#Iraqi Special Operations Forces

[sgtgrunt0331-3]

Capt. Doug Zembiec, the commanding officer of Company E, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, gives orders to his men over a radio prior to leaving their secured compound for a short patrol in the city of Fallujah on April 8, 2004.

He was nicknamed the "Lion of Fallujah" as a result of his heroic actions commanding Echo Company during Operation Vigilant Resolve in 2004. As a rifle company commander, Zembiec led 168 Marines and Navy Corpsmen in the first conventional ground assault into Fallujah. He earned the Silver Star and the Bronze Star with Combat Distinguishing Device and also received two Purple Hearts due to wounds incurred in action.

Years later, Zembiec was serving in the Ground Branch of the CIA's Special Activities Division in Iraq when he was killed by small arms fire while leading a raid in Baghdad on May 11, 2007. Zembiec was leading a unit of Iraqi forces he had helped train. Reports from fellow servicemen that were present when he was killed indicate that he had warned his troops to get down before doing so himself and was hit by enemy fire. The initial radio report indicated "five wounded and one martyred" with Zembiec having been killed and his men saved by his warning.

(Photo by: Sgt. Jose E. Guillen)

[techramonic]

what was tim mcveigh like in the army? since he was a veteran and all

Ah, you reminded me that I still need to research more but in one of the articles I've read that outlined his past experiences, it mentioned thag he mostly thrived during his sefvice and embraced the disciplined lifestyle well.

However, as opposed to Tim's enthusiasm for the military lifestyle, he also had a distaste for some of the more violent aspects of army culture. He deemed that the violence was sometimes unnecessary and sickening.

He  was assigned to Fort Riley, Kansas, which is training ground for tank and armore vehicle operation. He was quite successful so he was invited to try out for Special Forces, one of his goals since joining the Army. However, he didn't get the chance because Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, prompting him to be one of the many other American soldiers sent to the Persian Gulf.

According to him, he didn't like the plan because they were set out to war like sacrificial lambs. On the second day of the conflict, he made a shot that earned him several medals. It was 2000 yards away, where he hit an Iraqi soldier manning a machine gun nest in the chest with his cannon. Tim's sentiments on the incident was that he was taken aback, especially after he discovered that many of the Iraqi soldiers did not want to be fighting and were equipped with inferior weaponry.

He wrote to one of his friends in Kuwait blaming Saddam because he didn't show up and that because of him, he killed an innocent man who was forced to fight. Something he wouldn't have done if he knew the circumstances beforehand. According to his aunt, "Tim came back broken." after the war because he felt extreme guilt for killing people who he didn't want to kill.

Then from there, he started to grow more opposed to the government and he had several heated debates with peers, his sister, even news articles and such. He didn't like the authoritarian nature of the military where he just followed orders and killed because he was told to. A common sentiment many other soldiers often share.

[captain-price-unofficially]

Iraqi Special Operations Forces operator takes up position during the war with the Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, November 29, 2016.

[zvaigzdelasas]

[Reuters is Private Western Media]

Powerful Iraqi and Yemeni armed groups aligned with Iran have threatened to target U.S. interests with missiles and drones if Washington intervenes to support Israel in its conflict with Hamas in Gaza that already shows signs of expanding to further fronts.

The comments come amid strong support by the United States for Israel's response to the attacks and a U.S. pledge to rapidly provide additional munitions to Israel and deploy a carrier strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean.

In Iraq, Kataib Hezbollah, a powerful armed faction with close ties to Iran, said it would target U.S. bases with missiles, drones and its special forces if Washington intervened in the conflict. U.S. officials have accused the group of previous attacks on U.S interests in Iraq. The group has denied the claims.

The United States currently has 2,500 troops in Iraq - and an additional 900 in neighbouring Syria - on a mission to advise [sic] and assist [sic] local forces in combating Islamic State[...] Iraqi politician Hadi Al-Amiri, leader of political and military group the Badr Organization that is close to Iran, had made similar threats on Monday.

"If they intervene, we would intervene ... we will consider all American targets legitimate," Al-Amiri said on Monday.

Badr comprises a large part of Iraq's Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), the state paramilitary organisation that contains many Iran-backed factions.

The PMF has voiced its "unequivocal support" for the Palestinian factions fighting Israel and the Iraqi government has said the Palestinian operations were a natural outcome of what it calls "oppressive" policies by Israel.[...]

In Yemen, the leader of the powerful Houthi Movement warned on Tuesday that the group would respond to any U.S. intervention in Gaza with drones, missiles and other military options.

