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Tag: Iraq news

  • Iran suspends talks with Saudi Arabia after mass execution: Report

    Iran has determined to briefly droop its secret Baghdad-brokered talks aimed toward defusing years-long tensions with regional rival Saudi Arabia, Iranian state-linked media reported Sunday, a day after Saudi Arabia carried out its largest recognized mass execution in its fashionable historical past.

    The Iranian information web site Nournews, thought of near the nation’s Supreme National Security Council, reported the federal government had unilaterally paused the talks with Saudi Arabia which were ongoing in Baghdad over the previous 12 months aimed toward restoring diplomatic ties.

    Iraq’s overseas minister earlier had mentioned the fifth spherical of talks between Saudi and Iranian representatives was attributable to resume on Wednesday.

    The report didn’t give a purpose for Iran’s suspension, however it comes after Saudi Arabia put to demise 81 individuals convicted of crimes starting from killings to ties to militant teams, a bunch that activists consider included over three dozen Shiites.

    Iran’s overseas ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh sharply condemned the executions as “a violation of basic principles of human rights and international law,” state-run IRNA information company reported.

    Shiites, who stay primarily within the kingdom’s oil-rich east, have lengthy complained of being handled as second-class residents. Saudi Arabia’s executions of Shiites have stirred regional unrest up to now.

    Iran, the biggest Shiite Muslim nation on this planet, and Sunni powerhouse Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic ties in 2016 after Saudi Arabia executed outstanding Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.

    Angry Iranians protesting the execution stormed two Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran, fueling years of animosity between the nations.

    Late Saturday, sporadic protests erupted amongst Shiites within the close by island kingdom of Bahrain over the mass executions.

    The Baghdad-mediated talks between the regional foes started quietly in Iraq’s capital final 12 months as Saudi Arabia sought a method to finish its disastrous battle in opposition to Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, a battle that has spawned the world’s worst humanitarian catastrophe and introduced insurgent drones and missiles raining down on Saudi airports and oil services.

    Iran-backed militias even have attacked Saudi targets and launched drones in opposition to the dominion from Iraq.

    The pause in diplomatic talks between the international locations which have lengthy competed for affect throughout the Middle East comes at a tense time for the area.

    On Sunday, Iran claimed accountability for a missile strike that landed within the neighborhood of the US consulate in Iraq’s northern metropolis of Irbil, describing the assault as retaliation for an Israeli strike in Syria that killed two members of its Revolutionary Guard.

    Talks to revive Tehran’s 2015 nuclear cope with world powers in the meantime broke off final week with out an settlement, casting uncertainty over months of negotiations that had almost reached a breakthrough.

  • Iraq’s second largest lake drying up, turning up useless fish

    Iraq’s Razzaza Lake was as soon as a vacationer attraction recognized for its stunning surroundings and an abundance of fish that locals relied on. Now, useless fish litter its shores and the once-fertile lands round it have became a barren desert.

    One of Iraq’s largest lakes, the man-made Razzaza is seeing a big decline in water ranges and has been hit by air pollution and excessive ranges of salinity.

    “During the 1980s and 1990s, the Razzaza Lake was a source of livelihood, it had fish including the yellowfin barbel, binni and carp because the water (level) was good,” says fisherman Saleh Abboud. “But now it has dried up.”

    Razzaza Lake is the most recent sufferer of a water disaster in Iraq, generally known as the “Land Between the Two Rivers”, the Tigris and the Euphrates. Upstream dams in Turkey, Syria and Iran have shrunk the rivers and their tributaries, seasonal rainfall has dropped and infrastructure has fallen into disrepair.

    Hundreds of households used to depend on fishing the Razzaza for his or her livelihood. Now the variety of useless fish that turns up is larger than the variety of stay fish they’ll catch.

    An Iraqi fisherman collects useless fish close to Razzaza Lake, also called Lake Milh, Arabic for salt, within the Karbala governorate of Iraq, February 14, 2022. (AP)

    Razzaza Lake, also called Lake Milh, Arabic for Salt Lake, is positioned between Iraq’s governorates of Anbar and Karbala. It’s the second largest lake in Iraq and is a part of a large valley that features the lakes of Habbaniyah, Tharthar and Bahr al-Najaf.

    The lake was constructed as a measure to manage floods within the Euphrates and for use as enormous reservoir for irrigation functions. Iraqis and vacationers frequented the lake as a leisure spot to chill down throughout Iraq’s sizzling summers.

