By John Lee. Iraq’s justice minister, Hassan al-Shimmari, said on Tuesday that the notorious Abu Ghraib prison just outside Baghdad has been shut due to unspecified security concerns. According to a report from Washington Times, the prison’s 2,400 inmates have been taken to other facilities across the country. Several months ago, rebel al Qaeda groups […]
By Constellis Consulting www.constellis-consulting.com Despite repeated claims that Muqtada al–Sadr will remain on the sidelines of politics with regard to the upcoming elections, the latter has multiplied public appearances, in a clear attempt to influence the voting. On 13 April, Sadr met with influential Shia cleric Ali Al-Sistani and released a joint statement condemning sectarianism and violence. […]
The Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General (SRSG) Mr. Nickolay Mladenov (pictured) has reaffirmed UN support to Iraq in its fight against corruption. This came at the opening session of the Baghdad Second International Forum on Stolen Assets Recovery, which was organized by the Integrity Commission. “The UN is taking accountability, transparency and anti-corruption […]
By Mushreq Abbas for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. On April 4, the Iraqi Council of Ministers endorsed the “national safety” bill, which regulates the state of emergency and defines the prime minister’s powers and the steps he can take during “emergency” measures, which […]
By John Lee. Czech aviation company Aero Vodochody has reportedly agreed to sell 12 L-159 subsonic fighter jets to Iraq, but the package must still be approved by the governments of both countries. Martin Danko, the broker for the deal, refused to reveal the price. According to Associated Press, Iraq had initially agreed to buy […]
By John Lee. Bloomberg reports that GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is investigating allegations of improper conduct in Iraq. The company said: “These allegations relate to a small number of individuals. However, we are investigating whether there has been any improper conduct. We have zero tolerance for unethical or illegal behavior.” The Wall Street Journal reported that Glaxo […]
On the eve of the anniversary of the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime on April 9, 2003, the U.S. Embassy advises U.S. citizens to restrict movements around Baghdad, including travel through Baghdad International Airport. U.S. government and Embassy-affiliated personnel are restricting their use of the Baghdad International Airport through April 12. Beyond this date, American […]
From AFP. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. A car bomb set off by a suicide attacker at a checkpoint in the city of Tuz Khurmatu in Iraq killed four policemen, while attacks were also carried out in Baiji and Tikrit in […]
By Constellis Consulting www.constellis-consulting.com Despite reasserting his retirement from politics on 02 April, Muqtada al-Sadr publicly urged Maliki not to run for a third term, citing the failure of his sectarian policies and the increasingly autocratic nature of the regime. As the parliamentary elections approach, each party seems to be appealing to their own sectarian base, with […]
The Head of the KRG's Department of Foreign Relations, Minister Falah Mustafa, and Assistant Head of the DFR, Ms. Siham Jabali, met with the Director of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), Dr. Volker Perth, to brief him on KRG foreign and domestic policy and the current political developments in Kurdistan, Iraq, […]
A delegation from the Middle East Institute, an American think tank, visited the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Department of Foreign Relations where they met with the Head of the DFR, Minister Falah Mustafa, and the Assistant Head of the DFR, Siham Jabali. The delegation, headed by former Ambassador Wendy Chamberlin, discussed their visit to Kurdistan, highlighting […]
The United States of America and the Republic of Iraq signed a Framework for a Strategic Bilateral Cooperation Program for Addressing Chemical Weapons Risks in Baghdad recently. This program formalizes the cooperative efforts of our two nations in identifying and mitigating the threat of chemical weapons by developing a national response plan and building Iraq's […]
