" The Dinar Daily ", Friday, 18 July 2014
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  1. #1

    " The Dinar Daily ", Friday, 18 July 2014

    It is EVICT MALIKI DAY + SEVENTY - NINE (79) or " E - M DAY + 79 "

    PREVIOUSLY AND CONTINUING

    "..... despite the superiority of Maliki’s electoral coalition, the competing Shiite forces, the Kurds and the Sunnis, are together able to form a comfortable majority to prevent Maliki from remaining in office. "......................

    Maliki likely fears that if he rushes to do business with parties outside the Shiite alliance, his Shiite rivals would do the same and that they may have a better chance to win over the Kurdish and Sunni forces, because there is a general consensus among them to not keep Maliki in power.

    At the same time, the rest of the Shiite groups fear that this consensus is not solid enough to withstand discussing the details, and that going alone to the Kurdish and Sunni forces may put them in a weak bargaining position and make them appear responsible for breaking Shiite unity.

    An important factor here are the choices that the Sunni and Kurdish forces will make. If the Sunnis and Kurds rush to form ethnic and sectarian alliances, then the Shiite alliance may do the same.

    Some are proposing scenarios such as replacing Maliki with another figure from the State of Law Coalition as a compromise to ensure the continuation of the Shiite alliance.

    [* a source said in a statement to the Agency ((eighth day)) that there is an agreement semi-final between the U.S. and Iran to take on Ahmed Chalabi as prime minister for the next government as a compromise candidate.]

    Yet, such a solution may come at a later stage, after the favored options by most parties have been exhausted.

    What is certain now is that a harsh negotiating season will [ * HAS ] begin [ * BEGUN ] as the conflict moves from its electoral aspect into the closed negotiating rooms and deals among the elite. - - from al Monitor

    and

    Officially, Speaker, his 2 Deputy Speakers assume their posts

    Tuesday, 15 July 2014 21:23

    Baghdad (AIN) –The Speaker of the Parliament and his two Deputy Speakers assumed their duties officially.

    The Parliament succeeded in electing Speaker of the Parliament, Salim al-Jebuori, and his first Deputy, Haider al-Ebadi, as well as his 2nd deputy, Aram al-Sheikh Mohamed.

    The Parliament will assume task of elect new President then to form the Government.

    https://www.alliraqnews.com/en/index....e-their-posts-

    and

    next phase will be difficult to choose president and prime minster

    17/07/2014 09:50:00

    BAGHDAD / NINA / The Kurdish leading figure, former MP, Mahmud Othman confirmed "the difficulty of the next phase to select the President and the Prime Minister." pointing out that" every bloc wants the candidate who meets its ambition and this is difficult to be achieved in the current stage. "

    He told the National Iraqi News Agency / NINA / "The President of the Republic is within the share of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), and one of two characters, Barham Salih or Najimalddin Kareeem will be chosen, during the next two days, adding that electing the Speaker and his deputies made it easy to elect candidates for the posts of President and Prime Minister. "


    He said, "The Council of Ministers is the key to solve problems and matters relating to the state, therefore, everyone in the National Alliance puts this post within his ambition, therefore there will be difficult talks among the parties of the National Alliance on one hand, and between the National Alliance and other political blocs on the other hand to select the candidate for this important and sensitive post. "

    Othman asked "all political, sense of responsibility, and work collectively, and open a new page, so they can manage the country properly, describing" election of the Speaker and his two deputies, a positive step, on the grounds that they did not pass the candidates of the three presidencies in one basket deal. "

    and

    PUK Taken Aback as Najmaldin Karim Joins Race for Iraq Presidency

    By RUDAW

    Karim is a close friend of Jalal Talabani, the PUK leader and Iraq’s president.

    ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Najmaldin Karim, the powerful Kurdish governor of Kirkuk, has caused a stir inside his Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) by submitting his name for the Iraqi presidency, but without the party’s consent.

    A PUK official confirmed that Karim had submitted his candidacy. The office of the presidency declined to comment on the issue, and calls to Karim himself went unanswered.

    Karim is a close friend of Jalal Talabani, the PUK leader and Iraq’s president, who has been in Germany since a stroke in December 2012.

    As news about Karim broke on Wednesday Hero Ibrahim Ahmed, a PUK leader and Talabani’s wife, said the party had not finalized its nomination for the presidency.

    Kosrat Rasul Ali and Mala Bakhtyar, two senior PUK leaders, said in a statement that, “Only the political bureau has the authority to nominate PUK’s candidate for the presidency, and no one else.