    Not anymore, with the lake getting smaller yearly.

    In current years, it has been affected not solely by the water scarcity however by drought, neglect and elevated evaporation throughout Iraq’s sizzling summers. It has additionally been hit by air pollution as a result of diversion of sewage water into the lake and the theft of water quotas allotted to it.

    “The lake cannot be used for the purposes of operating water resources because we do not have sufficient quantities of water to boost the Razzaza Lake,” stated Aoun Diab Abdullah, an adviser on the Ministry of Water Resources.

  • Iraqi lawmakers fail to elect new president amid boycott

    Iraqi lawmakers did not elect a brand new head of state Monday, as key factions foiled the try by boycotting the parliament session.
    A two-thirds quorum of the legislature’s 329 members is required for an electoral session. Monday’s vote couldn’t be held as lawmakers, lots of them allied with highly effective Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, stayed away. Only 58 lawmakers confirmed up.
    The failure to elect a president displays the deep divisions amongst Iraq’s political factions which have solely grown because the Oct. 10 parliament elections, whose outcomes have been rejected by political teams supported by neighbouring Iran.
    Iraqi politicians have to date did not agree on a compromise candidate for the nation’s high put up, and the delay Monday raised issues of a presidential vacuum that might additionally forestall the appointment of a major minister.
    Political analyst Ihsan al-Shammari stated the failure to elect a president is a prelude to political crises that can proceed to rage in Iraq till a consensus will be reached.
    “Continuing to violate the constitution is an indication of the depth of the political differences between the political blocs and political forces in Iraq,” he stated.
    With no quorum, parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi saved the session open with out scheduling a brand new date for a vote to elect a brand new president.
    The boycott by al-Sadr was introduced after Iraq’s Supreme Court quickly suspended the nomination of front-runner Hoshyar Zebari, whose presidential bid is supported by al-Sadr.
    The excessive courtroom cited pending corruption fees towards the veteran Kurdish politician and former overseas minister.
    The 2016 fees towards Zebari, for which he was by no means convicted, stem from his time as finance minister, when he was dismissed from the job over alleged graft. Zebari on Sunday denied the costs and stated he revered the courtroom’s determination to quickly droop his candidacy till the difficulty is resolved.
    According to Iraq’s post-war conference, the largely ceremonial put up of president ought to be held by a member of the nation’s Kurdish minority, the prime minister should be a Muslim Shiite and the parliament speaker a Muslim Sunni. The different front-runner for the presidency is incumbent Barham Saleh.
    Sadr, who heads the biggest parliamentary bloc with 73 seats, introduced the boycott Saturday and was adopted by al-Halbousi, who heads a bloc of 51 seats.
    The 31-seat Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) then adopted swimsuit. Zebari represents the KDP get together and has denied the corruption allegations.
    Outgoing President Barham Saleh represents the KDP’s primary rival in Iraqi Kurdistan, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan

  • ‘Our boat was surrounded by dead bodies’, witnessing a migrant tragedy

    The boat full of migrants was about midway throughout the English Channel when one of many passengers noticed two orange life jackets bobbing within the water.
    The seas have been tough, and it was solely after they received nearer that Zana Hamawandani noticed the vests contained lifeless our bodies.
    Soon, different our bodies began showing. As Hamawandani watched, the present pushed one among them underneath his inflatable boat, the place it collided with the whirling blades of the outboard motor.
    “It came up again, but I saw it floating for just a few seconds before the waves took it away,” he stated. He remembered it was the physique of a person sporting dishevelled pants.
    Another migrant, Karzan Mangury, stated he was so horrified by the corpses that he tried to look away. “Our boat was surrounded by dead bodies,” Mangury stated. “At that moment my entire body was shaking.”
    Their accounts, in cellphone interviews from an immigration facility in England, are the primary time they’ve spoken to information media and are among the many solely witness descriptions of the final minutes of the catastrophe. At least 27 persons are believed to have died, the largest single lack of life within the channel because the International Organization for Migration started amassing information in 2014.

