Iraq

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi security forces used tear gas against a few hundred protesters gathered in central Baghdad on Thursday, hours after a curfew was announced in the Iraqi capital on the heels of two days of deadly violence that gripped the country amid anti-government protests.

Before dawn, explosions were heard inside Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone, home to government offices and foreign embassies. The U.S.-led coalition said an investigation is underway, adding that no coalition forces or assets were hit.

2 Oct 2019; MEMO: Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces, which are backed by Iran, believe that the allegation by Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi that Israel is behind attacks on the group’s sites amounts to a green light to seek revenge, Anadolu has reported.

BAGHDAD, Sept 25 (NNN-NINA) – Iraqi Prime Minister, Adel Abdul Mahdi, will visit Saudi Arabia today (Wednesday), to discuss with Saudi leaders bilateral relations and regional tensions, Abdul Mahdi’s media office said.

Abdul Mahdi’s visit will last several hours, during which he will meet with Saudi King, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed, the office said in a statement.

The two sides will discuss bilateral relations, regional situations and efforts to ease the tensions in the Middle East, it said.

BAGHDAD, Sept 25 (NNN-NINA) – The U.S. embassy in Iraq issued an alert for its citizens, over potential attacks in major Iraqi cities, after an overnight attack near the embassy compound in Baghdad.

“The U.S. embassy warned all U.S. citizens of heightened tensions in the region, and the need to remain vigilant,” the embassy said, referring to the tensions between Washington and Tehran in the Gulf.

Before midnight Monday, two mortar rounds landed in the perimeter of the U.S. embassy in central Baghdad.

23 Sep 2019; MEMO: An unidentified drone hit a military outpost in Iraq’s western province of Al-Anbar yesterday, local media has reported.

“An unidentified aircraft carried out an airstrike within the vicinity of Al-Murssinat military base, which belongs to the Iranian-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF),” security sources told Iraq’s Al-Samreya.

The sources reported that there were no casualties.

BAGHDAD, Sept 22 (NNN-NINA) – The United Nations (UN) Security Council voted unanimously on extending the mandate of a UN team, tasked with investigations in crimes committed by the Daesh group in Iraq.

A statement by the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) said, the Security Council voted to extend the mandate of UN’s Investigative Team for Accountability of Da’esh (UNITAD) for another year until Sept 21, 2020.

BAGHDAD, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS), backed by the U.S.-led coalition aircraft, on Saturday carried out a large-scale operation in the central Salahudin province, killing three Islamic State (IS) militants and destroying several hideouts.

The CTS operation was conducted in the mountains of Makhoul and Khanouga and the areas between the towns of Baiji and al-Shirqat in the northern part of the province, Mohammed al-Bazi from the provincial police told Xinhua.

20 Sep 2019; MEMO: Iraq announced yesterday that it would not be joining the International Alliance for Safety and Protection of Maritime Navigation in the Gulf, saying that this military force “complicates the political and security situation.”

In a statement the spokesman for the Iraqi Foreign Ministry, Ahmed Al-Sahaf said Baghdad believes the formation of any military force to protect the waterways in the Gulf would further complicate the situation in the region.

BAGHDAD, Sept 16 (NNN-NINA) – An Iraqi politician said, Iraqi Prime Minister, Adel Abdul Mahdi’s upcoming visit to China will contribute to “a quantum leap” in bilateral relations.

Raed Fahmi, secretary of the Central Committee of the Iraqi Communist Party, said, “The visit may open the door for signing agreements to improve the level of cooperation between China and Iraq that could have strong effects.

“Such agreements could help Iraq meet the requirements of development, especially in the development of infrastructure, including roads and bridges,” said Fahmi.

BAGHDAD, Sept 15 (NNN-NINA) – Iraqi Ministry of Electricity, signed a deal valued at 1.3 billion U.S. dollars with the consortium of the German Siemens and the Egyptian Orascom, to renovate two power plants in Iraq’s central province of Salahudin.

Located near the oil-refinery town of Baiji, some 200 km north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, the two plants were severely damaged by the Daesh militants, who once took control of parts of Salahudin province.