Iraq: Disputes Topple Prominent Leader in the Fight Against ISIS

Lieutenant General Abdulwahab al-Saadi, commander of the Iraqi CTS (Counter-Terrorism Service), holds an ISIS flag pulled down during a battle against ISIS militants, east of Mosul, Iraq, January 11, 2017. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad
Lieutenant General Abdulwahab al-Saadi, commander of the Iraqi CTS (Counter-Terrorism Service), holds an ISIS flag pulled down during a battle against ISIS militants, east of Mosul, Iraq, January 11, 2017. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad
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Iraq: Disputes Topple Prominent Leader in the Fight Against ISIS

Lieutenant General Abdulwahab al-Saadi, commander of the Iraqi CTS (Counter-Terrorism Service), holds an ISIS flag pulled down during a battle against ISIS militants, east of Mosul, Iraq, January 11, 2017. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad
Lieutenant General Abdulwahab al-Saadi, commander of the Iraqi CTS (Counter-Terrorism Service), holds an ISIS flag pulled down during a battle against ISIS militants, east of Mosul, Iraq, January 11, 2017. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad

The decision of Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi to move Lieutenant General Abdulwahab al-Saadi, commander of the Iraqi CTS (Counter-Terrorism Service), to the Ministry of Defense has sparked various reactions.

While some saw it as a normal procedure that falls under a military context, other politicians and experts said that it came in the wake of deep disputes inside the CTS – led by General Talib Shaghati al-Kinani.

A security source announced Friday that Abdul Mahdi referred Saadi to the ministry of defense. Saadi is a prominent leader who participated in the latest liberation operation in some provinces, also he was in charge of several important posts in the Iraqi Special Operations Forces and the CTS.

He had a major role in the operations against ISIS since the Battle of Ramadi – Anbar province in 2014 until liberating Mosul in 2017. He is seen as the most popular leader who fought against ISIS in Iraq.

Further, his name surfaced as a prime minister candidate last year.

In a press statement on Friday, Saadi described this decision as an embarrassment for him as an officer and a fighter. Yet, he said he had no clue why it had been taken.

Saadi inquired about the motive behind this decision through a phone call with the Iraqi PM – who in his turn praised his skills.

He continued that he rejected an offer by Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbusi to lead the ministry of defense because the battles against ISIS were ongoing. Regarding leaks on disputes with Shaghati, he stated that it was Shaghati who asked the PM to distance him without knowing the reasons.

In a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, former head of parliament's security and defense committee Hakim al-Zamili described the PM’s decision as a regular matter that falls under military contexts.

Zamili said that officers were regularly transferred inside the military institution, and that was necessary to ensure reforms in the security system.

However, security expert Dr. Hisham al-Hashemi told the newspaper that the fight against ISIS was still ongoing and therefore holding onto the figures of victory in the meantime would lift the enemy's spirits.



Iraq, UK Agree on Trade Package Worth up to $15 Billion, Defense Deal

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (R) and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (L) shake hands during their meeting in Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (R) and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (L) shake hands during their meeting in Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)
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Iraq, UK Agree on Trade Package Worth up to $15 Billion, Defense Deal

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (R) and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (L) shake hands during their meeting in Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (R) and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (L) shake hands during their meeting in Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)

Iraq and Britain have agreed on a trade package worth up to 12.3 billion pounds ($14.98 billion) and a bilateral defense deal, the Iraqi and British prime ministers said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

The deal, envisaging more than 10 times the total of bilateral trade in 2024, was announced after a meeting between Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and British counterpart Keir Starmer at the latter's Downing Street offices.

It includes a 1.2-billion-pound project in which British-made power transmission systems will be used for a grid interconnection project between Iraq and Saudi Arabia, as well as a 500-million-pound plan to upgrade the Al-Qayyarah air base in northern Iraq.

A water infrastructure project by a UK-led consortium that will help provide clean water in arid southern and western Iraq is also part of the deal, the statement said. The project would be worth up to 5.3 billion pounds in UK exports.

Sudani and Starmer also signed a defense deal that "establishes the basis for a new era in security cooperation".

Sudani said earlier that the UK-Iraqi security deal would develop bilateral military ties after last year's announcement that the US-led coalition set up to fight ISIS would end its work in Iraq in 2026.

The Iraqi premier began an official visit to the United Kingdom on Monday amid historic geopolitical shifts in the Middle East.

Iraq is trying to avoid becoming a conflict zone once again amid a period of regional upheaval that has seen Iran's allies Hamas degraded in Gaza and Hezbollah battered in Lebanon during wars with Israel, and Bashar al-Assad toppled in Syria.