    Along with the accounts of family of a number of the victims, their descriptions additionally inform a narrative of hours of frantic and futile requires assist to French and English authorities because the migrant boat was sinking. At one level, Mangury stated, he made 10 calls to a quantity French police had given him to attempt to report his location, and nobody answered.
    His description of his cellphone calls is the primary public account by a migrant who spoke instantly with English and French police to report the sinking.
    A couple of minutes after seeing the corpses, Hamawandani and Mangury stated, they noticed a principally submerged, deflated boat with no less than two individuals clinging to it — believed to be the one survivors of a migrant boat that sank within the channel Nov 24.
    “They were shouting; we could hear them yelling for help,” stated Hamawandani, a 21-year-old Iraqi Kurd.
    Eventually the British Coast Guard rescued Hamawandani’s vessel, and a French fishing boat picked up the 2 survivors of the sunken boat.
    In reporting from cities and cities within the Iraqi Kurdistan area the place lots of the victims got here from, my colleagues and I first heard about Hamawandani from his household, who feared he had been one of many victims after he instructed them he was in a ship crossing the channel after which dropped out of contact.
    Hamawandani finally put us by means of to Mangury, who spoke to us on the identical cellphone. A location app indicated they have been at a facility that native immigration activists confirmed is used to deal with migrants in Crawley, a city in southern England.
    The catastrophe has injected a brand new sense of urgency into efforts by European international locations to regulate high-risk channel crossings higher. Activists additionally consider the deaths, which included youngsters, spotlight a contentious, ineffective partnership between Britain and France that has failed to enhance the protocols for rescuing migrants in misery.
    Hamawandani and Mangury set off with 23 different individuals early Nov. 24. After greater than 10 hours within the water, the engine on their very own boat was failing, and so they have been operating out of gas after they noticed the our bodies.
    Mangury stated their boat was in French waters after they noticed the 2 individuals clinging to the deflated boat. He began calling 112, the French misery quantity. “I told them there is a boat broken and people dead. Please help them and help us,” he stated.
    He stated French police requested him to ship his location, however he couldn’t ship to a three-digit quantity. They gave him one other quantity to attempt, however he stated it went unanswered 10 occasions. Eventually he was in a position to get a quantity to ship a location by way of WhatsApp.
    “I said ‘Ten times I called! Please answer me,’” he recalled. “‘Please help me!’”
    He stated that after an hour the French Coast Guard had not arrived. About 12:30 p.m. he reached English police, who instructed him that they had alerted the French.
    About 40 minutes later, after their very own boat engine had stalled, Mangury stated they noticed a helicopter circling and British Coast Guard boats heading towards the our bodies.
    His account raises new questions in regards to the response of the French and British rescue groups. Many of the victims’ family accuse the 2 international locations of deflecting accountability by saying the boat was in one another’s waters and failing to answer misery calls.
    The British Coast Guard stated in an announcement that early Nov. 24, in response to misery calls, it started a search and rescue operation that included a border patrol boat and a helicopter. It didn’t specify which misery calls it obtained.
    “Three small boats were located and those onboard rescued,” a spokesperson stated. “No other small boats or people in the water were identified in the search area.”
    In France, each judicial and native authorities within the north declined to remark about whether or not they had obtained calls from the migrant boat or from Mangury, saying they might not talk about a case whereas it was underneath investigation. A spokeswoman for maritime authorities in northern France stated that they had been alerted to the ill-fated migrant boat solely by fishermen who discovered it adrift within the channel.
    The solely two identified survivors of the sinking have been an Iranian Kurd and a Somali, presumed to be the migrants seen by Mangury’s boat.
    They instructed Iraqi Kurdish tv community Rudaw that their inflatable boat had sprung a leak and began to deflate whereas taking over water.
    The Somali migrant, recognized by Rudaw as Mohammed Isa Omar, stated they have been frantically calling each French and British police because the flimsy boat began to sink.
    “Most of the calls were to Britain saying ‘Help. Help us.’ They said ‘Send us the location’; we didn’t have the chance,” he instructed the community. He stated at that time the leaking boat capsized, throwing everybody in it into the water together with their telephones.
    The different identified survivor, an Iranian Kurd residing in Iraq recognized by Rudaw as Mohammad Shekha Ahmad, described fellow migrants holding fingers within the frigid water and stated that one after the other they misplaced the power to carry on and have been carried away.
    Hamawandani and Mangury stated they have been haunted by not with the ability to assist the 2 surviving migrants holding onto the sunken boat.
    “Some of us said, ‘Let’s go and help them,’ but most of them were afraid because they saw the dead bodies in the sea, and they thought the same thing would happen to us,” Hamawandani stated.
    Many of the victims have been Iraqis from the Kurdistan area in northern Iraq, and the sinking has despatched waves of grief and anger by means of Kurdish cities and villages.
    More than two weeks after the sinking, not one of the households have been formally notified of their family’ fates.
    In the picturesque mountain city of Hajiawa, Nazdar Sharif swung between determined hope that her son Twana Mamand was nonetheless alive and resignation that he was among the many victims.
    Twana had tried six occasions over the past two months to cross the channel to Britain, the place his sister has lived for years, stated his brother, Zana Mamand. Each time, he was caught by French authorities and despatched again.
    On his seventh try, Twana set off with a relative. He despatched his brother a stay location exhibiting them roughly in the course of the channel, Zana Mamand stated.
    He instructed him by speaker cellphone that they’d be in British waters in an hour. Mamand may hear the passengers on the opposite finish of the road.
    “Everybody was happy and laughing,” Zana Mamand stated.
    An hour later, when he was not in a position to attain his brother, he referred to as their sister and brother-in-law in London. The brother-in-law, who for privateness causes requested to be recognized solely by his final title, Abdullah, stated he spoke to the relative Twana was touring with about 1 a.m. and instructed him to name police.

