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

Here is a wealth of information on great things happening in IRAQ as far as rebuilding goes...copy and paste the link in your web browser
http://www.rebuilding-iraq.net/pls/p...N%20UPDATE.PDF

if you have trouble with the above link, if you are asked to login..use the follwing directions to access IRAQI WEEKLY UPDATE

Go to iraqi-dinar.com and then click on RESCOURCES, then IRAQ PROJECT AND CONTRACTING OFFICES, then on the left under DOWNLOADS, click on iraq weekly update

This guy is trouble and one of the reasons the government hasn't been formed and hence a reval. And he has big ties with Iran. Not good for us, we need him out asap and it looks like the government will have to do it. And guess what? Yes that'll take more time. Frustrating thing is that the man most wanted Mahdi was only outvoted by 1 vote by Jaafari. Facking annoying indeed. But the West are putting more and more pressure for the Iraqi's to sort out their forming of the government but they haven't taken too much notice thus far. Even Kerry's threat of pulling out the troops before the end of the year seems to have fallen on deaf ears.

Ho hum. Just like with pips, plex, hyipeffect, patience is needed. Back to trading to earn some beer money!



http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=16183

Jaafari: I will go if parliament wants


Iraqi PM says he will stick to result of democratic process and reject any bargaining over it.


BAGHDAD - Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari, facing a growing chorus of calls for his resignation, reiterated Thursday his refusal to step aside - unless asked to do so by parliament.

"I will stick to the result of the democratic process and reject any bargaining over it," he told journalists, but added: "If parliament asks me to withdraw then I will."

Jaafari's nomination has been the chief obstacle to efforts to form a unity government over three months after landmark elections to choose the first full-term post-Saddam Hussein parliament.

In recent days a number of prominent Shiites have joined Iraq's Sunni Arab and Kurdish leaders in demanding that Jaafari withdraw his nomination as prime minister. They accuse Jaafari of failing to stop the sectarian killings that have left hundreds dead in recent weeks.

In response to the latest rash of violence, and with growing speculation that full blown civil war is looming, US forces have boosted their presence in Baghdad and other cities.

Jaafari, however, denied reports that the US redeployment amounted to a vote of no confidence in his leadership.

"The redeployment requires my approval as the overall commander of the armed forces and this hasn't happened," he said. "Sometimes we are in need of support and there could be operations that require the assistance of the multinational forces, nothing more than that."

As for a March 26 raid of a Shiite prayer hall near the Baghdad slum of Sadr City which killed 17 Shiites, Jaafari said an investigation was underway.

"The investigation is ongoing into the matter to determine if the place was indeed a terrorist refuge," Jaafari said.

The US army denied responsibility for the raid, which is thought to have targeted the Mahdi Army, the militia loyal to the radical anti-US cleric Moqtada Sadr. Sadr heads the most powerful bloc of parliamentarians within the Shiite alliance and has been a key supporter of Jaafari's bid to stay on as premier.

The US have to be very careful here not to make it look like they're behind ousting Jaafari. Their enemies will have a field day and have ammunition against them, not good. Enough pressure has been put on the Iraqi's to form their own government, they have to be left now to do it IMO.




http://story.iraqsun.com/p.x/ct/9/ci...07cc72c60e1d7/

IRAQ:
US Efforts to Oust Jaafari May Backfire
Jim Lobe

WASHINGTON , Apr 7 (IPS) - Efforts by the United States to split the Shiite United Iraqi Alliance (UIA) and deny interim Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari his claim to head the next government could well prove counter-productive to long-term U.S. objectives in both Iraq and the larger region, according to some specialists here.

Not only has heavy-handed U.S. intervention in negotiations to create a new government deepened divisions among the various factions, they say, but efforts to marginalise Jaafari -- epitomised by secretary of state Condoleezza Rice's snub during her trip with British Foreign Minister Jack Straw to Baghdad earlier this week -- risk empowering groups that are much more closely tied to neighbouring Iran.

Those groups -- notably the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK)-- are also the two that are most opposed to amending the constitution to accommodate the demands of the Sunni minority for a stronger federal government that would assure an equitable distribution of the country's oil revenues.