10 Oct 23

[newsfrom-theworld]

5/05/2024

Today's breaking news:

Virginia State Police crack down on peaceful student protesters at the University of Virginia

Isr@eli jets bombarded a house in Rafah

Isr@eli warplanes bombarded a house in Sabra neighbourhood in central Gaza

Isr@eli settler militias savagely assault a Palestinian teenager, Adam al-Risheq, in the Old City of Jerusalem, causing him bruises.

UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Francesca Albanese: "As a European, I apologize to Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta for Germany’s decision, which has descended to a new level in defending the genocide."

Students of University College Dublin, Ireland, join the global student action for Palestine, calling on the university to divest from Isr@el.

Isr@eli warplanes destroy the house of journalist Hasan Sleih's family in Khan Yunis.

Isr@eli warplanes launch an airstrike targeting the village of Meiss el-Jabal in southern Lebanon. Three civilians were killed and others were injured

Isr@eli artillery targets the outskirts of the town of Aytaroun in southern Lebanon.

Isr@eli occupation soldiers assault and detain a Palestinian woman at Bab al-Majlis Gate in the Old City of Jerusalem, according to local sources.

Hard-right Isr@eli Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich leads a group of extremist Isr@eli fanatics in a counter-protest rejecting a prisoner swap deal between the Isr@eli occupation and Hamas

The Isr@eli occupation government has officially decided to close the offices of Al Jazeera Media Networkv

Isr@eli occupation forces assault Palestinian protesters demonstrating in protest of Israel's continued closure of the entrance to the village of Tuqu in the south of the occupied West Bank.

Isr@eli fighter jets launch an airstrike targeting the southwest of Gaza City

University students in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, demonstrate outside a local restaurant of the KFC group in protest of its complicity in the Isr@eli genocide of the Palestinian people.

5 Palestinian casualties reported after an Isr@eli occupation airstrike targets Tal al-Hawwa areas in Gaza.

Civilian casualties reported among Palestinians as Isr@eli tanks target groups of residents on Salah al-Din Street in central Gaza City.

Isr@eli occupation aircrafts launch an airstrike on the outskirts of the town of Taybeh in southern Lebanon.

Isr@el bars Al Jazeera correspondent Hassan Massoud from entering Isr@el as the Isr@eli government approves the closure of Al Jazeera

Isr@eli Far Right Minister of Settlements and National Missions, Orit Struck, stated that the United States "does not deserve to be labeled as a friend of Isr@el."

Former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn condemned the suppression of pro-Palestine protests

A mother bids farewell to her son who was killed in an Isr@eli air strike on Rafah.

Tim Dawson, the Deputy General Secretary of the International Federation of Journalists, condemned Isr@el's closure of Al Jazeera, calling it "utterly retrograde and ridiculous."

According to Middle East Eye, Majid Faraj and Hussein al-Sheikof the PA have reportedly requested the exclusion of the Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti from the potential Isr@el-Hamas swap deal.

Isr@eli occupation artillery shells Al-Hattab Street in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip

The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the Isr@eli cabinet’s decision to shut down Al-Jazeera’s operations in Isra@el

Isr@eli occupation aircraft bombard residential buildings in Al-Zeitoun neighborhood, east of Gaza City

[leftistfeminista]

Violating intimacies

Israeli soldiers have photographed themselves posing with the lingerie of Palestinian women they have displaced or killed in Gaza. They join a long line of conquest images, from Abu Ghraib images to the spectacle of Jim Crow-era lynchings.

BY NINA BERMAN 

https://mondoweiss.net/2024/02/violating-intimacies/

These pictures enter a different realm where one’s most intimate relations and private thoughts, feelings, and desires have been penetrated, looted, picked apart, and turned into jokes. 

What do we do with pictures like these that burrow in the brain? 

They join a long line of conquest images, some more brutal and explicitly violent than others.

I’m thinking of the spectacle lynching images from the Jim Crow American South, where crowds assembled to publicly celebrate and photograph the torture and murder of black men.

I’m thinking of the Abu Ghraib images where American soldiers posed laughing with Iraqi prisoners who they tied up and stripped naked and then forced into the camera’s frame as an additional humiliation.

While these images of IDF soldiers do not explicitly show murder and torture, they implicitly speak to the missing women and their missing men who loved and touched and cared for each other and shared private moments and pleasures. For that space to be violated makes the pictures unbearable.

How do we take the power of these images away from the image makers?

