reference in Iraq, and that he be the one who names the prime minister, even if he plays all the required roles from Iran ...

Failure is not the failure of Muhammad Alawi, who parachuted into the prime minister's website. There is much further. There is a failure of a political system that emerged after 2003 as a result of the American invasion and the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime. There is also a failure for Iran, whose Iraqi policy is no longer fooling most Iraqis. Iran can no longer hold Iraq as it was in the days of Qassem Soleimani. It simply turns out that Soleimani, the commander of the "Quds Force" in the Iranian "Revolutionary Guard", was indeed the one who ran the political game in Iraq and that he was holding all the strings of this game. He was playing the role of the High Commissioner that Paul Bremer had played immediately after the fall of the former regime at the hands of the Americans who returned to their tanks the leaders of the Iraqi sectarian militias of Iran to Baghdad.

The failure of Muhammad Alawi, who is not considered an Iraqi figure with political weight, revealed that the Iraqi regime, which was established in practice in December 2002, is not a viable system. Why do you mention this particular date?

In fact, in that month of that year a conference of the Iraqi opposition was held in London. There was a joint US-Iranian organization of the conference hosted by a hotel in the British capital.

All Iraqi participants in the conference came from Tehran to London in one plane. There were Kurdish leaders and some Shiite leaders, led by Abdulaziz al-Hakim, and there were also Sunni opponents. What brought all the participants together was the agreements, previously agreed upon, that the participants reached at the London conference, in which the late Ahmed Chalabi played the role of coordinator between the Americans and the Iranians. In practice, Chalabi was the liaison with the Iranian agencies that convinced the Shiites participating in the conference that they should submit to what he was saying to them, away from any kind of nonsense and slogans. What was important for Iran was the American decision to invade Iraq. After that, all Iraqi matters are in their hands.

For the first time in the recent history of Iraq, the London conference issued a statement talking about the "Shiite majority in Iraq." That was what Iran wanted, which imposed a regime based on the consecration of the Prime Minister of the Shiites.

The Kurds received a consolation prize by mentioning the word "federalism" in the closing statement issued by the London conference. They believed that this would pave the way for Kurdish independence one day, ignoring that the regional conditions are not ripe for such a development, which will have repercussions on Turkey and Iran as well, and not on Iraq alone.

Everything that happened after the London conference came in the context of the establishment of a new system compatible with Iranian ambitions. This explains all the American decisions that were taken later. All these decisions, starting with the formation of the Transitional Governing Council, the dissolution of the Iraqi army, the de-Baathification and the marginalization of the Sunni Arabs, were in Iran's interest.

17 years after the start of the massive US military operation in Iraq, a process that has blatantly supported Iran, it turns out that the Islamic Republic has nothing to export to the Iraqis except poverty, misery and corruption. Iran has become more exposed than ever. It still has its tools in Yemen and Lebanon, but it has lost much of its maneuverability in Iraq, as well as in Syria. Above all, I lost Qassem Soleimani, who knew how to put pressure on Iraqi politicians. Iran no longer has a mechanism through which to deal with the Iraqi situation. Qassem Soleimani’s mission was to focus on transferring the Iranian model to Iraq, that is, to transfer the experience of the Iranian “Revolutionary Guard” by calling it the “popular crowd” in Iraq.

With the liquidation of Qassem Soleimani, along with Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of the “Popular Mobilization”, Muqtada al-Sadr is aspiring to complete the mission of the commander of the “Quds Force”.

What can be said that the failure of Muhammad Allawi is not only a failure for men. It also failed to Muqtada al-Sadr, and ultimately to Iran. Above all, it is a failure of a political system originally set up according to Iranian standards. Such measures are not suitable for Iran itself, so how can it be suitable for Iraq?

Iran appears to be on the verge of a very dangerous development after US sanctions revealed it, and it exposed the assassination of Qasim Soleimani, and finally exposed the spread of Corona. Make sure that it is nothing but a paper tiger and that all that it has done so far is only because the Americans were interested in a role for it at the regional level. Her role served them, given that she was a bogeyman for the region. Satisfied with playing this role that America and Israel have known to a great extent exploitation.

The Iranian regime is old at the age of 41. The regime went bankrupt in Iran before going bankrupt in Iraq. The question now is, can it be fixed what the Iranian regime has ruined in Iran itself, and in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen. Unfortunately, the losses of each of these countries in which the social fabric was struck are huge. Wherever Iran descends, ruin is resolved. In the year 2020, the “Islamic Republic”, founded by Ayatollah Khomeini, no longer had anything other than Corona virus, which was tolerated by a significant amount of underdevelopment in all fields.

