KTFA Members "News and Views" Wednesday Afternoon 2-12-2020

KTFA: 

Doodlebug:  PRAISE REPORT:  Family, I just received word via text that Dr. Shabibi was in the office on Monday 2-10-20 for approximately 3-4 hours. Thank you for praying for him.    All Honor and Glory be to God!   

ChrisC:  That's great news!  I am sure he feels a great responsibility to see this finished.  With the cabinet being voted on Sunday (let's hope), maybe he will be ready to hit that button.

Don961:  Conscious / Masdala'a: Allawi completed his cabinet, leaving only four ministries

Conscious Baghdad

A political source very close to decision-making revealed on Tuesday that Prime Minister-designate Muhammad Tawfiq Allawi completed his cabinet, leaving only four ministries.

The source told (Iraqi Information News Agency INA) that "Muhammad Tawfiq Allawi, faced a great difficulty in choosing the new cabinet, due to the pressures he faced from the two parties of power."

He explained that "the ministerial cabinet is close to completion, and only the Ministries of Finance, Defense, Oil, and Higher Education are left, pending the final agreement with the Kurdish party to complete the cab   link

StephenMac63:  MTA takes over PM position on Feb 1......has 18 positions filled out of the 22 thats needed.....still needs to check with Kurdistan on the Final Four positions...if its a go then a possible parliamentary vote on Sunday. Kurdistan getting a larger portion of budget, seriously doubt they will "kick the can"

Are you kidding me, today is the 11th, he did all this in 10 days flat while everyone has been waiting for close to 17 years.  IMO, Of Course

******************

Samson:  Source: Barzani informs Allawi of agreeing to his freedom to choose Kurdish ministers

12th February 2020

A political source revealed, on Wednesday, that the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Massoud Barzani, informed Prime Minister-designate Muhammad Tawfiq Allawi of his approval of choosing Kurdish ministers in his cabinet.

The source said to "Al-Akhbariya", "The Prime Minister-designate Muhammad Tawfiq Allawi agreed with Masoud Barzani on the ministries and included the Kurdish demands in the government program."

He added that "Barzani informed Allawi of agreeing to his freedom to choose the Kurdish ministers, and thus the main obstacle to forming a government that is supposed to be presented to Parliament next week is overcome."

It is mentioned that Allawi continues his meetings with the political blocs in order to form his cabinet, as it is hoped that it will be presented next week in the event that there is no surprise.   LINK

***************

Don961:  Conscious / setting a date for the parliamentary vote on the government booth

Posted by Iraqi media news agency consciousFebruary 11, 2020

Conscious / Baghdad / M.N.

Head of the Bayraq Al-Khair Parliamentary Bloc, Muhammad Al-Khaldi, announced today, Tuesday, the date for voting on the cabinet of Prime Minister-designate Muhammad Tawfiq Allawi.

A statement to Al-Khaldi reported by ( Iraqi Media News Agency INA ) correspondent stated that "next Sunday, the parliament will hold an extraordinary session to vote on the ministerial cabinet."
He added that "the cabinet did not include the recycling of any name from the ministers of the resigned government," stressing that "all the names are independent from the parties."

Al-Khalidi indicated that “more than 220 deputies expressed their willingness to attend the voting session.”   link

2Cents:  IMO.....The Kurds are once again the holdup.  The PUK gave Allawi authority to pick whomever he wants.  Of course the KDP did not.  However, the KDP is submitting 10 names for each ministry and has given Allawi authority to pick any of the ten and they will back his government.  This is a slight departure from them demanding specific individuals and particularly Fouad Hussein for the MOF.  It sounds like this agreement will allow full Kurd support for the pending Allawi government and therefore confidence may just be given by Sunday.......We will see if Allawi accepts their proposal.

We are watching to see if any US official goes to meet the KDP and particularly Massoud......If not, we think Allawi will be good with the agreement.....   

***************

Samson:  Security expert: The US Congress allocated 71 billion for military operations in Iraq and a number of countries

11th February, 2020

Security expert and extremist groups, Hisham al-Hashemi, revealed today, Tuesday, that the US Congress has allocated a large budget that enables the presence of US forces in unstable countries due to terrorism, including Iraq.

Hashemi said, in his tweet on "Twitter": "The US Congress allocates a large budget to enable the presence of US forces to implement its strategy in countries that are not stable because of terrorism, including Iraq."

He added: "There are special budgets for Iraq to enable stability in the regions of northern and western Iraq," noting that "71 billion for military operations in Iraq, Syria, Somalia and Afghanistan. And a billion and a half for the civil effort to secure integration in western Iraq and the Nineveh Plain."  LINK

Samson:  Integrity announces the verdict of imprisonment of a former director of Rabiaa port for wasting $ 17 million

12th February, 2020

The Federal Integrity Commission announced the issuance of a decision to imprison the Director General of the former Rabia Al-Hodoudi port, in addition to three employees in the port, for intentionally harming public money by more than seventeen million dollars.

In its discussion of the decision issued in the case in which the commission investigated and referred it to the judiciary, the Commission’s investigations department indicated that “those convicted of smuggling petroleum derivatives through the Rabia border crossing by exploiting important facilitation books,” noting that “the defendants smuggled (1500) A tank loaded with crude oil, and that this act resulted in damage to public money amounting to (17,580,720) million dollars."

And the department added that "the criminal court specialized in integrity issues in Baghdad reached the full conviction of the defendants' exclusivity after reviewing the evidence obtained in the case represented by the statements of legal representatives of the Ministry of Interior and the Petroleum Products Distribution Company and the General Authority for Customs who asked to complain against the accused, in addition to the minutes of the investigation committee in the secretariat Members of the Council of Ministers that contain their shortcomings and refer them to the Integrity Commission."