    “We will not accept any illegitimate step taken contrary to the political bureau,” they said.

    Their statement added that the PUK would formally announce its candidate for the position in the next three days, and inform Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani of its choice.

    https://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/17072014

    and

    Ahrar Bloc: Barham Salih more accepted than any other figure for the presidency

    17/07/2014 10:37:00

    BAGHDAD / NINA / the head of the Ahrar parliamentary bloc, Moshriq Naji guessed that Barham Salih, deputy head of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan is the strongest candidate for the presidency of the Republic.

    He told the National Iraqi News Agency / NINA / that "the two leaders of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Barham Saleh and Najimalddin are vying for the post of President of the Republic."Naji said, "it is likely the Kurdish Alliance finishes the matter of the candidate for this post before the next parliamentary session devoted to select the president next Wednesday."

    He explained that "after the end of the first session and electing the Speaker and his deputies, and according to the Constitution and the law, a president of the country must be elected within thirty days."

    The Kurdistan Alliance announced that it would declare its candidates for the presidency during 48 hours, stressing that the choice will be between Kareem and Saleh, while sources in the Kurdistan Alliance reported that " Barham Saleh, deputy head of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) is the strongest candidate for the post of President of the Republic by the approval of most of the political parties, particularly the national Alliance. "

    https://www.ninanews.com/english/News...ar95_VQ=HFHMLD

    and

    Mehdi al-Hafiz to nominate for president
    17/07/2014 13:17:00


    BAGHDAD / NINA / Press sources announced that the former president of Age in the House of Representatives, Mehdi al-Hafez is ready for nomination for the office of President of the Republic.

    The sources added, " Mehdi al-Hafez, MP of Iraq Coalition, is preparing to run for the post of President of the Republic."

    The Presidency of the Council of Representatives announced today that nominations are open for the post of President of the Republic, through no later than the end of the official working hours of Sunday, July 20. "

    https://www.ninanews.com/english/News...ar95_VQ=HFIDGF

    and

    Chalabi announce his candidacy on Facebook for prime minister

    Wrote on: 07/17/2014 16:29:17 Section: Political Written by: Views: 13

    Future news / Baghdad: -

    MP for the coalition of citizen Ahmed Chalabi, said Thursday, "his candidacy for prime minister as a competitor for the owners."

    Chalabi said on his Facebook today: "Since the Muslim Brotherhood in the state law, adhere to the nomination of Nuri al-Maliki as Prime Minister and bookmark her condition admissibility of all spectrums of people for this to enter as a candidate and I'll be the alliance's candidate and 328 deputy are will resolve it within the parliament vote Democrat. "

    The State of Law coalition has expressed his commitment to the nomination of current Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki for the assumption of office for the third time in a row. "

    and

    A newspaper close to Iran stresses the intention of Al-Maliki's resignation

    16-07-2014 06:41 PM

    Orbit-Arabic. NET/sources of Lebanese Akhbar, close to Iran, abandoned the outgoing Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, his candidacy to head the new Government for a third term, after a request from the reference of Najaf and Iran.

    The paper reported that the request for religious reference came in a bid to end the conflict within and outside the National Coalition for the Prime Minister.

    The leaks that negotiations within the National Alliance are underway regarding the timing of the announcement of the nomination of a replacement for the succession of Al-Maliki, after the latter give up the run, where some parties prefer to announce this step results in the field.

    https://www.almadarnews.info/index.ph...rticle&id=5347

    and

    Ktlta al-Hakim and al-Sadr refused to renew Maliki's nomination to head the government and call for the coalition to provide irreplaceable

    Thu Jul 17 2014 22:33 | (Voice of Iraq)

    long-Presse / Baghdad

    New coalition al-Hakim and al-Sadr, on Thursday, refusing to nominate the prime minister expired, Nuri al-Maliki, for a third session, while Pena possibility of acceptance of another candidate presented by the coalition, threatened first by resorting to the opposition, revealing the second support the nomination of Adel Abdul Mahdi and Ahmad Chalabi for the post.

    Was Deputy for a coalition of citizen, of the Supreme Council of the Islamic, led by Ammar al-Hakim, to hold the prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, the state third, a "problem" to reject so many components of the National Alliance and other blocs, noting that many of them is the same, will turn to the subject If you do not submit a coalition of state law, an alternative candidate for the post.