Both groups favour a weak federal system in which the Kurdish north and the Shiite south, the two centres of Iraq's oil wealth, would enjoy maximum autonomy.

If they come to dominate a new government, current trends moving the country toward outright civil war are likely to intensify, as could conflict among the Shiite militias themselves, according to these experts.

''If the Shiite centre collapses Ã*then massive internecine violence, Kurdish secessions and a Shiite dictatorship seem likely,'' according to an article published in the Wall Street Journal Monday by Reuel Marc Gerecht, an Iraq specialist and former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer at the neo-conservative American Enterprise Institute (AEI).

Indeed, a related Journal editorial, published Wednesday, noted that PUK leader and Iraqi president, Jalal Talabani, appears ''to have struck a deal with SCIRI to acquiesce in a Kurdish takeover of the oil-rich city of KirkukÃ*'' -- a move that Iraq experts have long warned would plunge the country into civil war.

Gerecht is not alone in warning against current U.S. efforts to sideline Jaafari, who narrowly defeated SCIRI's Abdel Abdul Mehdi as the UIA's candidate for prime minister in mid-February. The UIA, a coalition that includes SCIRI, Jaafari's Da'wa party, followers of Moqtada al-Sadr, and several smaller Shiite factions, has by


far the largest bloc in the new 275-seat national assembly that was elected last December.

Helena Cobban, an independent Middle East specialist and columnist for the Christian Science Monitor who, unlike Gerecht, strongly opposed the U.S. invasion and subsequent occupation, also believes that Washington's eagerness to oust Jaafari by splitting the UIA undermines its professed interests in averting civil war, preserving Iraq's unity, and, most of all, keeping Iran at bay.

''SCIRI and Talabani are both really tight with the mullahs in Tehran -- much more so than Jaafari and (his) Da'wa (party) and Moqtada,'' Cobban told IPS. ‘'My view is that (U.S. ambassador Zalmay) Khalilzad has been spun for an absolute sucker by Talabani and the Iranians.''

Moreover, she said, Washington also bears heavy responsibility for the ongoing impasse in forming the government, an impasse that has not only exacerbated sectarian conflict throughout the country, but one the administration has tried to blame on Jaafari, as a way of pressing him to step aside.

Its campaign against him began almost as soon as he won the UIA's nomination and has intensified in recent weeks, culminating in Rice's visit, according to Cobban.

But U.S. interference has largely backfired -- by delaying formation of the government, fueling the impression among Shiites, who constitute roughly 60 percent of Iraq's population, that Washington is conspiring deprive them of their victory in the December elections, and strengthening Sadr, the most anti-American and nationalist of all the Shiite factions.

Washington opposes Jaafari less for his perceived ineffectiveness as interim prime minister than for his close ties with -- indeed, growing dependence on -- Sadr, whose 15,000-man Mahdi Army militia dominates Sadr City in Baghdad, battled U.S. troops in 2004, and was responsible for many of the attacks on Sunnis that followed the bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra six weeks ago.

Sadr's spokesman, Fatah al-Sheikh, told Newsweek that, in exchange for Sadr's support within the UIA, Jaafari promised to demand a clear timetable for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces if he succeeded in becoming prime minister.

In order to prevent this from happening, Khalilzad has forged a de facto alliance with Talabani and SCIRI which, according to some experts, made clear to Khalilzad from the outset that, despite its commitment to UAI unity, it wanted the premiership for itself.

Their candidate is Mehdi, whose support for free-market economics and Western mien and education have made him a favourite in Washington for some time. But, as Gerecht noted this week, ''Mehdi isn't SCIRI.''

In addition to their common views on federalism, both PUK and SCIRI have close long-standing ties with Tehran which provided them with shelter and material support during Saddam Hussein's reign. Indeed, SCIRI's militia, the Badr Brigades, were trained and equipped by Iran's Revolutionary Guard and are widely believed to be most responsive to Tehran's wishes of all of the Shiite armed groups in Iraq.

Significantly, Tehran gave credit to SCIRI last month for its agreement to engage in direct talks with Washington about cooperation on stabilising Iraq, a move that not only ended a three-year hiatus in direct contacts between the two countries, but that has also spurred fears among Sunni-led governments in the Gulf, as well as the Sunni community in Iraq, that Washington is preparing to strike a deal with Tehran at their expense.