We do that by looking past the uniformed buffoons who are the direct subjects of the pictures and instead dwell on the women not seen but who once lived in these homes and wore the garments, who were mothers and sisters and daughters and lovers with dreams and ideas and concerns.  

We do that by insisting on both imagining and preserving in our minds their full beings and refusing the narrative that attempts to sully and flatten them, which is how misogyny operates.  

There is another picture circulating. It shows an IDF soldier with a box of new white jeweled dress high heels, which he’s looted from a Palestinian woman. He’s going to bring them home and give them as a present to his woman instead. A souvenir from a genocide.

My mind focuses on the texture of the shoes, the intricate design, and the dimensions of the box. I travel to a place where I can see the woman who bought those shoes. Maybe she was planning to wear them for the wedding of a son or a daughter, or maybe she was going to celebrate her own anniversary or wanted something special for an upcoming family gathering. I eliminate the soldier from the frame and instead hold her close in my thoughts away from his prying hands.

[girlactionfigure]

⚠️ MONDAY NEWS - SPECIAL FORCES REPULSED, DEAL TALK CONTINUES?

ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

⚠️ Ma'alot Tarshiha (northern towns): Dear residents, as part of the directive to the settlements of the Western Galilee in the conflict line, we ask to be alert and watchful, to reduce movements.

▪️ON THE EXPLOSION IN TEL AVIV.. (Police) the dead man was not an innocent citizen, he was carrying the explosive device that caused the explosion - high possibility that this was an attack.  Unofficially, "99% that a major attack was prevented”, “It was a miracle that the explosion did not happen in a synagogue that was near the place of the explosion or in a nearby commercial center:, likely from Judea-Samaria.

▪️ON THE TERROR ATTACK IN KEDUMIM INDUSTRIAL PARK.. The hunt continues for the terrorist who carried out the murderous attack in the Brown industrial area in the Samaria division, many IDF forces, including special forces, are currently operating in the area, carrying out blockades.

▪️SIREN TESTS.. at 10:05 a.m. in Ilania, at 12:05 p.m. in Kfar Zeitim, at 2:05 p.m. in Arbel and at 4:05 p.m. in Beit Rimon.  And Tuesday 10:30 AM in Beit Shemesh and surrounding towns.  SOLID siren tone, it’s a test, rising/falling tone, it’s real.

▪️CNN DINGS HAMAS.. Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan was interviewed by CNN and left the interview in anger after being asked if his organization bears any responsibility for the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza.

▪️TERROR PRISONERS COMPLAIN.. (Walla) Terrorists from Katziot prison petitioned the court against poor prison conditions since the massacre and Hamas invasion of Oct 7th. At the top of the complaints: severing contact with their family and lawyers, demands for razors and nail clippers, complains of food served - low in calories and without sugar.  (Noting the prison service has reviewed diets with nutritional experts, providing adequate survival calories. They were then sued for providing unhealthy meat - sausages - so with nutritionists switched to lentils.  All of this is on orders of the Min. Of Nat. Security Ben Gvir.)

♦️COUNTER-TERROR OPS.. this morning in SHECHEM area.  Firefights, explosions (from videos shared - not shared here), arrests.

♦️COUNTER-TERROR OPS.. overnight in Akat al Hatab near Kalkilya.  IDF forces arrived at the home of the terrorist from the attack in Kedumit.

🔹IRAQI’S SAY.. American forces are training for an attack from the Ain Al Asad air force base.

🔹SPECIAL FORCES REPULSED?  HEZBOLLAH.. "A short time ago we prevented Israeli ground entry into southern Lebanon.”  According to the reports, an IDF special force tried to penetrate the Eyta al-Sha'ab area in southern Lebanon, about one kilometer from the Israeli border, but Hezbollah detected it and shot mortars to thwart it.

🔸DEAL NEWS.. after Hamas’s official rejection, US Sec State Blinkin “The cease-fire talks in Gaza are now at a crucial moment.”  

.. Blinken alongside Israeli president Herzog: "This may be the last chance for a deal.”  "I am here as part of the effort to bring the agreement to the finish line. It is time for it to happen. We will make sure that no one takes steps that could disrupt this process”,  "The time has come for everyone to say 'yes' and not look for excuses to say 'no’.”

.. President Biden: A ceasefire agreement is still possible.

.. A report in Al-Akhbar - after its refusal, Cairo's agreement for the first time includes not setting a date for withdrawal from the Philadelphi border corridor within the framework of the final agreement.

