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Security Council Targets ISIL Financing

Security Council approves resolution targeting sources of financing for ISIL Urging global cooperation “to impair, isolate and incapacitate” terrorist threats, the United Nations Security Council today approved measures targeting sources of funding for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and Al-Nusrah Front (ANF), condemning those buying oil from the groups, banning all […]

Iraqi Tribes Become 'State within a State'

By Adnan Abu Zeed for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Equipped with various firearms, convoys of tribal members can be seen across Iraq, in defiance of the laws prohibiting the firing of guns into the air. This causes major economic losses, while the country […]

ISIS Targets ExxonMobil Site

By John Lee. Islamic State (IS, ISIS, ISIL) militants have attacked Peshmerga forces on the Khazir frontline, north of Mosul, with the aim of seizing equipment and machinery belonging to US oil company ExxonMobil. A Peshmerga commander told BasNews that the extremist group was forced back from the area, including the key villages of Wardik […]

Agreement to Support Displaced Iraqis in Kerbala

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Kerbala Governorate in Central Iraq to enhance cooperation on migration management and emergency response activities. IOM Iraq Chief of Mission Thomas Lothar Weiss, and the Governor of Kerbala, Aqeel Omran Al-Turahi, signed the MoU in a ceremony at the governorate administrative […]

Blessings in Disguise for Iraqi Stock Market

By John Lee. The continuing war against the Islamic State (IS, ISIS, ISIL), coupled with the decline in oil prices, have reportedly made Iraqi regulators and government more receptive to reforms that would strengthen the economy and the stock market, according to an article in UAE-based The National. Shwan Taha, head of Rabee Securities, has […]

Video: Battling ISIL with Comedy and Art

From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The armed group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, ISIS, IS) has been running an ambitious propaganda campaign that includes social media and lots of recruitment videos tailored to different cultures […]

Weekly Security Update, 03 - 09 February 2015

National Overview Jordanian air campaign in Syria occurs amid ongoing counter-ISIS offensive across Iraq, as militant activity is curtailed in northern and central conflict zones. While Jordan’s armed forces have substantially increased their military presence along Iraq’s south-western border following the killing of pilot Muath al-Kasasbeh by the Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham […]

Czech to Send Tanks, APCs to Iraq

By John Lee. The Czech government has given the go-ahead to supply 100 military vehicles to Iraq, to support the ongoing fight against Islamic State (IS, ISIS, ISIL) militants. BasNews reports that the vehicles are reconditioned BVP-1 armoured personnel carriers (APCs) and T-72 tanks, to be supplied by a company called Excalibur Army. (Source: BasNews) […]

Jordan Deploys Troops to Iraqi Border

By John Lee. Jordanian government officials have told NBC News that Jordan has deployed "thousands" of troops at its border with Iraq. Speaking on condition of anonymity, they said the troops were sent to prevent the infiltration of ISIS fighters into Jordan, and as a show of force. "We are determined to wipe them [ISIS] […]

IS Destroys Kirkuk Railway

By John Lee. Militants from the Islamic State (IS, ISIS, ISIL) have bombed the Kirkuk railway on Saturday evening, in an attempt to prevent Peshmerga forces from attacking the area. A Peshmerga source in the area told BasNews that the jihadists laid waste to a section of the railway near Maktab Khalid, and blew up […]

Video: Baghdad Lifts Curfew

From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq has lifted a years-old nightly curfew in the capital, Baghdad, in a bid by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's government to make the city feel more liveable despite persistent violence plaguing the country. […]

Czech Govt Postpones Decision on Iraq Jets

By John Lee. The Czech cabinet has postponed a decision on the sale of redundant L-159 subsonic fighters to Iraq. Defence Minister Martin Stropnicky said on Wednesday that "the way of assigning the proceeds from the sale to the Defence Ministry must be defined before the decision is made." Global Times reports that the Czech Defence […]