Month: January 2006

A senior American general considers that Iraqi forces will control as much as half the country by the end of this year. (David Spector)

Reconstruction has not been a major news priority in many recent reports from Iraq but here is some good news. (David Spector)

Political horse-trading following the results of the December 15th poll. This report says that US diplomats involved in the process are pressing for an inclusive, consensus government as a way to undermine the Sunni insurgency and allow US troops to begin pulling out of Iraq. (David Spector)

IRAQ: Murder of Executive Board member of General Federation of Iraqi Workers (GFIW) Ibrahim Jaafari Prime Minister Office of the Prime Minister Bagdad Iraq By fax: c/o Iraqi Embassy in Brussels: 02/374.76.15 TUR/FW 25 January 2006 Dear Prime Minister, Murder of Executive Board member of General Federation of Iraqi Workers (GFIW) I am writing to protest at the murder of brother Alaa Issa Khalaf, Executive Board member of the GFIW, at 7:30 am today. Mr. Khalaf was shot by several unidentified men who were awaiting him outside his house in Bagdad when he left for work. The International Confederation of … Continue reading ICFTU statement on murdered Iraqi trade unionist

Arab League chief Amr Moussa says Arab countries are willing to discuss sending troops to help stabilise Iraq once U.S.-led forces eventually leave, but only if asked by an Iraqi national unity government. (David Spector)

Stanley A Weiss argues in the Asia Times that the semi-private militias which deprive Baghdad of a basic tenet of any sovereign state – a monopoly on the use of coercive force – need to disarm themselves, and offers some historical precedents. (David Spector)

A group of Labour MPs has tabled a Commons motion which is as follows: That this House notes the re-broadcast of Between Iraq and a Hard Place on More4 which gave evidence of the theft of Iraq resources since the 2003 invasion as one of the largest in the history of the world; further notes the key findings of the report Crude Designs: The Rip-Off of Iraq’s Oil Wealth which states that at an oil price of $40 per barrel, Iraq stands to lose between $74 billion and $194 billion over the lifetime of the proposed contracts, from only the … Continue reading Iraqi resources

Iraqis and Afghans are among most optimistic people in the world when it comes to their economic future, says a new survey for the BBC.

Friday, January 20th, 2006 On the 15th of December 2005, Iraqis took to the polls for the third time in a year to vote for their first permanent National Assembly. After numerous complaints submitted to the Independent Iraqi Electoral Commission, the announcement of the results was delayed as the IECI and International Assessment Teams reviewed the voting process relating to these complaints. The ratified results were announced today. Ali Latif, Chairman of the IPO, reacting to the results said “These elections are a milestone for Iraq’s democratisation because of the unprecedented high turnout from all groups in Iraq. It’s worth … Continue reading Iraqi Prospect organisation comment on the elections

Here are the initial results