Iraqs Inconvenient Truth :: Iraq War News Updates

By Ali shatab

Agriculture Minister Nadhem al-Abadi said most of the new jobs will be created in the southern and central parts of the country.

Iraq is endowed with fertile land and two of the world’s largest rivers which bisect the country from north to south.

Nonetheless, it now has to import most of its food needs. The country’s food import bill is estimated at nearly $5 billion a year.

But Abadi said, “We hope the new plan will boost agricultural produce, particularly of main crops and to be able to meet 21 per cent of the country’s food needs.”

New technologies will be introduced and the use of fertilizers and pesticides to be expanded, he said.

Abadi said the ministry’s teams and technician were even engaged in providing their services in ‘restive areas’ where three million animals have been vaccinated. IraqUpdates

Spc. Michael Alberts, 3rd IBCT, 25th Inf. Div. Public Affairs
Apr 14, 2007 - 5:58:45 PM Source

Blackanthem Military News, KIRKUK, Iraq -

Multi-National Force-Iraq Command Sgt. Major Jeffrey Mellinger (left) joins Staff Sgt. Elliott Maldonado (center) and Capt. Mark Barton (right), Soldiers with 3rd Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Inf. Div., on patrol in Kirkuk, Iraq, April 13. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Michael Alberts, 3rd IBCT, 25th Inf. Div. Public Affairs)

Multi-National Force-Iraq Command Sgt. Major Jeffrey Mellinger (right) walks with Command Sgt. Major David Clark, battalion command sergeant major, 3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Inf. Div., on patrol in Kirkuk, Iraq, April 13. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Michael Alberts, 3rd IBCT, 25th Inf. Div. Public Affairs)

Multi-National Force-Iraq Command Sgt. Major Jeffrey Mellinger (left) is greeted by a Soldier with the 5th Strategic Infrastructure Battalion, 1st SIB, in Kirkuk Province, Iraq, April 13. The SIB is principally charged with natural resource infrastructure protection. Mellinger joined Soldiers of 3rd Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Inf. Div., on patrol. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Michael Alberts, 3rd IBCT, 25th Inf. Div. Public Affairs)

Multi-National Force-Iraq Command Sgt. Major Jeffrey Mellinger joins Soldiers of 3rd Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Inf. Div., on patrol in Kirkuk, Iraq, April 13. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Michael Alberts, 3rd IBCT, 25th Inf. Div. Public Affairs)

Multi-National Force-Iraq Command Sgt. Major Jeffrey Mellinger (center) listens to Staff Sgt. Elliott Maldonado as he prepares his Soldiers of 3rd Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, for the afternoon patrol in Kirkuk, Iraq, April 13. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Michael Alberts, 3rd IBCT, 25th Inf. Div. Public Affairs)

15 April 2007 (BBC Monitoring)
[Report by Maysar Al-Shammari, Jedda: "With a View to Isolating 'The Islamic State for Iraq', Nine Iraqi Resistance Groups Announce the Establishment of 'The National Islamic Resistance Coordination Bureau'"]

Sources close to a number of Iraqi resistance groups have said that nine groups met recently in an Arab capital. The participants agreed to create “the Coordination Bureau for the National Islamic Resistance in Iraq”. The bureau aims to isolate “the Islamic State of Iraq” and all the extremist factions which are trading with the blood of Muslims. It also aims to “eradicate the obstinate, the upstarts, the opportunists and the profiteers from the faith of Jihad”, and unify the ranks of national resistance in the absence of coordination as well as bring cohesion to the national resistance groups now that disputes have gone as far as splits within the one group.

The nine groups announced in a communique that they “declare themselves innocent of any link with the political projects put forth on the internal and external arenas”. One of the participants said in a telephone contact with Al-Hayat: “that the nine groups did not have any external links, and that their aim is to fight occupation”. He drew attention to the fact that the groups represent the Iraqi spectrum including the Sunnis, the Shi’is, the Kurds and others.

The coordinator of the meeting (who chose not to mention his name) told Al-Hayat: “There are four other groups who agreed with us on the [content of the] communique and announced their agreement to join the coordination bureau, but the representatives of these groups could not turn up to sign the communique because of the situation prevailing in Iraq.” He drew attention to the fact that it had been agreed with the leaders of the four groups to fix another time to have their signatures.

