Iraq's broken electricity sector is planning a long-awaited overhaul to both meet US pressure to halt Iranian power imports and head off summertime protests over chronic cuts.

With a freshman at the helm, the electricity ministry is exploring options including revamping stations and lines to cut waste, importing power, and improving bill collection to boost revenues.

Baghdad hopes it will generate enough megawatts to feed demand by summer, when cuts can leave millions powerless for up to 20 hours per day.
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But it also has an earlier deadline to meet.

NAJAF, Iraq (Reuters) - The head of a powerful Iraqi militia wants a formal role for Shi’ite paramilitaries in securing the border with Syria, a move that could deepen U.S. worries about Iran’s growing sway over a strategic corridor of territory from Tehran to Beirut.

​Iraq’s Shi’ite militias, many of which are supported by Iran and oppose the presence of U.S. troops in the region, have sent reinforcements to the frontier after fighting flared between U.S.-backed Kurdish forces and Islamic State militants on the Syrian side.

Qais al-Khazali, the leader of Iranian-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq, urged the government to provide a more formal, long-term border protection role for the militias.

“Securing Iraq’s borders with Syria is among the most important duties of the Popular Mobilization Forces right now,” he said in an interview with Reuters at his office in the Shi’ite holy city of Najaf on Saturday.

The Iraqi government is refusing to comply with a second round of United States economic sanctions targeting Iran's crucial energy, shipping and banking sectors. “The decision isn’t international, Iraqi, or part of a United Nations resolution—it's an American one,” Iraq's Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi explained in reference to Baghdad's position to not “respect” the financial penalties. He added that Iraq "does not accept dictates" and is not obligated to fall in line with US foreign policy or any "aggression" against another country.

The announcement comes after Iraqi President Barham Salih over the weekend visited Tehran, where he discussed with his counterpart Hassan Rouhani ways to enhance bilateral ties as well as the potential establishment of free trade zones along the shared border. The trip raised eyebrows in Washington, which fears growing Iranian influence over Baghdad could offset a fifteen-year military and diplomatic effort to rebuild Iraq in its image.

“Tehran is a key player in Iraq in terms of ideology,” Raed Nearat, a Professor of International Relations at al-Najah University in the West Bank city of Nablus, conveyed to The Media Line. “In recent days the Iraqi-Iranian coziness is obvious, which explains the public shift in rhetoric and now policies.”

The US dollar is no longer used by Tehran and Baghdad in bilateral trade, giving way to the euro and local currencies, as well as direct barter of goods, head of the Iran-Iraq Chamber of Commerce Yahya Ale-Eshagh has revealed.

​“[The] US dollar has been removed from the list of currencies used by Iran and Iraq in their trade transactions and they are using Iranian rial, euro and Iraqi dinar for financial transactions,” Ale-Eshagh said on Saturday, as quoted by local media.

​Apart from switching from the US dollar to alternative currencies, Iranian and Iraqi merchants have been engaging in barter operations, according to the official. The banking system, however, still needs improvements, since only a fraction of trade between the two countries actually goes through banks.

“Resolving the banking system problem must be a priority for both Iran and Iraq, as the two countries have at least $8 billion in transactions in the worst times,” Ale-Eshagh stated.

Iraq is the second country after China in terms of trade volume with Iran, according to the official. While exports to China are almost exclusively petrochemical products, Baghdad purchases a large variety of Iranian goods, helping to maintain high employment rates, Ale-Eshagh explained.

General Electric Co. learned from a consultant’s report this past summer of corruption allegations against key business partners in Iraq, where the company is trying to shore up its position in one of the most important foreign markets for its struggling power business.

The industrial giant said it has a robust compliance operation and doesn’t believe it has violated any federal laws, including ones covering foreign corruption. However, that confidential report, parts of which were reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, underscores the dilemma GE faces as it chases new business in one of the few places with demand for its multimillion-dollar heavy duty gas turbines.

The study, prepared for GE by corporate intelligence firm Hakluyt & Co., paints a portrait of widespread corruption and bribery in the Iraqi power sector, accusing high-ranking officials in the Ministry of Electricity, from which GE is currently vying with Siemens AG for $15 billion in new power contracts. Siemens declined to comment.
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The Hakluyt report, based on interviews with business people and political officials working in the power sector, provides a broad overview of the corruption concerns in the industry and advises GE to distance itself from at least one of its contractors. Hakluyt’s staff includes former British MI-6 officers and strategic consultants from the business world.