The Iranian expansion project cost the region a lot. Fear is all fear that this project based on investing in inciting sectarian instincts has no horizon and that the damage that resulted from it cannot be repaired. Evidence for this is that no sane person with a vision can find a recipe for the Iraqi situation in preparation for a search for a way out.

All that can be said is that hope is lost along the road that starts in Tehran and reaches Beirut ... passing through Baghdad and Damascus!

The Arabs

LINK

[bigwave]

2 hours ago, Laid Back said:

Perfect timing for an RV in March 22/2020.

Laid Back - your optimism is so great....

[DinarThug]

Shiites in the face of the "Shiite Crescent"

 

- 13 Hours Past

 

On February 15, 2020, Hezbollah organized a party to unveil a statue of Qasim Soleimani in the Lebanese town of Maroun al-Ras, about 800 meters from the border with Israel. The statue shows Soleimani with his hand stretched out in front of him, pointing to Israel. While Hezbollah officials and supporters were celebrating on the Lebanese-Israeli border, the Lebanese people were commemorating the four-month anniversary of the active and painful protests against the Lebanese political class, whose corruption and failed policies had led to Lebanon's financial collapse.

People in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and inside Iran itself - the countries along the "Shiite Crescent" - had realized that the enemy was inside. It is their governments that allowed the Iranian regime to take over the country and its institutions. Ideologies, resistance speeches, sectarian identities, and conspiracy theories that embodied the collective identities and opinions of Shiite communities across the region are slowly and steadily breaking apart and being replaced by economic concerns and aspirations toward citizenship and national identities.

Finally, the “Shiite Crescent”, in which Iran has been investing for decades, turns against the Iranian regime and its proxies. From Beirut to Baghdad, to Tehran, Iran faces its most complex opponent for years, the Shiite protesters. For the Islamic Republic, the enemy is also present at home, and it cannot be contained without violent disturbances hitting its own strategies and political alliances throughout the region.

Iran may never have thought that its main challenge would emanate from the Shiite communities themselves. The regime in Tehran was adopting a single strategy throughout the region, which is: strengthening the Shiite identity, bestow arms and money on proxies, and acquiring the image of the father of the Shiites through replacing the state and its institutions. However, the regime never realized that in the wake of all these investments in resources and people, and after achieving all these military victories in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq, the people - especially the Shiites - needed a practical translation of these victories by providing more livelihoods - not a few of them - And secure a better future for their children. But the reality was just the opposite. In the absence of a socio-economic vision of the capitals controlled by Iran, living conditions are no longer acceptable.

People versus the economy of resistance

The worst nightmare in Iran began when the Iraqis - most of them in Shiite towns and cities - began chanting slogans such as "Iran by land, free and free Baghdad", and when the Lebanese took to the streets with the same slogan: "Everyone means everyone". And this nightmare turned into a serious challenge when the Iraqi protesters set fire to Iranian consulates and when the Lebanese protesters included [Hezbollah Secretary General] Hassan Nasrallah and considered him among the failed Lebanese political figures, and held the party responsible for the misfortunes in Lebanon.

Iran and its proxies - who have long promised Shiite societies to fight injustice and empower Shi'a identity - are currently being blamed for this injustice and palaces. This is often due to two major flaws in Iran's strategy in these countries.

First, in order to gain access to state institutions, Iran has forged alliances with local personalities and political parties. It is not enough to form militias and armed proxies, if they are unable to control the state’s decisions and infrastructure. For Iran, it is always easy to forge alliances with corrupt politicians, either by bribing them directly or promising them positions through which they can access state resources.

For example, it is not by chance that Hezbollah's allies in Lebanon are the corrupt personalities that protesters want to hold accountable. These allies - like Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri and former Foreign Minister Gibran Bassil - benefited from this alliance with Iran (politically and financially) but also provided Hezbollah with the leverage it wanted. For example, the party owns 13 of the 128 seats in the current Lebanese parliament. However, thanks to its allies, the party controls more than 70 deputies. The same applies to the government and other state institutions.

Second, Iran has made clear to Shiite communities in Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran that it is time for these societies to pay for years of free services, political empowerment, and rapid military victories. When the US sanctions imposed on the Iranian regime began to drain their finances, this affected the Iranian people, Tehran's proxies and their electoral audiences.

Hezbollah's finances were clearly damaged and many of its social services were suspended. In the end, the party stopped paying the wages of its contractual employees and began expelling those non-essentials, especially those who were employed during the Syrian war, and no longer needed their services. It was expected that the Lebanese Shiites would stand firm and prove their loyalty in light of the implementation by Hezbollah of its own version of the resistance economy.

