Security Update 20 June 2014
By Anne-Laure Barbosa at Constellis Consulting ISIS related violence in the last 48 hours Baiji Iraqi security forces have reportedly recaptured the refinery, after tribal sheiks helped negotiate a rebel withdrawal from the area. ISIS rebels regrouped into the town of Baiji, which they now appear to control completely. The situation remains fluid and reporting […]
Video: Investor Peter Schiff on Iraq and World Economy
From Russia Today. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq's largest oil refinery shut down Wednesday amid ongoing fighting between military forces and insurgents with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. The Beji refinery accounts for a quarter of the country's […]
Video: US Ready for Military Action
From AFP. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. US President Barack Obama has announced Washington is ready to send up to 300 military advisors to Iraq and would take "targeted" and "precise" military action if necessary following the swift advance of radical […]
Video: UNESCO calls for Saving Iraq Heritage Sites
From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The UN's World Heritage body UNESCO has called Iraqis to unite behind their heritage as fear mounts that protected sites may get damaged as Sunni rebels from the Islamic State of Iraq and […]
Kurds Seize Control of Border Crossing
By Wladimir van Wilgenburg for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga forces have seized most of the borders that divide the landlocked Kurds between Iraq and Syria, with increasing public support from both sides of the border. ]Kurds in several cities in […]
Security Update 19 June 2014
By Anne-Laure Barbosa at Constellis Consulting ISIS related violence in the last 48 hours Southern Kirkuk The village of Bashir remained the scene of clashes between Kurdish forces and ISIS fighters, who are still battling over control of the area. The fighting on Wednesday left at least nine policemen and Peshmergas dead, and 28 injured. Tal […]
The Eyes of the World are on Iraq
The eyes of the world are on Iraq at the moment, as the country struggles to contain the advance of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, ISIS). And while the attack on the important oil refinery at Baiji is a setback for the government, many are now of the opinion that ISIS […]
Baghdad’s Revenue-Sharing Deal: Avoiding a Kurdish Split
By Ruth Lux, Managing Director of political risk consultancy Strategic Analysis. The security situation in Iraq has significantly declined over the last week. Mosul and Tikrit fell to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), an al-Qaeda off-shoot, and Tal Afar, in the Nineveh province, was seized on Monday. Additionally, Baquba, only 37 […]
Gazprom Neft "has No Problems in Iraq"
By John Lee. Gazprom Neft has said it has no problems in Iraq and does not feel that its work in the country is under threat. Deputy CEO Vadim Yakovlev (pictured) told reporters on Tuesday: “Of course we are worried because we operate there and our people are still working ... [but] we do not […]
US Consul General attends Khudairi Open Day
Khudairi Group (KG) has stepped away from its projects to organize its inaugural Customer Appreciation Day at its Erbil dealership. Guests enjoyed a reception at John Deere, watched HSE-trained operators demonstrating the finesse of John Deere and SANY heavy machinery, including the 25-ton crane, the 315SK backhoes, and the 444K wheel loaders. They also viewed SANY’s […]
Hawrami: New Iraq Needs Power-Sharing
By John Lee. The key to Iraq's unity is power-sharing, revenue-sharing and the implementation of the Constitution, Dr Ashti Hawrami (pictured), the Kurdistan Regional Government's Minister of Natural Resources, told a London conference yesterday, saying: “The policies of centralisation and discrimination have put Iraq's future at risk ... As of last week (following the crisis […]
Syrian Refugee Teachers Receive Training
The Kurdistan Regional Government's Ministry of Education has initiated a one-month teachers’ training programme for Syrian refugees working as teachers in the refugee camps in the Kurdistan Region. The training will target 549 refugees working as primary education teachers in Duhok, Slemani and Erbil. The intensive teachers’ training of Syrian refugees is one of the […]