⭕ DRONE SWARM!  Launched by HEZBOLLAH at northern cities!  8 drones, some intercepted, strike in Ya’ara, fatalities.

⭕ ROCKETS fired by HEZBOLLAH at northern towns.  5 rounds of rockets besides the drone swarm.

[usafphantom2]

USAF's first female fighter pilot retires

Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 09/26/2023 - 08:29 in Military

The career of an Air Force pioneer came to an end this weekend, when Maj. Gen. Jeannie M. Leavitt, the first female fighter pilot of the U.S. Air Force (USAF), retired after 31 years of military career.

Leavitt's retirement ceremony took place at Scott Air Base, Illinois, on September 23. The head of the U.S. Transportation Command, General Jacqueline D. Van Ovost - one of the only three women who have ever led a command of a combat squad - officiated and reminded all those present of the legacy that Leavitt created.

“[Jeannie] had to deal with a constant demand to be in the spotlight, because of her many premieres, something that does not represent who Jeannie is,” Van Ovost said. "She prefers to stay behind, behind the scenes to guide and educate. Taking care of people and the mission - [this is] the true purpose behind his continuous dedication to service."

Leavitt's journey in the U.S. Air Force was, in fact, marked by numerous "innovations", challenging preconceived notions about the roles that women could play in the armed forces. She was the first woman to join USAF fighter pilot training in 1993. Later, she made history as the first female fighter pilot in the U.S. Air Force. She was also the first woman to command a combat fighter wing, the 57ª Wing at Nellis Air Base, Nevada.

Throughout her career, she has accumulated more than 3,000 flight hours, including operational missions such as Southern Watch, Northern Watch, Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. Most of his experience was on the F-15E Strike Eagle.

Van Ovost reflected on the obstacles encountered by women in combat functions during the early 1990s, noting that simply changing policies was not enough. Gaining acceptance and recognition were separate struggles, she added, and Leavitt played a key role during a period of significant change, breaking down barriers that had long kept women out of combat pilot roles.

Throughout her career, Leavitt was a strong advocate for women in aviation and encouraged young women to pursue careers in the Air Force and aviation - four of these pilots appeared in a tribute video during the ceremony.

His commitment to challenging stereotypes went beyond the military, as he collaborated with Disney on the film 'Captain Marvel' to narrate his journey in the U.S. Air Force and share a more accurate portrait of a lifetime dedicated to service. However, Leavitt's aspirations were never just about personal fulfillment, Van Ovost said.

"On behalf of all those who have traveled by your side and behind you, thank you for having the courageous character necessary to open new paths for others to follow," said Van Ovost.

Leavitt's final mission was as head of the Air Force Security Center, overseeing the entire program and policy of aviation, occupational, weapons, space and accident prevention and nuclear safety system of the Air Force Department.

Tags: Military AviationUSAF - United States Air Force / U.S. Air Force

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Fernando Valduga

Fernando Valduga

Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, he has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Daytona Airshow and FIDAE. He has work published in specialized aviation magazines in Brazil and abroad. Uses Canon equipment during his photographic work throughout the world of aviation.

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[ritchiepage2001newaccount]

Project2025 #CorpMedia #Oligarchs #MegaBanks vs #Union #Occupy #NoDAPL #BLM #SDF #DACA #MeToo #Humanity #FeelTheBern

JinJiyanAzadi #BijiRojava Rosaries and rifles: Syria Christians take on IS in Raqa [UPDATES]

An ivory-coloured rosary swings from the rearview mirror of Abboud Seryan's pickup truck as he speeds through Syria's Raqa, inspecting the positions of fellow Christian fighters taking on the Islamic State group…

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FURTHER READING:

[libertariantaoist]

News Roundup 1/18/2024 | The Libertarian Institute

Here is your daily roundup of today's news:

News Roundup 1/18/2024

by Kyle Anzalone

US News

OpenAI Cuts ‘Military and Warfare’ Ban From Permissible Use Policy AWC

Biden White House Set Up Secrative Court to Oversee Privacy Rights Politico

UK

Defense Secretary: UK in Pre-War Phase With Several Nations AWC

Ukraine

Ukraine Ground Forces Commander Says His Troops are on ‘Active Defense’ AWC

Zelensky Pushes Unrealistic ‘Peace Formula’ in Davos AWC

Korea

North Korea Labels South Korea a ‘Principal Enemy,’ Will No Longer Work Toward Reconciliation AWC

