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Iraq :: Specific Conflicts
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The Economist: Iraq's troubles
Iraq's oil: Crude calculations
Sat, 12 Dec 2009 06:03:41 -0000
Will a new auction of fields to foreign firms get Iraq’s oil flowing freely?A COUNTRY with a shaky economy that sits on huge oil reserves would usually be reckoned wise to pump as much as possible out of the ground as quickly as it can. Western oil companies, desperate for crude that is cheap to produce and refine, should be ready and waiting to help. But arranging such a deal in Iraq is no easy matter. Iraq’s second round of auctions for the rights to develop it oil fields concluded on Saturday December 12th. The first round in June, a televised extravaganza, resulted in the embarrassing outcome that just one of the eight contracts on the block found a taker. By the middle of the day on Friday two big oil fields had attracted winning bids from foreign companies.On Friday Royal Dutch Shell, in partnership with Malaysia’s Petronas, won the right to develop Majnoon, one of the world’s biggest untapped oilfields. CNPC, China's largest oil and gas producer, with Petronas and France’s Total were also awarded a contract to extract oil from Halfaya beating off competition from other European, American and Asian oil companies. On Saturday Russia's Lukoil and Norway's Statoil got their hands on the biggest prize on offer, West Qurna-2. Although several of the fields under the hammer on Friday and Saturday failed to find buyers this latest auction of Iraq’s oil is already more successful than the previous effort. ...
Iraqi bombings: What difference do they make?
Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:59:12 -0000
A new pattern of violence is emerging in the run-up to next year’s electionsBAD news from Baghdad inevitably seems to follow the good. Earlier this month the mood brightened when it was announced that fewer Iraqis had been killed in violent deaths in November than in any previous month since America invaded in 2003. (The toll was a still far-from-negligible 88, but a lot less than the 3,000 a month who were dying at the height of the sectarian bloodbath three years ago.) And then, after months of wrangling, an electoral law was finally ratified on December 6th, enabling a general election to be held early next year, probably on March 7th. But just as the prospect of normality seemed at last to beckon, Baghdad was shaken by one of the year’s bloodiest bunch of bombings. On December 8th five almost simultaneous explosions killed at least 120 civilians. Among the targets was a court complex near the fortified Green Zone, where the prime minister and parliament reside. Many young lawyers queuing for job interviews to be clerks were killed outside. Dozens of cars caught fire, causing a string of secondary explosions. Four other car-bombs went off elsewhere in Baghdad, hitting an interior-ministry compound, a law academy, some buildings used by the finance ministry since its old home was bombed in August and some buildings near Baghdad’s big oil refinery. ...
Iraq: Blown apart
Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:56:24 -0000
Bloody car-bomb attacks in Baghdad bode ill for next year's electionTHE political point being made by insurgents with their latest attack in Baghdad is unmistakable. Five bombs went off killing at least 112 people on Tuesday December 8th, the same day that the Iraqi government announced the date of the next parliamentary poll. The election campaign leading up to a poll now set for March 7th 2010 is likely to be bloody.Shortly after 10am a series of loud explosions across the city shook buildings many miles away. The biggest target was a court complex near the west side of the Green Zone, where the prime minister and parliament reside. Eye-witnesses saw a blue van barging through a checkpoint on the main road. It carried on despite coming under fire by a security guard, forcing its way through a second barrier before exploding in the parking lot of the Karkh court, responsible for hearing half the city's civil and criminal cases. ...
Iraq and the Kirkuk conundrum: A hint of harmony, at last
Thu, 03 Dec 2009 10:55:30 -0000
In the run-up to the election, could Iraqi minds be concentrated strongly enough to find at least a temporary solution to an age-old and dangerous conundrum?IT SOUNDS far-fetched but it may be true. A group of Irish peacemongers, from both sides of their long-divided island, claims to have made rare progress last month towards getting Arab and Kurdish Iraqis to settle their differences, which have been threatening to drag the country back to the level of bloodshed that engulfed it three years ago. With a South African who had helped reconcile white and black South Africans looking on, a clutch of Iraqi members of parliament got to unusual grips with the mechanics of sharing power between Kurds, Arabs and Turkomans in the disputed region of Kirkuk. If they can build on this momentum after the general election that is now expected in mid-February (the January date having slipped), a modicum of federal harmony may eventually be achieved—to the benefit of all Iraqis.One suggestion that may be taken up is the creation, at least for a time, of mixed councils to run the province. Another fruitful idea is to set up a permanent framework for talks involving the outside backers of the various Iraqi communities. For London, Boston and Dublin read Baghdad, Ankara (Turkey’s capital) and Erbil, Iraq’s Kurdish one. ...
The new Iraq war inquiry: Looking back in anger
Thu, 03 Dec 2009 10:55:30 -0000
Sir John Chilcot is unlikely to give the war’s fiercest critics what they wantWHERE Lord Hutton, Lord Butler, the Intelligence and Security Committee and the Foreign Affairs Select Committee have gone, Sir John Chilcot now follows. The fifth inquiry into the Iraq war began under the stewardship of the former civil servant on November 24th. Gordon Brown agreed to it in the summer, finally giving in to those who accused the earlier efforts of excessive secrecy, narrow terms of reference and generosity to the war’s main protagonists—especially Tony Blair, Mr Brown’s predecessor as prime minister.The Chilcot inquiry seems to answer the first two criticisms. Anyone can observe its sessions in person or on the internet. (Sir John can make exceptions if there are pressing security concerns or if witnesses feel unable to speak candidly in public.) The inquiry covers the period of 2001 to 2009. Its broad remit includes the political question of how Britain came to back regime change in Iraq, as well as the operational matter of the military’s performance during the conflict. The legality of the invasion will also be examined. ...