Iraqi President Salih and Iran's President Rouhani discuss gas-electricity swap, joint oil exploration, in Tehran talks.

​Iraqi President Barham Salih has announced that his country has agreed to establish a "free-trade zone" along its border with Iran, following a meeting with his Iranian counterpart, Hassan Rouhani in Tehran. 

In a joint press conference in the Iranian capital on Friday, Salih declared that the relationship between the two neighbouring countries is a "fixed principle" that is "rooted in shared history, faith and geography". 

"We care about our relationship with Iran," Salih declared.

Salih did not give full details about the free-trade zone.

NAVAL BASE SAN DIEGO — Edward Gallagher was something special, even by the punishing standards of the Navy SEALs. Both a lifesaving medic and a crack sniper, he was repeatedly decorated for valor and for coolheaded leadership during 19 years of combat deployments. After his latest tour, fighting Islamic State militants in Iraq, he was named the top platoon leader in SEAL Team 7 and nominated for the Silver Star, the military’s third-highest honor.

But now, less than a year later, Special Operations Chief Gallagher, 39, is locked in the brig, facing charges that during that same deployment — his eighth — he shot indiscriminately at civilians, killed a teenage Islamic State fighter with a handmade custom blade, and then performed his re-enlistment ceremony posing with the teenager’s bloody corpse in front of an American flag.

The Navy has charged Chief Gallagher with premeditated murder, attempted murder and nearly a dozen other offenses, including obstruction of justice and bringing “discredit upon the armed forces.” If he is convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.

Chief Gallagher denies all the charges.
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The case has sent waves through the secretive world of the SEALs, who prefer to operate behind the headlines in an atmosphere of silent professionalism. And the case may widen as the investigation implicates other SEALs who did not report what they knew. A lieutenant has already been charged.

The government of Iraq has doubled down its support of militia forces. Baghdad has announced that the Hashd al-Shaabi militias, also called the Popular Mobilization Units, will receive a salary equal to their equivalents in the Iraqi military.

Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s government is the first to implement the long-awaited pay scheme. As the government debated its policy toward payments have been held-up for nearly two months.

The move could complicate Iraqi-American relations as the United States seeks the disbandment of Iran-supported militias in Iraq which make up a large part of the PMU. The move has also angered Iraqi Security Forces officers who will now be considered the equal of lesser trained units of the PMU.

​Mahdi’s predecessor Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi first announced the pay increase earlier this year before he was ousted from power.

A year after the fall of ISIL, civilians rue lack of support after their homes were heavily damaged or destroyed.

Mosul, Iraq - During the nine-month battle to retake Iraq's Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters, 54,000 houses were destroyed in and around the city.

Since July last year, when victory was declared in Mosul, the city has witnessed numerous reconstruction projects run by government organisations and NGOs.

The vast majority of these projects are taking place in the old city of Mosul, focussing mostly on cleaning the streets, helping rebuild schools and basic infrastructures, such as water supply and electricity network.

A fund of $400m was established in 2015 to help Iraq's reconstruction. ​

The world has focused on rebuilding the country’s north after defeating the Islamic State while ignoring festering resentment and poverty in Basra.

​BASRA, Iraq—Recent violent protests in the southern Iraqi city of Basra have brought to light years of suffering by Iraqis in what is known as the economic capital of Iraq due to its vast oil reserves and deep-sea port access connecting the country to the international market. Basra, a predominantly Shiite city, also has a significant minority population, including black Iraqis and Christians.

It is Iraq’s second-largest city and has developed a reputation for fostering some of Iraq’s greatest artists. During the first Gulf War, the Iraqi military used Basra as a route for the Kuwait invasion; ironically, a decade later, U.S.-led forces used it as a path toward Baghdad during the 2003 invasion.

The current crisis in Basra is not a recent development. It stems from years of inattention from both the international community and the Iraqi government.

​Increased civil unrest in the region has been exacerbated by the government’s focus on defeating the Islamic State in northern Iraq and unequal distribution of resources, making the current situation both expected and preventable. Basra’s once glorious canals, winding through a city previously known as the Venice of the Middle East, are now open-air sewers.​