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Iraq: Activists Campaign to 'Save Basra', Health Ministry Denies Cholera Outbreaks

Iraqi protesters burn tires and block the road at the entrance to the city of Basra, Iraq July 12, 2018. (Reuters: Essam al-Sudani)
Iraqi protesters burn tires and block the road at the entrance to the city of Basra, Iraq July 12, 2018. (Reuters: Essam al-Sudani)
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Iraq: Activists Campaign to 'Save Basra', Health Ministry Denies Cholera Outbreaks

Iraqi protesters burn tires and block the road at the entrance to the city of Basra, Iraq July 12, 2018. (Reuters: Essam al-Sudani)
Iraqi protesters burn tires and block the road at the entrance to the city of Basra, Iraq July 12, 2018. (Reuters: Essam al-Sudani)

An online campaign launched by Iraqi activists and bloggers succeeded over the past few days in drawing attention to the water pollution crisis in the southern district of Basra.

Recent videos and photos went viral on social media showing dozens of poisoned patients in hospitals due to contamination of drinking water. This has prompted activists to launch "Save Basra" campaign which coincided with a wave of protests that have been taking place for weeks, expected to escalate after Adha Eid holiday into sit-ins and civil disobedience, activists informed Asharq Al-Awsat.

The Iraqi Health Ministry denied on Friday reports about purported spread of epidemics in Basra due to water contamination and said it had dispatched additional supplies of medicines to the province to cope with possible emergency.

The ministry also sent a team to review the reports and ensure that no communicable diseases' outbreak had taken place, Ministry Spokesman Saif al-Badr said.

The team had already confirmed that there is no sign of cholera outbreak, adding that the latest cases were "minor and moderate" and did not require hospitalization. However, Basra governor Asaad al-Eidani, strongly criticized the government, saying it did not respond to the demands of the people.

Basra Health Department confirmed that drinking water in over 70 percent of areas is polluted and unfit for human consumption.

Representative of High Religious Authority Ali al-Sistani dedicated Friday’s sermon to criticize the Iraqi government for failing to solve Basra's water problem.

"The human, patriotic and religious duties call on the authorities and relevant institutions to work together to put an end to the sufferings of the people of Basra," Abdul Mahdi Karbalai said.

The Representative called on the government to find a lasting solution for this water contamination problem.

Earlier in July, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi visited Basra accompanied by a large number of ministers, after several protests erupted in the city.

Abadi promised to meet all demands, however, Eidani complained in a statement that the city has been demanding in vain the federal government to transfer money to establish desalination stations.

Basra’s Human Rights Commission also warned that the conditions of the province are "dangerous" due to high salinity and increased pollution, accusing the federal government of not acting accordingly.

The Commission asked the government to declare Basra a “disaster area”.

Basra has the largest oil supply in Iraq, as oil experts indicate that it owns 15 out of 77 fields in the country, including 10 producing fields awaiting development. These fields can produce more than 65 billion barrels, about 59 percent of Iraq's oil reserves.

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Arab World

Iraq Arrests 38 Politicians and Government Officials in Green Zone Raids

A circulating image shows Iraqi Humvees at an entrance to the Green Zone at dawn Sunday
A circulating image shows Iraqi Humvees at an entrance to the Green Zone at dawn Sunday
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Iraq Arrests 38 Politicians and Government Officials in Green Zone Raids

A circulating image shows Iraqi Humvees at an entrance to the Green Zone at dawn Sunday
A circulating image shows Iraqi Humvees at an entrance to the Green Zone at dawn Sunday

Iraqi security forces arrested politicians, lawmakers and senior government officials early on Sunday after Elite Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) units raided their homes inside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, security sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The newspaper quoted an Iraqi official as saying that the number of detainees has reached 38.

The security sources said that the heaquarters of Midland Oil Company south of Baghdad were raided too.

A senior source quoted by ⁠state news ⁠agency INA said that some of the latest arrests were based on testimony provided by Adnan al-Jumaili, deputy oil minister for refining affairs, after his detention on corruption charges.

The source told INA that al-Jumaili's statements implicated a wider network of officials in alleged corruption schemes.

 

Iraqi security personnel are seen near a house in the Green Zone at dawn Sunday (X)

Sunday's operation was launched on direct orders from Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, a government official told Asharq Al-Awsat.

