Thread: Iraq/Dinar News. (before Jan.20,2007)

Has anybody heard about the hydrocarbon law have they passed it yet
rumors of RV the 1/24/7 anything concrete?

Originally Posted by buddy54

Has anybody heard about the hydrocarbon law have they passed it yet
rumors of RV the 1/24/7 anything concrete?

There's no news on whether the HCL has been passed. When it comes to Iraq, the key is patience. They do work at their own pace and are renowned for not adhering to any deadlines. Most of the time, the parliament members can't even be bothered to turn up to maintain quorum!

As for the rumours, it's upto each person whether they wish to believe them or not. But, please don't add to your holdings based on any rumour. A lot of people have seen numerous rumours fly past within the last couple of years.

Bush's Hidden Victory

by Jeff Stevens


There's been a lot of well-justified outrage among antiwar folks in the wake of George W. Bush's Jan. 10 announcement of his plan to send 21,500 additional US troops into the erstwhile Mesopotamia to secure that land for Western corporate hegemony. For the antiwar community, strategy will be crucial in the coming weeks as we begin our own escalation in the streets and in the offices, mailboxes and fax machines of our elected officials. Specifically, it's going to be crucial to remember, and make profoundly public, the Bush cabal's true motivations for the invasion and occupation of Iraq--as well as their proposed escalation of the occupation. We've always known The War was all about The Oil--and there's now fresh legal evidence in solid support of that theory.

This month, under the radar of the expected lofty rhetoric regarding Iraq, the Bush Bunch has quietly achieved a clever legal and economic victory in that country, even as they lose politically in the sphere of US public opinion and militarily in the streets of Baghdad. As reported on Jan. 7 by the London-based Independent, the US proxy government in Iraq is expected this month to approve a new "hydrocarbon law" heavily influenced and promoted by the Bush administration along with oil companies from the US and the UK. The new law, according to The Independent, will "radically redraw the Iraqi oil industry and throw open the doors to the third-largest oil reserves in the world" and "would allow the first large-scale operation of foreign oil companies in the country since the industry was nationalized in 1972."

Crucially, the proposed Iraqi hydrocarbon law, currently circulating as a 33-page draft, would give exploration and development rights to foreign oil companies such as Exxon Mobil, Chevron, BP and Shell--possibly for up to 30 years. And in the early stages of such exploitation (in every sense of the word), these companies would, under the proposed law, be allowed to take up to 75 percent of resulting oil profits, until they decide that their infrastructure investments have been repaid. Even afterwards, these companies could still take oil profits as high as 20 percent from Iraqi revenues. All of which casts such memorable Bush Bunch claims as "We did not do it [i.e., invade Iraq] for oil" (Colin Powell, July 10, 2003) in an ironic new light.

Bush himself did make brief mention of the proposed law in his Jan. 10 speech--but he shrewdly described it in feel-good terms as "legislation to share oil revenues among all Iraqis," rather than as legislation to essentially de-nationalize the Iraqi oil industry--thus finally eradicating one key reason for the Bush cabal's longtime vilification of Saddam Hussein's regime--and open it up to foreign investment and development.

A key element of the hydrocarbon law is a provision creating "production-sharing agreements," or PSAs--essentially arrangements between the Iraqi government and foreign companies that would maintain nominal state ownership of the Iraqi oil industry while giving a share of the profits to foreign companies that invest in the creation and operation of new infrastructure for oil production--something the Iraqi oil industry desperately needs after years of sanctions and war. All of which sounds almost benevolent, until one learns that much of the legislation was negotiated behind closed doors, with minimal input from "the Iraqi people," feel-good White House rhetoric notwithstanding.

(It's worth noting in passing that such PSAs are unprecedented in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia and Iran, respectively the world's number one and number two oil producers, still retain total and genuine state control of their oil industries. All of which emphasizes what a coup, so to speak, the proposed Iraqi hydrocarbon law would be for neoliberal capitalism and its advocates' ambitions in the Middle East. But I digress!)