‘'That the Bush administration would welcome SCIRI-backed Iranian-U.S. talks in Baghdad is bizarre,'' according Gerecht. ‘'We should want to underscore and oppose all of SCIRI's Iranian flirtations.''

Ironically, the strongest bulwark against Iranian influence in the majority Shiite community, according to analysts here, is Sadr, whose Iraqi nationalism has appealed even to Sunnis with whom he has at times made common cause. Moreover, his opposition to the kind of weak federal structure favoured by the Kurds and SCIRI also crosses sectarian lines. And, while U.S. officials have depicted him as a ''divisive and sectarian presence in Iraqi politics,'' according to Cobban, ‘'SCIRI is far, far more divisive, sectarian, and violent.''

So far, however, Washington's efforts to split the UIA and oust Jaafari as its candidate have failed, a fact that both Gerecht and Cobban credit to the still-dominant influence over the Shiite community of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani who reportedly ignored a U.S. appeal to weigh in against Jaafari and who has repeatedly called for the coalition to maintain its unity.

While Mehdi called for Jaafari to step aside earlier this week, SCIRI's leader, Abd al-Aziz al-Hakim, has remained silent lest he be seen as defying Sistani. ‘'I think Sistani is sitting there in Najaf very quietly holding the reins,'' said Cobban.

Adster, well gathed! I love reading your comments and findings.

Originally Posted by lightrayspips

Adster, well gathed! I love reading your comments and findings.

Thank you my friend, good to see you on the other forum too, great source of information and articles.

What sticks in my mind through all this is an official article stating from a CBI official that 'the dinar will rise significantly in 2006'. That wasn't a rumour and was verified to be accurate.

We need the PM in asap, it worries me it has taken so long to do it. If and I think it will happen we get Mahdi in by June at the latest to start bringing some security and unite the country at a much needed time. If not there will be a full blown civil war.

Good positive article from an Iraqi paper.

http://thekurdistani.com/news/content/view/2151/2/

Article: The Liberation of Iraq Print E-mail
Thursday, 06 April 2006
(TheKurdistani.com) By Lawk Salih - On April 8th, 2003 the U.S. and Coalition forces entered Iraq to in order to overthrow Saddam Hussein's tyrannical regime. The decision was made by the U.S. government after the terrorist attacks occurred in the United States that damaged the Pentagon and brought down the Twin Towers in New York City. Three thousand innocent lives were taken by extremist Muslims originating from the UAE and Saudi Arabia in corporation with the Al-Qaeda Network based in Afghanistan.
With the support of the American public, President Bush made the decision, along with the British Government, to destroy all terrorist training camps in Afghanistan and Iraq. The decision also freed the people of Iraq and Afghanistan. It helped them freely elect their own government, ministries, and to run their own affairs without interference from any brutal dictators such as Saddam in Iraq and the Taliban in Afghanistan.

This invasion caused a harsh reaction by terrorist organizations around the world, primarily the Al-Qaeda group in Afghanistan. It allowed them to recruit weak-minded individuals and they managed to brain wash and prepare them for suicidal attacks against Iraqis and U.S. forces. These merciless groups attack innocents without any hesitation and their tactics are despicable. They behead them and kill powerless children and women in order to promote a disgusting ideology within the region and to create hatred towards western democracy. Video tapes have shown their attacks on government institutions, educational facilities, and supermarkets that outraged millions of people around the world. Their attacks have led to the murder of tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians and innocent people.

We marked the third year of the invasion this year and it seems like the U.S. government has done its job removing Saddam Hussein but still has trouble securing a government body in Iraq that will defend itself and help fight terrorism. The U.S. government is currently training the Iraqi army and security forces to defend its citizens and help draw down the number of U.S. troop in Iraq. The media in the U.S. and throughout the world has criticized the way the U.S. is handling the war in Iraq. They have published numerous articles that have heavily criticized US actions. However, they fail to communicate the "good things" that are happening in Iraq. Nearly 2,000 educational institutions have been rehabilitated with USAID funding, unemployment has dropped considerably, and more hospitals are being built in the rural areas.