An Iraqi official said earlier that an official statement will be made about the ⁠arrests.

Arab World

Iraq’s PM Sends Positive Signals Ahead of Trump Meeting

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi during his meeting with Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Kazem Al-Sadeq in Baghdad (Government media)
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi during his meeting with Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Kazem Al-Sadeq in Baghdad (Government media)
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Iraq’s PM Sends Positive Signals Ahead of Trump Meeting

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi during his meeting with Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Kazem Al-Sadeq in Baghdad (Government media)
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi during his meeting with Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Kazem Al-Sadeq in Baghdad (Government media)

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has been sending positive signals to Washington ahead of a planned mid-July visit, as analysts say his government is trying to reorganize ties with the United States based on an economic and security partnership while preserving relations with Iran.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington had recently received good and constructive signals from the Iraqi government on armed factions, in a reference to efforts to place weapons under state control and disarm armed groups.

In his latest remarks carried by state media, al-Zaidi urged armed factions to “preserve their history after contributing to the fight against terrorism, and to work through the state,” renewing his government’s rejection of “weapons outside official institutions.”

Al-Zaidi said his government sought a “strong economic partnership” with the US, while stressing that Baghdad’s ties with Tehran were “based on good neighborliness, respect and common interests, as is our relationship with all countries of the region.”

“Iraq does not accept dictates from any party, and the decision will always be made according to the interests of Iraqis first,” he said, adding that his government’s strategic direction was built on “a strong partnership with the US, starting from Iraq’s interest, and not at the expense of any other party.”

He said Iraq “does not follow a policy of blocs or hostility, and wants to be a space for communication and stability, not an arena for conflict,” in a reference to US-Iranian competition in Iraq.

On Iraq’s regional ties, al-Zaidi said the “Gulf Arab states represent a historical, cultural and social depth and a source of strength for Iraq.”

Balancing Iran

Al-Zaidi’s expected visit to Washington comes as Baghdad seeks to reshape its relationship with the US while maintaining balanced ties with Iran, amid regional shifts that followed this year’s Israel-Iran war.

Iraqi researcher Muhanad Seloom said al-Zaidi “is clearly seeking a strong partnership with the US at all levels,” calling the approach “good.”

Seloom said there was popular support for fighting corruption and restricting weapons to the state, giving the government the basic tools to move ahead despite the complexity of the issue of militias.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Seloom described Iranian as “negative.” He added that it was not in Iraq’s interest to enter into hostility with Iran, and that the US understood the special nature of Baghdad’s relationship with Tehran.

The ‘project to eliminate militias’

Political science professor Talib Muhammed Karim said al-Zaidi “is not going to Washington carrying a project to eliminate militias in the military sense, but rather a project to strengthen the state and restore its legitimate monopoly over the use of force.”

Karim told Asharq Al-Awsat that the wager was to build an internal consensus, backed by regional and international support, that would allow weapons to be gradually restricted to the state under the law.

He said Iranian influence was not confined to the security sphere, but extended to political, economic and social ties built up over more than two decades.

Reducing that influence, he said, would not come through a political decision or external pressure alone, but through stronger Iraqi state institutions, a more diversified economy and broader Arab and international partnerships. That, he said, would automatically reduce the impact of any outside influence.

Karim said the success of the Washington visit “will not be measured by whether there is a confrontation with armed factions,” but by Iraq’s ability to secure US and international backing for the state project, attract investment, strengthen the economy and expand security cooperation in ways that reinforce state sovereignty.

A shifting US view

Political science professor Abbas Abboud Salem offered a different reading, saying Iraq’s political system “cannot be reduced to the will of one person.” The post-2003 political scene, he said, is built on multiple competing political forces.

Salem told Asharq Al-Awsat that the silence of these forces does not mean they have given al-Zaidi a mandate to radically change Iraq’s policy.

What has changed most, he said, is the US view of Iraq. According to Salem, Washington moved from direct occupation to managing Iraq after the withdrawal as a zone of influence balanced with Iran, and then to seeking a return through direct influence amid regional geopolitical shifts.

Salem said these shifts were pushing Iraq to rebuild its alliance with the US in response to regional challenges and to reduce losses as the regional order is being reshaped.