Iraq, Iran, America and The Economist: Were we wrong?
Thu, 26 Nov 2009 11:40:33 -0000
The intricacies of regional diplomacy and a strenuous American denialLAST week The Economist ran an article entitled “A regional cockpit” describing how the influence of Iraq’s neighbours—Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and, to a lesser extent, Syria—was waxing as that of America waned. To illustrate the evolution of a new balance of power, we pointed to an alleged meeting between the commander of Iran’s infamous Quds Force, Qassem Suleimani, and the American commander in Iraq, General Raymond Odierno, along with the American ambassador, Christopher Hill.Our correspondent in Baghdad had been told of this meeting, which was said to have taken place in early September, first by a leading Iraqi politician with close ties to the Iranians. This was confirmed by a senior American official in a position to know whether such a meeting had taken place. Just before publication, General Odierno and Mr Hill officially denied that the meeting had occurred. ...
NPR Topics: Iraq
Some Iraqis Choose Perils Of Home Over Life In U.S.
Wed, 06 Jan 2010 15:38:00 -0500
In 2008, thousands of Iraqis began applying for visas to the U.S. under a special State Department program. Now, some applicants are having second thoughts, fearful about economic prospects and other challenges of living in a foreign land.
Portrait Of Iraq: A Refugee Artist Paints His Home
Tue, 05 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0500
Ahmad AlKarkhi fled from Baghdad in 2006, but he continues to paint his memories of his war-torn homeland. "There is nothing there to live for," he says, but he insists that there is a beautiful side to the country "that we must keep alive."
Iraqi Women Taking Aim At Parliament Again
Sat, 02 Jan 2010 19:15:00 -0500
In Iraq, women have long fought to grab a significant share of seats in the country's parliament. With elections scheduled for early March, many female lawmakers in Iraq say they are still struggling to be accepted.
Dismissal Of Blackwater Charges Infuriates Iraqis
Fri, 01 Jan 2010 16:00:00 -0500
Iraqis are reacting angrily to Thursday's dismissal by a U.S. judge of all charges against five Blackwater Worldwide security guards charged in the deadly shooting of civilians in Baghdad in 2007. Meanwhile, as U.S. forces prepare to begin withdrawing from the country, casualty figures among Americans have dropped dramatically.
Iraqis Outraged As Blackwater Case Thrown Out
Fri, 01 Jan 2010 15:55:00 -0500
In throwing out the case against guards accused of killing 17 civilians in Baghdad in 2007, a U.S. judge cited repeated government missteps in the investigation. The Iraqi government vowed to pursue the case, which became a source of contention between the U.S. and the Iraqi government.
Briton Kidnapped In Iraq Returns Home
Fri, 01 Jan 2010 15:05:00 -0500
Peter Moore, 36, and his four British bodyguards were seized during a daytime attack outside the Finance Ministry in Baghdad in 2007. Three of the bodyguards were known to be killed, and the fourth is believed to be dead. U.S. officials said they believe Moore spent part of his time in captivity in Iran.
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Upcoming elections take the reins in Iraq
Wed, 06 Jan 2010 10:24:00 -0000
Iraq upcoming elections have taken the reins on the political scene amidst intensified preparations. A number of lawmakers said they will not run for elections while others believe that 60% of parliamentary figures will change in the next Parliament. For more details, click on play movie.
Iraq VP points to Iranian ongoing aggression
Wed, 06 Jan 2010 10:15:00 -0000
Iraqi Vice President Tarek Al Hashemi pondered upon several issues put on the table in the country including Iranian violation of Al Fakka oil well in addition to Iraqi-Iranian relations as well as the electoral conduct law. Iranian aggression to Iraqi territories around Al Fakka oil well is ...
Iraq to support Blackwater victims lawsuit
Wed, 06 Jan 2010 09:49:00 -0000
Iraq’s ministerial council discussed in his regular session on Tuesday the decision of US federal judge to clear charges of Blackwater guards. Iraq called that decision "unacceptable and unjust" and, as well as supporting a lawsuit brought by the wounded victims of the shooting and the families ...
Iraq MPs ask refugees to join in elections
Wed, 06 Jan 2010 08:53:00 -0000
A delegation of four Iraqi lawmakers met on Tuesday a group of Iraqi refugees living in Syria in aim to call on Iraqis who live outside Iraq to return back and vote in the upcoming Parliamentary elections that are due to be held in March 2009. Iraq is not for a specific party or sect, Hanin ...
US Senate members in Baghdad regret Blackwater decision
Wed, 06 Jan 2010 08:51:00 -0000
Four US Senate members made a surprise visit to Baghdad on Tuesday. Senate members expressed their regret towards the US federal judge’s decision to clear charges of Blackwater guards. The US is willing to support upcoming parliamentary elections on time, John McCain said noting that US Forces ...
Iraq releases Asaib Al Haq leader
Wed, 06 Jan 2010 08:34:00 -0000
Iraqi authorities released Sheikh Qais Al Khezali, leader of Asaib Al Haq group, believed to be behind the abduction of five Britons in Iraq in 2007. Al Khezali is the only arrest released presently while Asaib Al Haq group reached an agreement with Iraqi and US authorities to release around 400 ...