The groups that signed the communique are: the army of Ansar al-Sunnah, the army of Ansar al-Muslimin, the Muslims’ army, the army of the Naqshbandi way, the Islamic Front for the Iraqi Resistance, the 1920 Revolution Brigades (it is believed that the Islamic Victory Corps is the one that represents the 1920 Revolution Brigades following the split of the battalions into two groups), in addition to Al-Faruq Battalions, Mustafa Battalions and Ansar Allah Battalions. These groups oppose what is called “the Islamic State of Iraq”, which was declared by Abu-Umar al-Baghdadi, and upon which he appointed himself as commander of the faithful.

The coordinator of the meeting pointed out that the nine groups agree that the style and methodology of the Islamic State of Iraq are wrong and that its establishment could divide Iraq and tear apart the efforts of the national resistance. He said: “The kind of division and disunion caused by the announcement of the establishment of the Islamic State [of Iraq] was the reason that compelled us to create the Coordination Bureau with a view to uniting the efforts of the moderate national Islamic resistance and to liberating our homeland which has been occupied for more than four years.” He added: “We categorically reject the style and methodology of the Islamic State [of Iraq] which is characterized with extremism. We do not recognize the current Iraqi government either, because it is the product of the occupation, and it has no will.” He stressed: “The unlawful nature of laying any bridges with the current government (…), the fact that any dialogue with the occupier should be preceded by the recognition of the legitimacy of the Iraqi resistance, the withdrawal without any condition, then apologizing to the Iraqi people for the horrors and catastrophes that befell them.”

Informed Iraqi sources whom Al-Hayat spoke to in Baghdad indicated that it was the prerogative of the Coordination Bureau to unify the ranks of national resistance, undermine any opportunity for extremists such as Abu-Umar al-Baghdadi and the fighters of Al-Qa’idah who have allowed the shedding of the Iraqi blood, be it Sunni or Shi’i, and before that they had allowed the Kurdish and Turkmen blood in Kurdistan and Talla’far. The sources further said: “that the existence of a bureau for the coordination of resistance action is likely to curb the random killing which has been the speciality of groups that are alien to the Iraqi resistance.”

Source: Al-Hayat website, London

By Maj. Eric Verzola, 4th BCT (Airborne), 25th Inf. Div.
Apr 13, 2007 - 4:08:01 PM

Iraqi Police officers from An Najaf, Babil and Karbala provinces work together in a team building exercise at Forward Operating Base Kalsu during Iraqi Police Sustainment Training Class 07-03 April 2. The program is designed to increase and sustain law enforcement skills that will be valuable in peace enforcement in the three provinces. The course ran from April 1-10. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Ivacic)

Blackanthem Military News, KALSU, Iraq — The feeling in the air was a mixture of happiness, pride, satisfaction, and a hint of melancholy.  The bright Iraqi sun hung in the sky like a glowing ember of coal, as graduates of the third Iraqi Police Sustainment Training program staged their luggage and books for movement back to their respective home provinces April 10.

This was the first class that included IP from the three provinces of Babil, Karbala, and An Najaf.  Babil sent 17 police officers, Karbala 20, and An Najaf 10.

This diversity in provinces, while training as one unit was reflected in the graduation class remarks of Lt. Col. Greg Bell, commander, 2nd Battalion, 377th Parachute Field Artillery Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division.

“This graduation truly symbolizes that the IP train and fight as a team,” said Bell and an Oak Hill, W. Va., native.

The military liaison instructor for the class, Sgt. 1st Class Matt Ivacic, a military policeman and native of Orange County, Calif., saw firsthand the effect of having the three provinces together for this program.

“When this class started, I could see that the class divided on a provincial level,” said Ivacic.  “But as the class went on, I could see them grow closer and build ties.

“Today, at the end of the program, in very short period of time, these men have formed life long bonds by working and living together for only 10 days, but where the real root took hold was the deep understanding that occurs when they see that they share the same struggles and hardships that all law enforcement personnel share and, even more so here where the dangers on your life as an IP are tremendous,” Ivacic said.

The instructors in the program, called Iraqi Police Liaison Officers, feel that the 10 days of training offered in police work is just the right time to sustain and develop peace officers for a more secure Iraq in the future.

“One way we are able to see the fruit of our labors is going out to the stations and doing visits with the IPs, along with Police Transitions Teams,” said Nathan Wheeler, an instructor and a native of Faulkton, S.D.  “These visits let us see the men perform on the job and we can see that they do stand out from their peers.”

Wheeler reflected on the motivation he observed as he trained the class.

