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UAE Calls for Arab Coalition to Face Threats in Region

UAE's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
UAE's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
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UAE Calls for Arab Coalition to Face Threats in Region

UAE's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
UAE's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser

UAE's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash stressed the need for a moderate Arab coalition to face the threats in the region. His speech was made during the Abu Dhabi Strategic Debate (ADSD), organized by Emirates Policy Centre.

Building a strong moderate Arab center to address common regional security challenges is already underway, he said, adding that "for this Arab-led approach to be successful, we must continue to develop our own capabilities."

"It is critical that Saudi Arabia and Egypt play a leading role in helping to steer the region in a more positive direction. Their stability is so important for the future of the whole region, and it is also why we welcome the proposal for a Middle East Strategic Alliance – it will allow countries with moderate agendas to work closely with the United States," Gargash stated.

He went on to say that the GCC would be an important part of this alliance.

“Iran has been a primary source of sectarianism in the region," he added. "We believe that Iran is threatening the security of the region's countries by supporting armed militias and its proxies, like Hizbollah in Lebanon and Houthis in Yemen in addition to its use of cyber attacks and carrying out acts of terror in the region and beyond, like those witnessed in Europe."

The minister reaffirmed the UAE's support for the US President Donald Trump's policy toward Iran and his strategy to stand up to its aggressive and destabilizing conduct.

"Another pillar for stability is for the region's countries to pursue good governance. Like other peoples of the world, the region's people seek good health, education and job opportunities; they aspire for prosperity and in case youth in our region have not been promised their dreams will come true, they would opt for extremism," he said.

Gargash continued: "It is now high time for Houthis to de-escalate the situation and start a fresh round of peace negotiations. The ball is now in their court and the international community has to contribute to reaching a peaceful solution to the conflict by getting the Houthis to the negotiating table and cut off military supplies and funding provided to them by Iran."

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Arab World

Syrian Opposition Calls for Resuming Direct Talks with Damascus

UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen gestures while speaking during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia July 22, 2021. Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool via REUTERS
UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen gestures while speaking during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia July 22, 2021. Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool via REUTERS
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Syrian Opposition Calls for Resuming Direct Talks with Damascus

UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen gestures while speaking during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia July 22, 2021. Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool via REUTERS
UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen gestures while speaking during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia July 22, 2021. Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool via REUTERS

The opposition Syrian Negotiation Commission (SNC) urged on Sunday the resumption of direct UN-sponsored talks with the regime of President Bashar Assad, in the wake of the return of Damascus to the Arab fold after a 12-year isolation.

In a statement following a two-day meeting in Geneva, the SNC called on "brotherly and friendly countries to support the efforts of the UN to take all necessary resolutions to fulfill a comprehensive political solution".

The statement called for a solution in line with UN Security Council resolution 2254, which set out a roadmap for a political transition.

"The international, regional and Syrian conditions provide an appropriate circumstance for the resumption of direct negotiations... under a specific agenda and timetable," the SNC added in the statement.

The UN has played the mediator’s role between the government and the opposition since the beginning of the conflict, and it held several rounds of talks that were mostly in Geneva in 2018, but they hit an impasse.

After the failure of negotiations, the UN focused on holding talks to draft a new constitution, but no progress was made.

The Syrian opposition received support from several Arab states during the first years of the conflict, but this support gradually diminished with the stalemate of the political process.

Twelve years after the war, the political opposition has lost much of its momentum.

More than one decade after some Arab states severed ties with Damascus, the Arab League announced last month the return of Damascus to the AL after around 12 years of suspending its membership.

Saudi Arabia resumed ties with Damascus, knowing that some Syrian opposition figures were headquartered in Saudi Arabia. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad headed last month to the Arab summit in Jeddah to break the regional isolation of Damascus.

The Arab states seek to play a “leading” role in reaching a political settlement for the conflict, according to several statements.

UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen said late last month that "new diplomatic activity in the region could be an opportunity if seized."

 

Arab World

Egypt, Mauritania Urge Ethiopia to Adopt Common Ground Solutions in GERD

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi with the President of Mauritania, Mohamed Ould Cheikh Al-Ghazaouani (Egyptian Presidency)
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi with the President of Mauritania, Mohamed Ould Cheikh Al-Ghazaouani (Egyptian Presidency)
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Egypt, Mauritania Urge Ethiopia to Adopt Common Ground Solutions in GERD

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi with the President of Mauritania, Mohamed Ould Cheikh Al-Ghazaouani (Egyptian Presidency)
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi with the President of Mauritania, Mohamed Ould Cheikh Al-Ghazaouani (Egyptian Presidency)

Egypt and Mauritania on Sunday urged Ethiopia to show the political will to adopt any common ground solutions put on the negotiating table that meet its interests regarding the issue of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi reaffirmed the “serious repercussions” on water security of the Nile Basin countries, calling for a legally binding agreement regarding the GERD filling and operation.

