Pompeo Saleh: Washington will close its embassy in Iraq unless its targeting stops

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09-25-2020 09:18 AM

Pompeo Saleh: Washington will close its embassy in Iraq unless its targeting stops

 

 

Baghdad / Al-Akhbariya

A source in the office of the President of the Republic, Barham Salih, stated that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo informed Saleh that Washington will close its embassy in Baghdad unless it stops targeting it with missiles, after the PMF acquitted itself of the attempts to bomb the embassy.

The source said in a press statement, "Pompeo informed Saleh in a phone call two days ago that his country intends to close its embassy in Baghdad within a short period, in case the embassy is not repeatedly targeted by missile attacks."

The source added, "Pompeo confirmed to Saleh that the decision to close the embassy is up to President Donald Trump, who does not want to enter the elections at a time when his country's embassy is under constant bombardment and threat."

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Al-Nayel to "Tigris": If Washington closes its embassy in Baghdad, the Iraqi economy will collapse

 

 

 

- 09-26-2020 12:24 AM - Readings: 4888

 

 

[nannab]

That's not all that will happen Mr. Nayel. 

Thank you Yota 

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It starts with closing the embassy in Baghdad, then liquidating those involved ... These are the details of Washington's threats

 

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 2020-09-26 05:22

 

Shafaq News / Writer David Ignatius said that Iraq is the arena in which an American-Iranian confrontation could explode in the coming weeks, creating an "October surprise" before the US presidential elections in early November.

The writer specializing in foreign affairs confirmed, through an opinion piece published in the "Washington Post" newspaper, that the closure of the United States embassy in Iraq could lead to US air strikes on the armed militias supported by Iran.

And US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned this week, in secret, that his country would close its embassy in Baghdad if the Iraqi government did not move to stop the Tehran-backed factions' attacks on US interests.

Ignatius notes that Iran was cautious about provoking the Trump administration directly, but Pompeo's comments increased the possibility of open conflict.

The confrontation in Iraq poses potential dangers in every direction. If Iranian-backed militia attacks kill Americans, the Trump administration is likely to counterattack.

Likewise, if Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi strikes the Shiite factions, as Pompeo demands, Iran might respond forcefully, and the new prime minister's regime, which is fragile from within, could collapse.

A senior State Department official said, "There is a clear danger to the lives of Americans if these attacks continue. We believe that Al-Kazimi wants to do the right thing, but he will have to do more, faster."

Violence by armed groups has escalated in recent weeks, despite Al-Kazemi's promises to launch a campaign against them.

There were 25 attacks on convoys carrying supplies to US or international coalition facilities, in addition to attacks in the Green Zone where the US embassy is located, as well as strikes targeting Baghdad airport, according to a compilation prepared by Iraqi analyst Joel Wing.

Pompeo's pressure campaign began with a call to Iraqi President Barham Salih, as Pompeo warned that "the decision to close the embassy in Baghdad is in the hands of President Trump and is ready to sign. If our forces withdraw and close the embassy in this way, we will liquidate all those proven involved in these attacks."

Pompeo specifically identified two groups supported by Tehran, the Iraqi Hezbollah Brigades and Asaib Ahl al-Haq.

Early this year, the United States targeted the commander of the Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani, with an air strike near Baghdad airport, while Iranian Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif stressed that "this file has not been closed."

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Presidential source: Pompeo told Saleh to close the US embassy unless its bombing stopped

 09/25/2020

 

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Baghdad / Al-Mawred News

A source in the office of the President of the Republic said that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told President Barham Salih that Washington would close its embassy in Baghdad unless it stopped targeting it with missiles.

The source said in a press statement, "Pompeo informed Saleh in a phone call two days ago that his country intends to close its embassy in Baghdad within a short period, in case the embassy is not repeatedly targeted by missile attacks."
The source added, "Pompeo confirmed to Saleh that the decision to close the embassy is up to President Donald Trump, who does not want to enter the elections at a time when his country's embassy is under constant bombardment and threat."
On the other hand, the source said, "The United States decided to reduce the period for exempting Iraq from preventing the import of electricity from Iran, as a result of the sanctions that Washington applies to Tehran, from 120 days to 60 days only."
Over the past weeks, attacks have escalated against the US embassy in Baghdad, US forces, and the forces and interests of other countries in the international coalition.

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An American report: The "militia resistance" plan starts at the Green Zone and Airport Street
 09/27/2020
 
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Follow-up / Resource News

A fraught atmosphere in Iraq, with the escalation of armed factions' attacks against foreign interests and the coalition forces, in conjunction with leaks about an American threat to close the embassy in Baghdad and then "retaliate", which prompted official and political parties to declare their rejection of these attacks and disavow them. 

