Custom Search

By Harith Hasan for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Iraq is currently the scene of a sharp regional conflict between Iran and its opponents. This is nothing new, however. Regional events have come to show that any country witnessing political or social instability, amid weak state control, can be exposed to a similar power struggle on the part of rich and stable regional powers that have a geopolitical agenda.

This is the case in Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Yemen and Bahrain. One can say that the current regional rivalry is hampering the process of rebuilding the state and national identity. It is due to this rivalry that internal conflicts have become complicated, as they turn into an extension of a wider regional conflict waged by powerful countries on the soft lands of unstable countries.

Moreover, the political, ideological and financial alliances that are forged between the regional powers and their local collaborators fuel internal division. In a country like Iraq, where this division takes on a sectarian character, the regional conflict leaves a major destructive effect.

Therefore, the most violent aspects of this conflict take place in countries where a power struggle is more intense, either because of their strategic importance or due to the lack of an ultimate hegemonic power.

This is particularly the case in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, which together form the main part of the Fertile Crescent. Step by step, the regional rivalries plaguing these three countries fell within the framework of a wider foreign conflict whose two major poles are Iran and Saudi Arabia.

Thus, it currently seems impossible to deem that the instability plaguing these countries is the result of a mere lack of compatibility between the subnational communities. These communities have increasingly become transnational communities.

By rampant “sectarianization,” we mean that there is in the region a continuous process that aims to establish sectarian, rather than national, identities.

It is noteworthy that this process affects the internal conflict, for the political community is divided over the identification of friends and enemies. Ernst Renan once defined the nation as a group of people united by a common hatred of their neighbors. If this is true, then the current problem in a country like Iraq is the absence of this “common hatred” for a given enemy.

Qatar Airways launched flights on Wednesday to its fifth destination in the Republic of Iraq, Sulaymaniyah, increasing the airline’s frequency across Iraq from 16 to 20 flights each week.

The new services, which will operate four-times-a-week non-stop from the airline’s Doha hub, brings the carrier’s global network to 129 destinations worldwide.

The Doha – Sulaymaniyah route is being operated by a state-of-the-art Airbus A320 featuring 144 seats in a two-class configuration of 12 seats in Business Class and 132 seats in Economy.

Selected aircraft feature seatback TV screens, providing passengers with the next generation interactive on board entertainment system, featuring a choice of more than 800 audio and video on-demand options, together with an SMS text messaging service from each seat.

The launch marks the rapid expansion by Qatar Airways in Iraq since the middle of 2012 when it began flights to Erbil, followed by the capital Baghdad, Najaf and Basra. Sulaymaniyah also marks the carrier’s fifth new Middle Eastern destination launched this year after Basra, Najaf, Gassim in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Salalah in Oman.

The arrival of Qatar Airways’ flight QR438 was welcomed with a water salute at Sulaymaniyah International Airport and a warm reception presided by local officials. Fathi Al Shehab, Qatar Airways Senior Vice President GCC, Levant, Iran and Indian Subcontinent, led an official delegation on the flight from Doha and was welcomed at the airport by Director General Sulaymaniyah International Airport Eng.Tahir Qadir.

By Robin Simcox, Research Fellow for Strategic Analysis, part of the Henry Jackson Society.

On Sunday 14 July, over fifty people were killed in a series of terrorist attacks in Iraq. The most deadly attacks took place in Basra, where three roadside bombs killed twenty eight.

A series of attacks – particularly via car bombs – have rocked Basra in recent months. However, the levels of violence are unlikely to deter future investment not only in Basra, but Iraq more broadly.

Oil sales account for over 90% of Iraq’s budget. It exports most of its oil from the south, and Basra – as a major hub for the Iraqi oil industry – is vital to the economy. The Southern Oil Company, the state-owned enterprise responsible for the southern oil fields, is based in Basra; 80 % of the country’s crude oil is exported from there; and 70% of Iraq’s oil is produced in the south.

As a result, and despite security concerns, investment has arrived. Foreign investment in Iraq reached $60 billion in 2012, and construction projects in Basra have seen malls, social clubs and hotels open. Standard Chartered is planning to open a branch there next year. As of last month, Qatar Airways now flies directly into Basra.