Sisi received President of Mauritania Mohamed Ould Cheikh Al-Ghazaouani, who arrived in Cairo on a three-day visit.

He described the talks with Ghazaouani as “constructive” and tackled various bilateral, regional, and international issues.

The Egyptian President said in a press conference with his Mauritanian counterpart that Egyptian water security is integral to Arab water security.

“We stressed the importance of urging Ethiopia to show the political will to adopt any of the common ground solutions that were put on the negotiating table and that meet its interests without encroaching on the rights and interests of the two downstream countries.”

GERD negotiations between Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia have stalled since January 2021. Cairo resorted to the Security Council in July 2020, but the latter urged the three countries to resume negotiations and finalize an acceptable and binding agreement.

The two presidents agreed to continue coordination and cooperation within the framework of the African Union and continue efforts to support the structure of peace, security, and development in the African continent.

Sisi indicated that consultations had demonstrated a shared political will to strengthen outstanding relations and promote them toward broader prospects.

The two leaders agreed on further advancing cooperation in the economic, investment, and trade fields and expediting the convening of the second round of the Egyptian-Mauritanian High Joint Committee this year.

The committee aims to foster closer relations, deepen the bilateral partnership, and strengthen cooperation and coordination about issues of mutual concern.

They touched on the latest developments in the Arab arena and agreed on the importance of advancing mechanisms of joint Arab action to maintain national security and protect the unity, sovereignty, and resources of Arab states.

The talks focused on the latest developments in the Palestinian cause and the Libyan crisis.

“We shared the same view regarding the importance of holding presidential and parliamentary elections simultaneously and the departure of all foreign forces, mercenaries, and foreign fighters with no exception within a set timeframe, in line with the relevant international resolutions.”

Regarding developments in Sudan, the Egyptian President stressed the importance of an immediate and sustainable ceasefire, preserving Sudan’s national institutions and preventing them from collapsing.

“We urge all parties to make the voice of wisdom prevail to preserve the capabilities of the Sudanese state and the interests of its people”, he said.

 

Arab World

Six Detained Yazidi Women Freed from ISIS Grip in Syria

The six freed Yazidi women (Nadia Murad’s twitter account)
The six freed Yazidi women (Nadia Murad’s twitter account)
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Six Detained Yazidi Women Freed from ISIS Grip in Syria

The six freed Yazidi women (Nadia Murad’s twitter account)
The six freed Yazidi women (Nadia Murad’s twitter account)

Nobel Prize-winner and Yazidi activist Nadia Murad announced on Sunday the rescue of six Yazidi women who were taken captive by ISIS.

In August 2014, ISIS invaded Sinjar—a district of the Nineveh Governorate in northern Iraq from where the group abducted, killed and enslaved thousands of Yazidi men and women.

“After weeks of investigation, I am extremely heartened to report that we have rescued six more Yazidi women who were taken captive by ISIS,” Murad wrote on her twitter account.

The women were still children and teenagers when they were first taken captive in 2014, Murad said.

“Trafficked out of Iraq and onto Syria, they were rescued on Saturday morning. They have been flown back to Erbil where they will be reunited with their families, and offered all the psychosocial support they need,” she added.

The activist said this rescue wouldn’t have been possible without the efforts of President of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Nechirvan Barzani.

By setting up an office dedicated to rescuing kidnapped Yazidi women and girls, the President has helped many of them escape ISIS captivity, Murad explained.

“We will continue to search for the remaining women and children who we know are still missing. In this endeavor, we are asking for help with international partners,” she noted.

A Yazidi source told Asharq Al-Awsat that the majority of rescue operations are conducted through mediators who live in Syria and are tasked with searching for the abductees and freeing them in return for large sums of money.

The source said the payment is provided either by the Kurdistan Regional Government or some charitable organizations.

For its part, the Office for Yazidi Abductees Affairs praised President Barzani’s great efforts in liberating the six abductees.

Displaced Yazidi families from the Sinjar district reside in 26 camps in Dohuk where more than 35,000 families have not yet returned home, according to the Ministry of Migration and Displacement.

