Iraq-US Resume Dialogue on Future of International Coalition

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin holds discussions with his Iraqi counterpart, Thabet Al-Abbasi, in Washington last year (Pentagon)
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin holds discussions with his Iraqi counterpart, Thabet Al-Abbasi, in Washington last year (Pentagon)
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Iraq-US Resume Dialogue on Future of International Coalition

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin holds discussions with his Iraqi counterpart, Thabet Al-Abbasi, in Washington last year (Pentagon)
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin holds discussions with his Iraqi counterpart, Thabet Al-Abbasi, in Washington last year (Pentagon)

 

A high-level Iraqi delegation and US officials began in Washington on Monday a new round of joint security dialogue on the withdrawal of the military international coalition from Iraq.
An official Iraqi source told Asharq Al-Awsat on Tuesday that the Iraqi team headed by Defense Minister Thabet Al-Abbasi and Iraqi military commanders was in Washington to discuss the presence of the international coalition forces in the country.
“The dialogue aims to start building a bilateral relationship between Iraq and the United States,” the sources said, noting that the visit comes after months of negotiations between the joint Higher Military Commission.
For her part, US Ambassador to Baghdad Alina Romanowski said on X that security officials from the United States and Iraq will discuss the future of the international coalition’s mission and strengthen bilateral security cooperation.
US-Iraqi negotiations resumed in February following Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shiaa Al-Sudani’s request to end the mission of the international coalition that was created to fight ISIS in June 2014.
Iraqi politician Bahaa Al-Araji, former deputy prime minister, said in a televised interview last week that Al-Sudani had agreed with the American side on the date for the complete withdrawal of international coalition forces from Iraq.
Meanwhile, a number of Iraqi armed factions loyal to Iran declared the end of the truce that they had concluded with Washington on behalf of the government through mediation adopted by Sudani.
The armed factions bombed the Ain al-Assad base in western Iraq with two drones without causing any losses, while both the Iraqi Hezbollah Brigades and the Loyal Ansar Allah Movement announced the end of the truce with the US side, as a result of what they considered to be American procrastination regarding the withdrawal from Iraq.

 

 



Israeli Military Says Commandos Raided Missile Plant in Syria in September

People inspect a damaged area in the aftermath of what Syrian state media reported was an Israeli strike in Masyaf, Hama province, Syria September 9, 2024. (Reuters)
People inspect a damaged area in the aftermath of what Syrian state media reported was an Israeli strike in Masyaf, Hama province, Syria September 9, 2024. (Reuters)
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Israeli Military Says Commandos Raided Missile Plant in Syria in September

People inspect a damaged area in the aftermath of what Syrian state media reported was an Israeli strike in Masyaf, Hama province, Syria September 9, 2024. (Reuters)
People inspect a damaged area in the aftermath of what Syrian state media reported was an Israeli strike in Masyaf, Hama province, Syria September 9, 2024. (Reuters)

Israel's military said on Thursday its special forces had raided an underground missile production site in Syria in September that it said was primed to produce hundreds of precision missiles for use against Israel by the Iranian-backed Hezbollah.

The complex near Masyaf, close to the Mediterranean coast, was "the flagship of Iranian manufacturing efforts in our region", Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told a briefing with reporters.

"This facility was designed to manufacture hundreds of strategic missiles per year from start to finish, for Hezbollah to use in their aerial attacks on Israel."

He said the plant, dug into a mountainside, had been under observation by Israel since construction began in 2017 and was on the point of being able to manufacture precision-guided missiles, some with a range of up to 300 km (190 miles).

"This ability was becoming active, so we're talking about an immediate threat," he said.

Details of the Sept. 8 raid have been reported in Israeli media but Shoshani said this was the first confirmation by the military, which rarely comments on special forces operations.

At the time, Syrian state media said at least 16 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes in the west of the country.

Shoshani said the nighttime raid was "one of the more complex operations the IDF has done in recent years". Accompanied by airstrikes, it involved dozens of aircraft and around 100 helicopter-borne troops, he said.

"At the end of the raid, the troops dismantled the facility, including the machines and the manufacturing equipment, themselves," he said.

The military released footage showing Israeli troops boarding and dismounting from helicopters and moving through what appears to be a concrete-lined tunnel and industrial site, where they examine documents.

Other footage showed senior commanders at a control center, apparently as the operation proceeds.

Israeli officials have accused the former Syrian government of president Bahar al-Assad of helping the Lebanese-based Hezbollah movement receive arms from Iran and say they are determined to stop the flow of weapons into Lebanon.

As Assad's government crumbled towards the end of last year, Israel launched a series of strikes against Syrian military infrastructure and weapons manufacturing sites to prevent them falling into the hands of enemies.