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Iraqis paid close attention to the US presidential race, especially to the candidates' positions on their country. Many Iraqis welcomed Donald Trump's presidential victory, as well as his anti-terrorism and anti-chaos rhetoric on Iraq.

Once the announcement came that Trump had won, many Iraqi politicians and citizens expressed joy. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi congratulated the new US president for his victory, and said that he looks forward to further cooperation between the two countries in all fields, particularly on security issues and the fight against terrorist groups in Iraq.

Iraqi President Fuad Masum and parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri also sent Trump congratulatory messages. Jabouri anticipated a Trump presidency to "bring gains for the Middle East and Iraq, particularly in the fight against terrorism and elimination of the Islamic State [IS] organization, in a way that brings about security and stability to the region and the world."

The government-funded Iraqi Media Network welcomed the Trump victory in an article that mentioned previous speeches of Trump, in which he said that he would defeat IS and that nobody would be tougher on IS than him, and so on. The author perceived Trump's Middle East policy to be closer to Iraq, as well as a deterrent to religious extremism in the region and the tide of Saudi Wahhabism.

Muwaffaq al-Rubaie, a leader and parliamentarian for the National Alliance and former national security adviser under the presence of US troops in Iraq, said Nov. 9 that Donald Trump's victory "is a good sign for the Middle East in general, and Iraq in particular."

He argued, "Obama withdrew US troops from Iraq in late 2011 without guarantees, which caused the return of terrorism to Iraq. Thus, Trump's victory would be a good thing for Iraq." He said that, in general, "Republicans are better than Democrats for Iraq, because everything that has happened to Iraq occurred under the Democrats' era."

U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq on Sunday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported yesterday.

Officials reported details of yesterday’s strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted eight strikes in Syria:

• Near Abu Kamal, a strike destroyed an ISIL oil wellhead.
• Near Ayn Isa, six strikes engaged five ISIL tactical units and destroyed a vehicle, a mortar system, a fighting position and an anti-aircraft weapons system.
• Near Dayr Az Zawr, a strike destroyed an ISIL oil wellhead.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, fighter, bomber and remotely piloted aircraft and rocket artillery conducted 13 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of the Iraqi government:

• Near Qaim, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.
• Near Haditha, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and staging area and destroyed a heavy machine gun, a vehicle and a rocket cache.
• Near Mosul, 10 strikes engaged five ISIL tactical units; destroyed three mortar systems, three storage containers, two vehicles, two ISIL-held buildings, two vehicle-borne bombs, two heavy machine guns, a bulldozer and a communications tower; damaged a fighting position, a command-and-control node and three tunnels; and suppressed an ISIL tactical unit.
• Near Tal Afar, a strike destroyed an ISIL-held repeater tower.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat it poses to Iraq, Syria, the region and the wider international community. The destruction of targets in Syria and Iraq further limits ISIL's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

(Source: US Dept of Defense)

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

Iraq considers proposal of agricultural licensing rounds for foreign investors

On Oct. 23, the Iraqi parliament’s agricultural committee reported that Iraq imports more than 75% of its vegetables and animal products.

Meanwhile, agriculture experts conducted a study that they presented to the Cabinet on Oct. 22, calling for organizing agricultural licensing rounds to save the agricultural sector from its miserable situation and putting an end to the foreign currency pullout by inviting foreign companies to invest in agricultural land.

On July 19, the Ministry of Agriculture estimated the cultivated land in the country for 2015 at nearly 6 million acres, while the overall arable land is 52 million acres. Agriculture contributes about 7% to the gross domestic product (GDP), which has reached, according to the World Bank, $168.6 billion; this is considered to be a very low percentage, especially since Iraq is classified as an agricultural, oil-rich country.

The person behind the idea of agricultural licensing rounds and inviting international companies to invest in Iraq, agricultural expert Riad Farhan Abdul Karim, told Al-Monitor, “The country is suffering from the agriculture sector’s failure because it still follows methods used by the Sumerians, Babylonians and Assyrians when it comes to agriculture and irrigation. Developing this important sector is everyone’s responsibility.”

He said, “I have presented a comprehensive study to the government about agricultural licensing rounds. The government welcomed the idea and said it will be studying it in the coming days, but we are still waiting. For agriculture to prosper, we need to improve how workers do their jobs, increase land production and use modern methods. This can only be done by bringing in international companies.”

