Video: Attacks on Sunni Mosques
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 […]
Iraqi Judiciary Opens Hawija Investigation
By Ali Abel Sadah for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Nearly a month following the bloody events that took place in the town of Hawija, the Iraqi judiciary has decided to investigate the circumstances surrounding the events, just as it has […]
Afren Shares Up on Interim Mgt Statement
Shares in Afren have risen more than 5 percent since the publication of its Interim Management Statement on Thursday. In the statement, the company gave the following update on its operations in Iraqi Kurdistan: Barda Rash As part of the phased development of the field, Afren initiated production operations in August 2012 producing its first […]
PhotoSat Completes Satellite Mapping of Garmian Block
By John Lee. PhotoSat has announced the completion of its satellite topography mapping of WesternZagros's Garmian Block in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, using stereo satellite photos from the high-resolution Pleiades 1A and 1B imaging satellites. Pleiades 1A and 1B are the world's newest 50cm resolution satellites. The satellite topography mapping consists of an elevation […]
Foreign Minister Attends Europe Day Ceremony
By John Lee. Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari has participated in the Europe Day Celebration organized by the EU Mission in Baghdad. The Minister delivered a speech on the occasion explaining the level of the mutual cooperation especially after signing the partnership and cooperation agreement. A great number of the foreign diplomatic corps members in […]
Prosecutor General Calls for Replacement of President
By Reidar Visser. The following article was published by Reidar Visser, an historian of Iraq educated at the University of Oxford and currently based at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs. It is reproduced here with the author’s permission. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq […]
Why I Still Like North Bank
By Mark DeWeaver. I thought Sansar Capital’s recent report on the Iraqi banks was excellent. But I was surprised by its somewhat negative take on North Bank (BNOR). In particular, I found myself not entirely convinced by the following three points, which form the basis for their bearish case: Insufficient collateral for overdraft lending is […]
North Bank Under the Spotlight
By Padraig O'Hannelly. At Iraq Business News we've always been clear that Iraq is a land of both opportunities and risks. The challenge for any investor or businessperson has always been to decide what risks are worth taking, and at what price. In the investment arena, real out-performance can only come from having a different […]
Weekly Security Update 08 - 15 May 2013
By Tom Walker, Director, Assaye Risk COUNTRY OVERVIEW Levels of violence dropped this week in Iraq in a welcome respite from the previous weeks heightened levels of attacks and political uncertainty. Approx. 119 people were killed this week, bringing the yearly total to approx. 2085. Despite the drop in high impact attacks Iraq was by […]
Turkey Joins Exxon in Kurdistan Oil Deal
By John Lee. Turkish prime minister has said that state-owned Turkiye Petrolleri AO (TPAO) is has reached an agreement with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and ExxonMobil to carry out oil exploration in northern Iraq. Tayyip Erdoğan (pictured) told reporters: "Countries from various parts of the world are taking steps to explore and produce oil in […]
ShaMaran Falls on Results
By John Lee. Shares in ShaMaran Petroleum were down as much as 6 percent this morning following the announced of its financial and operating results for the three months ended March 31, 2013. (Unless otherwise stated all currency amounts indicated as "$" in this news release are expressed in thousands of United States dollars). Highlights […]
Speculation Mounts Over Maliki’s Health
By Ali Abel Sadah for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. On May 10, 2013, conflicting news reports about Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki suffering from a health problem were rampant in Baghdad, while speculation about what kind differed. On that day, […]