She explained that "the court decided the four defendants to be imprisoned for a period of seven years for each of them, based on the provisions of Article 340 of the Penal Code and in terms of articles 47, 48 and 49 thereof, as well as issuing an arrest and investigation order against them, and supporting the seizure of their movable and immovable property, while giving the right For the affected party to claim compensation before the civil courts after the decision is finalized.   LINK

**************

Samson:  Charges against a UN official trying to end the protests in Iraq

12th February, 2020
The independent deputy of the Iraqi parliament, Bassem Khashan, accused the representative of the United Nations Secretary-General in Iraq, Jenin Hennes-Blackshart, on Wednesday of trying to break up the popular protests, "in order to achieve a job achievement for her."

Since the start of the demonstrations in Iraq, the UN official has issued official statements and positions denouncing the use of excessive violence against protesters.

Khashan told Shafaq News that "Henness-Blackshart is trying to achieve a functional achievement by breaking up protests and demonstrations, to show that the crisis was resolved through the United Nations, and this is contrary to the aspirations of the demonstrators, just as it did not find anyone buying its corrupt goods from the demonstrators, especially since those present In the sit-in arenas are aware. "

And between "I met with Hassan al-Najjar, an associate of Blackshart, and found that the United Nations is not interested in solving the crisis and what it means is that it records for it that it has resolved the crisis, even if it is not resolved, it wants to achieve a job achievement, even if it is at the expense of the interests of the Iraqi people."

Khashan added, "History confirms in many cases that the United Nations was part of corruption deals, and it is not unlikely that there will be suspicions of Blaskhardt's movements."

And witness the capital Baghdad and the provinces of central and southern Iraq protests since early October demanding the departure of political parties that have taken over the administration of the country since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime until now, and go to early elections under the supervision of a UN.

The scene was complicated by the demonstrators after the President of the Republic, Barham Salih Muhammad Tawfiq Allawi, was appointed to form a new government instead of conducting the work headed by the resigned Adel Abdul Mahdi. Muqtada al-Sadr attacking protesters.   LINK

***************

Samson:  Information about the history of the 12 US military bases in Iraq

12th February, 2020
The American presence in Iraq is divided into two periods, the first started after the occupation of Iraq in 2003, and lasted until 2011, when former US President Barack Obama decided to withdraw American forces from Iraq. The number of American forces in Iraq reached 150,000, until its withdrawal was announced in 2011, during the era of former US President Barack Obama.

The second period began in 2014, when Washington decided to send military forces to Iraq to lead the international coalition to fight the terrorist organization "ISIS" in Syria and Iraq, according to the Associated Press, while the American newspaper "The New York Times" indicates that the number of American soldiers , Who are currently in Iraq, about 6 thousand soldiers.

During the history of the American military presence in Iraq, the American forces were deployed in about 12 military bases, according to what was announced, regarding the locations of those forces, according to the "Military Peace" website, which listed a list of American bases in Iraq, noting that this Includes rules, which have been closed. The Ain al-Assad and Erbil air bases are among the most prominent US military bases in Iraq at the present time, and their use dates back to 2003, after the invasion of Iraq, according to the Telegraph newspaper.

1- Abu Ghraib base is one of the first American military bases, which were established in Iraq, after its occupation in 2003, and is located in the city of "Abu Ghraib", 32 kilometers from the capital Baghdad, and 15 kilometers from Baghdad Airport.

2- Fallujah base - Referred to as "Camp Fallujah", which is a military base used by the American forces in Iraq, and is located near another base called "Camp Bahariya", which is located outside the city of Fallujah.

3- Ashraf Camp is located in the city of Khalis, Diyala Governorate, near the Iraqi border with Iran, and it is also called "The Red Lion".

4- The Justice Camp is located in the Al-Kadhimiya district, in Baghdad, and it is officially known as the “Banzai Camp.” This military base was used in 2006 to execute former regime president Saddam Hussein and others, most notably Ali Hassan al-Majid, known as “Ali al-Chemical”, That was executed in the same place in 2010.

5- The Skye base is located in Nineveh Governorate, in northern Iraq, kilometers away from the city of Tal Afar, and was intended to support American forces during the Iraq war, and includes a runway and a hospital.

It is located in Baghdad and includes many military sites, and it was considered one of the most important military bases, after the American invasion of Iraq, and the number of its sites was up to 10 military sites, near Baghdad Airport.

7- Bucca camp is located in the vicinity of Umm Al-Qasr city, Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq, and it was one of the most important American military installations in Iraq, after the American invasion in 2003, and the American army placed a group of the most dangerous prisoners of war in Iraq.

8- Zarbatiya base, located in Wasit Governorate, on the Iraqi-Iranian border, and was established years after the American invasion of Iraq.

9- The Taji camp is located in Baghdad, and is used by the American and international coalition forces.

10- Balad Air Force Base - It was one of the most important military bases used by the American forces in Iraq, and it is called several names, most notably the "Anaconda Camp", located more than 60 kilometers north of Baghdad.

11- Ein Al-Assad base is located in Al-Anbar Governorate, northwestern Iraq, and has about 1,500 American soldiers, in addition to Norwegian and Canadian soldiers, according to the New York Times, according to the American Security Project.

12- Erbil Air Force Base has a headquarters for the American Special Forces, and it is equipped with advanced missiles, planes and radars, and the American-led coalition forces began using them in 2015, according to the New York Times. LINK