Video: US soldier on Trial Over WikiLeaks
From AFP. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The military trial of Bradley Manning, the US soldier who handed thousands of secret government files to WikiLeaks, began on Monday, more than three years after he was arrested in Iraq:
Russia Starts Fulfilling $4.2bn Iraqi Arms Order
By John Lee. UPI reports that Russia has started fulfilling a contract to send attack helicopters and short-range air defense systems to Iraq. Sergei Chemezov (pictured), Chief Executive Officer of Russian Technologies (Rostec), was quoted by state news agency RIA Novosti as saying: "The contract is being implemented, the production (of ordered equipment) has started." […]
Iraq Buys 250,000t of Wheat from Russia
The Iraqi Grain Board has reportedly bought 250,000 tons of wheat from Russia. Aswat Al Iraq says the purchase was made following a bid to buy 500,000 tons of wheat, which was closed last week. According to Russia Today News Agency, the shipments will be made between 1st and 31st July, 2013, and delivered in […]
Fears of Civil War Cripple Baghdad Commerce
By Omar al-Shaher for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Concerns about the possibility of Iraq sliding toward the abyss of sectarian war once again have strongly affected commercial activities in Baghdad. Wholesalers in many provinces shifted to the Kurdistan region […]
Video: Iraq Foils Chemical Weapons Plot
Iraq's Defence Ministry has announced it busted an alleged al-Qaeda cell that had been attempting to produce chemical weapons. Reporters in Baghdad were shown four of the alleged suspects, who were hooded.
Kurdistan Lawyers Speak Out Against New Law
By Abdel Hamid Zebari for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Lawyers in the Iraqi Kurdistan region objected to the recent amendment to the bar association law, introduced by the Iraqi Kurdistan parliament. This amendment allows foreign lawyers to practice their profession […]
Video: PKK Fighters Set up Camp in Northern Iraq
Hundreds of Kurdish fighters have arrived in northern Iraq as part of a peace deal with Turkey. The pact, which was signed in March, ended a decades-long conflict that killed about 40,000 people. Al Jazeera's Omar Al Saleh reports from the Iraqi border with Turkey, where he was given access to one of the PKK's […]
Eni to Cut Zubair Output Target
By John Lee. Eni has reportedly reached agreement with the Iraqi Ministry of Oil to cut the final production target at Zubair oil field to 850,000 bpd. Iraqi Oil Minister Abdul Kareem Luaiby [Elaibi] told reporters that he has agreed to the drop from the original target of 1.25 million bpd, and that Eni has […]
US Man Pleads Guilty to Illegal Dinar Sales
By John Lee. An American man has pleaded guilty to operating an illegal business selling Iraqi dinar. ArgusLeader reports that 60-year-old David Olmsted, also known as Dale Cooper Jr., received daily Federal Express packages with shrink-wrapped piles of dinar bills that had been smuggled out of Iraq and into Jordan. The man, from South Dakota, was […]
My Voice Counts: Iraq, the Cradle of Civilisation
Iraq conjures up many enduring cultural images: the great lions of Babylon, the Ishtar Gate (pictured), and the superb spiral mosque of Samarra are some of the most renowned. These vast archaeological riches, spanning centuries of civilization, are part of the national heritage that is shared by all Iraqis – and part of the patrimony […]
Video: Learning from Iraq - a New Model for Reconstruction
The Middle East Institute is pleased to welcome Stuart Bowen, the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR), to discuss his proposals for how best to conduct Stability and Reconstruction Operations. Stability and Reconstruction Operations, or (SROs), entail governmental efforts to rebuild crucial infrastructure, implement rule of law, and ensure security in developing countries before, […]
Black Skies over Qayara: Oil Fire Poisons Locals
By Abdullah Salem. This article was originally published by Niqash. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. After extremists set off bombs on Iraq’s most dangerous oil field, the resulting fire burned for a month. The result: toxic smoke, two deaths, accusations, environmental […]