In March, the Office for Rescuing Yazidis in the Kurdistan Region said there are 6,417 kidnapped Yazidis, including 3,548 females and 2,869 males.

It said 3,562 were freed from ISIS grip while 2,693 remain captives.

Arab World

Sisi: It is Important to Prevent Sudan’s National Institutions from Collapsing

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi. (dpa)
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi. (dpa)
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Sisi: It is Important to Prevent Sudan’s National Institutions from Collapsing

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi. (dpa)
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi. (dpa)

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi urged on Sunday all Sudanese warring parties to stop the fighting and make the voice of wisdom prevail in order to preserve the capabilities of their country and the interests of the people.

During a meeting with his Mauritanian counterpart in Cairo, Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, Sisi stressed the importance of declaring an immediate and sustainable ceasefire to preserve Sudan’s national institutions and prevent them from collapsing.

He stressed the need for intensifying efforts to provide urgent humanitarian and relief aid to alleviate the suffering of those affected.

The fighting between the Sudanese military, led by Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces, broke out in mid-April.

On Thursday, the White House announced that it will impose sanctions against key defense companies and people who “perpetuate violence” in Sudan as the warring sides failed to abide by a cease-fire agreement in the northeastern African nation.

Last week, Sudan’s military suspended its participation in the peace talks sponsored by Saudi Arabia and the United States, launched late in May in the Saudi city of Jeddah.

The army and the RSF had exchanged accusations of shelling and aerial bombardments on a market in the capital, Khartoum.

In line with the Saudi-US mediation, other forces are trying to find a solution to Sudan’s crisis, mainly the African Union’s Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

IGAD has eight East African countries, including Kenya, which welcomed on Sunday the envoy of the Commander of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), political advisor Youssef Ezzat.

Ezzat met the Kenyan President in the presidential palace in Nairobi, a move that angered the Sudanese Army Commander, Gen. Burhan.

Meanwhile, the 15-member UN Security Council last Friday adopted a resolution extending its mission, UNITAMS, in Sudan until Dec. 3, 2023.

This came after Burhan accused UN envoy Volker Perthes of inflaming the worsening conflict in a letter last week sent to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

 

Arab World

European Diplomats Visit Gaza to Assess Reconstruction Needs

A Palestinian man is seen at his destroyed house after an Israeli raid on Gaza. (Reuters)
A Palestinian man is seen at his destroyed house after an Israeli raid on Gaza. (Reuters)
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European Diplomats Visit Gaza to Assess Reconstruction Needs

A Palestinian man is seen at his destroyed house after an Israeli raid on Gaza. (Reuters)
A Palestinian man is seen at his destroyed house after an Israeli raid on Gaza. (Reuters)

A high-ranking European delegation of 20 ambassadors visited Gaza to assess the humanitarian situation and construction needs.

It is the first visit by a European diplomatic delegation to the coastal enclave since the last wave of tensions between Palestinian factions and Israel in May.

The delegation toured destroyed houses and listened to testimonies of families. They included the Nabaheen family, consisting of more than 100 people, nine of whom have special needs.

EU Representative in Palestine Sven Kuhn von Burgsdorff said the visit aims to express solidarity with the victims of the recent war in Gaza.

"The European missions' representatives expressed their condolences to the victims of the tension, and it became clear from our information that the victims were mainly civilians," he added.

The European delegation "looks forward to completing a report explaining what happened."

Von Burgsdorff renewed the EU position that calls for consolidating ceasefire understandings in Gaza and implementing the two-state solution to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Meanwhile, representatives of families whose homes were destroyed in the recent round of tension with Israel called on the European diplomats to actively contribute to accelerating the reconstruction of their homes.

The recent Israeli attacks killed 33 Palestinians, including five children, three women, and 11 members of the Islamic Jihad group.

According to Palestinian officials, the raids displaced 200 families, or around 1,000 people. The attacks destroyed 103 housing units and over 2,800 were partially demolished, while 150 were uninhabitable.

Arab World

Erbil Court Sentences Six to Death for Killing Colonel in Anti-terrorism Service

A photo circulated in October by media outlets in Erbil of the bombed car of colonel Hawkar Jaff
A photo circulated in October by media outlets in Erbil of the bombed car of colonel Hawkar Jaff
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Erbil Court Sentences Six to Death for Killing Colonel in Anti-terrorism Service

A photo circulated in October by media outlets in Erbil of the bombed car of colonel Hawkar Jaff
A photo circulated in October by media outlets in Erbil of the bombed car of colonel Hawkar Jaff

An Erbil court in Iraq on Sunday sentenced six people to death involved in the killing of Hawkar Jaff, a colonel in the counter-terrorism service.