So how does Bush's "surge" proposal relate to the proposed Iraqi hydrocarbon law? Apparently, the uncanny timing of the two proposals amounts to a mad dash by Big Oil to secure access to Iraqi oil resources before the US military is finally forced to leave Iraq by either the US Congress or the Iraqi resistance. One of the benefits of a "surge" unmentioned by Bush on Jan. 10 would seem to be the buying of time for Big Oil's negotiators on the ground in Iraq. James Paul, executive director of Global Policy Forum, a New York-based international peace and justice watchdog group, as quoted in The Independent, described the legislation, and the situation, bluntly:

"It's a mad rush to get something there. The [oil] companies are saying, 'Before any troops are withdrawn, we have to have these contracts.' "

Right now, there's a lot indeed that the antiwar community needs to pay critical attention to in the wake of Bush's Jan. 10 address--not the least of which is Bush's backdoor proclamation, cleverly buried in that speech, of war on Iran and Syria [see Geov Parrish's lead article in this issue for details--ed]. But let's not forget how the bottom line continues to figure into George W. Bush's insistence on pouring gasoline on the fire he's begun in the Middle East. He's said before that US troops won't leave Iraq "until the job is done."

Well, let's see: We got rid of the WMDs that were never there in the first place, and we've planted the seeds of democracy in Iraq--at least inside the Green Zone, I suppose. So how will we finally know when "the job is done"? My humble suggestion: Follow the money--and the legislation.

Bush's Hidden Victory (January 18, 2007)

Iraqi dinar surges despite violence, economic hardships



By Mustafa al-Hashemi


Azzaman, January 19, 2007

The Iraqi currency is appreciating vis-à-vis the U.S. dollar but economists warn the surge in value may further increase economic hardships.

The dinar has risen to nearly 1,200 to the dollar from about 1,500. The U.S. currency has been retreating against almost all major currencies but government officials see its decline in Iraq as a sign of economic well-being.


Baghdad University economists said they did not share the government’s optimism.

The surge in the dinar’s value is bound to make life more difficult for low-income categories such as pensioners and a large portion of civil servants, they said.

Unless the government increases salaries the dinar’s surge will make life more difficult for these categories as risk of inflation increase.

They said the government’s economic polices had nothing to do with the recent rise in the dinar’s value.

The surge of currencies against the dollar is a global phenomenon due to the decline in the value of the U.S. currency.

Civil servants, security personnel and other government employees now get meaningful salaries compared to those under former leader Saddam Hussein.

Minimum a civil servant now gets is $250. Under Saddam maximum average salary was equivalent to $5.

The proposed budget for 2007 which the parliament is still deliberating is estimated at $47 billion which the economists say is reasonable in the light of the country’s current conditions.

The budget figures might have helped the dinar a bit, they said, but they warned drastic surges in the value of the currency could be as detrimental as drastic declines.

Traders in Baghdad did not hide their worries about the hike in the currency’s value which has forced some of them to slash prices.

Mohammed Salman said he was now selling at a loss since the dinar’s he collects at current reduced prices will not help him recoup the cost in dollars.

However, other traders said they were less concerned about currency gyrations than security.

Subhi Ashour, another Baghdad trader, attributed the current economic hardships mainly to the lack of security.

“The prices of almost all goods in the country are mostly now determined by security conditions, particularly transport fees,” he said.

The country’s economic instability is blamed on the mounting violence. The country’s roads are very dangerous, preventing free movement of people and goods.
Azzaman in English

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The top-ranking U.S. military official in Iraq estimated Friday that it may be late summer before it's known if the latest strategy to secure Baghdad is working and residents "feel safe in their neighborhoods."

Gen. George Casey also gave that time frame as the projected length of time the new troop deployment in Iraq will last.

