Thread: Iraq/Dinar News. 09/05 to 01/14/07

Middle East Online

Iraq oil city shut down as troops hunt insurgents


Curfew leaves Kirkuk residents home as joint US-Iraqi troops initiate one of biggest military operations.


By Marwan Ibrahim - KIRKUK, Iraq

The northern Iraqi oil city of Kirkuk was deserted Saturday except for the rumble of military vehicles and the sound of patrolling helicopters as a curfew and military operations kept residents inside.

Iraqi police and troops were conducting raids across the city, hunting for insurgents and unlicensed weapons in a bid to end a wave of assassinations and bombings.

"These operations are the first of their kind in Kirkuk, with more than 14,000 police and soldiers supported by US helicopters," said Captain Emad Jassim Khidr of Kirkuk police.

He added that all vehicles and pedestrian traffic had been banned and shops closed during the open-ended curfew.

Roads into the city have also been closed and in some cases sealed with newly dug trenches to cut down on rebel infiltration.

"We are tightening security on these entrances and searching the incoming vehicles," said Khidr.

The new lock-down tactic is one increasingly being used by coalition forces in troubled cities across Iraq, including Baghdad where trenches and barriers are being built to control access to the capital.

In some cases, whole towns or neighborhoods have been surrounded by massive earthen walls with limited guarded entrances in an effort to halt bombing campaigns by insurgents opposed to the US-backed coalition government.

The operation in Kirkuk, however, came without warning at 6.00 pm (1500 GMT) Friday and angered many residents fearful at the impact on their businesses of the open-ended curfew.

"We were not told of the curfew and our shops in the markets of Kirkuk and Khan al-Tamir import vegetables from neighbouring countries like Iran and Turkey," said stall-holder Azad Mahmud Taqi, 56, reached at home by phone.

"A long-running curfew will really hurt us," he warned.

The curfew is especially onerous for coming during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, during which households often spend the whole day preparing elaborate meals for sunset, when they break their daytime fast.

Some store owners also worried about perishables shut up in closed stores.

"Our shops are full of pastries made early yesterday," said Jankiz Ochi, who owns a pastry shop in downtown Kirkuk. "The closure of the shop due to the curfew is doing us big harm."

Despite its volatile ethnic mix of Kurds, Arabs and Turkmen, Kirkuk has not seen quite as much violence as the capital or confessionally divided areas to its south and northeast.

In recent months, however, an insurgent campaign burst to life in an apparent bid to provoke violence between rival Arab and Kurdish factions vying for control of a city which sits on much of Iraq's oil wealth.

In recent months, a string of car bombs has rocked Kirkuk, targeting its various communities and threatening to plunge the city into chaos.

The Sunni militant group Ansar al-Sunna has been singled out in particular for its role in the deadly attacks.

The operation coincides with a number of other security operations in Iraqi cities.

Aside from Baghdad and the Sunni Arab western city of Ramadi, where pacification efforts have been going on for months, Iraqi security forces have been mounting house-to-house searches in the confessionally mixed city of Baquba, north of the capital.

Distributed in the form of instruments with the ration card. Holiday gift. Ten thousand dinars each citizen