Many are trying to be sincere and hope that the financial crisis of Hezbollah will end with Iran eventually defeating the United States in the region, or this is what they are convincing themselves of because they have no other choice. However, many refuse to pay the price, and the three major Shiite cities in Lebanon have witnessed widespread protests, despite the constant intimidation adopted by Hezbollah and its threats to the demonstrators.

Many Shiites in Lebanon and Iraq consider that they have already paid the price for Iranian hegemony, and they no longer want to be the silent majority. However, the expression of opinion also has its price. According to Amnesty International, more than 500 protesters were killed in Iraq and more than 300 in Iran as a result of violent crackdowns on protesters. In Lebanon, "the protests were met with excessive and illegal force, and the security forces failed to intervene effectively to protect the peaceful demonstrators from the attacks of rival political groups."

It will be very difficult for Iran and its proxies to emerge from this crisis. No longer do Shiites in these countries believe that Iranian ideology is the solution or that Iran's strategy to defeat Israel and the United States will lift them out of poverty and hunger. These disappointments - if they persist, that is, if the international community continues to pressure Iran and its agents - will be reflected in the upcoming municipal and parliamentary elections.

Soleimani’s absence

With all of these challenges emerging, Qasim Soleimani was assassinated - the one who used to take control and keep them together. The Suleimani “Shiite Crescent” project had already been shaken before his assassination. Hours before his death, Soleimani was on his way from Beirut to Baghdad via Damascus, a trip that symbolized his priorities and concern. It is no secret to anyone that he has been traveling between Beirut, Baghdad and Tehran for several weeks before his death to help quell the protests that posed a challenge to his project. However, Nasrallah did not refer to Soleimani's approach, which focused on the particles in the administration, which will eventually lead to a dangerous vacuum in the "Quds Force" system throughout the region.

After 2011, Soleimani’s focus on fragmentation in managing all Iranian-backed militias - including Hezbollah - reduced the party’s military and political ability to maneuver. When the last Hezbollah military commander - Mustafa Badr al-Din - was killed in Syria, Soleimani insisted that he be replaced by four lower ranking leaders, partly because Hezbollah lost most of its senior leaders and did not have a ready replacement. But the main reason - according to a number of Hezbollah fighters - was Soleimani's desire to gain control.

Therefore, Hezbollah was counting on Soleimani as a military commander. As such, the party is now very widespread and unable to play a greater role in Iraq or the rest of the “Shiite Crescent” countries. It is necessary for the party to find its own military commander now before he takes on Soleimani's role in the region. However, there is no suitable alternative for Soleimani, and Iran will face difficulties filling this void.

But this does not mean that Iranian militias will get out of control, or that Hezbollah will refuse to provide aid. After all, money and weapons still come from Iran. However, no one has the relationships, confidence and knowledge that Soleimani has gained over the years.

Will Iran recover?

In light of the destabilization of the "Shiite Crescent", Iran is doing its best to save it. Losing this "crescent" means losing the ability to spread influence in the Middle East, as well as losing many political and financial resources. Suddenly, the two pillars of this "crescent" - Soleimani and Shi'a communities - have been drained and Iran will focus on overcoming these challenges.

What Iran really needs now is to ensure the failure of its anti-protests in Beirut, Baghdad and Tehran. In Iraq, Iran's attempts to divert the protests and make them anti-American are unsuccessful. In Iran, Iranians were photographed avoiding trampling on the flags of the United States and Israel, while the Lebanese people are still demonstrating against the new government, which is clearly "made by Hezbollah."

If all these attempts continue to fail, Iran and its proxies may increase the use of violence until the protests lose their momentum and activity. Hezbollah has to some extent succeeded in doing this in Lebanon, and the Iranian demonstrations have temporarily subsided. However, even if people leave the streets and return to their homes, economic and social challenges remain, and in the end hunger will take them back to the streets.

Meanwhile, Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani visited Lebanon on February 18 and informed President Michel Aoun that Iran was ready to assist Lebanon financially. Of course, this is linked to Lebanon's willingness to maintain Iran's access to Lebanese institutions. However, while Iran is going through a financial crisis of its own, it is not certain that it will be able to provide Lebanon with 9 billion dollars in cash. But with Hezbollah taking all decisions in Lebanon, the president, government, and parliament in Lebanon may not allow real reforms or accept the conditions of the international community. In light of the continuing deterioration of the economy, and Iran's inability to help the Lebanese people, including the Shi'a community, Hezbollah will eventually lose most of its support base, a loss that will be difficult for it to recover from.