“I could clearly see that these men are eager and willing to go out and do their duties as law enforcement officers,” said the former Sioux City Police Department officer.  “Most Americans back home don’t always realize that the IP face a tremendous challenge, unlike anything most law enforcement personnel in the U.S. usually faces on a daily basis.

“While this program is a great resource, many of the IP face tremendous challenges due to the amount of training they may have received, and the equipment challenges they have; you might say that the challenges they face are a different kind of challenge than what American law enforcement faces because we get what we need to go out a do our job, but in Iraq it is a challenge,” said Wheeler.

In some cases, he noted that the families of some Iraqi policemen are targeted by insurgents because they support the government of Iraq and are willing to enforce the law with illegally armed militias.

But he stated that as he goes out and sees the Iraqi policemen in action, he recognizes more students he has worked with through the course doing an exemplary job despite the challenges, which gives him great hope for the future in Iraq.

This hope is realized through this program designed to improve the IP in their security and law enforcement missions.

The three ancient provinces represented in this graduation class can be proud and confident in these men who will fulfill their duties as Iraqi Policemen. Source

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS:

Iraqi Police officers from An Najaf, Babil and Karbala provinces share a humorous moment at Forward Operating Base Kalsu during Iraqi Police Sustainment Training Class 07-03 April 2. The program is designed to increase and sustain law enforcement skills that will be valuable in peace enforcement. The course taught classes in theory of law, practical law, and human rights as well as hands-on training in self-defense and police work. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Ivacic)

Iraqi Police officers from An Najaf, Babil and Karbala provinces observe instruction in hand-to-hand combat at Forward Operating Base Kalsu during Iraqi Police Sustainment Training Class 07-03 April 5. Sgt. 1st Class Scott Self, a level four Army combatives instructor who hails from Omaha, Neb., but now lives in Anchorage, Alaska, demonstrates a take down on Sgt. 1st Class Matt Ivacic, military policeman from Orange County, Calif., to their Iraqi students. The course ran from April 1-10. (U.S. Army photo)

Iraqi Police officers from An Najaf, Babil and Karbala provinces take aim at the range at Forward Operating Base Kalsu during Iraqi Police Sustainment Training Class 07-03 April 9. The program is designed to increase and sustain law enforcement skills that will be valuable in peace enforcement in the respective provinces. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Matt Ivacic)

By Mohammed Aliwi, Gulf Region South District
Apr 13, 2007 - 3:47:31 PM

Iraqi laborers pour concrete to set a steel power transmission tower into place on an electrical project near An Nasiriyah, Iraq. (USACE photo by Mohammed Aliwi)

Blackanthem Military News, DHI QAR, Iraq - To meet the goal of reducing electrical outages and modernizing electrical distribution before the summer heat increases air conditioning demands, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is working on a new power transmission project in An Nasiriyah.

According to Lew Tyler, Gulf Region South project manager, the base and supporting structure for a 132 kilovolt overhead power line will be built in the vicinity of an existing line between the Nasiriyah Power Plant and the Ash Shatra substation. “The new electrical line will ease the overloaded condition on the existing power line and will supply power to the Nasiriyah Water Treatment Planet (NWTP) and several local neighborhoods,” he said.

Michael Fellenz, GRS project engineer, said that the transmission line project will provide relief to an existing overloaded distribution system in a more efficient and safe manner. “Since electrical service has been improving in Iraq,” he said. “Projects of this kind will lower the incidence of power outages and help modernize the electrical power system.”

“The main reason for the lack of electricity production in Iraq is that the older equipment that has been destroyed over time and by sabotage,” he said. “This project will lower the load rates on the old overload feeders and will effectively modernize the electricity transmission and increase local area jobs. It will also provide the Ash Shatra district with the appropriate conveyance feeders of the power needed to help keep the power stable.”

Tyler added that engineering services, which will be provided throughout the contract duration, will include all design, supply, construction and commissioning activities for the project. “Design functions will include the preparation and submission for review by the (Iraqi) government of all design calculations, construction drawings, test programs and methodologies, and as blueprints,” he said.

Fellenz said that the construction functions include activities such as preparation and submission for review by the government of vendor data, vendor profiles, catalogs, and production of all equipment including all required type and routine tests, factory acceptance tests, as well as supplying all equipment to site to enable completion of the line as defined in the scope of work.

