Iraq's PM Stresses Need to Refrain from ‘Policy of Axes’

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi heads cabinet meeting. Iraqi government
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi heads cabinet meeting. Iraqi government
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Iraq's PM Stresses Need to Refrain from ‘Policy of Axes’

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi heads cabinet meeting. Iraqi government
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi heads cabinet meeting. Iraqi government

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi stressed the need to distance Iraq from what he called “the policy of axes,” and praised the results of the Amman tripartite meeting which brought him together with King Abdullah II of Jordan and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

The Jordan-Egypt-Iraq summit has raised concern among Iran’s allies in Iraq.

“Getting Iraq away from the policy of axes is the approach that the current government is following, and it is in the interest of our people," Kadhimi said.

“Balance, moderation, and reliance on strengthening cooperation, especially in economic relations to ensure the interest of Iraq, is what we seek in our relations with countries,” he added.

“The challenges are great, and we must succeed, and we have the opportunity to move the country on the right path,” Kadhimi stressed, calling on Iraqi ministers to meet with their counterparts in Egypt and Jordan to enhance cooperation.

The PM further voiced his hopes that the summit will serve as a gateway to a future that serves the people, brings about prosperity and development, and consecrates the spirit of dialogue, understanding and regional security.

Member of the Parliament’s Foreign Relations Committee and pro-Iran politician Amer Al-Fayez downplayed the results of the Amman summit.

“No commitment can be made during the tripartite summit unless it is approved by Parliament,” Fayez said.

He added that “the agreements between Iraq and all countries must be voted on within Parliament, according to the law and the system of the Iraqi state.”

Fayez urged the government to send the drafts of the memorandums of understanding and agreements struck at the summit to Parliament to schedule a date for voting.

Ihsan al-Shammari, President of the Baghdad-based Iraqi Center for Political Thought, noted that the trilateral summit’s outcomes are considered a step forward for Iraq.

“There are parties that see this trend contradicting their ideological orientations, especially as they represent the interests of regional powers,” Shammari told Asharq Al-Awsat, adding that rejectionists may throw obstacles at and try to undermine Iraq’s shift towards its Arab partners.



‘War Ruined Me’: Lebanon’s Farmers Mourn Lost Season

This photo shows burnt agricultural fields that were hit during Israeli shelling in the southern Lebanese area of Marjeyoun, on October 30, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
This photo shows burnt agricultural fields that were hit during Israeli shelling in the southern Lebanese area of Marjeyoun, on October 30, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
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‘War Ruined Me’: Lebanon’s Farmers Mourn Lost Season

This photo shows burnt agricultural fields that were hit during Israeli shelling in the southern Lebanese area of Marjeyoun, on October 30, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
This photo shows burnt agricultural fields that were hit during Israeli shelling in the southern Lebanese area of Marjeyoun, on October 30, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)

Lebanese farmer Abu Taleb briefly returned to his orchard last month to salvage an avocado harvest but ran away empty handed as soon as Israeli air raids began.

"The war broke out just before the first harvest season," said Abu Taleb, displaced from the village of Tayr Debba near the southern city Tyre.

"When I went back in mid-October, it was deserted... it was scary," said the father of two, who is now sheltering in Tripoli more than 160 kilometers to the north and asked to be identified by a pseudonym because of security concerns.

Abu Taleb said his harvesting attempt was interrupted by an Israeli raid on the neighboring town of Markaba.

He was forced back to Tripoli without the avocados he usually exports every year.

Agricultural regions in Lebanon have been caught in the crossfire since hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah ramped up in October last year, a full-scale war breaking out on September 23.

The UN's agriculture agency, FAO, said more than 1,909 hectares of farmland in south Lebanon had been damaged or left unharvested between October last year and September 28.

The conflict has also displaced more than half a million people, including farmers who abandoned their crops just when they were ready to harvest.

Hani Saad had to abandon 120 hectares of farmland in the southern region of Nabatiyeh, which is rich in citrus and avocado plantations.

"If the ceasefire takes place within a month, I can save the harvest, otherwise, the whole season is ruined," said Saad who has been displaced to the coastal city of Jounieh, north of Beirut.

When an Israeli strike sparked a fire in one of Saad's orchards, he had to pay out of his own pocket for the fuel of the fire engine that extinguished the blaze.

His employees, meanwhile, have fled. Of 32 workers, 28 have left, mainly to neighboring Syria.

- 'Worst phase' -

Israeli strikes have put at least two land crossings with Syria out of service, blocking a key export route for produce and crops.

Airlines have suspended flights to Lebanon as insurance costs soar.

This has dealt a deadly blow to agricultural exports, most of which are destined for Gulf Arab states.

Fruit exporter Chadi Kaadan said exports to the Gulf have dropped by more than 50 percent.

The supply surplus in the local market has caused prices to plummet at home, he added.

"In the end, it is the farmer who loses," said Saad who used to earn $5,000 a day before the war started. Today, he barely manages $300.

While avocados can stay on the tree for months, they are starting to run out of water following Israeli strikes on irrigation channels, Saad said.

Citrus fruits and cherimoyas have already started to fall.

"The war has ruined me. I spend my time in front of the TV waiting for a ceasefire so I can return to my livelihood," Saad told AFP.

Gaby Hage, a resident of the Christian town of Rmeish, on the border with Israel, is one of the few farmers who decided to stay in south Lebanon.

He has only been able to harvest 100 of his 350 olive trees, which were left untended for a year because of cross-border strikes.

"I took advantage of a slight lull in the fighting to pick what I could," he told AFP.

Hage said agriculture was a lifeline for the inhabitants of his town, which has been cut off by the war.

Ibrahim Tarchichi, president of the farmers' union in the Bekaa Valley, which was hit hard by the strikes, believes that agriculture in Lebanon is going through the "worst phase" of its recent history.

"I have experienced four wars, it has never been this serious," he said.