U.S. and Iraqi officials are working on a new effort to restore law and order in Baghdad and other parts of Iraq. President Bush announced a plan last week to send 21,500 additional troops to Iraq, primarily in the capital.

Casey made his remarks while accompanying U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates on an unannounced stop in Iraq. The trip to Iraq is Gates' second since taking his post last month.

The defense chief traveled to the southern city of Basra, where British forces are based, and then to Tallil Air Base in Nasiriya, also in southern Iraq, to meet with U.S., British and coalition officials.

"Given what is stake, failure is not an option," Gates said, in referring to the U.S. operation in Iraq.

"There is universal agreement, on the importance of success here in Iraq, and on confronting extremism here."

Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who also traveled to the Mideast and Europe this week to sell Bush's plan, are scheduled to meet Saturday with the president at Camp David, Maryland, according to a White House official.

Baghdad violence caps bloody week
Gates' visit to Iraq coincided with attacks around Baghdad that left at least four people dead and the discovery by police of 18 bodies there, an Iraqi Interior Ministry official said.

Among the bodies found was a tribal leader from Falluja who was shot dead in western Baghdad. The other bodies went unidentified, and most of them showed signs of torture, the official said.

Mortar rounds killed a woman and wounded three civilians in southern Baghdad's Dora neighborhood, and additional mortars killed two civilians and wounded three, also in southern Baghdad. A fourth civilian died and three were wounded when gunmen began firing randomly, the Interior Ministry official said.

The violence capped a bloody week, underscored by an attack Tuesday at Mustansiriya University, where 70 people were killed.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< snip snip>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
U.S. general: Iraq progress may be clear by late summer - CNN.com

Soldiers build lasting relationships with Iraqi school-aged kids
Friday, 19 January 2007
By Marine Cpl. Jessica Kent
Multi-National Corps - Iraq PAO

BAGHDAD — Service members conducting patrols in Baghdad may catch a glimpse of what makes life so great back at home.

In a country where electricity is scarce and mud huts are common homes, many Iraqi families struggle to make a living. The trash-lined streets, often hiding explosives, are dangerous for children at play.

One aspect of a child’s life that usually remains a steady influence is going to school. When Soldiers with the 3rd Battalion, 7th Brigade, 2nd Division National Police Transition Team visited a local elementary school, they found the rooms packed to capacity with small students. The rooms were so packed that desks were moved outside to make an additional classroom.

Although the school was only for girls, several small boys were spotted among the rows. Some families were granted permission to enroll males in the school because sectarian violence made other schools too dangerous.

While the boys’ parents believe the elementary school to be safer, each child there has been touched by violence. Many lost parents and other family members who were murdered. Others lost a sibling or friend who left school one day and never returned.

“Some were kidnapped and never came back,” a school administrator said. “We support (the children) and give special attention to the orphans who miss their mothers or fathers.”

Most of the students are accustomed to hearing gunfire on the streets, seeing the destruction left by a mortar round, watching Soldiers at traffic checkpoints and chasing military convoys.

“We travel down parts of Baghdad and then go to our sector and see the downtrodden areas,” said Sgt. 1st Class Patrick Andrus, communications NCOIC, 3rd Bn., 7th Bde., 2nd Div. NPTT. “It definitely makes me appreciate what I have as an American.”

Andrus said it’s hard to see Iraqi kids without the opportunities American children often have. He added that the worst part is that Iraqi children do not know to expect any better.

“It saddens my heart sometimes to see the conditions they live in, when it’s cold outside and kids are wearing flip-flops without jackets,” he said. “So many of these kids don’t even have a ball to play with, something we think is simple.”

Because the children have very little, transition team members provided whatever help they could. They packed up clothing donated from the United States and delivered it to the school. Team members also helped find desks and new doors for the school.

“The new units are welcome here,” the school administrator said. “I welcome them because they help me.”