    He stated two hours later his relative instructed them different individuals on the boat had referred to as French and English police however had been instructed they have been in one another’s waters.
    That was the final time he was in a position to attain him.
    At the Mamand household’s dwelling close to the city of Ranya, the place tons of of younger males have left for Britain previously few months, Twana’s mom emerged from a again room, distraught, sporting a string of blue plastic beads meant to keep off hurt.
    “I tell myself he is coming back,” stated Sharif, 49, leaning in opposition to one other of her sons for assist. “I need an answer soon whether he is dead or alive. I want my son.”

  • Iraqi PM decries ‘cowardly’ assault on his house by drones carrying explosives

    Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi escaped unhurt from an armed drone assassination try in Baghdad, officers mentioned on Sunday, in an incident that raised stress in Iraq weeks after a common election disputed by Iran-backed militia teams.
    Kadhimi appeared in a video footage printed by his workplace on Sunday chairing a gathering with high safety commanders to debate the drone assault.
    “The cowardly terrorist attack that targeted the home of the prime minister last night with the aim of assassinating him, is a serious targeting of the Iraqi state by criminal armed groups,” his workplace mentioned in a press release after the assembly.
    Iraqi troopers participate in an intensive safety deployment following a drone assault on Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi’s residence in Baghdad, Iraq, November 7, 2021. (Reuters Photo)
    Six of Kadhimi’s guards outdoors his residence within the fortified Green Zone have been wounded, safety sources informed Reuters. Three drones have been used within the assault, together with two that have been downed by safety forces whereas a 3rd drone hit the residence, state information company INA quoted an inside ministry spokesperson as saying.

    A spokesperson for the armed forces commander in chief mentioned that after the assault the safety scenario was steady within the Green Zone, which homes the residence, authorities buildings and overseas embassies.
    No group instantly claimed duty. The assault got here two days after clashes in Baghdad between authorities forces and supporters of Iran-backed political events that misplaced dozens of parliamentary seats after an Oct. 10 common election. Most of the events have armed wings. Kadhimi ordered a probe into the deaths and accidents of demonstrators and safety forces in these clashes.
    President Barham Salih condemned the assault as a heinous crime in opposition to Iraq. “We cannot accept that Iraq will be dragged into chaos and a coup against its constitutional system,” he mentioned in a tweet.
    The assault got here two days after clashes in Baghdad between authorities forces and supporters of Iran-backed political events that misplaced dozens of parliamentary seats after an Oct. 10 common election. (Reuters Photo)
    Shi’ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, whose social gathering was the most important winner in final month’s election, known as the assault a terrorist act in opposition to Iraq’s stability that aimed to “return Iraq to a state of chaos to be controlled by non-state forces”.
    The United States, United Nations, Saudi Arabia and Iran condemned the assault.
    DAMAGE TO RESIDENCE
    Video launched by the prime minister’s workplace confirmed harm to elements of the residence, unexploded ordnance on the roof, and a broken SUV car parked within the storage. Security forces retrieved the stays of a small explosive-laden drone, a safety official with information of the assault informed Reuters.