Washington’s threat represents “a very controversial political option, despite its immediate usefulness in arousing Iraq's attention on the factional issues,” according to American researcher Mike Knights, but it could lead to “dire consequences” for Iraq and the United States of America alike. 

The researcher at the "Washington" Institute for Studies, in a report followed by "People," (September 27, 2020) presented statistics of the types of attacks that targeted American forces, their equipment and the embassy building, and reviewed the response options available in Washington and Baghdad. 

The text of the report follows:   

On September 20, it was reported that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned the Iraqi government that [continued] unattended militia attacks could push the United States to close its embassy and launch strong strikes on Iranian-backed militia leaders. 

Since then, Iraqi officials and even some militia figures have been quick to appease Washington, as various armed groups have publicly distanced themselves from attacks on diplomatic facilities. But at the same time, this warning astonished the beleaguered Iraqi government, which had launched some strong blows against Iran's proxies in recent weeks, including the arrest of the suspected militia financier, Baha Abdul Hussein, on September 17, who controls a billions of dollars of electronic payment service . 

This event highlights the erosion that even  non-lethal militia harassment attacks can have on the bilateral relationship, an issue on which the author previously provided analyzes and updates in July, March, and February. Prior to the recent events illustrated in the list below, relations had improved significantly, with Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi visiting Washington in August, and the Trump administration agreed to begin reducing the number of US forces from 5,200 military personnel to a sustainable level of about 3,000. To defuse any tensions that may arise from Pompeo's stern warning, the next step (is) to agree to take practical measures to reassure Washington that the Iraqi government is providing as much protection as it can realistically muster at this time - bearing in mind that even it cannot The US military stopped such attacks completely when it had 165,000 troops in the field. 

Chronicle of recent militia attacks 

Recently, the number and scope of operations have expanded against American and coalition targets, and against Iraqi targets: 

Logistic convoys. The US Embassy and coalition military forces are counting on the import of many pieces of equipment and consumables, some of them for Iraqi security forces. Attacks on Iraqi truck convoys carrying this equipment increased from 14 in the first quarter of 2020 to 27 in the second quarter and 25 in the third quarter. The quality of these attacks has also improved, including the use of passive infrared actuators for more accurate targeting, and, in recent days, the use of piercing IEDs connected in a cascade. 

Foreign security details. On August 26, a roadside bomb damaged a United Nations World Food Program vehicle in an Iranian-backed militia area of operations in eastern Mosul, wounding one passenger. On 15 September, another roadside bomb exploded near an armored vehicle of the British Embassy in Baghdad, causing no casualties. These attacks came nearly a year after the last such bombings, which were a series of militia attacks on oil company convoys in Basra in 2019. 

Missiles and drones. The American targets suffered from 27 missile and drone attacks in the third quarter of this year, a number that exceeded the second quarter (11 attacks) and the first quarter (19 attacks). The attacks this quarter did not cause American casualties. The last American fatalities were on March 11th. However, the last strikes were more accurate, as they were aimed at landing inside the grounds of the US embassy. On September 15, the US embassy’s anti-missile, artillery and mortar system destroyed a barrage of bombers that was expected to hit the compound. As for the drones, one of them was found on a roof near the embassy on July 22, and it was apparently equipped to attack with a bomb equivalent to a medium mortar shell (81-82 mm). On September 2, a similar combination was used to attack G4S.Security forces at Baghdad airport, through a very precise strike, but the attack did not result in any casualties. Some armed groups accused this American-British company of providing intelligence that identified the location of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani and militia leader Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis, who were killed in a US air strike near the airport on January 3. 

American response options 

The review above paints a picture of the highly active threat posed by Iranian-backed militias is evolving in alarming ways. The United States does not want to go through another period like the one it witnessed in December and January, when its embassy was besieged, and large new deployments had to be deployed in the region, and the risk of a wider conflict with the militias and Iran was completely real. The Trump administration understandably wants to break the current momentum, and since the last time such an increase in attacks occurred, the results were the killing of an American in December, the launching of US air strikes, the gangs launching attacks on the embassy, and the firm and even risky decision to target Soleimani and the engineer, and the Iraqi parliament’s proposal calling for the removal of American forces. Pompeo's warning may also have been motivated by classified information. 

Whatever the motives of the US threat to close the embassy, it represents a very controversial political option, despite its immediate utility in raising Iraq's attention on militia issues. The closure of the embassy is the result that every Iranian-backed militia dreams of achieving. This would be a propaganda victory of legendary proportions for Tehran and its proxies, undermining all progress made in Iraq since the killing of Soleimani and the engineer. It would also represent a complete withdrawal from Iraq, even more than the withdrawal carried out by the Obama administration in 2011, which helped pave the way for the re-emergence of "Al Qaeda" under the name of "Islamic State", and after that the militias took control of large areas of the Iraqi state. This will not only lead to the end of all US diplomatic and military operations in Iraq, but also to the cessation of all other coalition operations due to their dependence on the US presence. Many foreign powers are likely to take similar steps to Washington's complete departure - with the exception of Iran, Russia and China. This result will not serve US interests in any scenario. 