Basra is also a key port town, with the cargo unloading statistics at Basra contributing to revenues from Iraqi ports reaching $30 million a month in December 2012. This is the highest amount achieved in the country’s history, and the growing demand for shipping means that the Ministry of Transport plans to open a new port in Basra in the coming months.

All this helps explain why Nouri al-Maliki, Iraq’s prime minister, once described Basra as ‘the lung’ of the country. It is a potential economic powerhouse within Iraq, and clearly of significant strategic importance. Unless there is an enormous spike in violence, the potential gains on offer will ensure that terrorism does not lead to foreign disengagement.

By John Lee.

The Muthanna Investment Commission has announced that a Qatari company has been contracted to build a housing project in central Samawa.

Doha Investment Company won the contract for the $65 million housing complex, which will include 480 housing units, a school, a health centre and various other services, reports al-Shorfa. Some will be low-cost housing units.

The project is expected to begin in August and be completed within two years.

(Source: Al-Shorfa)

From Jewish News One. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

A wave of car bombings in central and northern Iraq has killed at least 57 people, heightening fears that the country may be returning to sectarian civil war.

No group has claimed responsibility for the series of attacks, but officials blame most of the violence that has killed nearly 2,000 people since April on Sunni Islamist insurgents linked to al Qaeda's local wing, known as the Islamic State of Iraq.

Iraq civil war fears: PM Maliki vows action against extremists as sectarian violence spirals.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has vowed to confront sectarian militants following a recent spate of car bombings in Baghdad that have left over 75 people dead.

Al-Maliki, a Shia Muslim, was flanked by four ministers at the news conference, including two senior Sunni politicians, in an apparent display of unity:

Posted in Security0 Comments

Video: Attacks on Sunni Mosques

Posted on 18 May 2013. Tags: video

From Jewish News One. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

There has been a sharp rise in attacks on Sunni holy sites in Iraq, causing a fear that the country could face more sectarian violence reminiscent of the bloodshed that the country experienced back in 2006 to 2007.

Posted in Security0 Comments

Video: Iraq – ‘Disciplining’ the media

Posted on 06 May 2013. Tags: press freedom, video

From Jewish News One. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

In Iraq, tensions have again flared up in a new wave of deadly attacks against political and sectarian targets. Iraqi media, especially outlets that speak to the Sunni minority, called it a crisis out of the government’s control.

Then, when government forces loyal to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki killed 27 Sunni protesters, Iraq’s private media erupted with rage. Anger on the privately-owned airwaves spelled trouble for the government and Maliki’s response was to shut down 10 satellite TV stations — including Al Jazeera’s Arabic language channel — for propagating an “undisciplined media message”.

All but one of the channels are aligned with Sunni financial backers, and the government’s move is being seen as a crackdown on dissent by Maliki’s majority Shia government.

In Iraq’s factionalised media landscape, who you are largely determines who you listen to. So for Maliki, silencing Sunni TV was nothing less than removing a weapon from the hands of his rivals. For the Sunni minority, Maliki’s move was just one more sign that their rights and interests are under attack.

This week’s News Divide looks at both sides of the struggle. Speaking for the government is Ali Al-Shalah, the president of the Iraq Culture and Media Committee; assessing the government’s actions are Dahr Jamail, a producer for Al Jazeera English, Arab media analyst Nehad Ismail and Ammar Shahbander from the Institute of War and Peace Reporting:

(Source: Al Jazeera)

Posted in Communications, Security0 Comments

Video: Media Regulator Muzzles TV Networks

Posted on 01 May 2013. Tags: Communications and Media Commission (CMC), video

From Jewish News One. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

In a blow to freedom of the press in Iraq, the country’s media regulator has announced it has suspended the licences of ten satellite news networks, including Qatar-based Al Jazeera.

The Communication and Media Commission (CMC) regulator took the action after accusing the networks of inciting violence through their coverage of deadly clashes triggered by a security force raid on a Sunni Muslim protest camp last week:

(Source: Jewish News One)

Posted in Communications, Security0 Comments

Video: Maliki Calls for Talks to End Violence

Posted on 30 April 2013. Tags: Maliki, Nouri al-Maliki, video

From Jewish News One. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has called for talks to end the violence that has entered a third day in the country’s north where Sunni Muslims are angry over a raid on an anti-government protest camp.