In order for the U.S. to decrease its death toll in Iraq will have to train the Iraqi forces as soon as possible to do the actual fighting against these filthy jihads individuals who are willing to take innocent live out and create chaos to create an anti-U.S. alliance within Iraq. The training of Iraqi forces is vital to the withdrawal of U.S. forces. They need to be well trained to take on the security responsibilities of Iraq as a whole and to secure its borders from foreign fighters. The U.S. needs to empower non-religious groups to promote a modern society in Iraq and to respect self-determination and basic human rights. By supporting a Shia-led government, this will help create another Iran in the region and it will be difficult for us to fight terrorism in the region. They promote a secular government based on religious laws (Sharia) to limit freedom of speech, media, and self determination. We need a government that will promote a free democratic Iraq with prosperity and equal rights for all including women and children. The new government will need to recognize women's role in the society and a government that will not deprive women from getting education and the right to choose their own destination. Iraqis need a government that is not based on a religious constitution. Rather, they need a constitution that will serve the country as a whole without any religious interference.

The Kurds have done a tremendous job promoting democracy, individual's rights and free media. They have been busy reconstructing the northern part of Iraq (Kurdistan) with new schools, hospitals and government institutions. The region is safer then most places in the middle-east; they're fighting terrorism along side of the United States and the Coalition forces to free all Iraq from extremist Muslims. They have given the right to women to run in the governing council. There are currently two ministries running by women from the region. It is quite an improvement for a region that was deprived and oppressed by the previous tyranny of Saddam Hussein.

Good find Adam,

Just saw this as well and it better demonstrates that millions within Iraq realize they are better off, but the picture painted by the mainstream press is completely different. Just as it is politics as usual in US, now we see the same in Iraq, one party infighting with the other, but in Iraq it leads to open death, in US, it is selective death, often covered up as accidents. Nothing new, but politics suck, always has, always will. (g)

Good luck to all, Mike

USA : Iraq's economy nearly doubled - report
Sunday, April 9th 2006


The U.S. Department of State's release of the first presidential report to Congress detailing progress in Iraq shows that Iraq's economy nearly doubled from 2002 to 2005.

Iraq's Economy

Iraq's economy grew from $18.9 billion in 2002 to $33.1 billion in 2005.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that the real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 2.6 percent in 2005; the IMF expects the real GDP to grow by 10.4 percent in 2006.

Oil exports accounted for two-thirds of Iraq's GDP and more than 95 percent of government revenue in 2005. Although Iraq's economy depended mostly on oil exports, trade and service sectors became more active in 2005.

The U.S. assisted the Ministry of Finance in preparing and implementing banking and financial reforms and helped the Ministry of Trade in preparing to be considered for accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), as well as establishing an investment promotion agency.

U.S. efforts will continue with a transition from a primary focus on reconstruction projects to accelerating Iraq's economy and building Iraq's capacity to manage its own affairs, according to the report.

International Assistance to Iraq

The report deems international aid "critical to helping boost overall Iraqi economic growth and rehabilitate its infrastructure."

A top priority of Iraq's economic development, the report states, is the reduction of Iraq's external debt. As of last month, 16 of 18 Paris Club creditors have signed bilateral debt agreements with Iraq.

Ongoing U.S. assistance projects will help Iraq enact economic reforms it needs to sustain long-term growth, including the commitments under its IMF Stand-By-Arrangement, and the reforms needed to join the WTO.

The U.S. also continued to encourage an expanded World Bank presence in Iraq, the report stated.

Iraq's Security

As of March 20, U.S. and coalition forces have trained and equipped more than 111,000 soldiers, sailors and airmen; forces also trained and equipped more than 89,000 police.

Police work alongside 41,700 other Ministry of Interior forces, such as the National Police (formerly the Special Police). A total of more than 240,000 Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Interior forces have been trained and equipped.



tim410

Thanks Tim,

Yes, this is encouraging news given the fact of what has been going on with terrorist activity throughout this whole time period. As I was saying, and this report verifies, life goes on regardless of bombings, and the economy will continue to grow no matter what happens or doesn't happen, it all comes down to basic economics, and the demand for oil grows, so too will the demand for goods and services.

Good luck to all, Mike