“The contractor’s responsibility is to ensure that the equipment and system warranties are valid during the construction and commissioning stages of the projects, and are transferred to the Iraqi Minister of Electricity (ME) on project completion,” said Tyler. “The contractor will have sole responsibility to liaise with the ME in pursuance of any additional information and permits.”

He added that the project will help alleviate increased demands for electricity with the hot summer months ahead.

Note:  Mohammed Aliwi is a media relations officer with the Gulf Region South District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Iraq. Source
ADDITIONAL PHOTOS:

Iraqi laborers erect a steel power transmission tower to hold 132kv overhead power lines for a U.S. Army Corps of Engineer project near Al Nasiriyah, Iraq. (USACE photo by Mohammed Aliwi)

An Iraqi laborer prepares to set a steel power transmission tower foundation on an electrical project near An Nasiriyah, Iraq. (USACE photo by Mohammed Aliwi)

By Spc. Stephanie Homan, MNC-I PAO
Apr 13, 2007 - 8:40:59 AM
Joint effort brings improvements, goes extra mile for local school

Iraqi children rush to class April 3 at Newaris Primary School in Iraqi Family Village, Baghdad. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Stephanie Homan, MNC-I PAO)

Blackanthem Military News, CAMP VICTORY, Iraq - Students in Iraqi Family Village, Baghdad, can look forward to air conditioning, drinking fountains, new windows and better electricity thanks to Task Force Vigilant, 2nd Brigade, 10th Mountain Division and members of the community.

TF Vigilant aided in the reconstruction of Newaris Primary School, which houses about 420 students daily, said 1st Lt. Randall Cornelison, TF Vigilant civil affairs officer.

“A generator for constant power, plumbing in the bathrooms, new windows, a guardhouse and a wall with a gate was our list of things to repair,” Cornelison said.

TF Vigilant contracted members of the community to renovate the only school in the community, he said.

“The overall effects we were looking for were a safer environment for the kids and putting money back into the community, which is why we hired people straight out of the community to do the maintenance,” said Staff Sgt Michael Virnig, TF Vigilant civil affairs NCOIC.

The project was extended so they could assess how well the repairs and additions hold up over time, he said.

“The project, which started Jan. 14 and was originally 60 days, was extended to six months so we can help the community monitor the maintenance of the renovations and fuel for the generator,” Virnig said.

TF Vigilant is proud of their efforts to help this community because education is priceless, Cornelison said.

He said the wall and gate around the school was essential.

“Unfortunately there are people out there who will hurt children to make a point. Besides the generator and the power it provides them, the wall and gate are a very (vital) addition,” he said.

Cornelison said the community showed an interest in bettering itself and a move toward the greater good by adding their own touch to the school.

“The contractors went the extra mile for the kids and added drinking fountains for them in the restrooms.”

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وبيArrived Seoul from Tokyo, where he met with his South Korean counterpart
بغداد - الصباحBaghdad-Sabah.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki that Iraq will prevail militarily and politically, despite the challenges facing it, stressing the move seriously for the development of the Iraqi economy.

.And Mr. al-Maliki, during his meeting with South Korean Prime Minister Duc Sohan in Seoul yesterday that the visit to South Korea came to the activation and implementation of the agreements between the two sides Iraqi and Korean in the last period to benefit from the Korean experiment in the process of developing the economy and the rebuilding and reconstruction of Iraq. The Prime Minister started an Asian tour to visit Tokyo, which promise Balnajehh observers, as Mr. Maliki was able to win the full support of the Japanese Iraq with regard to the economic, political and military. The prime minister added that Iraq despite the challenges it faces but he would win it militarily and politically, and it will seriously in the development of its economy, especially as he has the experience and he has many efficient people he could Thirty years ago, the advancement of the dark period does not undergone as a result of dictatorship, which mocked and its potential for the introduction of the wars in Iraq impacted negatively on the first victim is the Iraqi people, congratulating the Prime Minister of South Korea on the occasion of his election to that post. For his part, Sohan Korean companies seeking to contribute to the process of rebuilding The reconstruction of Iraq, stressing all their energies on establishing a cooperative relationship with Iraq earnest wish stability and prosperity for the Iraqi people and expressed his respect and the Korean people to the government and people of Iraq. .It also renewed its support of the government and people of South Korea to the government and people of Iraq, politically and economically, and expressed his admiration for the new democratic experience and the political process in Iraq.

