Iraq Business News brings you the latest Iraqi politics news, keeping you up to date with the latest information and developments.
By John Lee. The Prime Minister's nominee for the post of oil minister in his new 'technocrat cabinet' has reportedly withdrawn his candidacy, apparently because he had not been formally proposed by the main Kurdish groups. Nizar Saleem Numan, a 65-year-old Kurdish petroleum geologist, who is the dean of the college of planning at the University […]
By John Lee. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi nominated a new cabinet on Thursday, pledging to make political reforms to reduce corruption in response to sit-in protests in Baghdad led by Muqtada al-Sadr. Sixteen ministries will be changed, and the parliament will vote in ten days to either approve, reject or amend the proposed cabinet. No […]
By John Lee. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has called for parliament to either support or reject his calls for a technocratic government, pushing back against a looming deadline for a new cabinet, according to a report from AFP. He said Parliament must decide if it wants him "to present ministers from the political blocs or […]
By John Lee. Reuters reports that the International Monetary Fund could approve a standby arrangement (SBA) with Iraq as early as June, unlocking $15 billion in international assistance over the next three years. The head of the IMF’s mission in Iraq, Christian Josz, said on Tuesday that the package of assistance, nearly one third of it […]
World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim (pictured) told a special session of the Iraqi parliament that the path to stability and shared growth in Iraq lay in empowering local governments, opening up and diversifying the economy, and improving the management of public finances by reforming the public sector and increasing accountability. The speech came […]
From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. When Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr speaks, millions of Iraqis listen. Al Jazeera's Bernard Smith explains:
By John Lee. The Iraqi Parliament has set a deadline of Thursday this week for Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to present a new cabinet. Nearly two months ago, Abadi said he would replace the current ministers with “technocrat” figures who are no affiliated with political parties. "If Abadi fails to present his new cabinet, he […]
By John Lee. Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani (pictured) has said he wants to reach an amicable agreement with Baghdad, but stressed that Kurds will "not accept to be subordinates". In his address on the occasion of Newroz, the Kurdish New Year, the President said: “We have two options before us: either we forget the […]
From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq's Shia cleric Muqtada al Sadr is putting pressure on Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to carry out reforms to fight corruption. Sadr has managed to rally a huge number of angry Iraqi protesters […]
Humanitarian partners race to reach people fleeing Heet and areas west of Ramadi Humanitarian partners are rushing to provide emergency assistance to an estimated 35,000 people who have been newly displaced in hard-to-reach areas west of Ramadi. Lise Grande (pictured), the UN’s Humanitarian Coordinator said, “Thousands of people who have been trapped in Heet for […]
By Omar Sattar, for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. With Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi thought to be working on reforms that include the formation of a technocratic Cabinet, the issue of proxy appointments is back in the spotlight. For more than a […]
By John Lee. In a speech to the fourth annual Sulaimani Forum, held by the American University of Sulaimani, KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani explained the current situation in Kurdistan Region, focusing on the internal political conditions, the war against ISIS, the economic crisis and Kurdistan Region’s relations with Baghdad. He was particularly critical of […]