During his last visit to drop off children’s clothing, Lt. Col. Anthony Cornett, team chief, 3rd Bn., 7th Bde., 2nd Div. NPTT, addressed a classroom of bright-eyed students. A young girl asked about terrorism in her country, and how he would help the Iraqi people.

“I work everyday to ensure that you’re protected; so does the National Police,” he replied. “They’re my friends. But I’m a human being just like you. Here (in the classroom) is where you can make a difference for Iraq.”

Because children are the future of their country, Andrus said school students make up a generation that can bring positive changes for Iraq. Transition team members will spend the remainder of their tour guiding National Policemen as they struggle to make those changes.

New Iraqi Soldiers conquering bootcamp
Friday, 19 January 2007
By Sgt. Michael Tuttle
5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment


Iraqi army trainees attempt to zero their AK-47 rifles during basic training at the Regional Training Center in Kirkuk.KIRKUK — The transformation from civilian life to military life is similar, regardless of the country a soldier serves. For new Iraqi recruits it begins with the issuing of uniforms, a rifle, an introduction to military rules and intricate details of how to make a bunk and organize a locker. After six weeks of basic training the new jondis, or Iraqi soldiers, will graduate to join the Iraqi army’s swelling ranks as it emerges as a self-sufficient force.

The Regional Training Center in Kirkuk has 1,800 to 2,000 Iraqi soldiers cycling through basic training at a time. This number is up from 1,500 because of Iraqi and U.S. plans to add 30,000 new Iraqi soldiers by mid-2007. The RTC will train about 8,000 of those new recruits.

The recruits who train at the RTC come from the northern region of Iraq and as far south as Tikrit. With the help of the Coaliton Military Assistance Transition Team, the training center’s staff and cadre have transformed basic training here into a standardized program for the new Iraqi army.

When the CMATT came here seven months ago, the RTC was a small school with limited resources, almost no funding, a staff one-third the size it is now and a maximum of only 700 soldiers in training, said 1st Sgt. Jeffrey Morris, CMATT noncommissioned officer in charge.

“Now you wouldn’t even recognize this place from six or seven months ago,” Morris said. “The Iraqis have come so far. I think they have really learned how to be flexible. They’re dedicated to their mission so they make it happen.”

The CMATT is a four-Soldier U.S. military transition team that works with the RTC as advisors and mentors. Their primary goal has been to standardize the quality of training here and throughout all the basic training bases in Iraq.

A basic training program of instruction (POI) at one training base used to mean something entirely different at another base, said Morris, who has 10 years of basic training experience as a drill sergeant and first sergeant at Fort Jackson, S.C.

“So a POI has been standardized throughout all the training bases in Iraq now,” Morris said. “All of the instructors have gone through the same training and the schools teach the same subjects the same amount of hours. I think that’s going to be the main key to success for these soldiers.”

The training curriculum has also improved and is similar to basic combat training in the States. The program is built to instill the values of the Iraqi Army, “to protect his country and to serve his people,” into its trainees, said Iraqi Command Sgt. Maj. Mubrad Sarheed Abed, RTC command sergeant major.

The program includes an hour of physical training daily, drill and ceremony, map reading, combatives, military customs and courtesies, Iraq history and military history. Medical training and tactical maneuvers currently being used by the Iraqi army have been added.

Every hour of each day is accounted for in the new POI, which is a major change from the RTC’s previous schedule that was non-descriptive and had no specific times or standards, Morris said.

“They literally were making up things from past experience to be able to teach a class,” Morris said. “And now they’re in a classroom with projectors, computers and PowerPoint presentations in Arabic. They do AARs (after action reviews) and training briefs everyday. The transformation has been unbelievable, beyond our expectations.”

Bursts of bullets can be heard much more frequently on the RTC’s firing ranges as trainees are now able to spend more quality time getting familiar with their AK-47 rifles.