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

 12 April 2007 (Aljazeera

One of Iraq’s main armed groups has confirmed a split with al-Qaeda, according to a spokesman for the dissenting organisation.

Ibrahim al-Shammari told Al Jazeera on Thursday that the Islamic Army in Iraq had decided to disunite from al-Qaeda in Iraq after its members were threatened.

“In the beginning, we were dealing with Tawhid and Jihad organisation, which turned into al-Qaeda in Iraq,” he said, his identity obscured for security reasons.

“Specifically after Abu Musab al-Zarqawi died, the gap between us [and al-Qaeda] widened, because [they] started to target our members.

Different goals

Al-Shammari said al-Qaeda in Iraq was in pursuit of a different agenda to that of the Islamic Army in Iraq.

“They killed about 30 of our people, and we definitely don’t recognise their establishment of an Islamic state - we consider it invalid.”

The Islamic Army in Iraq is one of several nationalist groups which opposes hitting Iraqi civilians, but it has carried out high-profile attacks against multinational forces.

Al-Shammari said they would be willing to deal with the Americans if certain conditions are met.

“We, the Islamic Army in Iraq, are ready to negotiate, but only with the US congress.

“They are the representatives of the American people, and the Iraqi resistance represents the Iraqi people. We are ready to establish a dialogue with them, not with the arrogant US administration.”

Al-Shammari said no talks have taken place so far with US officials and that Washington must recognise Iraqi armed groups as the only genuine representatives of the Iraqi people before such a meeting can be considered.

Main danger

Al-Shammari said that his group didn’t consider US forces to be the main danger in Iraq.

“There are two occupations: Iranian and American, and the Iranian one is more dangerous than American because Iran considers Iraq as a part of their country.”

The Islamic Army in Iraq’s statement comes after Iraq’s president said the presidential office was in contact with five insurgent groups.

Jalal Talabani said on Wednesday that the contacts mark an attempt to bring the groups into the mainstream political process.

Talabani did not reveal their identity, but said they had initially developed contacts with the “British, then the Iraqi government and then the presidency.”

Talabani’s statement coincided with an announcement by the US defence secretary that troop rotations in Iraq would be extended by three months.

On Wednesday, Robert Gates, highlighting an increase from the current one-year deployments, said: “Effective immediately, active army units now in the central command area [Iraq and Afghanistan] and those headed there will deploy for not more than 15 months.” IraqUpdates

IRAQI SECURITY FORCES CONDUCT CORDON AND SEARCH IN DIWANIYAH

Posted: 11 Apr 2007 07:11 PM CDT

IRAQI SECURITY FORCES CONDUCT CORDON AND SEARCH IN DIWANIYAH

 10 April 2007 (AP Worldstream)

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki will visit Egypt later this month to meet with Egypt’s president and the head of the Arab League, his office said Tuesday.

Al-Maliki is scheduled to arrive in Egypt on April 20, his office said. It would be al-Maliki’s first visit to Egypt _ the Arab world’s most populous nation.

During the visit, he will meet Egyptian officials, including President Hosni Mubarak and the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Amr Moussa.

Al-Maliki’s planned visit would come nearly two weeks before two conferences on Iraq are to be held in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheik. They will be attended by Iraq’s neighbors as well as Bahrain and Egypt, and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council as well as other developed countries.

The neighbors’ meeting was expected to be held in Turkey, but Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said Saturday that the two meetings would take place in Sharm el-Sheik on May 3-4.

The second meeting is for the Iraq Compact _ a five-year plan that requires the Iraqi government to enact key political and economic reforms as it moves toward financial self-sufficiency and economic integration.

Al-Maliki is currently in Japan, part of an Asian tour that will take him to South Korea as well.

In the past, the prime minister has visited several Arab countries including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. IraqUpdates

Baghdad, 11 April 2007 (Voices of Iraq)

By Hossam al-Shahmani

The Iraqi parliament held its 12th session on Tuesday in Baghdad to debate several issues on its agenda.

The session will debate the Education Committee’s request on the Teachers’ Day and the printing of school textbooks.

The session will also witness the first reading of a draft law on a children’s rights agreement and the second reading of another draft on the ministry of municipalities and public works.

Low-interest paper part of larger 2003 aid-for-energy pact

TOKYO, 10 April 2007 (AFP)

Japan on Monday lent some $850 million to the government of visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki as the oil-hungry Asian power looks to boost output from the war-torn country. The Japanese low-interest loans will fund the construction of an oil export facility in Iraq, whose production has tumbled since the US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein four years ago.