Security forces had stormed a protest camp igniting a gun battle between troops and protesters killing some 50 people, the worst clashes in the country since the US pulled out its forces in 2011:

(Source: Jewish News One)

Posted in Security0 Comments

Video: Landmark Iraq Provincial Councils Vote

Posted on 22 April 2013. Tags: elections, video

From Jewish News One. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Polls have closed in Iraq in the first elections since the US troop withdrawal. Iraqis were voting to elect members of provincial councils in 12 of the country’s 18 provinces:

(Source: Jewish News One)

Posted in Politics0 Comments

Video: Iraq on Terror Alert

Posted on 15 April 2013. Tags: elections, video

From Jewish News One. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

With the Iraqi provincial elections now just days away, members of the police force and army have cast their votes ahead of time, with lines developing outside polling stations across the country, including in Baghdad and Basra:

(Source: Jewish News One)

Posted in Security0 Comments

Video: Jihadis in Iraq and Syria Joining Forces

Posted on 06 April 2013. Tags: al-Nusra Front, al-Qaeda, Syria, video

From Jewish News One. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Iraqi intelligence officials have said a cross-border alliance is growing between the Islamic extremist groups al-Qaeda in Iraq, and the al-Nusra Front in Syria.

(Source: Jewish News One)

Posted in Security0 Comments

IBN Newsletter 'FREE Weekly Subscription'

Email:

Follow our expert Bloggers

Dr. Mark A. DeWeaver	Why I Still Like North Bank	Ahmed Mousa Jiyad	Iraq’s Petroleum: Challenges of Managing...
Sherif Salem	Economy Starts to Hum, but...	John Schnittker	Wheat Harvest Threatened by Heavy Rains
Madeleine White	Education – the Most Powerful Weapon of All

• Popular
• Latest
• Comments
• Tags
• RSS Feed

• Iraqi Dinars “One of the Most Foolhardy Investments you can Make”
• Iraqi Dinar Revaluation Enthusiasts are Unaware of Bernie Madoff’s Fame
• History’s lesson for the dinar
• 7 Questions for Dinar Speculators
• Iraq Central Bank ‘To remove 3 Zeroes from Dinar”

By John Lee.

Qatar Airways has launched flights to Basra, its fourth destination in Iraq. The new services, operating four-times-a-week non-stop from the airline's Doha hub, takes the carrier's global network to 128 destinations worldwide.

The launch also marks the rapid expansion by Qatar Airways in Iraq since the middle of 2012 when it began flights to Erbil, followed by the capital Baghdad and, earlier this year, Najaf.

With today's route launch, Qatar Airways' frequency across Iraq rises from 12 to 16 flights each week - representing a more than 25% increase in services.

The arrival of Qatar Airways' flight QR448 was welcomed at Basra International Airport with a reception presided by local officials. Fathi Al Shehab, Qatar Airways Senior Vice President GCC, Levant, Iran and Indian Subcontinent led an official delegation on the flight from Doha.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said he was delighted to see additional flights open up another entry point to Iraq:

"The Republic of Iraq has been on our list of expansion priorities for some time and the last 12 months have seen us move forward very quickly opening up four new gateways in Iraq with a fifth Sulaymaniyah starting in August.

"Qatar Airways' commitment is strong as we continue to build on our already strong relationship between the State of Qatar and the Republic of Iraq. Opening up Iraq to the world with more travel options and flexibility has always been part of our general strategy to enter underserved markets and give the travelling public to and from such places the ability to travel with greater choice, bringing the world closer to them."

Clyde & Co launched its inaugural Middle East Deal Study at an exclusive event hosted at the Ritz Carlton recently.

The study, the first of its kind in the region, analyses data from 86 of the Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) and Joint Venture (JV) transactions the firm worked on in the region during 2012.

The study establishes a baseline for 'market practice’ in the Middle East, providing a unique insight into doing business in the Middle East, identifying trends and providing statistics. Interestingly, Joint Ventures remained as attractive as M&As in providing a route to market.

In fact, JV transactions occurred as frequently as M&A transactions which can be explained by the regulatory environment in the Middle East, where local partners and market knowledge is often required.

Overall, analysis of the deal study highlights an increase in market confidence, a rise in the use of the auction sale processes and an enthusiasm from new entrants trying to gain a foothold in the region. These elements have transformed the Middle East into a seller friendly market, with entrepreneurial businesses attracting international investors looking to access the Middle East market.

