Tag Archives | Kurdistan News

The latest news from Kurdistan – security updates, reconstruction and more – brought to you by Iraq Business News.

Weekly Security Update, 07 - 13 October 2014

By Anne-Laure Barbosa at Constellis Consulting Elevated levels of violence continued to be reflected in a high number of casualties, with at least 408 recorded deaths over the reporting period. While reporting remains interrupted in large swathes of the North, evidence of war crimes committed by Shia fighters against Sunni populations was described in a briefing […]

UN calls on Kurdish Min's to Return to Govt

The Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Iraq (SRSG), Mr. Nickolay Mladenov (pictured) held meetings on Sunday with the Kurdistan Region of Iraq’s Parliament. The meeting focused on the continuous cooperation between the KR-I and the central government, as well as on the current humanitarian burden on the KR-I. He received a copy […]

Iraq Bans KRG Tankers

By John Lee. Platts reports that Iraq has banned three oil tankers from loading at its oil terminals. in response to direct exports of crude by the Kurdistan Regional Government over the objections of Baghdad, shipping market sources said Friday. The United Carrier (pictured), the United Dynamic and the Nautilus have previously transported crude on […]

Kurdish Oil Tanker may have Unloaded

By John Lee. A tanker carrying crude oil from Iraqi Kurdistan is finally believed to have been unloaded. The United Leadership had been sitting off the Moroccan coast for more than three months, but Reuters reports that at the end of September it sailed away and appears to have been lightered somewhere in the Mediterranean. […]

Gazprom 'Forced to Quit Halabja Block'

By John Lee. Rudaw reports that Russia's Gazprom Neft has been forced to halt operations at its Halabja block following demonstrations by hundreds of protestors from 34 villages around the town of Darbandikhan. According to the report, the protesters have given the oil company until 20th October to stop all exploration activity, claiming that “scientific […]

Maersk Oil Back in Iraq

By John Lee. Denmark's Maersk Oil is re-starting its operations in Iraqi Kurdistan, having pulled out in August due to the threat posed by the Islamic State (IS). Company boss Jakob Thomasen (pictured) told Børsen: “It’s obvious that the things that have happened over the summer haven’t been pleasant to witness for Maersk Oil, a […]

New US Airbase 'No Threat To Iran’

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. Spokesman For Iraqi Kurdish Govt: ‘New US Airbase in Erbil No Threat To Iran’ NIQASH interviewed Safeen Dizayee, the spokesperson for the government of semi-autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan. During a candid […]

Video: Peshmerga Push to Retake Mosul

From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq's Kurdish Peshmerga fighters are trying to reverse gains by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) who have overrun much of the country's north. The group is in control of […]

Afren Resumes Operations at Barda Rash

By John Lee. Afren has announced that, following an improvement in the security situation in the border region of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, it has begun the process of returning staffing levels to normal at the Barda Rash field with a view to resuming drilling and production activities as soon as possible with the […]

Who Buys Islamic State’s Illegal Oil?

By John Lee. A report by Chris Dalby of Oilprice.com finds that the 11 oil fields that IS controls in Iraq and Syria have made it a largely independent financial machine. Its fields in Iraq alone are thought to produce between 25,000 and 40,000 barrels of oil per day, earning it an estimated $1.2 million [1.4 […]

KRG PM Barzani and Turkish PM discuss Security

Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani yesterday met Turkey’s Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Istanbul on the sidelines of a World Economic Forum event. In the meeting both sides discussed the latest political and military developments in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, the process of forming a new government in Iraq, the participation of the Kurdistan Region […]

Video: Security Beefed up at French School

From AFP. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. French expats in Erbil, Iraq, say they try to lead a normal life, despite threats against French citizens by the Islamic State. At the French school here, the walls have been enhanced and armed […]