NATO to Keep Assisting Iraq after the End of Combat Operations

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. AFP
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. AFP
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NATO to Keep Assisting Iraq after the End of Combat Operations

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. AFP
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. AFP

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday a number of allies announced that they will contribute to the new Crisis Management Center in Jordan and promised continued assistance to Iraq following ISIS’ collapse.

Stoltenberg was speaking at the conclusion of the NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels.

“Today, allies looked to the future of the NATO training activity in Iraq and expressed their full commitment to it,” he said.

“We have discussed ways to increase NATO’s role in projecting stability and fighting terrorism. Because instability abroad threatens us at home,” Stoltenberg stated.

“From the Balkans to Afghanistan, NATO has great experience in training local forces and building the capacity of local institutions. These are the best tools to make our partners better able to defend themselves and to combat international terrorism.”

“This year, we started training local forces in Iraq.  In areas such as countering improvised explosive devices, military medicine, equipment maintenance, and reform of the country’s security institutions. 

“As we look ahead to the Brussels Summit in July, we discussed how to engage further with our partners, to the south and to the east. We need to devote sufficient resources to these efforts, to make the best of the skills and capabilities we have,” he added.

According to Stoltenberg, Wednesday’s discussions focused on how NATO’s role within the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS should evolve as the Coalition moves from combat operations to stabilization efforts.

“This is something that both the Coalition and the Iraqi government want.  The Coalition has recovered over 95 percent of the territory claimed by ISIS and liberated seven million people,” he said.



Palestine Action Wins Bid to Challenge UK Ban Under Anti-terrorism Laws

A Palestinian flag is seen, outside London's High Court as judges decide whether the co-founder of Palestine Action can challenge the UK government's ban on the group, in London, Britain, July 30, 2025. REUTERS/Toby Melville
A Palestinian flag is seen, outside London's High Court as judges decide whether the co-founder of Palestine Action can challenge the UK government's ban on the group, in London, Britain, July 30, 2025. REUTERS/Toby Melville
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Palestine Action Wins Bid to Challenge UK Ban Under Anti-terrorism Laws

A Palestinian flag is seen, outside London's High Court as judges decide whether the co-founder of Palestine Action can challenge the UK government's ban on the group, in London, Britain, July 30, 2025. REUTERS/Toby Melville
A Palestinian flag is seen, outside London's High Court as judges decide whether the co-founder of Palestine Action can challenge the UK government's ban on the group, in London, Britain, July 30, 2025. REUTERS/Toby Melville

The co-founder of a pro-Palestinian campaign group on Wednesday won her bid to bring a legal challenge against the British government's decision to ban the group under anti-terrorism laws.

Huda Ammori, who helped found Palestine Action in 2020, asked London's High Court to give the go-ahead for a full challenge to the group's proscription, which was made on the grounds it committed or participated in acts of terrorism.

Palestine Action has increasingly targeted Israel-linked companies in Britain, often spraying red paint, blocking entrances or damaging equipment. It accuses Britain's government of complicity in what it says are Israeli war crimes in Gaza.

Earlier this month, the High Court refused Ammori's application to pause the ban and, following an unsuccessful last-ditch appeal, Palestine Action's proscription came into effect just after midnight on July 5, Reuters reported.

Proscription makes it a crime to be a member of the group, carrying a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.

Judge Martin Chamberlain granted permission for Ammori to bring a judicial review, saying her case that proscription amounted to a disproportionate interference with her and others' right to freedom of expression was "reasonably arguable".

Dozens of people have been arrested for holding placards purportedly supporting the group since the ban, and Ammori's lawyers say people expressing support for the Palestinian cause have also been subject to increased scrutiny from police.

However, Britain's interior minister Yvette Cooper has said violence and criminal damage have no place in legitimate protest and that Palestine Action's activities – including breaking into a military base and damaging two planes – justify proscription.

Israel has repeatedly denied committing abuses in its war in Gaza, which began after Palestinian militant group Hamas attacked Israel from Gaza on October 7, 2023.