Al-Monitor contacted the Ministry of Agriculture, asking the status of the proposal in the Cabinet. A senior adviser in the ministry told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity that it has received the proposal and asked the council of ministers to discuss it in the Cabinet. He said the ministry approved the proposal and that it now needs Cabinet approval; then it could be passed by the parliament.

Iraq succeeded in organizing licensing rounds for oil in 2009, when it was exporting 1.9 million barrels per day, in an attempt to increase production in 2017 to about 13 million barrels per day. So far, it has only produced 4.7 million barrels a day.

By Hal Miran, Editor-in-Chief, Bite.Tech.

Tech has grown in prominence as a key sector in global economic health. It is now commonly accepted that an economy in which entrepreneurs have the freedom and resources to create and innovate tend to perform much more robustly.

Intriguingly, one study on the effect of tech on a country’s economy has said that there is a much greater positive spillover effect than has been widely thought¹.

The world has entered the new dawn of the technology era. Sure, we’ve had major waves of technological advances since the start of the Industrial Revolution in the late 18^th century⁴. But nothing like this.

Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things, Robotics and Automation are set to disrupt the entire world, with virtually every major sector already recently disrupted by technological innovation.

It is a safe bet to assume that global tech is set to grow exponentially. The bottom line is that tech has already demonstrated its crucial importance to economic health, which is only set to increase.

What this means is that more than ever, tech entrepreneurs will be needed in this new tech-driven world to power economic growth.

Tech entrepreneurship in Iraq: Breaking the country’s dependence on oil

The oil sector has not been reliable since 2014, with prices fluctuating wildly. So long core for the Iraqi economy, the country can no longer depend exclusively on the fuel. What has occurred in global oil markets in the last few years is a warning that Iraq must pay attention to.

Iraq is so dependent on the fuel that the government, recently asked for the country to be exempt from the OPEC production cut agreement⁵, as it is desperate to produce as many barrels of oil as it can.

Tech entrepreneurship can break this dependence and help the economy to grow in ways that the oil sector, crucial as it has been for Iraq for so long, can never achieve.

How have other countries benefited from a booming tech sector?

In the U.S, the tech sector accounts for 7% of GDP and employs almost 7 million people². In the UK, tech accounts for 8% of British GDP³. In these countries and indeed around the globe it is set to grow further, both in developed and developing economies.

U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Iraq and Syria on Saturday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported yesterday.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted nine strikes in Syria:

• Near Raqqah, two strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed a fighting position and a vehicle.
• Near Ayn Isa, three strikes destroyed two mortar systems and a vehicle.
• Near Dayr Az Zawr, three strikes destroyed 15 oil tanker trucks and five oil wellheads.
• Near Idlib, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted seven strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

• Near Mosul, five strikes engaged three ISIL tactical units; destroyed four mortar systems, four ISIL-held buildings, a vehicle bomb, a weapons cache and a fighting position; and damaged a vehicle.
• Near Rawah, a strike destroyed a bunker.
• Near Tal Afar, a strike destroyed an improvised explosive device production facility.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

(Source: US Dept of Defense)

By Saad Salloum for Al Monitor. Any opinions here are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. 

The Iraqi parliament's surprise decision to ban alcohol is raising challenges from many quarters, both for the law's content and the way it was passed. Some critics also say politicians intend to use the ban to their advantage on the black market.

While the rest of the country was focused on the fierce military battle to drive the Islamic State (IS) from Mosul, the Iraqi parliament declared its own war by passing the new law Oct. 23, banning all production, imports and sales of alcoholic beverages of all kinds. The law stipulates that violators will have to pay a fine of no less than 10 million dinars ($8,500) and no more than 25 million dinars ($21,000).

Iraq is an Islamic democracy. The new law's supporters say it aligns with the Iraqi constitution, which forbids passage of any law that contradicts Islam. Some opponents, however, note that the constitution also provides for protection of religious minorities' rights and customs. Parliament member Yonadam Kanna said he will appeal parliament's action to the federal court as being contrary to the constitution and personal freedoms.

The debate revolves around three main points: non-Muslim minorities’ fear of the Islamization of the state, controversy over the relationship between religion and state, and attempts by parties of political Islam to control the black market for alcohol.