So Washington should avoid resorting to such an extreme measure in the future, and instead work with the Kazemi government on other types of aggressive response options. In particular, when threat warnings provided by the United States indicate imminent attacks, Iraqi forces can temporarily close parts of the international zone and bolster protection there in order to better protect the US embassy. Similar arrangements can be made at the airport and on the main airport road under certain conditions. Although a complete halt to artillery fire is not realistic anytime soon, the embassy was built to withstand such attacks and is protected by an effective anti-missile, artillery and mortar system, which allows the Iraqi government to operate it over the capital despite the tremendous noise it makes and missiles. The reckless triggered at times. 

Additionally, if US officials have specific intelligence about any new threat posed by a militia - for example, the introduction of advanced precision missile systems - they should share this data on the condition that Iraq quickly implements an operation against that threat. Prime Minister Al-Kazemi continues to be the honorary head of the highly-capable Iraqi National Intelligence Service, and partner countries constantly trust him, as well as his inner circle (most of whom are members of the National Intelligence Service), regarding sensitive information. 

And if the US government needs to see clear signs of Iraq's resistance to militias, then Baghdad’s move must be meaningful in a broader sense than simply appeasing Washington. Rather than urging Iraqi officials to an overly ambitious "rush to failure" (for example, trying to defeat a major militia militarily), the smarter approach is to help them retake the international zone. The gradual removal of militias from this major piece of real estate will be very symbolic at the national level, and most importantly, [helps] protect Iraqi and US installations and the most sensitive coalition installations. The phasing out of thousands of militia men and heavy weapons from the area may be highly confrontational, but at least it is worth the risk - unlike arresting a few militia leaders, which will have limited effect. Indeed, Al-Kazemi is making many positive changes to the security arrangements in the region with the help of the United States, so it is time for efforts to "move from one neighborhood to another" to remove fighters and weapons. Washington should rally open support for such a move, not only among international actors with embassies in the region, but also between Shiite, secular, Kurdish, and moderate Sunni political blocs in Iraq. 

While awaiting the implementation of these and other measures, the embassy is fully capable of protecting itself, as it did during the confrontation last December. In addition, the American presence has been curtailed and strengthened since then - now it is concentrated in six instead of fourteen, and each site has active defenses against missiles, missiles and drones. This multi-billion dollar investment gives brave American individuals the ability to withstand the fires of harassment when they cannot be avoided, and although the umbrella of protection does not extend to supply convoys, these transportation jobs are being carried out by equally courageous Iraqis. Americans. Securing the international zone and starting the campaign to remove the militias would give the US embassy more powerful reasons to stand on solid foundations because it helps Baghdad to withstand Iranian threats. 

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Al-Kazemi: The security forces are doing their part and not targeting the clans

Editing date: 9/27/2020 9:37 • 59 times read

Where News _ Baghdad The

Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, chaired yesterday, Saturday, an extraordinary session of the Ministerial Council for National Security.

Al-Kazemi's media office stated in a statement received by EIN News that “The Ministerial Council for National Security held an extraordinary session chaired by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi, which was devoted to discussing developments in the security situation in Iraq, with regard to the protection of peaceful demonstrations, and the protection of diplomatic missions from repeated attacks. In addition to coordinating work between the security forces,

Al-Kazemi stressed, according to the statement, that “the opportunity is available more than ever before to build and improve the status and performance of the security forces,” stressing “not to tolerate mistakes because they are like a cancer in the body of the security services.”

Al-Kazemi directed “the security services to observe human rights principles in protecting demonstrations, and to take into account what was stipulated in the Iraqi constitution that guaranteed freedom of opinion and expression, provided that this does not affect the conduct of daily life and not disrupt public and private interests,” stressing “to deal with Each case is according to the law.



He affirmed, "The government's respect for the Iraqi tribes, which had a great role in protecting the societal fabric and supporting the security forces in their war against terrorism," indicating that "what the security services carry out in terms of security operations comes within their duties in imposing the prestige of the state and applying the law, and there is no Any targeting of our clans ”.

The council also discussed “the security file of embassies and diplomatic missions in Iraq, and exerting utmost efforts to protect them, to preserve the reputation of the country in the international community. The council also discussed a set of issues included in the agenda and took appropriate decisions regarding them, including setting up new mechanisms in light of which the granting of Entry visas for future investors, ”according to the statement.

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Urgent | The Washington Post: Pompeo informs the Iraqi government of Washington's intention to close its embassy in Baghdad

by Editor Urgent 2 Hours ago

Urgent | The Washington Post: Pompeo informs the Iraqi government of Washington's intention to close its embassy in Baghdad