    “It’s premature now to say who carried out the attack,” the official mentioned on situation of anonymity as he was not licensed to touch upon safety particulars. The Iraqi army mentioned in a press release the assault focused Kadhimi’s residence and that he was in “good health,” giving no additional element.
    Two authorities officers mentioned Kadhimi’s residence was hit by at the least one explosion.Western diplomats primarily based close by within the Green Zone mentioned they heard explosions and gunfire.
    US CONDEMNATION
    The United States supplied help with the investigation. “The perpetrators of this terrorist attack on the Iraqi state must be held accountable. I condemn in the strongest terms those using violence to undermine Iraq’s democratic process,” U.S. President Joe Biden mentioned in a press release, praising Kadhimi’s name for “calm, restraint and dialogue.
    A destroyed car is parked in entrance of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi’s residence following an assassination try by an armed drone in Baghdad, Iraq on this display seize taken from a handout video obtained by Reuters on November 7, 2021. (Prime Minister Media Office through Reuters)
    “U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on Iraqis “to exercise utmost restraint and reject all violence and any attempts to destabilize Iraq,” his spokesperson mentioned, including that Gutteres urged all sides to resolve variations by way of dialogue.
    Saudi Arabia’s overseas ministry mentioned the assault was a “cowardly terrorist act”, Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya TV reported. Iran’s high safety official, Ali Shamkhani, condemned the assault, calling it “a new sedition” in a tweet.
    The teams main protests concerning the Oct. 10 vote are closely armed Iran-backed militias that misplaced a lot of their parliamentary energy within the election. They have alleged voting and vote-counting irregularities, allegations rejected by Iraqi election officers. Demonstrations by their supporters turned violent on Friday when protesters pelted police with stones close to the Green Zone, injuring a number of officers.
    A weapon shell is pictured outdoors of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi’s residence following an assassination try by an armed drone in Baghdad, Iraq on this display seize taken from a handout video obtained by Reuters on November 7, 2021. (Prime Minister Media Office through Reuters)
    The police responded with tear gasoline and reside gunfire, killing at the least one demonstrator, in accordance with safety and hospital sources in Baghdad. Analysts say the election outcomes mirrored anger in the direction of the Iran-backed armed teams, that are broadly accused of involvement within the killing of practically 600 protesters who took the road in separate, anti-government demonstrations in 2019.

    Heads of varied political events, most of which have armed wings and are aligned with Iran, denounced the drone assault and known as on the federal government to research and maintain the perpetrators to account.
    A safety official from the Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah group in Iraq dismissed strategies on Sunday that Iraqi teams have been behind the assault on Kadhimi.

  • Iraqis vote for brand spanking new parliament hoping for change

    Iraq closed its airspace and scrambled its air drive Sunday as voters headed to the polls to elect a parliament that, regardless of widespread skepticism, some Iraqis hope will ship reforms after many years of battle and mismanagement.
    The vote was initially scheduled for subsequent yr however was introduced ahead in response to a well-liked rebellion within the capital Baghdad and southern provinces in late 2019. Tens of hundreds of individuals took to the streets to protest endemic corruption, poor companies and rising unemployment. They had been met with lethal drive by safety forces firing reside ammunition and tear fuel. More than 600 individuals had been killed and hundreds injured inside just some months.
    Although authorities gave in and referred to as the early elections, the dying toll and the heavy-handed crackdown prompted many younger activists and demonstrators who took half within the protests to later name for a boycott of the polls.
    A collection of kidnappings and focused assassinations that killed greater than 35 individuals has additional discouraged many from participating. Apathy is widespread amid deep skepticism that the impartial candidates stand an opportunity in opposition to established events and politicians, a lot of them backed by armed militias.
    “I voted because there needs to be change. I don’t want these same faces and same parties to return,” stated Amir Fadel, a 22-year-old automotive vendor, after casting his poll in Baghdad’s Karradah district.
    A complete of three,449 candidates are vying for 329 seats within the parliamentary elections, which would be the sixth held because the fall of Saddam Hussein after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the sectarian-based power-sharing political system it produced.

