Category: Iraq

BAGHDAD—A coalition led by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki won the most seats in the country’s first parliamentary elections since U.S. troops left in 2011, setting the stage for a lengthy period of political wrangling amid the worst violence since the civil war. Mr. Maliki’s State of Law coalition won 92 out of 328 parliamentary seats in the elections held in late April, three more seats than it won in 2010, the Iraqi High Election Commission said Monday, putting the Iraqi leader in a strong position to secure a third term. The result left many Iraqis wondering whether another four years under Mr. Maliki, a Shiite Muslim, would deepen the sectarian rancor and extend a political stalemate that has left the government adrift. Western diplomats and analysts say that further instability would also add to the region’s political maelstrom; Syria’s civil war has spilled over into Iraq. To form […]

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Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s coalition won the most seats in Iraq’s parliamentary elections but fell short of a majority, leaving him in the driver’s seat to retain his post despite vocal opposition. Monday’s results from the election commission showed Maliki’s State of Law alliance garnered 92 out of 328 parliamentary seats, with the incumbent himself winning more than 721,000 personal votes. Both were by far the highest such figures from the April 30 election. But he still fell short of a majority, meaning he will have to win the support of rivals from across the communal spectrum, some of whom have sharply criticised Maliki and refused to countenance his bid for a third term in office. State of Law won 30 seats in Baghdad alone, and came first in 10 provinces overall, all of them in the bloc’s traditional heartland in the Shia-majority south of the country. Maliki’s main […]

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Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s coalition won the most seats in Iraq’s parliamentary elections but fell short of a majority, leaving him in the driver’s seat to retain his post despite vocal opposition. Monday’s results from the election commission showed Maliki’s State of Law alliance garnered 92 out of 328 parliamentary seats, with the incumbent himself winning more than 721,000 personal votes. Both were by far the highest such figures from the April 30 election. But he still fell short of a majority, meaning he will have to win the support of rivals from across the communal spectrum, some of whom have sharply criticised Maliki and refused to countenance his bid for a third term in office. State of Law won 30 seats in Baghdad alone, and came first in 10 provinces overall, all of them in the bloc’s traditional heartland in the Shia-majority south of the country. Maliki’s main […]

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BAGHDAD — Beating expectations, Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki secured the largest number of seats in last month’s parliamentary elections, the first since the withdrawal of American forces at the end of 2011, putting him in a strong position to secure a third term as Iraq’s leader as negotiations begin to form a new government. The elections were held on April 30 , during a time of heightened violence around the country, but initial results — still subject to challenges from various political parties — were not released until Monday, as extra security fanned out around the capital in advance of the announcement. Mr. Maliki and his Shiite Islamist political coalition were expected to win a plurality of votes, and they did, but the margin of victory was greater than most analysts and politicians here forecast. Even though he faces stiff opposition to a third term from Shiite rivals […]

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Iraq’s Ministry of Transport on Monday (May 19th) announced the entry into service of a passenger and cargo railway line linking Baghdad and Basra. Construction on the high-speed rail line had finished in March. The new line links Basra’s sea ports to central Baghdad, passing through various cities en route, said Abdullah Sajet, director-general of the southern region of Iraq’s railways company. A modern, high-speed train featuring sleeping compartments and restaurants has been purchased, he said at a Monday press conference.

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A series of attacks in Iraq, mainly bombings targeting markets and commercial streets, killed 14 people Sunday, officials said. Police officials said the deadliest attack took place shortly before sunset when a bomb exploded at an outdoor market in the town of Mahmoudiya, killing four people and wounding 12. Mahmoudiya is 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of the capital. A bomb blast at an outdoor market in Baghdad’s eastern suburb of Maamil killed three shoppers and wounded seven, police said. In western Baghdad, police said a bomb blast in a commercial street killed two people and wounded seven. In the northern city of Mosul, police said a car bomb exploded near an army patrol in the northern city of Mosul, killing two soldiers and wounding four. Sunday night, police said gunmen using weapons fitted with silencers stormed an apartment in eastern Baghdad, killing three off-duty policemen. […]

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Israeli and U.S. oil refinerieshave joined the growing list of customers for crude from IraqiKurdistan, a region locked in a bitter struggle with the centralgovernment in Baghdad that says the sales are illegal. The United States imported its first crude cargo from theregion two weeks ago while at least four have gone to Israelsince January, ship tracking and industry sources said, aftertwo were shipped there last summer. The Iraqi government has repeatedly said oil salesby-passing Baghdad are illegal and has threatened to sue anycompany involved in the trade, yet Kurdish crude and lightcondensate oil has been sold to several European buyers. Baghdadrefuses to sell oil to Israel, echoing other Arab states. Israel’s Energy […]

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Kurdish officials rejected on Thursday a report by Reuters that the Kurdistan Region had sold shipments of oil to Israel and the US. “Those places mentioned in (Reuter’s) report have not been sold even a drop of oil,” said an official source from KRG’s Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR). Reuter wrote that Kurdish oil has been sold via the Turkish Powertrans to Israel’s Oil Refineries Limited’s (ORL) and that some oil shipments had reached refineries in Houston, Texas. “The United States imported its first crude cargo from the region two weeks ago while at least four have gone to Israel since January, ship tracking and industry sources said, after two were shipped there last summer.” Reuters reported. The report also mentioned that Kurdish natural gas condensate has been sold to Italy, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Latin America. “Kurdistan oil has not been sold until now,” KRG […]

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Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki has called on the security forces to stand firm in battles with militants in Anbar, amid criticism of the government’s handling of the crisis in Iraq’s largest province. In his weekly address on Wednesday, Maliki said soldiers and police should ignore “disorderly voices” in the fighting to reclaim the city of Fallujah, which the government has been attempting to recapture from insurgents for five months. Those “voices” appeared to include members of the Al-Qaeda-inspired Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Maliki said: “There should not be any consideration given to the terrorists under any pretext,” and called for the “punishment of those who covered up, cooperated with or remained silent about this phenomenon . . . Laws must be complemented with maximum levels of resolve and force in the face of Al-Qaeda.” Maliki’s opponents in the Iraqi parliament have kept up their criticism […]

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WASHINGTON — The Pentagon has cleared a nearly $1 billion package of aircraft trainers, surveillance aerostats and up-armored Humvees for the Iraqi military. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) notified Congress Tuesday that the State Department approved the sale. The largest part of the deal is 24 Beechcraft T-6C Texan II trainer aircraft. The turboprop aircraft and related services and equipment is estimated to cost $790 million. “The proposed sale of these aircraft, equipment, and support will enhance the ability of the Iraqi forces to sustain themselves in their efforts to bring stability to Iraq and to prevent overflow of unrest into neighboring countries,” a DSCA notice states. Iraq already flies the T-6A trainer. The T-6C has hard points on the wings and advanced avionics. The aircraft are used to train pilots before they move to larger, more sophisticated aircraft. Iraq has already inked a deal to buy 36 […]

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