    Ali said an inch, in an interview to the (long-Presse), said that "stuck to the prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, the state third, a problem within the National Alliance, could hinder the formation of the government for a long time," adding that "a lot of the components of the National Alliance and other blocs outside reject Maliki's nomination. "

    He added an inch, that "the political blocs could accept another candidate presented by a coalition of state law for the position," noting that "a lot of political blocs, including a coalition of citizens, would prefer to stay opposition if they insisted al-Maliki to head the next government," returned that there are "many figures that can occupy the prime minister runs the country. "

    For her part, the Liberal block of the Sadrist movement, rejected the state's third generation, revealing its support for the other two candidates. The MP said the Liberal bloc, F Bureau, said in an interview to the (long-Presse), "The bloc rejects the state's third generation, and supports the nomination of Adel Abdul-Mahdi, or Ahmad Chalabi to head the new government."

    According to the Court, that "the National Alliance can accept dissector last for a coalition of state law, non-Maliki," returned to "Maliki's insistence on the nomination itself would make him aloof from the National Alliance."

    The president of a coalition of state law, Nuri al-Maliki, new in (the fourth of July 2014 present), adherence to the nomination for a third term, amid worsening opposition to the majority of political forces Therefore, most notably the Sadrists, and a coalition of citizens, and the Kurdistan Alliance and the Sunni Arab blocs, as well as a coalition of national leadership Iyad Allawi, to do so.

    It is noteworthy that the National Alliance, a parliamentary blocs, the largest, has failed so far to choose its candidate to head the next government, amid worsening differences between components on more worthy than others in the job, amid confirmation actors in it, the need to undergo a candidate for "compatibility and acceptability" within the coalition in the national space.

    https://translate.googleusercontent.c...#ixzz37oG3bVdd

    and


    PUK Formally Submits Candidate for Iraqi Presidency
    By RÛDAW


    ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) has officially submitted its candidate for Iraq’s presidency, as politicians desperately struggle to put together a government in the middle of a Sunni rebellion and militant control of a third of Iraq.



    Sources told Rudaw that the PUK has chosen Fuad Massoum, who is from Halabja, as a compromise candidate. But that was not immediately confirmed. Massoum is a long-time associate of Jalal Talabani, the PUK leader and Iraqi president who has been in Germany since a stroke in December 2012.



    There were other reports that the PUK has chosen former speaker of the Kurdish parliament, Adnan Mufti.



    Mala Bakhtiar, a senior official of the PUK, formally presented the name Thursday to Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani. Sources told Rudaw the nominee was chosen to avoid further factionalism within the troubled party.



    Under the Iraqi constitution the president is Kurdish, the prime minister a Shiite and the parliament speaker a Sunni. The presidency is traditionally given to the PUK.



    This week MPs in Baghdad finally elected Salim al-Jabouri as parliament speaker, coming a stop closer to forming a government, as Iraq suffers a crisis that threatens to splinter the country.



    Even if a president is chosen, the issue of the Shiite prime minister still would remain unresolved: The Sunnis and Kurds have absolutely rejected a third term for Nouri al-Maliki, who has continued to insist he will remain prime minister.



    Meanwhile the PUK’s Najmaldin Karim, the powerful Kurdish governor of Kirkuk, has reportedly caused a stir inside his party by submitting his name for the presidency, without the party’s consent.

    That move raised the ire of other PUK leaders, including Mala Bakhtiar and Kosrat Rasul, who rejected any candidate that is not approved by the party leadership.



    Iraq’s former deputy premier, Barham Salih, had been considered one of the strongest PUK candidates for the post, but his name was reportedly rejected by the Talabani family due to past history between them.



    Unlike Karim, Saleh would be a national consensus candidate, due to his close ties with Iraqi leaders and his moderate views.



    While the Iraqi presidency is largely a ceremonial post, before his illness Talabani had used his charisma and political weight to give the position greater importance and act as mediator to resolve political disputes.


    https://rudaw.net/english/kurdistan/180720141
    Last edited by chattels; 07-18-2014 at 11:03 AM.



  2. #2

    Surprises that will be witnessed Wednesday's session of parliamentary

    Surprises that will be witnessed Wednesday's session of parliamentary


    09:39
    07/18/2014

    Confirmed the Liberal parliamentary bloc, said Thursday that the next session of the House of Representatives scheduled for next Wednesday will see surprises on the political positions of the President and the Prime Minister and their deputies.
    The MP said the bloc Mazen Mezni The 'political dialogues and consultations are still going on between the leaders of the National Alliance and other political blocs to resolve the candidates of the presidents, ministers and their deputies prior to the next meeting of the Council of Representatives'.
    He pointed out that 'hearing Wednesday of the House will see the political surprises, as the political blocs agreed in their meetings on the names of candidates of the presidents, ministers and their deputies'.

    https://translate.googleusercontent.c...iXAk8R0On_L93A






  3. #3

    Legal: Parliament completed destination of constitutional and can pass laws

    07/18/2014 10:55
    Legal: Parliament completed destination of constitutional and can pass laws








    ​sczin11- this is very interesting....