A source told Asharq Al-Awsat that, “those sentenced include anti-terrorism chief in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), Wahab Halabji and the head of the PUK’s intelligence unit, Karzan Muhammad, in addition to four others.”

The source said the court decision could escalate the already existing tensions between the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), which controls Erbil and Duhok, and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), which controls Al-Suleimaniyeh.

Meanwhile, Kurdish news outlets quoted Mohammed Jaff as confirming that an Erbil court had sentenced six of the perpetrators of his brother’s assassination to death.

He added that the court has yet to decide on the fate of other perpetrators involved in his brother’s assassination next June 8.

In October, Jaff was killed and four others, two women and two children, were injured when an explosive device attached to the bottom of his car detonated facing his house in the capital of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region.

The operation was conducted a few days after Jaff defected from the PUK amid internal division that led to the expulsion of Lahur el-Sheikh from the party’s presidency.

After Jaff’s assassination, several officials in Erbil said the PUK-supervised Counter Terrorism Group (CTG) was behind the attack.

Separately, the Kurdish security organization, Asayish, defended on Sunday its decision to arrest a French journalist and his female assistant on June 2, 2023, in the Sulaymaniyah governorate of Iraq.

The Asayish statement came in response to the strongly-worded condemnation issued Saturday by the French Consulate General in Erbil.

Asayish said that on June 2, its forces had warned the French journalist, Benoit Drevet, and his female translator, not to visit the Galala area, which is not safe, and had asked them to leave.

It added that the journalist and the translator insisted on staying. “The Asayish forces treated them with respect and asked them to leave the area where drones were flying,” the statement said.

“The Asayish forces treated the journalist with respect. He was transferred to the city of Sulaymaniyah, and the French consulate was informed of his safety,” it added.

In return, the French Consulate General in Erbil has issued a strong condemnation following the detention of the French journalist and his female assistant in Sulaymaniyah.

The consulate's statement expressed deep concern over the “repeated assaults on press freedom and journalists' rights within the Kurdistan Region.”

It also expressed gratitude to the authorities involved in handling the case.

In January, the Metro Center for Journalists' Rights and Advocacy in Kurdistan said in a press conference that 2,160 violations were committed against journalists from 2011 to 2020.

 

Arab World

Syria and Iraq Assert Correlated Joint Security

Iraqi President Abdullatif Rashid received Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (dpa)
Iraqi President Abdullatif Rashid received Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (dpa)
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Syria and Iraq Assert Correlated Joint Security

Iraqi President Abdullatif Rashid received Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (dpa)
Iraqi President Abdullatif Rashid received Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (dpa)

The Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammad Shia al-Sudani, was invited Sunday to visit Syria to discuss prospects for bilateral cooperation and coordinate joint action toward consolidating security and stability in the region.

Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad, who is visiting Iraq, conveyed the invitation.

Mekdad stressed during his meeting with Sudani in Baghdad the importance of maintaining the unity of the Syrian territories and the interdependence of Iraqi national security with the security of Syria.

A statement issued by the Prime Minister's media office said the talks highlighted the need to promote bilateral relations.

The Foreign Minister expressed Syria's support for Iraq, reiterating its pivotal role in the region and efforts to consolidate the relationship between the Arab brothers and regional countries.

Mekdad indicated that Syria seeks joint action to face common challenges and cooperate in combating terrorism and eliminating the danger of drugs.

The top diplomat affirmed that Syria was looking forward to joint work with Iraq in combating terrorist organizations and their threats to common security with Iraq.

"We will continue to cooperate to combat terrorism and eliminate the danger posed by drugs,” he said.

During his visit to Baghdad, Mekdad also met his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein and discussed the issue of refugees. They also discussed the humanitarian crisis in Syria.

In a joint press conference at the Iraqi Foreign Ministry, Mekdad said: "We believe in political, military, and economic coordination," stressing the need to end the imbalances that Syria faces amid the presence of terrorist organizations, namely ISIS-affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra in Idlib governorate.

Mekdad also praised Iraq for coming to the aid of Syria following the earthquake and thanked the Iraqi people for helping their "other half" in the country.

Iraqi support

Hussein reiterated that Syria's security directly affects Iraq's situation and vice versa.

The Iraqi official indicated that Iraq was among the Arab countries that called for Syria's return to the Arab League.