Arab World

Hezbollah Links Ceasefire Stance to Iran Track

Hezbollah supporters wave flags during a march marking Ashura in Beirut’s southern suburbs (EPA)
Hezbollah supporters wave flags during a march marking Ashura in Beirut’s southern suburbs (EPA)
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Hezbollah Links Ceasefire Stance to Iran Track

Hezbollah supporters wave flags during a march marking Ashura in Beirut’s southern suburbs (EPA)
Hezbollah supporters wave flags during a march marking Ashura in Beirut’s southern suburbs (EPA)

Israeli escalation in southern Lebanon has slowed, but not stopped, as Hezbollah seeks to cement a two-track position: declaring commitment to the ceasefire while documenting Israeli violations.

The latest came Saturday, when Israel struck the outskirts of Nabatieh. The Israeli military said it targeted Hezbollah members who had approached its positions.

Despite continued Israeli strikes in the South and drone flights over Beirut’s southern suburbs, Hezbollah said after a strike near Zawtar al-Sharqiya that it remained committed to the ceasefire. It called the Israeli army’s actions a “flagrant violation” of the agreement and said it was documenting all Israeli breaches.

Hezbollah part of the Iranian track

Political writer Harith Suleiman said Hezbollah’s insistence that it remains committed to the ceasefire, while documenting Israeli violations, “does not reflect a position within the Lebanese track, but falls within the framework of understandings underway between Iran and the United States.”

He said the group was acting as part of that track.

“Hezbollah wants Iran, not Lebanon, to negotiate on its behalf,” Suleiman told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“It is trying to make Lebanon part of the negotiations between Iran and the United States, and to present the ceasefire as part of an understanding between America, Israel and Iran, not as part of the Lebanese track.”

“When Hezbollah says it is committed to the ceasefire while Israel is violating it, it is effectively sending a message to Iran. It is saying: The agreement we are part of is being violated, and you, together with the United States and Israel, must act. That is why Hezbollah is part of the Iranian track, not the Lebanese track.”

Commitment tied to Iran talks

Suleiman said Hezbollah’s documentation of violations, coupled with its repeated commitment to calm, pointed to the continued existence of negotiation channels between Tehran and Washington.

“As long as negotiations between the Americans and Iranians are going well, Iran does not need Hezbollah to create a problem to improve its negotiating position. That is why Hezbollah is committed to calm and to the agreement. But if Iran decides to open a front or create a crisis, Hezbollah will be ready to move in that direction.”

Asked about the Hezbollah secretary-general’s Ashura speech, Suleiman said: “There is a difference between ideological rhetoric and operational conduct. Deals and understandings are built on practical steps, not slogans or ideological positions. What determines the actual course is what happens on the ground, and that remains tied to what Iran wants and decides.”

Hezbollah abides by what Iran agrees to

Retired Brig. Gen. Yarub Sakher said Hezbollah’s stated commitment to the ceasefire, alongside its documentation of Israeli violations, showed that its decision was tied more to Iranian understandings than to the Lebanese-Israeli negotiation track.

“When Hezbollah says it is committed to the ceasefire, it is sending a clear message that it abides by what Iran agrees to,” Sakher told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“During negotiations with the United States in Switzerland, Tehran reached an understanding to halt military operations and attacks on different fronts, including the Lebanese front. That is why Hezbollah is declaring its commitment to this track.”

“This position is not tied to the ongoing Lebanese-US-Israeli negotiations, which may lead to consolidating the ceasefire or to later security arrangements. It is meant to entrench the Iranian view.”

Documenting violations: building a case for escalation

Sakher said Hezbollah’s announcement that it was documenting Israeli violations “does not change the reality, because these violations are documented daily by the Lebanese state and the Lebanese army, and are also monitored by surveillance systems and satellites.”

“The documentation itself is not new, but it carries political significance.”

“Hezbollah is using this documentation to build a narrative it can use later if Iran decides to reopen the front. It would then say it showed strategic patience for a long time, documented the violations and remained committed to the ceasefire before justifying any new escalation.”

“This is exactly what it did before the latest confrontation, when it spoke of months of restraint before moving to military action.”

“There are Lebanese forces influenced by Hezbollah’s position that are betting on a US-Iranian understanding and, in practice, trying to give that track precedence over the Lebanese negotiation track.”

“At the same time, the US administration is treating the separation between the two files with a degree of political oversimplification, despite attempts by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to address this gap.”