Iraq

14 February 2020; AFP: A rocket slammed into an Iraqi base where American troops are stationed in the remote province of Kirkuk, Iraq's military and a US security source told AFP on Thursday night.

It was the latest in a string of nearly 20 rocket attacks since late October on US troops stationed across the country as well as on the American embassy in Baghdad.

BAGHDAD, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi security forces on Wednesday reopened areas in downtown Baghdad and warned that anti-government protests go on only in al-Tahrir Square under the protection of the Iraqi forces.

A statement by Baghdad Operations Command (BOC), responsible for the security of Baghdad province, said that the security forces reopened al-Khalani and Wathba Squares, as well as al-Sinak Bridge and al-Rashid Street, and the security forces want to protect the demonstration in Tahrir Square and at the same time to secure traffic movement in the capital.

BAGHDAD, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- At a villa in an upscale neighborhood in central Baghdad, an old Iraqi female novelist was anxious to offer an initiative aimed at boosting the cultural movement in Iraq after decades of wars in the war-shattered country.

Safira Jamil Hafiz, 89, took advantage of the quiet location of her villa in Karrada neighborhood and devoted the upstairs of her two-story building to be a public library for book readers, including student, to enjoy reading without noise.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq’s top Shi’ite Muslim cleric on Friday berated security forces for failing to protect protesters killed in clashes with rival groups this week in the southern city of Najaf, and urged politicians to pick a government trusted by the people.

The violence in the holy city of Najaf, where Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani is based, killed eight anti-government demonstrators after followers of populist cleric Moqtada al-Sadr stormed their sit-in protest.

BAGHDAD, Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least five people have been killed and dozens of others wounded in clashes between anti-government protesters and supporters of Shia leader Muqtada al-Sadr in southern Iraq.

The violence broke out on Wednesday at a protest camp in the holy city of Najaf after al-Sadr’s supporters attempted to forcibly remove demonstrators from the site, where they were holding a sit-in.

BAGHDAD (AP) — The Iraqi government has told its military not to seek assistance from the U.S.-led coalition in operations against the Islamic State group, two senior Iraqi military officials said, amid a crisis of mistrust between Washington and Baghdad after an American strike killed a top Iranian general and an Iraqi militia commander.

The step shows that while the Iraqí leadership’s demands for an immediate removal of American forces have cooled, they are serious about rethinking the strategic relationship, and this is directly affecting military cooperation.

05 Feb 2020; MEMO: The government of Iraq and the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan have reached an agreement on Erbil’s contribution to the 2020 federal budget, state news agency INA reported on Wednesday.

The deal includes a transfer of 250,000 barrels per day (bpd) from the oil-producing region to Iraq’s national budget, Kurdistan regional government (KRG) spokesman Jotiar Adil was quoted as saying.

Iraq’s 2020 federal budget is currently under discussion in parliament.

3 February 2020; AFP: Furious anti-government youth in Iraq's capital and south on Sunday rejected the nomination of Mohammad Allawi as prime minister, but came up against rival sit-ins by supporters of an influential cleric backing the new premier.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) --- A month after a U.S. missile killed him, Qassem Soleimani looms as large over Iraq’s fractured democracy as he ever did alive.

The death of the Iranian general removed a shrewd guiding hand on the pro-Tehran Shi’ite militias who revered him, setting off a menacing new instability in Iraq’s fragile political arena.

Now the shadowy power structure he helped to build — a state above the state made up of Iraq’s formal institutions — risks colliding ever more bloodily with a powerful youth-led anti-Iranian protest movement.

BAGHDAD (AP) — Former communications minister Mohammed Allawi was named prime minister-designate by rival Iraqi factions Saturday after weeks of political deadlock.

The choice comes as the country weathers troubled times, including ongoing anti-government protests and the constant threat of being ensnared by festering U.S.-Iran tensions.

The selection of Allawi, 66, to replace outgoing Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi was the product of many back-room talks over months between rival parties.