Previously, trainees fired only four rounds in a month to get the feel of their AK-47. Now trainees may fire 48 rounds in a day as they go through the steps of zeroing the rifle, adjusting the rifle’s sights to their personal use, and qualifying from distances of 50, 100 and 200 meters.

A few months ago, most Iraqi army units didn’t have the tool or know how to zero their rifles, Morris said. “Now the jondis can go out to their units and show them how to zero their weapons.”

In addition to basic soldier skills, trainees are also taught how to work and better interact with Iraqi civilians.

“So if an Iraqi army soldier is on a mission in a village,” Morris said, “they know how to deal with civilians and be respectful to them.”

As the Iraqi army moves forward as a self-sufficient force, it’s important that it be respected by the Iraqi people, he said.

The RTC’s command sergeant major said he is proud of how the Iraqi Army has made taking care of its soldiers a priority.

“The old army was built on many bad things including torture and unfair treatment of soldiers” Abed said. “The food was bad and the training and equipment was poor. Now you can see a big difference because there is respect and we treat soldiers as human beings.”

The basic training transformation has armed the jondis with better skills and has made them more well-rounded soldiers.

“I know that the jondis that graduate from basic training here are learning things that no other Iraqi soldier has had a chance to learn,” Morris said. “Officers and NCOs here have even told us that, ‘When I was in basic training, I didn’t know any of this stuff.’ Things that the cadre are learning to teach as instructors were never taught to them as basic trainees.

“They’re graduating soldiers now that are some of the best Iraqi soldiers that have ever been. Those soldiers are going out to their units and bringing the new information and training.”

Iraqi President Says Syria Backs Iraqi Stability

Four people were killed in this car-bomb blast in Baghdad today
(epa)
January 18, 2007 -- Iraqi President Jalal Talabani today said Syria was taking action to prevent foreign fighters from crossing the border into Iraq.


In an interview with Reuters in Damascus, Talabani added that the Syrian president was supporting Iraqi stability.

"The position of President [Bashar] al-Assad is clear -- to support Iraq -- Iraqi independence, stability, and security," Talabani said. "President al-Assad responds to our requests and our intention of establishing security and stability in Iraq. If Iraqi-Syrian relations are enhanced, and if Syria leaves a positive mark on the Iraqi security and stability, all this will help us to facilitate the negotiations between Syria and the United States."

Washington has accused Syria of failing to stop militants from infiltrating from Syria to Iraq.

Syria's official media report that Talabani today held talks with leaders of Syria's ruling Ba'ath Party during which participants affirmed their aim to improve bilateral ties. They also talked about "efforts underway to bolster security and stability in Iraq."

Meanwhile, Jordan's King Abdullah said today during talks with Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi that Iraqis should work together to restore security and stability.

A court statement quotes the king as saying the security situation in Iraq has reached a dangerous point. He said the situation demands that the Iraqi people set aside their differences and forge ahead on the path of rebuilding security and stability.

(compiled from agency reports)

By Maggie Michael
ASSOCIATED PRESS

10:42 a.m. January 19, 2007

CAIRO, Egypt – Washington and Baghdad are pressuring Egypt to remove from its satellite an Iraqi TV station that supports Sunni insurgents, airing a steady stream of footage of attacks on U.S. and Iraqi troops, pictures of dead babies and denunciations of Iraq's Shiite leadership.
So far, Egypt has refused to take Al-Zawraa off the air. Observers say its resistance is a sign that while this top U.S. ally has backed Washington's push for reconciliation between Iraq's Shiites and Sunnis, it is also hedging its bets and wants to bolster Iraq's Sunnis against the growing power of Shiite Iran.



Advertisement Al-Zawraa, founded by a former Iraqi Sunni lawmaker, has been transmitted for the past eight months on Egypt's government-owned NileSat satellite, allowing it to be seen across the Arab world at a time of increasing tensions between Sunnis and Shiites.
Iraqi security forces raided and shut down its headquarters in Baghdad in November, accusing it of “inciting hatred and instigating violence,” but it still operates, reportedly produced in Sunni areas of Iraq.

