By Patrick Schmidt. A Kurdish oil tanker has arrived at the Croatian port of Omisalj and is preparing to begin offloading its cargo in the coming days. This delivery represents a success for the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) in finding a buyer for their crude following legal threats from Baghdad. These threats have previously deterred […]
By Patrick Schmidt. After remaining in the hands of the Islamic State (IS) the Mosul Dam and surrounding areas have been mostly recaptured by Kurdish security forces. American airpower over Northern Iraq assisted the Kurdish in recapturing the facility during their offensive. The United States announced that it had launched 14 strikes against Islamic State […]
By Patrick Schmidt. For a terrorist organization, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) follows relatively normal business practices. It may come as a surprise to those not familiar with the group, but the organization has published an annual report revealing its secrets to success and longevity. ISIL is thought to earn at […]
By John Lee. The United Nations have declared the highest level of emergency in northern Iraq, estimating that over a million people have been displaced in the aftermath of the June offensive by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. Nicolay Mladenov, head of UNAMI (United Nations Assistance Mission: Iraq) has said that in […]
By John Lee. In an effort to improve cash flow, the Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. (TAQA) have ended acquisition plans for some projects in Iraq and India.Security does not appear to have been a factor in the company's decision regarding an Iraq based project. However, the company are taking some precautions with ongoing oil […]
By John Lee. It's something many academics and Maliki observers have long feared: that if cornered, Maliki would use loyalist Iraqi forces, in particular the Iraqi Special Operations Forces, to hold onto power. Instead, The Wall Street Journal have reported that Maliki has pledged to pursue his fight to retain the top spot through the courts, […]
By Patrick Schmidt. Following the arrival of additional American military advisors to Iraq yesterday, the Defense Department reported that some of those troops had traveled to Sinjar Mountain. After almost a week of airstrikes by American aircraft and a simultaneous offensive by Kurdish security forces, thousands Yazidis who were trapped on the mountain can now […]
By Patrick Schmidt. While the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’s (ISIL) conquest of oil fields and major dams has garnered the attention of the international community, the seizure of some of Iraq’s most valuable farmland has not received the same amount of attention. ISIL has large portions of Iraq’s top five most productive […]
By John Lee. Following on from France's move to rapidly supply Kurdish Peshmerga led forces with arms and equipment, Germany's Federal Ministry of Defence has pledged "non lethal aid" to the Iraqi army. Typically, non-lethal aid is sent when a matter is politically sensitive, or if a government has reservations about supplying one side in […]
By John Lee. China's CNPC has announced the completion of a 272 kilometre crude oil pipeline which connects Halfaya and Burzugan [Bazargan] oilfields in southern Iraq to the Al-Faw port. Incredibly, CNPC have remarked that the pipeline is passing through 30km of areas that were once minefields during the Iran-Iraq war. Today, southern Iraq is […]
By John Lee. The New York Times has reported that French President Francois Hollande has endorsed the appointment of Haider al-Abadi as Iraq's new PM, and with Baghdad's approval France is now ready to send arms to Kurdish forces. The move comes after the Kurdish President Massoud Barzani remarked that the Peshmerga were not sufficiently […]
By Patrick Schmidt. In addition to current energy holdings in Syria, the Islamic State of the Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) holds seven different oil fields in Iraq. This past month the militants seized Ain Zalah and Batma oil fields. They had previously gained control of Najma, Qayara, Himreen, Ajeel and Balad oil fields. The […]