    More than 250,000 safety personnel throughout the nation had been tasked with defending the vote. Soldiers, police and anti-terrorism forces fanned out and deployed exterior polling stations, a few of which had been ringed by barbed wire. Voters had been patted down and searched.
    Iraq’s President Barham Salih and Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi urged Iraqis to vote in massive numbers.
    “Get out and vote, and change your reality for the sake of Iraq and your future,” stated al-Kadhimi, repeating the phrase ‘get out’ thrice after casting his poll at a faculty in Baghdad’s closely fortified Green Zone, house to international embassies and authorities places of work.
    The 2018 elections noticed simply 44% of eligible voters solid their ballots, a report low, and the outcomes had been extensively contested. There are considerations of the same and even decrease turnout this time.
    Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi casts his vote throughout parliamentary elections in Baghdad (AP)
    By noon, turnout was nonetheless comparatively low and streets largely abandoned. In a tea store in Karradah, one of many few open, candidate Reem Abdulhadi walked in to ask whether or not individuals had solid their vote.
    “I will give my vote to Umm Kalthoum, the singer, she is the only one who deserves it,” the tea vendor replied, referring to the late Egyptian singer beloved by many within the Arab world. He stated he won’t participate within the election and didn’t imagine within the political course of.
    After a number of phrases, Abdulhadi gave the person, who requested to stay nameless, a card together with her title and quantity in case he determined to vary his thoughts. He put it in his pocket.
    “Thank you, I will keep it as a souvenir,” he stated.
    At that second, a low-flying, high-speed navy plane flew overhead making a screeching noise. “Listen to this. This sound is terror. It reminds me of war, not an election,” he added.
    In the Shiite holy metropolis of Najaf, Iraq’s influential cleric Moqtada al-Sadr solid his poll, swarmed by native journalists. He then drove away in a white sedan with out commenting. Al-Sadr, a populist who has an immense following amongst Iraq’s working class Shiites, got here on prime within the 2018 elections, profitable a majority of seats.
    Security forces stand guard exterior a polling middle throughout the nation’s parliamentary elections in Baghdad, Iraq. (AP)
    Groups drawn from Iraq’s majority Shiite Muslims dominate the electoral panorama, with a decent race anticipated between al-Sadr’s checklist and the Fatah Alliance, led by paramilitary chief Hadi al-Ameri, which got here in second within the earlier election.
    The Fatah Alliance is comprised of events affiliated with the Popular Mobilization Forces, an umbrella group of largely pro-Iran Shiite militias that rose to prominence throughout the battle in opposition to the Sunni extremist Islamic State group. It contains a few of the most hard-line pro-Iran factions, such because the Asaib Ahl al-Haq militia. Al-Sadr, a black-turbaned nationalist chief, can also be near Iran, however publicly rejects its political affect.
    In Iraq’s autonomous northern Kurdistan area, the race was dominated by the 2 predominant Kurdish events often known as the Kurdistan Democratic Party, which dominates the Kurdish authorities, and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.
    The election is the primary because the fall of Saddam to proceed with out a curfew in place, reflecting the considerably improved safety state of affairs within the nation following the defeat of IS in 2017. Previous votes had been marred by combating and lethal bomb assaults which have plagued the nation for many years.
    An Iraqi lady reveals her ink-stained finger after casting her vote inside a polling station within the nation’s parliamentary elections in Baghdad. (AP)
    As a safety precaution, Iraq closed its airspace and land border crossings and scrambled its air drive from Saturday evening till early Monday morning.
    In one other first, Sunday’s election is happening below a brand new election legislation that divides Iraq into smaller constituencies — one other demand of the activists who took half within the 2019 protests — and permits for extra impartial candidates.
    A U.N. Security Council decision adopted earlier this yr approved an expanded group to watch the elections. There will probably be as much as 600 worldwide observers in place, together with 150 from the United Nations. More than 24 million of Iraq’s estimated 38 million individuals are eligible to vote.
    Iraq can also be for the primary time introducing biometric playing cards for voters. But regardless of all these measures, claims of vote shopping for, intimidation and manipulation have persevered.
    The head of Iraq’s electoral fee has stated that preliminary election outcomes will probably be introduced inside 24 hours.

  • Iraqi officers: Roadside bomb kills 30 in Baghdad market

    A roadside bomb assault focused a Baghdad suburb, killing no less than 30 individuals and wounding dozens of others at a crowded market, Iraqi medical officers stated.
    The assault occurred on Monday within the Wahailat market in Sadr City, Iraq’s army stated in an announcement. Two medical officers stated no less than 30 individuals had been killed and dozens extra wounded within the highly effective explosion. They spoke on situation of anonymity in keeping with laws.
    The blast occurred a day earlier than the Eid al-Adha vacation when the market was busy with buyers in search of presents and groceries.