    BAGHDAD / obelisk: said legal expert Tareq Harb, on Friday, that the destination of the parliament completed constitutional and can pass laws, including the budget, provided a new reading read.
    He said the war in an interview for "obelisk", "as long as has been elected chairman of the parliament, the parliament is poised to take any action enters its competence, including the issuance of legislation and to exercise control."
    "The destination of Parliament completed the constitutional and do not mind at all that the budget law shall be issued, and the possibility of the formation of committees of Parliament to pass laws and provided a new reading read."
    He called the new parliament, in its third meeting, last Tuesday, MP for the coalition of national forces Salim al-chairman of the parliament after the sound of his 194 deputies, and won the MP for the rule of law Haider Abadi, the post of First Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives, while the defeated MP for the mass change Aram Sheikh Mohammed , the position of Second Vice-President of the Council.

    https://translate.googleusercontent.c...CyVM0aWzCtARJQ

  4. #4

    Sulaimaniya airport: flights between the region and Baghdad are going on a regular ba

    Sulaimaniya airport: flights between the region and Baghdad are going on a regular basis and does not stop

    Thursday, July 18, 2014 11:04

    [Erbil - where]
    Management denied Sulaimaniya airport, on Friday, stopped flights between the airports and the Kurdistan region of Iraq.
    He said airport director Taher Abdullah told all of Iraq [where] that "the flights between the airports and the Kurdistan region of Iraq, going on a regular basis, and there's no stopping them on the background of the last crisis between Baghdad and Erbil."
    "The airline offices may not give reservations sometimes for passengers as a result of pressure on the line of air traffic because of the closure of roads bond between the center and the region, there is a momentum in Alhjos, and not getting [Altkt] does not mean that there is a problem in aircraft movements not related to the political crisis in by the fact that air transport vital area and can not be stopped for any reason. "
    He said the "Airports province follow the Civil Aviation Authority in Iraq and Iraqi Airways and stopped air traffic will affect the economic and commercial reality in Iraq.

    https://translate.googleusercontent.c...PMenSQRw6x9uGg


  5. #5

    Urgent .. President of the Republic back to Iraq tomorrow

    Urgent .. President of the Republic back to Iraq tomorrow

    Thursday, July 18, 2014 11:52

    [Baghdad - where]
    The Office of President Jalal Talabani, Talabani on Friday to return home on Saturday.
    The office issued Talabani statement received by all of Iraq [where] a copy of it today that "Talabani up to the homeland on Saturday, the nineteenth of July of this after his recovery and the completion of treatment in the friendly country of Germany from the bidder health, which passed by a lead all responsibility known about his duties and his work President of the Republic of Iraq.
    And "as stress Gbttna safely president and his presence among his people and his comrades and brothers and sons of the Iraqis, we present this happy occasion thanks and appreciation to all of the shadow is following carefully and interesting health status of the president, which interest across all of which pride pivotal role who has Mam Jalal continuing with various conditions and the pursuit of which for a democratic Iraq, a free and federal both his work and his leadership in the opposition to the regime of the dictatorial regime or in the construction phase of our democratic experience and its fundamental role known to collect parties Patriots on the word either, basis of justice, equality, tolerance and brotherhood and all human values ​​and the struggle that gave for it the people of Iraq in all sects blood and souls. "
    The statement "I embody this feeling of fulfillment and gratitude to President Jalal Talabani through the emotions of the great under our various components follow their health status to him, a sentiment across the Iraqis from references Cram and the forces of toast and political figures and social and the citizens, for the love and pride and appreciation for the great role carried out by the President for years of struggle and hard work, and what was known about him from the spirit and national pride of the focus has always remained proud of everyone in this great emotions and stress thanks to God Almighty and to our great people who deserve goodness and peace and well-being. "
    Clear that he "had feelings shown by a lot of political figures, kings and princes, leaders and dignitaries from many countries as they watched the health status of President Jalal Talabani, valued in our hearts, they have all thanks to what they expressed the warm feelings and beautiful supplication."
    The Qobad Talabani, Vice President of the Kurdistan Regional Government, son of the president of the outgoing Jalal Talabani announced the return of the latter to Iraq during the current year of 2014.
    Qubad Talabani said in a press statement earlier that "phoned home and discussed with him the situation in the country," certain that "good health and will return to Iraq this year."
    The last appearance of Talabani was in 28 of the month of April, when he cast his vote in parliamentary elections, a vote abroad in one of the polling stations in Germany being treated there for nearly two years, and appeared Talabani pictures video new aired on one of the satellite channels belonging to his party, which raises his index finger color ink referring to casting his vote.
    And was the site of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), has been published on the third of April, three new pictures of President Jalal Talabani during Nawrouz in the German capital Berlin and the back of the President in good health, dealing with the talk and drink tea in some picture smil