Journalist Ali Hussein's Oct. 24 column posted on al-Mada news site ran with the headline, "Parliament decides: No place for Christians in Iraq." In it, he summarized how Christians and other minorities view the message behind the new law.

U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Iraq on Wednesday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported yesterday.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 17 strikes in Syria:

• Near Abu Kamal, a strike damaged an ISIL supply route.
• Near Raqqah, three strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed a fighting position and a vehicle.
• Near Ayn Isa, 13 strikes engaged eight ISIL tactical units and destroyed seven fighting positions, a vehicle, a cave, a bridge and an improvised explosive device.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 11 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

• Near Baghdad, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.
• Near Mosul, seven strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed five ISIL-held buildings, four vehicles, three mortar systems, three medium machine guns, four tunnels and two vehicle bombs; and damaged two supply routes, a solar panel, a rocket-propelled grenade, a vehicle bomb facility and a fighting position.
• Near Rawah, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroyed an oil tanker and damaged a tunnel.
• Near Tal Afar, a strike engaged an ISIL vehicle bomb facility

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

(Source: US Dept of Defense)

U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Iraq on Tuesday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported yesterday.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 12 strikes in Syria:

• Near Abu Kamak, a strike destroyed ISIL oil production equipment.
• Near Raqqah, two strikes destroyed two ISIL oil wellheads and an oil pump.
• Near Ayn Isa, seven strikes engaged six ISIL tactical units and destroyed three fighting positions, a vehicle and a vehicle bomb facility.
• Near Manbij, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle and a heavy machine gun.
• Near Mara, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack and fighter aircraft conducted six strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

• Near Mosul, three strikes engaged three ISIL tactical units; destroyed six ISIL-held buildings, four fighting positions, three mortar systems, a heavy machine gun and a sniper position; suppressed two tactical units; and damaged a mortar system.
• Near Rawah, two strikes engaged an ISIL vehicle bomb factory and destroyed two storage containers and a vehicle.
• Near Tal Afar, a strike engaged an ISIL headquarters building.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

(Source: US Dept of Defense)

U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Iraq and Syria on Monday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported yesterday.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 17 strikes in Syria:

• Near Ayn Isa, 15 strikes engaged seven ISIL tactical units, destroyed five fighting positions, three vehicles, two bridges and an artillery system and damaged three supply routes.
• Near Mara, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle bomb.
• Near Palmyra, a strike engaged two ISIL tactical units, destroyed a vehicle and damaged a fighting position.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, fighter, remotely piloted and rotary-wing aircraft and rocket artillery conducted 10 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

• Near Beiji, a strike destroyed an ISIL rocket rail, a generator and a bulldozer.
• Near Mosul, five strikes engaged five ISIL tactical units and a staging area; destroyed six fighting positions, six mortar systems, four vehicle bombs, two vehicles, two rocket systems, two ISIL-held buildings and a command and control node; suppressed a heavy machine gun, a sniper position and a rocket system; damaged an ISIL vehicle; and degraded three tunnels.
• Near Rawah, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL-held building.
• Near Sinjar, a strike engaged an ISIL weapons production facility.
• Near Taji, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.
• Near Tal Afar, a strike engaged an ISIL vehicle bomb factory.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

(Source: US Dept of Defense)

U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Iraq on Sunday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported yesterday.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 18 strikes in Syria:

• Near Kamal, a strike damaged an ISIL supply route.
• Near Ayn Isa, 16 strikes engaged 12 ISIL tactical units and destroyed six fighting positions, five vehicles, two vehicle bombs and a communications node.
• Near Mara, a strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle and a heavy machine gun.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, bomber, fighter, remotely piloted aircraft and rocket artillery conducted 12 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

• Near Mosul, seven strikes engaged four ISIL tactical units and three staging areas; destroyed 16 vehicles, seven mortar systems, three weapons caches, two ISIL-held buildings, an ISIL headquarters building and a training facility; damaged two ISIL supply routes; degraded three ISIL tunnels; and suppressed two ISIL tactical units.
• Near Rawah, three strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed 11 storage containers, a vehicle and a weapons cache.
• Near Sinjar, a strike engaged an ISIL headquarters building.
• Near Tal Afar, a strike destroyed nine ISIL vehicles.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

(Source: US Dept of Defense)