Maliki received a ceremonial audience from Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko at their palace in central Tokyo before holding a series of meetings culminating with a summit with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

“Japan’s support is a symbol of our friendship and an important milestone in strengthening bilateral relations,” Maliki said as he opened talks with Abe.

“Iraq has suffered from the legacies of the past and is struggling to get out of them,” Maliki said, adding that reconstruction can support “territorial integrity” in the country torn by sectarian strife.

Maliki was making his first visit to Japan and South Korea, two key economic partners of Iraq, which have both sent troops to the nation. Japan announced that it had signed an agreement lending $862 million to Iraq, repayable over 40 years with a 10-year grace period at an interest rate of 0.75 percent a year.

The money will go to build the oil facility connecting pipelines in the southern province of Basra. It will also fund fertilizer and oil refinery plants and help improve electricity, a Japanese Foreign Ministry statement said.The loan is part of $6 billion in debt waivers and $1.5 billion in aid that Japan announced for Iraq in 2003. Much of the aid is on hold due to concerns about instability.

“Iraq’s stability is important for the Middle East and the international community,” Abe said as he met Maliki.

“Because of this, Japan has made efforts for Iraq’s reconstruction through deployment of the Self-Defense Forces and development aid,” Abe said. “I would like to continue supporting Prime Minister Maliki’s efforts to reconstruct Iraq.” Japan, the world’s second-largest economy, has few natural resources and is almost entirely dependent on the Middle East for its oil.

Japan, which has been officially pacifist since defeat in World War II, took the landmark step of sending 600 troops there on a reconstruction mission.

It marked the first time since 1945 that Japan sent its soldiers - which it calls the Self-Defense Forces due to the pacifist Constitution - to a country where fighting was under way. Japan ended the troop deployment last year.

But Abe last month decided to extend by two years an air mission flying goods and personnel into Iraq on behalf of the United Nations and the US-led coalition.The Iraq mission has been unpopular in Japan. Defense Minister Fumio Kyuma caused a stir in January when he said the US decision to invade Iraq was “wrong.”

Kyuma stayed away from the controversy in his meeting with Maliki Monday, telling him that he hoped that more Japanese firms would invest in Iraq as soon as it is feasible, according to an official with the Defense Ministry.

 09 April 2007 (Azzaman)

By Ali al-Mawsawi

The Ministry of Industry is seeking investors willing to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to modernize 12 major Iraqi industries.

The investors, whether local or foreign, are required to submit comprehensive plans on how to rehabilitate these firms to make them competitive in the face of foreign imports.

In return for their investments, the entrepreneurs will have a share in the products for up to 20 years.

According to Industry Minister Fawzi Hariri, the country hopes to attract $750 million in investments that will cover major industries such as cement, glass, steel and petrochemicals.

The investors will have to adhere to certain conditions, among them a pledge to improve the living standard of workers and raise quality of products.

Hariri said the Glass Works Factory in the restive province of Ramadi is in need of at least $50 million to modernize.

The country’s petrochemical complex in the southern city of Basra requires up to $120 million, he said.

The complex was once one of the largest and technologically most advanced in the Middle East.

Hariri said the steel factory, also in Basra, requires up to $220 million. He said the factory needed new boilers and fresh infrastructure.

Iraq’s cement industry was in need of $360 million, Hariri said.

The minister said the rehabilitation of these companies and several others was necessary to meet needs of reconstruction once security and stability return.

However, he said, security was a necessity for the rehabilitation of these firms as investors, whether foreign or local would only be interested if they knew their entrepreneurial activities will eventually bear fruit. IraqUpdates

 Hit, 08 April 2007 (Voices of Iraq)

The first local council in two years in Hit was set up on Friday, with a lineup of 21 members, to run the city’s affairs and prepare a plan to re-build it, residents in Hit, in the western Baghdad Sunni province of al-Anbar, said on Saturday.

“The members were elected by a committee of 100 notables and tribal chiefs in Hit,” a local resident told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

The members include university professors, engineers, school headmasters, physicians, lawyers and others connected to civil society organizations, another local resident said.

Hit, 180 km west of the capital Baghdad, is enjoying a relative lull compared to the restive cities of al-Ramadi and al-Falluja. Young men from the city joined the city police forces before they received training at a camp belonging to the U.S. army in eastern Ramadi, capital of Anbar.