    https://translate.googleusercontent.c...TuGE8tR1xXging, and there are figures with him in the picture, perhaps of his relatives






    and


    Qubad: President Talabani to return to Iraq next Saturday


    Friday, 18 July 2014 13:10

    Erbil (AIN) -Deputy Prime Minister of Kurdistan Regional Government Qubad Talabani informed PUKmedia that President Mam Jalal enjoys a good health and will return home tomorrow Saturday, July 19.

    it is worth mentioning that the Presidential Office announced today that President Talabani will return home tomorrow.

    https://www.alliraqnews.com/en/index....next-saturday-

    and


    Iraq’s President Talabani to Return Tomorrow
    By RUDAW


    The office of Iraq’s presidency also confirmed Talabani’s scheduled return without providing further details.


    SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region—Dr. Najmaldin Karim, Jalal Talabani’s private doctor told Rudaw that Jalal Talabani, the leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) will return to the Kurdistan Region tomorrow.



    Talabani, the founder of the PUK and Iraq’s President suffered a stroke in 2012 and he has been in a German hospital since.



    “We have been preparing for the return of Talabani for a while and the German doctors have permitted him to return,” said Karim, who is also a member of the PUK leadership. “So he will return tomorrow, Saturday.”



    Karim said that Talabani’s return “will prove to everyone that we were telling the truth when we were saying his health has improved.”



    The office of Iraq’s presidency also confirmed Talabani’s scheduled return without providing further details.



    “Talabani was very eager to return to Kurdistan,” said Karim. “There wasn’t a day that he didn’t ask me on the telephone to join him in Germany and return together to Kurdistan.”



    According to Karim, Talabani will settle in his home in Sulaimani and his special team of physical therapists will come with him.



    “Talabani will not return to Germany for treatment, unless for vacation,” said Karim.

    https://rudaw.net/english/kurdistan/180720142
    Last edited by chattels; 07-19-2014 at 12:50 AM.

  6. #6

    Parliamentary Committees

    * From A Friend *

    Student Deputy for the National Alliance, on Thursday, the House of Representatives need to formation of parliamentary committees before proceeding to form the next government, stressing that the Iraqi people need to pass the budget for the current year more than choose their own government.

    Said Mohammed Chihod, MP for the National Alliance, for "Wi-News “that” there is no constitutional text identifies the parliament to form a government before the formation of the committees."

    Chihod added that "Iraq needs to formation of parliamentary committees more than the formation of the next government," noting that "there are many laws need to be adopted, transmitted".

    He explained that "among these laws is the law of the general budget for the current year," stressing the need for "the formation of committees in order adopted, transmitted rapidly."

    He continued that "there is no problem of opening the door for nominations for the posts of President and the Prime Minister, in conjunction with the time spent by the parliament for the formation of committees.

    https://ynewsiq.com/

  7. #7

    Iraqi forces regain control of the border areas between Iraq and Syria

    Iraqi forces regain control of the border areas between Iraq and Syria

    07/16/2014

    Iraqi security forces in Anbar exposure to the media and hardware detainees were caught during the recent operations carried out against al Daash. [Image rights of the Iraqi Ministry of Defense]

    Ministry of Defence announced that the Iraqi army regained control in the beginning of this month on some of the border areas between Iraq and Syria, through a process called "fire walls" lasted three days and resulted in the death and injury of dozens of members of al Daash.

    A spokesman for the Joint Special Operations Command team Qassim Atta at a press conference in Baghdad that "the four combat brigades with the support of hundreds of tribal people and the Army Aviation launched an operation on the walls of fire along the border between Iraq and Syria on the one hand Anbar province."



    Atta said the operation cleared 17 villages and the small town of Daash gangs and led to the deaths of 67 militants and arrested 45 others, as well as the confiscation of 6 tons of explosives, arms and ammunition were recovered from the gunmen.