Drug trafficking issue

Hussein said Syria is going through challenging circumstances and needs action at the regional and international levels, stressing that the Syrian refugees are an integral part of this matter.

"We received about 250,000 refugees," said Hussein, adding that most of them live in camps in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region. He noted the ongoing discussions regarding the Syrian situation.

The Iraqi official explained that the meeting addressed the cooperation to fight cross-border drug trafficking.

Border control

Security expert Sarmad al-Bayati believed many security visions for border control were not applicable, noting that Iraq now controls 90 percent of its border.

Bayati told Asharq Al-Awsat that many areas within the Syrian border are not controlled by government forces, noting that the danger increases towards the north, as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) forces control many areas.

He explained that there were imbalances in implementing the visions, explaining that drug trafficking is a complicated issue amid various smuggling outlets across multiple border areas.

Head of the Republican Center for Strategic Studies, Moataz Mohieddin, said Mekdad's visit to Baghdad was important for both countries to limit infiltration of terrorists, noting that the Ministries of Defense and Interior must activate several agreements.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Mohieddin indicated that it was necessary to organize joint forces for the borders between Iraq and Syria, adding that it was crucial to establish electronic fences and control towers to monitor the territories.

 

Arab World

Lebanon’s Opposition Announces Jihad Azour as its Presidential Candidate

MP Michel Mouawad holds a press conference with opposition lawmakers to announce his withdrawal from the presidential race. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
MP Michel Mouawad holds a press conference with opposition lawmakers to announce his withdrawal from the presidential race. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Lebanon’s Opposition Announces Jihad Azour as its Presidential Candidate

MP Michel Mouawad holds a press conference with opposition lawmakers to announce his withdrawal from the presidential race. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
MP Michel Mouawad holds a press conference with opposition lawmakers to announce his withdrawal from the presidential race. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Lebanese opposition announced on Sunday its nomination of former minister Jihad Azour as president. The Free Patriotic Movement also announced its support for Azour’s run.

A meeting of the parties endorsed the nomination of Azour, currently director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund.

Lebanon has had no head of state since President Michel Aoun's term ended at the end of October, deepening institutional paralysis in a country where one of the world's worst economic crises has been festering for years.

The nomination pits Azour against Marada movement leader Suleiman Franjieh, the candidate of the Shiite duo of Hezbollah and Amal, which is headed by parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.

Franjieh is an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with strong ties to the ruling political establishment in Damascus.

Lawmaker Michel Moawad, who had won the most votes in repeated unsuccessful presidential election votes, but not enough to win, said he had withdrawn his candidacy in favor of Azour.

“After intense contacts, we agreed on Jihad Azour as a centrist and non-provocative figure to any party in the country,” he added.

Opposition deputies said the consensus around Azour could help him garner the 65 votes needed in a secret ballot by lawmakers in the 128-member parliament to assume the post.

The opposition includes the Lebanese Forces, Kataeb and a number of independent lawmakers opposed to Hezbollah and to Franjieh’s nomination. The FPM, which is headed by MP Jebran Bassil, has joined them in opposing Franjieh’s bid.

Azour has not declared his own candidacy, but political sources say he has held discrete meetings with various parties and members of parliament to discuss his chances.

In his Sunday sermon, a few hours before Azour was backed by opposition MPs, Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rai said he welcomed “any step” towards ending the stalemate over the presidency.

Rai later revealed that he had met with Franjieh and dispatched and envoy to meet with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah to break the presidential impasse, reported Al Jadeed television.

Hezbollah officials had accused those delaying Franjieh's nomination of prolonging the crisis and serving the West.

“This new candidate that was announced is for us a candidate for confrontation,” Hezbollah deputy Hassan Fadlallah said on Sunday, without naming Azour.

Washington has warned that the administration was considering sanctions on Lebanese officials for their continued obstruction of the election of a new president and warned the paralysis could only worsen the country's crisis.

Attention will now turn to Berri, who will be under pressure to call parliament to session to hold the elections. The speaker has repeatedly said he would only call the legislature to meet once “serious” candidates are available.

He had recently said he would decide what to do “once the opposition takes a clear stance over its candidate.”

Mowad had called on Berri to call parliament to session “immediately” and for successive elections to be held until a victor is declared.