Baghdad / commoners hailed
The Iraqi government has decided to pay the amount of ten thousand dinars each citizen the occasion of Eid al-Fitr. He said government spokesman Dr. Skinner that the amount payable in the form of instruments gives with the ration card and the disposal of banks. He added Skinner during a press conference held Thursday after the Council of Ministers meeting that the resolution needs to approval by Congress for the allocation of the budget. Only country in the Middle East region that Iraq needed money because the budget relies solely on Iraqi oil and there is no additional income Also, because of the circumstances through which Iraq is the limited oil exports. Skinner explained that although Iraq needs to donor countries, it has enormous potential and other large oil reserve to the States are invited to help in these circumstances. Announcing the activation of the Japanese loan of three billion, five hundred million dollars by the Ministry of Finance within the next few days. Noting that the Ministry of Finance is the only body that is responsible for negotiating and signing international sovereign loans to Iraq and the Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation is responsible and empowered to negotiate on the Iraqi government.
In response to a question (long) on the possibility of a cabinet reshuffle, said Skinner : The cabinet reshuffle is a political decision between parliamentary blocs. No limitation of the number of the ministries, but there is a desire of the government to improve the performance of its ministries and provide better service to the citizen. He declared : that Iraq had decided to open new diplomatic missions in 15 countries are : Hungary, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, Ukraine, Serbia, South Korea, Slovakia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Senegal, Nigeria, Mauritania and Argentina. . The Cabinet agreed to open an Iranian cultural office in Baghdad only through a memorandum of understanding requires the signature with the Iranian side will be any reciprocity will be opened in Iraqi cultural office in the Iranian capital of Tehran, to promote cultural and artistic relations between the two countries.
He explained : been approved during the meeting also agreed Act to amend the federal budget No. 1 of 2006, which delegated the Council of Ministers for approval and adoption of contributions from donors and non-donors at the suggestion of the state institutions
And on the application of the covenant document, which was signed a week ago by the political blocs, the Prime Minister said : This was supposed to be a meeting today (yesterday) but was postponed for technical reasons and we hope that the meeting be held in the coming days in order to activate this initiative and put it on the ground and take action committees to assist the security agencies and reducing sectarian tension.
Skinner expected to carry the Mecca of religious leaders a letter stating that the events in Iraq is not Islam, this killing is not resistance but killed rights of the Iraqi people and a threat to all Islamic countries and the values of Islam.
Skinner and hoped that the conference document each era mosque imams and preachers in the world to help the Iraqis and not utter opinions that call for collective suicide and the killing of Iraqis in any name whatsoever. And the dismantling of the militias and Skinner said that the decision to dissolve the militias have a political consensus and the government is trying to be delivered since the beginning of the solution to this issue.
He added that the coming period will witness extensive discussions between the political parties to solve this issue
Skinner pointed to the fact that a pro-declared, and there militias under the ground is the reason for being of violence will be dealt with appropriately.

Translated version of http://almadapaper.com/sub/12-561/p19.htm

Under-Sistani in Karbala, welcomed the document to stop the blood

Karbala / AFP
Sheikh Ahmed welcomed net agent legitimate religious authority, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in Karbala yesterday, Friday, a document undertaking signed by the political leaders to stop the bloodshed in Iraq. but it viewed it as some "infrastructure".
He said the net before thousands of worshipers at the Imam Hussein (p), "political blocs signed a document which is undertaking is welcome and we have all (...) But he needs to be a combination of ingredients, the first to be honest with us to write and be convinced that the agreement binding. "
He added net "either left the daytime and at night there Ahnth value of this obligation" and expressed concern that "this agreement is a crafty (...) We used to write routine. "
He continued that "signing an important step but will not stop the bloodshed (...) What is stopped faith in the write () History tell us about treaties was, in fact, conspiracies or anything, you want something else. "
He said the net "there is a clear field for a muscle-flexing political field only through peaceful means to prove which side is better."
Turning to the "many invitations to solve the militias (...) We must make the prestige of the State are protected and maintained and remains disarmament and the power to approve this request avoid chaos. "

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The arrest of one of the leaders of Al Qaeda in Kirkuk and other plans for terrorist operations in Najaf


Najaf-Erbil / agencies
A source in the police of Najaf yesterday, Friday, that the fight against terrorism had arrested a member of Al-Qaeda had been planning to carry out terrorist operations in the city.
He said Lt. success Jabr Mousa "We have arrested a person from al-Qaeda works within organizations Haitham Al-Badri responsible for the attacks on the tomb of them Imams military operations in Samarra last February."
He added, "the operation took place in cooperation with the security and intelligence system Najaf," pointing out that "the accused person was in the process of gathering information in Najaf in preparation for the criminal operations."
The officer said, "This person admitted at the preliminary investigations executed terrorist operations in Samarra before continuing here."
Kukuk as police announced yesterday that they were able to arrest one of the leaders of Al-Qaeda during the raid in the city of Kirkuk in northern Iraq.
The director of the police district and sub-district in Kirkuk Brigadier Sarhad able to Kirkuk police forces managed in cooperation with the multinational force to arrest required Rashid Muslih, who is the brother of one of the assistants of the former leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed by American bombing in the governorate of Diyala.
It is noteworthy that the multinational force announced a reward worth 25 thousand dollars for whoever provides information on terrorist Rashid Muslih.