    He pointed out that the army also received the information and documents are very important and describes plans Daash crimes.



    Atta said that the operation was carried out after the domination Daash the regions of Syria and Iraq last month, and the security forces managed to cut the road used by elements of the organization to move between the two countries.



    For his part, the commander of Army forces in Anbar province, Lt. Gen. Rashid Flaih Mawtani that the Iraqi army was able to destroy the three corridors for the movement of Daash between the border and regained the port-based control of the terrorists also rebuilt the concrete barriers and raise the earth mounds and re-labeling international border between the two countries after Daash be demolished.



    He explained that Filaih "The operation took place in some areas which are open desert environment, prompting the intervention of Army Aviation for the bombing sites and gathering sources shooting direction of the army and the people of the tribes."



    TRIBAL MEMBERS PROVIDE ASSISTANCE TO THE ARMY



    He praised the efforts of Filaih tribal people and thanked them for "their great support of the army," whether at the level of "fiery momentum with the army or the information."



    He stated that additional security forces worked on the reconstruction and rehabilitation of border outposts and re-equipping with heavy weapons, medium and advanced monitoring systems.



    For his part, the leader of the Iraqi Awakening, Sheikh Ahmed Abu Risha to my home, "The tribes made 31 of its sons on the path of the martyrs of freedom during the war with Daash on the borderline."



    He added that the process of Abu Risha "fire walls" came in response to Daash and its successor, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi , carrying several of the most important messages that they claim Aaiedkm tribes were the first refusal and Qatlkm. "



    Said Sheikh Mujbil Karbouli, one of the tribal leaders in the town of Qaim, to my home, "was the scene remove banners Daash and raise the flags Iraqi border barriers and the spread of soldiers Mpkaa and very moving," especially among remember the last few days that captured the Daash on the border.

    https://mawtani.al-shorfa.com/ar/arti.../16/feature-01

  8. #8

    PUK Formally Submits Candidate for Iraqi Presidency

    PUK Formally Submits Candidate for Iraqi Presidency
    By RÛDAW

    Fuad Massoum is a long-time associate of Jalal Talabani. Photo: knwe.net

    ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) has officially submitted its candidate for Iraq’s presidency, as politicians desperately struggle to put together a government in the middle of a Sunni rebellion and militant control of a third of Iraq.



    Sources told Rudaw that the PUK has chosen Fuad Massoum, who is from Halabja, as a compromise candidate. But that was not immediately confirmed. Massoum is a long-time associate of Jalal Talabani, the PUK leader and Iraqi president who has been in Germany since a stroke in December 2012.



    There were other reports that the PUK has chosen former speaker of the Kurdish parliament, Adnan Mufti.



    Mala Bakhtiar, a senior official of the PUK, formally presented the name Thursday to Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani. Sources told Rudaw the nominee was chosen to avoid further factionalism within the troubled party.



    Under the Iraqi constitution the president is Kurdish, the prime minister a Shiite and the parliament speaker a Sunni. The presidency is traditionally given to the PUK.



    This week MPs in Baghdad finally elected Salim al-Jabouri as parliament speaker, coming a stop closer to forming a government, as Iraq suffers a crisis that threatens to splinter the country.



    Even if a president is chosen, the issue of the Shiite prime minister still would remain unresolved: The Sunnis and Kurds have absolutely rejected a third term for Nouri al-Maliki, who has continued to insist he will remain prime minister.



    Meanwhile the PUK’s Najmaldin Karim, the powerful Kurdish governor of Kirkuk, has reportedly caused a stir inside his party by submitting his name for the presidency, without the party’s consent.

    That move raised the ire of other PUK leaders, including Mala Bakhtiar and Kosrat Rasul, who rejected any candidate that is not approved by the party leadership.



    Iraq’s former deputy premier, Barham Salih, had been considered one of the strongest PUK candidates for the post, but his name was reportedly rejected by the Talabani family due to past history between them.



    Unlike Karim, Saleh would be a national consensus candidate, due to his close ties with Iraqi leaders and his moderate views.



    While the Iraqi presidency is largely a ceremonial post, before his illness Talabani had used his charisma and political weight to give the position greater importance and act as mediator to resolve political disputes.


    https://rudaw.net/english/kurdistan/180720141

  9. #9

    Kurds to Redraw the Map of the Middle East

    Kurds to Redraw the Map of the Middle East

    By Shivan Fazil


    The secret 1916 Sykes-Picot Agreement struck between the British and French governments with Russia’s approval, carved up the Middle East following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire during World War I.



