Iraq

15 Sep 2019; MEMO: Turkish security forces on Sunday destroyed seized improvised explosive devices (IED) in northern Iraq, as part of country’s ongoing counter-terror operation dubbed “Operation Claw-3”, Anadolu reports.

“In line with the successfully ongoing Operation Claw-3, a total of four IEDs were destroyed…” the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement.

BAGHDAD, Sept 11 (NNN-NINA) – At least 31 Shiite pilgrims were killed and some 100 others wounded on Tuesday, in a stampede in the holy Shiite city of Karbala, in the south of Baghdad, Iraq’s Health Ministry said.

The incident took place in the afternoon, during the major Shiite ritual of Ashura, when thousands of Shiite pilgrims pushed into the entrance of the Imam Hussein shrine in Karbala, some 110 km south of Baghdad.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - At least 31 people died and another 100 were wounded on Tuesday during the Shi’ite Muslim religious rituals of Ashura in the Iraqi city of Karbala, a Health Ministry spokesman said, offering no details as to how they died.

Ashura marks the day when, according to Islamic tradition, the Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) grandson Imam Hussain was killed in battle in the year 680. Shi’ite Muslim pilgrims from around the world converge each year on Karbala, the site of the battle.

10 Sep 2019; MEMO: The Popular Mobilisation Forces militia umbrella organisation has accused Israel of striking its sites in Al-Qaem Governorate in the west of Iraq, Arab48.com reported on Monday.

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Sept 3 (NNN-NINA) – The Iraqi government, suspended the offices of the U.S.-sponsored al-Hurra TV channel for three months, over a programme, about alleged corruption among Sunni and Shiite religious clerics.

A statement by Iraqi Communications and Media Commission (CMC), said, “The CMC Board of Trustees decided to suspend the work of al-Hurra TV’s offices in Iraq for three months, and suspend its activities until it re-corrects its attitude towards dealing with Iraq affairs.”

2 Sep 2019; MEMO: The government of Iraqi Kurdistan denied reports that an Israeli military base has been setup on its soil, Arab48 said yesterday.

“Some Iraqi media have circulated a statement that is not true, claiming the existence of an Israeli camp run by a woman general in Erbil,” spokesman of the Iraqi Kurdistan Government Jutiar Adel said. “The government denies these baseless reports,” and added:

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - At checkpoints leading into the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, the flags of Brigade 30, a paramilitary force, still fly nearly two months after the Baghdad government ordered all militias to leave.

Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s decree gave Iran-backed paramilitary groups, which have wielded increasing power in Iraq, a month to fully integrate with the armed forces, leave checkpoints and sever ties with political groups.

Washington, Aug 23 (AFP/PTI) Israel has carried out at least one strike against a weapons depot in Iraq, The New York Times reported Thursday.

There have been a series of blasts in Iraq over the past month at training camps and arms depots used by the Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary forces, which are mainly composed of pro-Iranian militias.

BAGHDAD, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi forces have arrested an Islamic States (IS) militant close to IS group leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in Iraq's western province of Anbar, authorities announced Monday.

The militant was ambushed and captured in the town of Heet, some 160 km west of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, the Iraqi Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

BAGHDAD, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi President Barham Salih on Sunday met separately with U.S. and Iranian ambassadors, highlighting the need to ease tensions in the region through dialogue.

According to a statement by the presidency office, Salih and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Matthew Tueller "discussed means to enhance bilateral relations to develop prospects of cooperation in all fields to serve the common interests."