Sudani from Sulaymaniyah: Iraq Does Not Align itself with One Axis against the Other

In this handout photo released by the Iraqi prime minister's office, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani delivers a speech in Baghdad on March 13, 2023. (Iraqi prime minister's media office/AFP)
In this handout photo released by the Iraqi prime minister's office, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani delivers a speech in Baghdad on March 13, 2023. (Iraqi prime minister's media office/AFP)
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Sudani from Sulaymaniyah: Iraq Does Not Align itself with One Axis against the Other

In this handout photo released by the Iraqi prime minister's office, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani delivers a speech in Baghdad on March 13, 2023. (Iraqi prime minister's media office/AFP)
In this handout photo released by the Iraqi prime minister's office, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani delivers a speech in Baghdad on March 13, 2023. (Iraqi prime minister's media office/AFP)

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani underscored on Wednesday that his country will not be a platform to threaten its neighbors.

Speaking at the seventh International Sulaymaniyah Forum, he stressed that Iraq cannot align itself with one axis against the other, rather, it can be a meeting point for all sides.

“Our constitution obligates us to refrain from meddling in the affairs of others. Likewise, we will not allow the sovereignty of our nation to be violated by our neighbors and others,” he remarked.

“We are seeking deep sustainable economic partnerships with fraternal and friendly nations,” he added.

Effective and fruitful economic cooperation will pave the way for sustainable security, he noted.

Moreover, Sudani dismissed as “unjustified exaggeration” claims about Iran’s meddling in Iraqi affairs. He also described the United States as a “strategic partner” to Iraq.

“Iraq’s strength and stability are a source of strength and stability to the entire world,” continued Sudani.

The forum was sponsored by former President Barham Salih. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivered a video message at the event that was attended by Kurdistan Region President Nechervan Barzani, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Iraq Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, and several ambassadors, researchers and academics.

Barzani said Kurdistan “fully” supports the Baghdad government and Sudani.

The PM, he added, has sought to create a “secure political environment” in Iraq.



Syrian Authorities Announce Closure of Notorious Desert Camp

 A boy carries bricks as he helps to restore a home in al-Qaryatayn, eastern part of Syria's Homs province, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP)
A boy carries bricks as he helps to restore a home in al-Qaryatayn, eastern part of Syria's Homs province, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP)
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Syrian Authorities Announce Closure of Notorious Desert Camp

 A boy carries bricks as he helps to restore a home in al-Qaryatayn, eastern part of Syria's Homs province, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP)
A boy carries bricks as he helps to restore a home in al-Qaryatayn, eastern part of Syria's Homs province, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP)

A notorious desert refugee camp in Syria has closed after the last remaining families returned to their areas of origin, Syrian authorities said on Saturday.

The Rukban camp in Syria's desert was established in 2014, at the height of Syria's civil war, in a de-confliction zone controlled by the US-led coalition fighting the ISIS group, near the borders with Jordan and Iraq.

Desperate people fleeing ISIS extremists and former government bombardment sought refuge there, hoping to cross into Jordan.

Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government rarely allowed aid to enter the camp and neighboring countries closed their borders to the area, isolating Rukban for years.

After an opposition offensive toppled Assad in December, families started leaving the camp to return home.

The Syrian Emergency Task Force, a US-based organization, said on Friday that the camp was "officially closed and empty, all families and residents have returned to their homes".

Syrian Information Minister Hamza al-Mustafa said on X on Saturday that "with the dismantlement of the Rukban camp and the return of the displaced, a tragic and sorrowful chapter of displacement stories created by the bygone regime's war machine comes to a close".

"Rukban was not just a camp, it was the triangle of death that bore witness to the cruelty of siege and starvation, where the regime left people to face their painful fate in the barren desert," he added.

At its peak, the camp housed more than 100,000 people. Around 8,000 people still lived there before Assad's fall, residing in mud-brick houses, with food and basic supplies smuggled in at high prices.

Syrian minister for emergency situations and disasters Raed al-Saleh said on X said the camp's closure represents "the end of one of the harshest humanitarian tragedies faced by our displaced people".

"We hope this step marks the beginning of a path that ends the suffering of the remaining camps and returns their residents to their homes with dignity and safety," he added.

According to the International Organization for Migration, 1.87 million Syrians have returned to their places of origin since Assad's fall, after they were displaced within the country or abroad.

The IOM says the "lack of economic opportunities and essential services pose the greatest challenge" for those returning home.