The council, which disbanded itself or had previously little role to play, was formed in light of mounting military operations and armed conflicts between U.S. troops and gunmen that prevailed in Hit two years ago, paralyzing the activities of all government departments. IraqUpdates

 Baghdad, 09 April 2007 (Gulf News)

Iraq will intensify diplomacy ahead of a new meeting with Iran, Syria and the United States on May 3 and 4.

The meeting will include representatives of Iraq’s immediate neighbours as well as the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.

The role of Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has become increasingly difficult - reaching out for agreements between Syria and Iran on one hand and the Americans on the other.

Hoshyar Zebari, Iraqi Foreign Minister, told Gulf News: “Our role will be intensified in the coming days to create greater understandings between Syrians and Iranians and the Americans.

“The [success of] international conference for Iraq’s future depends on the success of Iraqi role in achieving broader and deeper rapprochement between Iran, Syria and the United States. We are about to announce a positive progress in this regard.”

Zebari went on to say: “The committee, in addition to the refugees and energy committees, will be established within a week.”

It is rumoured that some Syrian, Iranian and American problems could intercept the efforts of establishing a joint security committee for Iraq.

‘No blocks’

Zebari denied the existence of any problems concerning the establishment of the security committee among Iraq, Syria, Iran and the United States.

“Our correspondences with the concerned countries show that there are great reactions from Syria and Iran to form this security committee. Yet Iraqi contacts with Americans, regarding the fate of the five Iranian detainees, would not succeed to release them,” he said. IraqUpdates

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• Software distribution: Numerous software companies pay websites to encourage the download of new software releases (for example, Adobe’s Flash and Acrobat Reader software), and trial versions of new programs. AGLOCO members not only get access to the latest and coolest software, they get paid for it.

• Service distribution: Many online service providers will look to the AGLOCO community as a source of new and active users for their services. (For example, eBay, Skype, and PayPal, among others, all pay fees to people who help them recruit new active users to their services)

• Product distribution: When Members agree to use a product, such as cell phones, high-tech gadgets, office supplies, new credit cards or financial services, AGLOCO can collect referral fees. Some companies even offer special rebate and cash-back programs.

AGLOCO Members make money in four ways.

• Members earn a monthly share of the AGLOCO revenue based on the use of the AGLOCO Viewbarâ„¢ that month.

• Members earn part of the company based on the use of the AGLOCO Viewbarâ„¢ that month (currently a maximum of five hours are rewarded). 

• Members who use our referral system to help build the AGLOCO network will earn more. (AGLOCO only has significant value as a large network and people who help build it should be rewarded. – We also feel that the early users who told friends about YouTube or MySpace or even Google probably deserved something too, but no referral system was available to record their work).

• Members will also get a share of any commissions AGLOCO gets when a Member purchases a product or service from an AGLOCO Sponsor company.

Why should I join now?

• First, it costs nothing to Join and takes less than one minute.  

• Second, you can help build the AGLOCO community by recruiting new Members TODAY.

  Right now, inviting your friends to join AGLOCO is as easy and productive as it will ever be – but you need to invite your friends before someone else beats you to them.

  Remember, the bigger the AGLOCO community, the more attractive AGLOCO is to potential business partners and advertisers.

  • Recruit your friends and family by contacting them through email. (But remember we have a strict anti-spam policy.)
  • Use your blog and your existing social networks, such as MySpace and Facebook, to contact your friends and encourage them to join a new community that will actually let them earn money.

Be a part of the Internet’s first Member-Owned Economic Community.

Join AGLOCO For  FREE Today!- Own the Internet!

Friday, 06 April 2007

CAMP RIPPER, AL ASAD, Iraq – Marines, Soldiers and Sailors from Regimental Combat Team 2, including elements of the Iraqi Army’s 2nd and 3rd Brigades of the 7th Division, launched Operation Harris Ba’sil (Valiant Guardian) on March 26, to interdict and disrupt enemy routes and safe havens outside of the Euphrates River Valley.

The operation will occur throughout much of the 30,000 square miles of RCT-2’s operating area and will take away the enemy’s freedom of movement outside the urban areas along the Euphrates River.

“In western Al Anbar, the fight has traditionally centered on its urban centers,” said Col. Stacy Clardy, commanding officer for RCT-2. “Now we’re going after the enemy in those remote areas of the province where they may hide or use to move around us, leaking into the interior of the country. We plan to shake things up.”