With possible reductions to the ‘barriers of entry’ in doing business in the Middle East market, brought about by either the new investment law which may increase foreign ownership limits or the eagerly awaited announcement by MSCI to upgrade the UAE and Qatar to emerging markets, has the potential to make the region even more attractive to international companies and investors.

This could have a positive impact on the regions deal market, invigorating the private sector to follow the upward investment trend seen through public sector spending in critical areas of the economy.

The study highlights that sellers and buyers should expect split signing and completion when doing an M&A deal. 31%of M&A deals took between three and six months to complete, bringing up a host of related issues such as walk away rights and management of the target during this period.

The study also found a clear tendency towards the use of English law, with M&A deals split between courts and arbitration (41% and 59% respectively) whilst arbitration remained the preferred forum for joint ventures (93%).

Philip O'Riordan (pictured), partner in Clyde & Co’s MENA corporate group, said:

"Globally, we see the importance of the public sector in stimulating growth and providing employment.

"The findings of the study show that regionally there is the emergence of a vibrant private sector, which we expect to grow on the back of increased public investment in critical areas of the economy such as energy, infrastructure and construction.

"We believe the deal study provides valuable information for any company planning and implementing a transaction in the region."

To request a copy of the deal study please email [email protected].

(Source: Clyde & Co)

By Sherif Salem.

As has often been the case in Iraq, developments in recent weeks have inspired both pessimism and optimism.

On the one hand, an increase in bomb attacks – with 300 fatalities in April – raised fears of a return to the peak in levels of violence seen of 2005-2006. And events in neighbouring Syria have served to heighten nerves.

However, on the economic front, there has been a steady flow of positive news. Fortunately, investors seem to be focusing on this, and taking a long-term view, with the stock market holding firm. This is important as Iraqi companies will increasingly turn to capital markets in coming years to build scale and seek to fulfill their potential.

Firstly, global oil majors continue to pour money into the development of key oil fields, which is vital for long-term economic stability. BP allocated $2.85 billion to further develop the Rumaila oilfield this year, up from $2.2 billion last year. Exxon Mobil is spending $1.65 billion on the West Qurna 1, slightly up on the $1.6 billion spent last year.

Iraq aims to raise oil production to 6 million barrels per day (bpd) by 2017 from the current 3.1 million, which should fund a huge programme of spending on social and physical infrastructure.

On the micro level there are also signs that the grassroots Iraqi economy is starting to hum. For example, Al Mansour Bank, in which Qatar National Bank (QNB) has a majority stake, has just reported loan growth of 12 percent in the first quarter, compared to a year earlier. However, with deposits expanding more than four-fold from a year earlier, the scope for lending should be much higher.

By Harith al-Qarawee for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

There are two conflicting trends at the core of the sectarian dispute that is intensifying in Iraq.

The first trend is influenced by domestic political considerations pertaining to the failure of the Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish forces to develop a governance and state administration formula that would reduce the sense of marginalization or exclusion by some parties that could lead to the division of the country.

The second trend is influenced by regional dynamics, and is represented by the more sectarian Sunni and Shiite groups. These groups see the current conflict in Iraq as an integral part of the wider conflict taking place in the Levant region divided between a Sunni camp led or supported by Sunni regional powers such as Turkey, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, and a Shiite camp led by Iran.

As a result, the greater the disagreement and difficulty to reach an internal Iraqi solution, the greater the power of radical groups, and thus the impact of their narrative, which tends to portray the situation as a Sunni-Shiite cosmic struggle that does not recognize existing borders or internal environments.

Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) and Jabhat al-Nusra in Syria are the two main manifestations of the presence of such cross-border ideologies and organizational relations among groups that espouse them. The war being fought by the two groups is not one aimed at "spreading democracy," achieving "social justice" or reaching a political system based on broad participation. This war aims to achieve victory for the sake of the Salafist jihadist version of Islam against its enemies, which in this case are the Shiite-led government in Iraq and the Syrian regime dominated by Alawites (dubbed by Jabhat al-Nusra as "Nusayri" as a kind of insult and disrespect).

From Iran’s PressTV. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Iran's PressTV has conducted an interview with Zayd al-Isa, a Middle East expert from London about recent surges of violence in Iraq:

(Source: PressTV)