KTFA Members "News and Views" Thursday Afternoon 12-3-2020

KTFA:

DeepWoodz:  Imo...Just wanted to highlight some things I think are (Thumbs Up)

Upcoming elections are now funded. 329 billion dinars.

Extraordinary sessions on Friday and Saturday for the 2021 budget.

Kurds are paying salaries.

Deposits in banks up by 42% from first quarter 2019 to first quarter 2020.

Rafidain bank pays December social welfare salaries.

Oil at $48 a barrel

Israel to open an embassy in Bahrain.  

Samson:  Parliament intends to read the election financing law and pass 4 laws in the Saturday session

3rd December, 2020

The House of Representatives intends to discuss the law on financing the expenses of the upcoming elections in the Saturday session, in addition to voting on 4 laws.

The session’s agenda includes voting in principle on the draft refugee law, voting on the draft law on the accession of the Republic of Iraq to the Convention on Limits of Liability for Maritime Claims of 1976 as amended by the 1996 Protocol, including the limits of liability amended therein.

The session also includes voting on a draft law on the accession of the Republic of Iraq to the 2000 Protocol amending the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation of 1988, in addition to voting on the draft law on the accession of the Republic of Iraq to the International Convention on Civil Liability for Damage from Oil Pollution of the year 18 .

The agenda also includes the first reading of the draft law on financing the expenses of the elections to the House of Representatives, and the report and discussion of the second reading of the draft law of the third amendment to the Law of Implementation of Irrigation Projects No. (12) for the year 191. (Agriculture, Water and Marshes Committee).

The session includes the first reading of the draft law on the accession of the Republic of Iraq to the International Convention on Intervention on the High Seas in the event of accidents causing oil pollution for the year 1969 and the protocol relating to intervention on the high seas in cases of pollution with substances other than oil for the year 18, as well as the first reading of the draft Convention on Transport Services Air between the government of the Republic of Iraq and the government of the United Arab Emirates.  LINK

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Samson:  The judiciary is officially moving on one of the "biggest corruption outlets in Iraq"

2nd December, 2020

The Media Office of the Supreme Judicial Council announced, on Wednesday, that it will start investigating the documents and documents of the banks benefiting from the auction of buying and selling hard currency, which is classified by economists as one of the main corruption outlets in Iraq after 2003.

In a statement received by Shafaq News Agency, the Judicial Media stated that the investigation court concerned with combating money laundering and economic crime, in response to the Central Bank's request regarding the investigation of documents and documents submitted by the participating banks in the foreign currency sale and purchase window, to verify their authenticity and compliance with the law.

Late last year, the Iraqi Integrity Commission revealed details of criminal cases related to the "currency auction" file that it is investigating, and talked about "three tricks" used by government banks, including using people's accounts without their knowledge and depositing checks for others who do not have a balance.  

According to the Integrity Commission, the cases included private and governmental banks, some of which claimed to have imported goods inside Iraq, but "no material has entered Iraq since 2004," according to the commission's statement.  LINK

Samson:  The Judiciary Conducts The Investigation With The Documents Of The Joint Banks In The Foreign Currency Sale Window

2nd December, 2020

The Supreme Judicial Council announced that the competent judicial bodies will start investigating the documents submitted by the joint banks in the currency auction held by the Central Bank.

A brief statement issued by the Supreme Judicial Council, today, Wednesday, indicated that the investigation court specialized in combating money laundering and economic crime has responded to the request of the Central Bank, and began conducting the investigation with the documents and documents submitted by the participating banks in the foreign currency sale and purchase window to verify their validity and compliance with the law.

It is noteworthy that many of the statements questioned the veracity of the data provided by banks to obtain hard currency when participating in the currency auction conducted by the Central Bank, with the intention of obtaining profits or smuggling hard currency out of the country.  LINK

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Samson:  Within months .. About 11,000 people, including terrorists, were arrested in Iraq

13th December, 2020

The Falcons Intelligence Cell announced the arrest of thousands of wanted suspects accused of terrorist and criminal crimes and cases of extortion and forgery during the past ten months, while the cell continues to implement the strategic plan to pursue terrorism and elements of organized crime; It revealed the implementation of many crushing strikes by ISIS

The semi-official Al-Sabah newspaper, in its Thursday edition, quoted the head of the Falcons Cell and the Director General of Intelligence and Combating Terrorism at the Ministry of Interior, Abu Ali Al-Basri, as saying that “during the past ten months, the agents of the Intelligence Directorate and the Falcons Cell managed to arrest about 11,000 suspects wanted for committing Terrorist and criminal crimes, murder, fraud, electronic extortion, and drugs.