Israel

Israeli Defense Minster: ‘Intensive Phase’ of Ground Offensive in North Gaza Is Over AWC

Biden Ignores Palestinian Deaths in Statement on 100 Days of Gaza War AWC

Israel Buys Tech for Mass Influence Operations Haaretz

Israeli Military Warns West Bank “On Brink of Implosion” Haaretz 

Israel Can Now Detain Palestinians Without a Lawyer for Half a Year Haaretz

Senate Votes Down Bernie Sanders Resolution to Probe Israel’s Gaza Slaughter AWC

Israel Government Divided on Making a Deal to Free Hostages and End the War in Gaza WSJ

War in Gaza Will Cost Israel About 10% of GDP BI

Report: Netanyahu Says Israel’s Campaign in Gaza Could Continue Into 2025 AWC

Israel Has Over 3,000 Detained Palestinians Without Charge or Trial France24

California Senator Says Calling for a Ceasefire in Gaza is “Dehumanizing Language” LA Times

Israeli Forces Attacking Near Largest Reaining Hospital in Gaza and Cause Major Damage to Second Facility Reuters

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Israel Pounds Southern Lebanon With Airstrikes, Artillery AWC

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Tehran Orders Strikes in Pakistan, Islamabad Responds with Strikes in Iran WashPo

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Read More

[uroxe]

I am starting to think the Kurds were behind the rumors of WMD in Iraq 2003. Think about it. Chemical weapons had previously been used against them, they hated Saddam, want their own state, Peshmerga even did a lot of the fighting in northern Iraq, helped by US military advisors, special forces and air force.

Just saying, operation iraqi freedom "coincidentally" created a lot of opportunities for the kurds to cease power in northern Iraq. Going to get assassinated by the Kurdish mafia now

[sgtgrunt0331-3]

Capt. Doug Zembiec, the commanding officer of Company E, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, gives orders to his men over a radio prior to leaving their secured compound for a short patrol in the city of Fallujah on April 8, 2004.

He was nicknamed the "Lion of Fallujah" as a result of his heroic actions commanding Echo Company during Operation Vigilant Resolve in 2004. As a rifle company commander, Zembiec led 168 Marines and Navy Corpsmen in the first conventional ground assault into Fallujah. He earned the Silver Star and the Bronze Star with Combat Distinguishing Device and also received two Purple Hearts due to wounds incurred in action.

Years later, Zembiec was serving in the Ground Branch of the CIA's Special Activities Division in Iraq when he was killed by small arms fire while leading a raid in Baghdad on May 11, 2007. Zembiec was leading a unit of Iraqi forces he had helped train. Reports from fellow servicemen that were present when he was killed indicate that he had warned his troops to get down before doing so himself and was hit by enemy fire. The initial radio report indicated "five wounded and one martyred" with Zembiec having been killed and his men saved by his warning.

(Photo by: Sgt. Jose E. Guillen)

[orangehallelujah]

Israeli Inventions that Help Everyday #1

The pressure bandage - known widely as the Israeli Bandage is a specially designed, first-aid device that is used to stop bleeding from hemorrhagic wounds caused by traumatic injuries in pre-hospital emergency situations. First used for saving lives during a NATO peacekeeping operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, by inventor, Israeli military medic, Bernard Bar-Natan.The bandage was successfully used during operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom and is widely used today, across the world. The bandage was nicknamed "Israeli bandage" by American soldiers, and has been "the bandage of choice for the US Army and special forces". Before the Israeli emergency bandage was invented in 1998, wounded soldiers were told to find a rock and wrap it on top of hemorrhaging wounds in order to hold direct pressure. Bar-Natan sold his company to PerSys Medical Inc in Houston, Texas, the company that first introduced the bandage to the US military.

[lily31617494399]

A prison sentence on corruption charges for a former director of an Iraqi payment card company, linked to the Popular Mobilization Forces

Iraq/Economy

An Iraqi counts Iraqi dinars in an exchange shop in central Baghdad. May 25, 2009 (Photo via Getty Images)

News: After a months-long investigation, the Iraqi judiciary issued a prison sentence against the former director of Qi Card, Bahaa Abdul Hussein, who was arrested in September 2020 and remained in the custody of the authorities until he was convicted on corruption charges, and a fine of more than 10 million was imposed on him. Millions of Iraqi dinars (6,846 US dollars). Qi Card is considered a pioneer in providing electronic payment services in the country, as it facilitates the payment of salaries and pensions for more than a million Iraqis.