The station – Al-Zawraa is an ancient name for Baghdad – takes a vehement pro-Sunni insurgent line, airing messages from groups like the Islamic Army of Iraq and the 1920 Revolution Brigades, which are believed to be led by former army officers from Saddam Hussein's ousted Baath regime.

With the station's slogan of “Victory or Death,” its programming is a constant flow of gruesome images. Entire programs show pictures of bloody and mutilated bodies of men, women and children, who it says were Sunnis killed by U.S. troops, Shiite militiamen or government security forces.

During news bulletins, it shows videos of attacks on U.S. or Iraqi forces, including explosions against military vehicles. It is not clear if the footage is taken from militant messages posted on the Internet or supplied directly by insurgents.

It also runs continuous condemnations of the Shiite-led Iraqi government, accusing it of being a front for Iran and of killing Sunnis. “No mercy, no pity for those who made their people a target,” and “the intentions of the sectarian coalition government are way beyond reconciliation,” read titles in a scroll across the bottom of the screen.

One recent show featured interviews with men said to be former prisoners tortured by government security forces.

“We are six brothers. They raided our house after midnight and brought us here, torturing us with electricity for six days, until we confessed to crimes we have never heard of before,” one of the alleged former prisoners said, sitting in his underwear and sobbing in the footage.

A U.S. State Department official said the U.S. and Iraqi embassies in Cairo “raised concerns about Al-Zawraa TV with officials at the Egyptian Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Foreign Affairs in December 2006.”

They “asked that Al-Zawraa be removed from NileSat,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue between the two allies.

An Iraqi diplomat, also speaking on condition of anonymity for similar reasons, said the Iraq received no response on its official request to the Egyptian government to stop Al-Zawraa. He didn't elaborate on the content of the request or when it was sent.

Egyptian officials would not comment. The chairman of the board of Nilesat, Amin Basyouni, said Al-Zawraa has a contract with the satellite to broadcast and he cannot stop it without an order from the Egyptian government.

“If I receive an order from the Egyptian authorities to shut down the channel, I will do that the next second,” Basyouni told The Associated Press.

Basyouni said there are 26 other Iraqi channels using NileSat “and many of them are cursing Egypt day and night but we haven't closed them.”

He said he received a letter from the station's founder, former Iraqi Sunni lawmaker Mishan al-Jabouri, threatening to sue NileSat for breach of contract if transmission is stopped. The station pays NileSat $300,000 a year for the transmission, he said.

Al-Jabouri, who founded Al-Zawraa three years ago, was accused in October of embezzling $7 million a month intended for a force protecting oil pipelines in northern Iraq. He was stripped of his parliamentary immunity and fled to Syria. He could not be reached for comment.

Doctors plead for Iraqi children
Posted on : Fri, 19 Jan 2007 20:06:00 GMT | Author : Science News Editor
News Category : Technology

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LONDON, Jan. 19 A group of doctors is pleading that British Prime Minister Tony Blair end medical shortages they say are killing Iraqi children.

Sick or injured children who could otherwise be treated by simple means are left to die in hundreds because they do not have access to basic medicines or other resources, the doctors said in a letter quoted in The Independent. Children who have lost hands, feet and limbs are left without prostheses. Children with grave psychological distress are left untreated.The doctors said that conditions in Iraqi hospitals are a breach of the Geneva and Hague conventions, which require Great Britain and the United States to maintain order and to look after the medical needs of the population.The letter said that babies are dying because they lack oxygen masks, vitamin K or sterile needles. Hospitals can't control the spread of infection because they have no surgical gloves, the letter said.


The doctors called on the British government to account for $33 billion in an Iraqi development fund, which they said should have funded the proper treatment of children. They said $14 billion was believed to have disappeared through theft, corruption and payments to mercenaries, The Independent said.


Copyright 2007 by UPI