    Piles of merchandise lay on the bottom after the explosion. Shopkeepers recounted to safety forces how the blast occurred as they salvaged what objects they might.
    There was no quick declare of duty for the bombing however the Islamic State group has claimed comparable assaults within the space earlier than.
    Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi positioned the commander of the federal police regiment accountable for the world of {the marketplace} underneath arrest, the army assertion stated. It additionally stated an investigation was launched.
    It was the third time this yr {that a} bomb hit a market within the densely populated neighbourhood in japanese Baghdad.
    In June, 15 individuals had been wounded when a bomb positioned underneath a kiosk in one other Sadr City market detonated. In April, no less than 4 individuals had been killed in a automotive bomb assault in Sadr City. That blast was attributable to an explosive system hooked up to a parked automotive on the market.

    Monday’s assault comes two months forward of federal elections slated for October 10. Large bomb assaults, as soon as an virtually each day incidence in Baghdad, have slowed lately since IS was defeated on the battlefield in 2017.
    Attacks persist, nevertheless. In January, over 30 individuals had been killed in a twin suicide bombing in a busy business space in central Baghdad. It was the deadliest bombing in three years to strike Iraq’s capital.

  • Iraqi officers: Roadside bomb kills 18 in Baghdad market

    A roadside bomb assault focused a Baghdad suburb Monday, killing a minimum of 18 individuals and wounding dozens of others at a crowded market, Iraqi safety officers mentioned.
    The assault befell within the Wahailat market in Sadr City, Iraq’s navy mentioned in a press release. Two Iraqi safety officers mentioned a minimum of 18 individuals had been killed and dozens extra injured within the highly effective blast. They spoke on situation of anonymity according to laws.
    The blast occurred a day earlier than the Eid al-Adha vacation when the market was busy with consumers searching for items and groceries.

    Piles of merchandise lay on the bottom after the explosion. Shopkeepers recounted to safety forces how the blast occurred as they salvaged what gadgets they may.
    There was no speedy declare of accountability for the bombing however the Islamic State group has claimed comparable assaults within the space earlier than.
    Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi positioned the commander of the federal police regiment answerable for the realm of the market place underneath arrest, the navy assertion mentioned. It additionally mentioned an investigation was launched.
    It was the third time this 12 months {that a} bomb hit a market within the densely populated neighborhood in jap Baghdad.
    In June, 15 individuals had been wounded when a bomb positioned underneath a kiosk in one other Sadr City market detonated. In April, a minimum of 4 individuals had been killed in a automobile bomb assault in Sadr City. That blast was attributable to an explosive machine hooked up to a parked automobile on the market.
    Monday’s assault comes two months forward of federal elections slated for Oct. 10.

    Large bomb assaults, as soon as an nearly each day prevalence in Baghdad, have slowed in recent times since IS was defeated on the battlefield in 2017.
    Attacks persist, nonetheless. In January, over 30 individuals had been killed in a twin suicide bombing in a busy industrial space in central Baghdad. It was the deadliest bombing in three years to strike Iraq’s capital.

  • Iraqi army: 3 rockets strike near Baghdad airport

    At least three rockets have hit close to Baghdad worldwide airport, the Iraqi army mentioned.
    A complete of eight missiles had been fired and three landed close to the airport complicated late Thursday, the assertion mentioned. It didn’t element whether or not the assault triggered casualties.
    The rockets struck areas recognized to comprise Iraqi safety forces. One hit near a central jail, the second close to an academy of the elite Counter-Terrorism Service, and a 3rd close to the headquarters of the Rapid Response regiment.
    No one claimed accountability for the assaults. US officers have beforehand blamed Iran-backed militia teams.
    It is the most recent in a string of rocket assaults which have primarily focused American installations in Iraq in latest weeks. On Sunday, a number of rockets hit an Iraqi airbase simply north of Baghdad, wounding two Iraqi safety personnel.
    Last month, a base in western Iraq housing US-led coalition troops and contractors was hit by 10 rockets. One contractor was killed.
     

  • Police: Explosions rock central Baghdad, not less than 6 lifeless

    Police officers say explosions have hit Iraq’s capital killing not less than six individuals and wounding not less than 25 others.
    The officers stated twin explosions hit a business heart in central Baghdad. Many among the many wounded had been in severe situation and there was materials injury.