Arab World

Iraq: Parliament Likely to Adopt Budget Law after Secret Deal to Settle Kurdish Demands

A meeting between Iraq Parliament speaker Mohammad al-Halbousi and Head of the State of Law Coalition Nuri al-Maliki last month (Iraqi Parliament)
A meeting between Iraq Parliament speaker Mohammad al-Halbousi and Head of the State of Law Coalition Nuri al-Maliki last month (Iraqi Parliament)
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Iraq: Parliament Likely to Adopt Budget Law after Secret Deal to Settle Kurdish Demands

A meeting between Iraq Parliament speaker Mohammad al-Halbousi and Head of the State of Law Coalition Nuri al-Maliki last month (Iraqi Parliament)
A meeting between Iraq Parliament speaker Mohammad al-Halbousi and Head of the State of Law Coalition Nuri al-Maliki last month (Iraqi Parliament)

Iraqi political sources said that a “secret political agreement” was likely to speed up the adoption of the Iraqi budget next week.

According to the sources, Head of the State of Law Coalition Nuri al-Maliki highlighted technical and political issues in his address to the Coordination Framework regarding the budget, which have stalled the legislation process and sparked a dispute with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).

Parliament’s Finance Committee had made surprise amendments on the draft budget late last month. Those included three items pertaining to the share of the Kurdistan region from oil and the export mechanism from its territory.

Parliament was preparing to hold a session to vote on the budget, last Saturday, according to its speaker, Mohammad al-Halbousi. But the new amendments renewed negotiations on the draft law.

The sources said that the former prime minister objected to the mechanisms for disbursing funds to the Kurdistan region, and expressed reservations over items, which he said could shake the power equation within the State Administration coalition, which includes, in addition to the coordination framework, Sunni and Kurdish forces.

In this context, the sources stressed that the controversy over the share of the Kurdistan region and the oil export mechanism has turned the agreement between the governments of Baghdad and Erbil into an understanding with explicit guarantees between the KDP and Al-Maliki.

The Kurds’ demands to restore the old version of the budget will be settled by a secret political agreement, with minor amendments that do not anger the leaders of the Coordination Framework, according to the sources.

A leader in the State Administration coalition expects that the vote on the country's general budget will be decided this week, as political actors are now convinced that the secret settlement is the only solution that the Framework can offer to its partners in the government.

Arab World

50 Extremists, 168 Family Members Repatriated From Syria to Iraq

A member loyal to ISIS waves a flag in Raqqa, Syria June 29, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
A member loyal to ISIS waves a flag in Raqqa, Syria June 29, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
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50 Extremists, 168 Family Members Repatriated From Syria to Iraq

A member loyal to ISIS waves a flag in Raqqa, Syria June 29, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
A member loyal to ISIS waves a flag in Raqqa, Syria June 29, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo

Fifty ISIS militants and 168 Iraqi members of extremist families were repatriated from Syria to Iraq on Saturday, an Iraqi official said.

Iraqi authorities "received 50 members of the ISIS from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)", said the source who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The SDF are the Kurds' de facto army in the area, and led the battle that dislodged ISIS group militants from the last scraps of their Syrian territory in 2019.

They will "be the subject of investigations and will face Iraqi justice", they added, AFP reported.

According to conflict monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights they were detained in Hasakah, northeast Syria.

Additionally, 168 relatives of ISIS-group members were repatriated from Syria's Al-Hol camp to be relocated to Al-Jadaa camp south of Mosul, the Iraqi official added, where they will undergo psychiatric treatment.

"Once we receive the assurances of their tribal leaders that they will not face reprisals, they will be sent home."

Al-Hol camp, in Kurdish-controlled northeast Syria, is home to about 50,000 people including family members of suspected jihadists.

Among them are displaced Syrians, Iraqi refugees as well as more than 10,000 foreigners originally from some 60 countries.

In March, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the swift repatriation of foreigners held in Al-Hol.

Nearly half of the camp's population is under the age of 12 and residents are "deprived of their rights, vulnerable, and marginalised", Guterres said in a statement during a visit to Iraq.

"I have no doubt to say that the worst camp that exists in today's world is Al-Hol, with the worst possible conditions for people and with enormous suffering for the people that have been stranded there for years," Guterres said.

Since May 2021, hundreds of families have been transferred from Al-Hol to Al-Jadaa in Iraq, with a number of those going on to flee.

The repatriation to Iraq of relatives of militants who joined the ultra-radical group that controlled one-third of Iraq between 2014 and 2017 has sparked opposition.

In December 2021, Iraqi authorities announced plans to close Al-Jadaa.

But little progress has been made and the relocation of displaced people to their home regions has proven challenging and prompted opposition from local people.