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Iraqi Defense Minister Starts Washington Visit

Iraqi Defense Minister Thabet Mohammed al-Abbasi boards military cargo plane during domestic flight in June (Iraqi Ministry of Defense)
Iraqi Defense Minister Thabet Mohammed al-Abbasi boards military cargo plane during domestic flight in June (Iraqi Ministry of Defense)
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Iraqi Defense Minister Starts Washington Visit

Iraqi Defense Minister Thabet Mohammed al-Abbasi boards military cargo plane during domestic flight in June (Iraqi Ministry of Defense)
Iraqi Defense Minister Thabet Mohammed al-Abbasi boards military cargo plane during domestic flight in June (Iraqi Ministry of Defense)

Iraqi Defense Minister Thabet Mohammed al-Abbasi embarked on a visit to the US on Monday, leading a high-ranking military delegation.

Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasoul, spokesperson for the Iraqi Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, stated in a press release that “the delegation will engage in several meetings discussing a range of topics, foremost among them the future relationship of the international coalition’s presence and the bilateral security cooperation between Iraq and the US.”

The delegation will discuss the exchange of expertise and information, particularly in the intelligence domain, aimed at tracking down the remnants of ISIS terrorists.

The visit also entails “a series of meetings with officials at the US Department of Defense to further the mutual interests between the two countries.”

The Iraqi military delegation includes the head of the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service (CTS), Lt. Gen. Abdulwahab Al-Saadi, Chief of Staff of the Army Lt. Gen. Abdul Amir Rashid Yarallah, Lt. Gen. Qais Al-Mohammedawi, Deputy Commander of Joint Operations, as well as several advisors and officers.

The visit of the Iraqi delegation comes in response to an invitation from the US Department of Defense, otherwise known as the Pentagon.

“This visit is significant at this time, especially considering that the accompanying delegation to the Defense Minister includes the head of the counter-terrorism bureau, as well as the Chief of Staff of the Army,” security expert Sarmad Al-Bayati told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“There are agreements between Baghdad and Washington, particularly the Strategic Framework Agreement between Iraq and the US, which pertains to training, consultation, capability development, and maintenance, particularly regarding (F-16) aircraft,” he added.

Al-Bayati pointed out that “there are requests for certain weapons that could be of interest to Iraq and requested from the US, in addition to the importance of consultation and training matters.”

He emphasized that “there is a need to review many agreements signed between the two sides.”

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited Iraq in March, where he met with Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani.

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Girl Dies of Malnutrition in Gaza as Israel Bombs North and South

Palestinian children gather to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, amid food scarcity, as Israel-Hamas conflict continues, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, June 26, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem
Palestinian children gather to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, amid food scarcity, as Israel-Hamas conflict continues, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, June 26, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem
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Girl Dies of Malnutrition in Gaza as Israel Bombs North and South

Palestinian children gather to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, amid food scarcity, as Israel-Hamas conflict continues, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, June 26, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem
Palestinian children gather to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, amid food scarcity, as Israel-Hamas conflict continues, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, June 26, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

Another child died of malnutrition in northern Gaza overnight and six people were killed and several wounded in renewed Israeli bombing of residential areas of Gaza City, Palestinian health officials said on Thursday.
In the southern city of Rafah, a one-time place of refuge where Israel says it is close to completing an almost month-long operation against Hamas fighters, residents said the military had flattened several districts over the past few days.
More than eight months into Israel's war on Gaza triggered by the Hamas-led cross border attack on Oct. 7, aid officials say the enclave remains at high risk of famine, with almost half a million people facing "catastrophic" food insecurity.
"We are being starved in Gaza City, and are being hunted by tanks and planes with no hope that this war is ever ending," Mohammad Jamal, 25, a resident of Gaza City, told Reuters via a chat app.
The death of another girl in Kamal Adwan Hospital late on Wednesday raised the number of children who have died of malnutrition and dehydration to at least 31, a health official said, adding that the war made recording such cases difficult.
Israel denies accusations it has created the famine conditions, blaming aid agencies for distribution problems and accusing Hamas of diverting aid, allegations the militants deny.
Palestinian health officials said three people had been killed when Israeli planes bombed five residential buildings in the Sabra neighborhood in Gaza City. Rescue teams are searching for others trapped under the rubble, while three other people were killed in the nearby Shejaia neighborhood.
"It sounded as if the war is restarting, a series of bombings that destroyed several houses in our area and shook the buildings," resident Jamal said.
Drone footage on social media, which Reuters could not immediately authenticate, showed dozens of houses destroyed in parts of Rafah, which borders Egypt, with the Swedeya village on the western side of the city completely wiped out.
There was no immediate Israeli military comment on the overnight military action.
US AND ISRAEL DISCUSS POST-WAR PLAN FOR GAZA
International mediation backed by the US has failed to yield a ceasefire agreement although talks are continuing amid intense Western pressure for Gaza to receive more aid.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday that he had discussed his proposals for governance of post-war Gaza that would include local Palestinians, regional partners and the US but that it would be "a long and complex process".
Senior US officials told Gallant, who was visiting Washington, that the US would maintain a pause on a shipment of heavy munitions for Israel while the issue is under review. The shipment was paused in early May over concerns the weapons could cause more Palestinian deaths in Gaza.
Hamas says any deal must bring an end to the war and full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, while Israel says it will accept only temporary pauses in fighting until Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, is eradicated.
When Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, they killed around 1,200 people and seized more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
The Israeli offensive in retaliation has so far killed 37,658 people, the Gaza health ministry said on Tuesday, and has left the tiny, heavily built-up Gaza Strip in ruins.
The Gaza health ministry does not distinguish between combatants and non-combatants, but officials say most of those killed have been civilians. Israel has lost 314 soldiers in Gaza and says at least a third of the Palestinian dead are fighters.
Along with food shortages that mean most of Gaza's 2.3 million population goes hungry, a lack of clean water and sanitation is spreading disease.
An Israeli security official and a Western official told Reuters on Wednesday that Israel is preparing to boost electricity to a desalination plant so it can produce more water for Gaza. The Western official said the plan would alleviate the problem but solving it would require repairs.