The cell also managed to destroy five terrorist hideouts and kill its occupants in the southern regions of Hatra, Tharthar and Jisr Al-Aqarib, as well as seizing 212 missiles of various types and 18 explosive belts.

The cell and the intelligence directorates carried out dozens of specific operations in the regions of Baghdad, Abu Ghraib, Salah al-Din, Diyala, and in remote areas in the west and south of the country, under the supervision of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Mustafa Al-Kazemi and Minister of Interior Othman Al-Ghanimi, in coordination with the Joint Operations Command. Al-Basri said that terrorists were also killed. The perpetrators of the terrorist attack in the army’s watchtower in the Al-Zaidan area in Abu Ghraib last month. The terrorists were chased and killed in Al-Zaidan 6 hours after the terrorist operation.

With careful intelligence follow-up from the Falcons cell in the Ministry of the Interior, the group that committed the terrorist operation against the citizens was identified between (Al-Zawiya and Al-Meshak) within the Salah El-Din operations sector at the foot of the Makhoul mountain range, in coordination with the Joint Operations Command. Last Monday, four air strikes were carried out in coordination with the "F-15" aircraft of the international coalition, and the strikes resulted in the killing of all members of the terrorist group consisting of five terrorists, who planned and carried out terrorist acts in that region.

Al-Basri stressed that since the beginning of this year, the Interior Intelligence and the Falcons Cell, in coordination with other security agencies, have prepared a tight intelligence plan to follow up and prosecute the terrorist elements of those who are wanted in court and sleeper cells in all regions of Iraq, especially in the provinces liberated from the grip of ISIS in 2018. LINK

Samson: Iraq signs seven memoranda of understanding with Egypt

12/03/2020 18:00:13

 The head of the Iraqi Coordination Council, Minister of Planning Khaled Najm Al-Battal, said today, Thursday, that the Iraqi delegation will sign seven memoranda of understanding with the Egyptian side during its visit to Cairo.

A statement issued by the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, a copy of which was received by the Al Furat News Agency, stated that, "The Iraqi-Jordanian-Egyptian Coordinating Council discussed today, Thursday, the agenda of the visit that the Iraqi delegation will make to Cairo next week and the memoranda of understanding that will be signed with the Egyptian side." 

The statement indicated that the Chairman of the Council, Minister of Planning, Dr. Khaled Najm Al-Battal, during the council session held today at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, confirmed that the Iraqi delegation will sign during the visit seven memoranda of understanding with the Egyptian side, indicating that the notes will include enabling the stalled projects in Iraq, and cultural, scientific, development and agricultural protocol projects, in addition Activating the memoranda of understanding signed during the recent visit of the Egyptian Prime Minister and his accompanying delegation to Baghdad.

The statement noted that, during the visit, the delegation will hold bilateral meetings between ministers of the Iraqi side with their counterparts, as well as conducting a number of field visits to a number of important projects in Cairo, and a tripartite meeting will be held between the members of the Iraqi-Jordanian-Egyptian Coordination Council, on the sidelines of the visit.  LINK

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Samson:  Germany allocates 324 million euros to support Iraq

3rd December, 2020

Germany announced, on Thursday, that it will allocate 324 million euros for the reconstruction of Iraq, the return of displaced persons, and reforms in the service sectors

Planning Minister Khaled Battal Al-Najm said in a statement that "Al-Iktissad News" received a copy of it, "Consultative meetings between Iraq and Germany started today in Baghdad and Germany through the hypothetical (WEPEX) program, which comes within the framework of strengthening joint cooperation between the two countries

Al-Najm asked Germany for "more cooperation between the two countries, and to take advantage of the large investment opportunities available in Iraq," indicating that "the Iraqi government is serious about conducting economic reforms and addressing defects

Al-Najm added that "the reform process in the white paper will include many paths, including improving the investment environment and making it more attractive to investors, and working to generate more job opportunities." The issue of ending the issue of the displaced, economic reforms and support for the private sector

For his part, German Economy Minister Martin Jagger stressed the importance of "partnership with Iraq, in various fields, in a way that strengthens and strengthens bilateral relations," stressing "the willingness of German companies and government to support the efforts of the Iraqi government, invest in Iraq, and work to achieve economic reforms in several fields

He added, "Germany has allocated 324 million euros to support Iraq, of which 270 million euros are earmarked for reconstruction and the return of displaced persons, and 60 million euros, to support reforms in service sectors and infrastructure throughout Iraq," praising at the same time "the white paper presented by the government." Iraq, as usual, is an important key to achieving economic reform in Iraq  LINK