Translated version of http://almadapaper.com/sub/12-561/p19.htm

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Check it out.

Noozz.com | IRAQ

I only go and read the HEADLINES allot. As I did not subscribe because it costs too much for it. (approx $1500 USD for 1 country on subscriptions). There are other countries but Iraq is the only one I look at.

Thanks,
Hkp

English : Government to open embassies in 15 countries


Baghdad, Oct.7 p.212
Government has announced that Iraq would open diplomatic missions in 15 countries throughout the world. renewing calls for Syria to stop terrorists' infiltration through its boarders with Iraq and asked

Muslim relatives in their countries not to give legal opinions in a way that can be considered as a support for terrorist.
On the other hand, government announced that it would present a gift of 10 thousand dinars for each citizen as a reward of private or Fasting.

ÌÑíÏÉ ÇáÕÈÇÍ - Government to open embassies in 15 countries

English : Anbar consciousness and media silence

Editorial
By : Felah al-Meshal
Anbar tribes' uprising against terrorists presented new facts following two years of controlling the city first of which is the fact that this province could not be detached from its Iraqi homeland as it supported unity of stances towards constitution and state law.
The other fact is that its twins in Baghdad, Najaf, Mosul and other cities means that it is aware of the nation's interest.
People of Anbar in their consciousness and chasing remains of terror could not take sufficient chance from media to cover their city's including Iraqi satellite news channels.
Remembering Faluja events of two years ago, we can find that it was the first news stand along with Iraqi and Arab satellite channels as some of them had planted their reporters inside the city so as to take a direct and fresh battle coverage of news from inside the city center. But it is not found nowadays in Ramadi when the tribal forces capture and kill terrorists and clean their city from them.
We do not blame Arab satellite news channels, yet we concentrate on Iraqi ones who are busy of shameful, unusual and harmful news of Iraqi cities and do not search for good and cheering news

Translated version of http://www.alsabaah.com/

Gawd... I hate to be a "News Whore" but,
wondering about this article :

Have your say: Do Kurds give up their oil revenue and areas outside KRG? | Iraq Updates

"In the last few days the high profile visits were made to the Kurdistan autonomous region, including the visit by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. In addition the Turkish Prime Minister and the Iraqi Prime Minister separately met with the US President George Bush.

These meetings came after the Kurdish leadership’s assertions of accession over ownership of the oil revenues and after issuing the proposed Kurdistan constitution in which Kurdish areas outside the currently Kurdish control are included into Kurdistan."

What do you think is to happen? What does this mean?

English Clerics welcome : "Covenant Document"
Provinces, Oct.7 p.212
Representative of Seid Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani in Karbala has welcomed covenant document signed by political leaders and forbids bloodshed, stressing necessity of disarming militias to enforce security for citizens.
On the other hand, preacher of al-Fatimia mosque in Najaf, Sader al-Deen al-Qubanchi has described this document as a major step, as fact of battle has been revealed when Anbar tribes have faced terrorists groups. He criticized Arabs address towards Iraqi situation because it has missed knowing the truth in Iraq situation at the time some of them had transformed seven thousand terrorist reads via borders.

ÌÑíÏÉ ÇáÕÈÇÍ - Clerics welcome "Covenant Document"

English : Abul Waleed : we will not allow any arming aspects

Karbla, Oct.7 p.212
Head of Karbala province council has said that choosing new police chief came according to an order of local government in the province and from prime ministry as well.
The new police chief general Muhammad Abul Waleed said that taking his position as a police chief in Karbla is an honor to him and that he is a soldier serves wherever the government asks him to serve. stressing that he would not allow any arming aspects.
He added that he will present a new plan to the province council which will change the situation in the province, and denied that he will make changes on the structure of the city police.

ÌÑíÏÉ ÇáÕÈÇÍ - Abul Waleed: we will not allow any arming aspects

Iraq to open new refinery near Shiite holy city
Iraq is to open a new oil refinery near the Shiite shrine city of Najaf with a modest capacity of 10,000 barrels per day, the oil ministry said Friday.