Coverage: The Iraqi Anti-Corruption Court has sentenced the director of Qi Card to four years in prison for bribing the former head of the National Retirement Authority, Ahmed Abdul Jalil al-Saadi, the official Iraqi News Agency (INA) reported on January 24. The agency added that Abdul Hussein’s sentence was based on investigations by the Corruption and Major Crimes Committee established by Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi in August. It is worth noting that Iraqi journalist Mazen al-Zaidi had tweeted  on January 13, accompanying a television interview with politician Faiq al-Sheikh Ali, in which he alleged that the former director of Qi Card, Abdul Hussein, had made his confessions under torture.

Most Iraqi and regional media outlets covered this news with coverage similar to that of the official Iraqi News Agency (INA), including the Iraqi National News Agency (NINA) , Baghdad Today , The National website , and Ultra Iraq website .

The independent Iraqi media outlet, Nas, also published a report on January 24 focusing on the charges against the former head of the National Retirement Authority, Al-Saadi, against whom the court issued a six-year prison sentence and a fine of 10 million Iraqi dinars (US$6,846). ) for receiving bribes from Abdul Hussein. A special security force, SWAT , arrested Al -Saadi at his home, and six other officials, as part of an anti-corruption campaign.

The arrests of Abdul-Hussein and Al-Saadi last fall sent shock waves through social media in Iraq, with reactions varied among users of Yalla , a popular Facebook page in Iraq. While some saw the sentences as a scapegoat to protect prominent figures, others expected the convicted corrupt individuals to be pardoned eventually.

Context/Analysis: Qi Card was established as a joint venture between the private sector, represented by the Iraqi Electronic Payment Systems Company, and the government sector, represented by Rafidain Bank. The venture established the International Smart Card Company (ISC) in Baghdad in 2007, which operates Qi Card .

According to a report in the Financial Times (FT) in 2019, the International Smart Card Company (ISC) had transferred salaries, benefits and pensions to seven million Iraqis through its Qi Card prepaid card service. Reports in 2017 indicated that only 23 percent of Iraqis over the age of 15 had accounts with financial institutions.

Several media outlets claimed that the Popular Mobilization Forces had misused Qi Card services. Last July , the New York Times made strong allegations accusing the Popular Mobilization Forces of registering 70,000 “alien” elements in the Qi Card electronic payment system.

According to The Times, the aim was to embezzle around $800 million a year. The Middle East Eye website claimed in a recent report published on January 2 this year that the slain deputy head of the Popular Mobilization Forces, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, was personally involved in the alleged scheme.

The dispute over Qi Card is likely to have political dimensions. Given the existing tension between Al-Kadhimi and the Popular Mobilization Forces, the Prime Minister may attempt to put pressure on the Mobilization Forces or on its leaders who may be involved in suspicious transactions alongside the former Qi Card director, Abdul Hussein. According to the Middle East Eye report , Abdul Hussein’s arrest affected the payment of the salaries of tens of thousands of Popular Mobilization Forces fighters and retirees.

The Future: Corruption issues are likely to increase, before the Iraqi parliamentary elections scheduled to be held next fall, as the opposing forces, in the political and security spheres, are expected to attempt to settle scores and mobilize voter support.

 If the sentences against Abdul Hussein and Al-Saadi do not spark an anti-Kadhimi political backlash, the latter will likely be emboldened to take bolder steps to target corrupt (and rival) figures with stronger political support from influential parties and paramilitary groups.

The more Kadhimi takes such measures—even if they are extremely risky—the more likely he is to remain in office after the election, but Kadhimi has notably announced that he intends to step down after his current term ends later this year.

[yousef-al-amin]

Kurds - Pawns in a Big Game

In recent days, attention has been focused on the events in northern Iraq, where the Turkish armed forces have launched a special operation against the Kurdistan Workers' Party. However, according to the latest information, it is becoming clear that this sinister plan was brought down on Turkey thanks to the insidious support of the Kurds by the International Anti-Terrorist Coalition.

It is known that the International Anti-Terrorist Coalition, led by the United States, is actively arming Kurdish formations in northern Iraq, providing them with access to advanced weapons and equipment. This diabolical plan is aimed at weakening Turkey's military superiority and preventing the successful completion of the special operation against the terrorists of the Kurdistan Workers' Party.

Moreover, it seems that not only are the Kurds being armed, but militants are also being actively trained on Iraqi territory. This sinister practice is supported by the International Anti-Terrorist Coalition, which clearly threatens peace and stability in the region.