    A century later, it is time for the Kurds to redraw the map regardless of which of the great powers wants to honor it. It can be America, France or Britain if they want the opportunity to redeem their sins.



    Despite the 2003 US-led liberation of Iraq and after a decade of the US military’s investment and training of the Iraqi military, the army’s defeat in Mosul is reminiscent of the swift fall of the ousted Baath regime.



    Kurdish Peshmarga forces marched toward the largely Kurdish areas outside of the Kurdistan Region’s three provinces to fill the security vacuum. This move that marks a milestone — that Kurds were able to regain their motherland and begin the implementation of Article 140 of the Iraqi constitution, which many Arab MPs consider irrelevant.



    The article was created to determine the fate of disputed areas, most notably Kirkuk. This was to be decided in three steps: normalization, which involved repatriating Arabs whom Saddam Hussein’s regime had moved into Kirkuk to “Arabize” the province and allowing Kurds and others who were kicked out of Kirkuk to return. The second step was a population census to determine the ethnic make-up of the province, and then a referendum on whether Kirkuk should be incorporated into the Kurdistan Region or be governed by Baghdad.



    The recent upheaval in Iraq allowed the Kurds to achieve in the course of two weeks what they could not accomplish in 10 years vis-à-vis the political process in Iraq. And there appears to be international support for an independent Kurdish state, at least among US analysts and columnists.



    In a recent op-ed in the Los Angeles Times, Timothy Waters, a professor of law and associate director of the Center for Constitutional Democracy at Indiana University’s Maurer School of Law, wrote:



    “’This moment requires statesmanship.’ That was Secretary of State John F. Kerry — a man not known for irony — in a meeting in late June with Massoud Barzani, president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region. Appealing to Barzani's nonexistent Iraqi patriotism, Kerry asked for the Kurdistan leadership's help in fighting Islamic militants overrunning northern Iraq, and pleaded for Kurds to help form a new government in Baghdad rather than seek independence.



    But what Kerry seems to have meant is, "This moment requires provincialism," because that is what the United States is asking the Kurds to remain: a province of Iraq. The Kurds aren't likely to listen — Barzani announced a referendum on independence — and the question now is: How should the U.S. respond? Washington has long insisted on Iraq's unity — "worship[ing] at the altar of a unified yet unnatural Iraqi state," as foreign policy analyst Leslie Gelb has written. But recognizing Kurdish independence would advance American interests and better reflect American values.



    The Kurds have powerful moral claims to statehood, claims denied after World War I, when a Kurdish state first proposed under Woodrow Wilson's principle of self-determination was instead divided among Turkey, Syria and Iraq. Iraqi Kurds' decades of suffering under Baghdad — including Saddam Hussein's genocidal gassing campaign — give them grounds for exit now.



    New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman wrote in mid-June:



    The Sunni jihadists, Baathists and tribal militiamen who have led the takeover of Mosul from the Iraqi government are not supporters of a democratic, pluralistic Iraq, the only Iraq we have any interest in abetting. And Iraq’s Shiite prime minister, Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, has proved himself not to be a friend of a democratic, pluralistic Iraq either …



    “Maliki had a choice — to rule in a sectarian way or in an inclusive way — and he chose sectarianism. We owe him nothing.”



    In Bloomberg View, Jeffrey Goldberg, who writes about the Middle East, US foreign policy and national affairs, pointed out that corruption is rife in Kurdistan, but that the region “is Switzerland compared to the rest of Iraq, and the rest of the neighborhood.” He argued:



    “The Kurdish people, members of the largest stateless nation in the world, have dreamed of independence for 100 years. President Barack Obama could be the man who delivers them to freedom …



    “This is a very critical time for Iraq, and the government formation challenge is the central challenge that we face,” and that Kerry has emphasized Iraq’s leaders must “produce the broad-based, inclusive government that all the Iraqis I have talked to are demanding …



    “Kerry might be talking to the wrong Iraqis. The Kurdish Iraqis I talk to see this moment as a turning point in the history of their people, when the lie that is Iraq -- a country cobbled together by the British and French 100 years ago in way that institutionalized discrimination against the non-Arab Kurds by the majority Arab population -- is finally being exposed … For two decades, the Kurds have shown themselves to be the most mature and responsible entity in Iraqi politics, which is one reason American officials are panicked by the thought of their permanent departure. A Kurdish exit will promote instability, the thinking goes. But what the region has now isn’t stability. What's there, among other things, is an institutionalized injustice, an injustice at times exacerbated by US policy.”