Is war an option?

In the midst of Iran's battle with the enemy at home, can you resort to war to divert the world's attention - and people - from the real challenges, and perhaps spark some sympathy? Iran has resorted to this strategy before in Lebanon, where Hezbollah launched several wars against Israel, and it gained the local and international sympathy that was most needed.

This strategy is likely to fail this time, a reality that Hezbollah and Iran realize. There are three main reasons why the party was unable to launch a war against Israel at this stage. First, he does not have enough money to finance the war, train fighters, and recruit new fighters. Second, it cannot guarantee reconstruction as it did in 2006 when the pro-Western March 14 forces were in power. Third, the Shiite community does not want a new war with Israel - due to the financial situation and the fact that its children are unable to flee to Syria or to other parts of Lebanon.

Hezbollah realizes that the July 2006 war was the last war with Israel that the Shi'a community was ready to end, and that the Syrian war had depleted it. Therefore, the party transferred the battle against Israel from the field to speeches and memorials.

As for the potential conflict with the United States, Iran also understands that war is not an option with its depleted resources. And through the assassination of Soleimani, the United States took a very clear position, and that any Iranian response that results in American casualties may warrant a serious and serious American response, a development that Iran is not prepared to risk. Iran needs to re-strengthen its authority in the “Shiite Crescent”, and it cannot bear the cost of turning a blind eye in its efforts to return the Shiite community to its arms - by force or through politics. This is Iran's main priority, and it has always been. But at the same time, it is the most challenging task for Iran. The “Shiite Crescent” no longer attracts the Shiites.

Haneen Ghaddar

The Washington Institute

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[DinarThug]

Financial advisor to the Prime Minister proposes the "emergency budget" plan: borrowing "adventure"

2020-03-09

 

 

Yassin Iraq: Baghdad

 

The financial advisor to the Prime Minister, Mazhar Muhammad Salih, stressed the necessity of going in the short term to legislating an emergency budget, which provides financial sustainability and the necessary necessities at this stage, amid the promises of low oil prices from economic catastrophes and the rise in the budget deficit to double.

Saleh said in a press statement monitored by "Yas Iraq", today, Monday, that the drop in oil prices to less than 30 dollars for a period of not short-term means, of course, dealing with a major financial-economic shock based on the absence of important sovereign resources and depriving the general budget of them, taking into account The country's budgets depend 92% on oil revenues.

He added, “If the initial deficit indicators, taken in the draft federal budget law 2020, which are about 50 trillion dinars (after high oil prices were adopted, which are distant, which is about $ 56 per barrel of oil produced) are taken, and this means that The deficit will double, if the spending ceiling remains in the 2020 budget over its current initial estimate of 164 trillion dinars.

He explained that the financial deficit with this capacity cannot be funded (especially if oil prices continue to fall below $ 30 per barrel), except by borrowing from international capital markets or resorting to agreements with international financial and monetary institutions.

And that borrowing amounts of the accumulated amounts currently from external debt in particular and about more than 70 billion dollars, and this is closer to the imagination, given the absence of international bodies that offer such loans in the short period, in addition to the absence of economic logic when taking such fictional financial steps, which is an adventure that does not Commensurate with the sustainability of public debt and its standards in Iraq. ”

He stressed the need to go in the short term to legislate an emergency budget that provides financial sustainability at this stage and meets the necessary needs, foremost among which are the salaries of employees and retirees, social welfare and health life necessities and necessities, and going in the medium term to re-examine all financial laws that burdened the country and its economic future, and the establishment Real infrastructure for alternative development of rentier economy.

LINK

[DinarThug]

Now This Is Getting Completely In-Zain !  
 

     
 

 

Zain Telecom launches its campaign with the participation of the Iraqi star Saif Nabil, "I am Zain .. are you Zain?"

2020-03-09

 

Follow Iraq:

 

Zain Iraq announced today, Monday, the launch of its ad campaign, "I am Zain .. Are you Zain?" With the participation of the Iraqi star Saif Nabil, indicating that she is ready to launch 4G services as soon as she is granted the license from the concerned authorities.

Below is the text of the company statement:

 

LINK

[boosterbglee]

How about.......InZane!

[Laid Back]

Saleh said in a press statement monitored by "Yas Iraq", today, Monday, that the drop in oil prices to less than 30 dollars for a period of not short-term means, of course, dealing with a major financial-economic shock based on the absence of important sovereign resources and depriving the general budget of them, taking into account The country's budgets depend 92% on oil revenues.

 

CBI show us your ace up your sleeve.

 

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