    Goldberg concludes: “It is way past time for the international community to listen to the Kurds and help them reach their legitimate national aspirations.”



    Shivan Fazil is web content and social media manager at the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Department of Media and Information. He wrote this article in a personal capacity. Twitter: @ShivanFazil


    https://rudaw.net/english/opinion/18072014

  10. #10

    Crises Cause Kurdish Investors in Iraq ‘Near Bankruptcy’

    Crises Cause Kurdish Investors in Iraq ‘Near Bankruptcy’
    By Nawzad Mahmoud


    Rasheed of the Kurdistan Investors Union, said “part of the money seized by ISIS in Mosul’s banks belonged to investors and business owners, which undoubtedly includes Kurds.

    Rasheed of the Kurdistan Investors Union, said “part of the money seized by ISIS in Mosul’s banks belonged to investors and business owners, which undoubtedly includes Kurds." Photo: AFP


    SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region — Deteriorating security and increasing tensions between Baghdad and Erbil are hurting Kurdish businesses in southern and central Iraq, investors and financial experts say.



    Kurdish investors who have worked outside of the Kurdistan Region in volatile areas of Iraq for as long as a decade told Rudaw the situation now is dire and worsening daily. Fears are high even in relatively stable areas.



    Many Kurdish investors operating outside of the region are close to bankruptcy because of recent crises, including Sunni militants taking over towns and cities and unprecedented tensions between Erbil and Baghdad, said Yasin Mahmoud Rasheed, a Kurdistan Investors Union spokesman.



    Investors with projects on the outskirts of Mosul, Salahadin and Ramadi provinces, areas are now run by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or Sunni Arab tribes, “are really at risk because they don’t have any hopes of getting their money back,” said Rasheed.



    He also said investors “working in areas not yet controlled by ISIS are really anxious.”



    When Iraq opened up to international investors following the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime and lifting of United Nations sanctions in 2003, Iraqi Kurds flocked to southern and central Iraq looking for opportunities. While many have since left areas due to instability, Kurdish entrepreneurs who have established businesses been warmly welcome in the other Iraqi cities partially because they were keen to learn from the Kurdistan Region’s economic growth, said one Kurdish investor.



    Now, a Kurdish investor working in a Sunni Arab-dominated region of Iraq believes the tensions among Iraqi politicians, who have not been able to form a new government, will hurt their interests and could eventually force them to return to the Kurdistan Region empty-handed.



    “If the situation keeps heading in this direction, people here will change their attitude toward us,” said the investor, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “They won’t treat us well anymore.”



    “The investors and the contractors are paying a heavy price for the current crises,” said another Kurdish investor working in Najaf who requested anonymity. But, he said, “There is no government in Baghdad that can protect the investors.”



    Rasheed of the Kurdistan Investors Union, said “part of the money seized by ISIS in Mosul’s banks belonged to investors and business owners, which undoubtedly includes Kurds. ISIS seized $500,000, and the government must compensate the contractors and investors. We’ll take Maliki’s government to court, because they have not been compensated,” he added, in reference to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki who is facing fierce opposition to re-election after Sunni insurgents seized Mosul in June.



    Diyar Qazaz, a Kurdish developer working in Diwaniya in central Iraq for the past two years, plans to build 1,000 housing units in the Shiite-majority city because he considers it somewhat stable.



    “It’s better than the Kurdistan Region because they help you and pay you more respect in government institutions once they discover you are a Kurd,” he said. “But there’s no money and unemployment is widespread. People are extremely upset.”



    In other areas of Iraq, however, investors have had to change the Kurdish names of their companies to Arabic because they don’t feel safe.

    The situation is also difficult for Kurdish businesspeople who travel via car because some of the roads between Baghdad and Erbil have became infested with criminal armed groups. In the past, Kurdish investors who drive with large amounts of cash were killed near Kirkuk, which sits between Iraqi Kurdistan and Baghdad, or kidnapped and held for ransom.



    Abdul Kareem Hassan, Kirkuk’s mayor, said, “The contractors and investors in Kirkuk haven’t left the city yet and are still working. Twenty investors from the Kurdistan Region are working in Kirkuk. Only one of them asked to postpone working on his project because it was located in Tuz Khurmatu, where clashes often occur.”



    He added that projects in outlying areas of Kirkuk that are insurgent strongholds, like Hawija, Zab and Rashad, “have stopped completely and the investors have left those areas. Projects inside Kirkuk (city) have recently slowed down due to lack of funding and summer heat, but not for security reasons.”

    https://rudaw.net/english/business/17072014

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