Iraq: Katyusha Targets House of Anti-Corruption Official


Iraqi soldiers stand on a truck in Sinjar (AP)
Iraqi soldiers stand on a truck in Sinjar (AP)
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Iraq: Katyusha Targets House of Anti-Corruption Official


Iraqi soldiers stand on a truck in Sinjar (AP)
Iraqi soldiers stand on a truck in Sinjar (AP)

The Iraqi Federal Intelligence and Investigations Agency announced that a Katyusha rocket targeted the home of the Interior Ministry’s Undersecretary for Intelligence.

The agency issued a statement announcing that the house of Lt-Gen Ahmed Abu Ragheef was targeted by a Katyusha rocket in Baghdad’s Karrada area on Wednesday morning.

Prime Minister Mustafa Kadhimi had assigned Abu Ragheef to chair the national supreme anti-corruption committee.

The Interior Ministry said that it was a failed attempt, and the attack had only damaged the fence of the house, adding that the site of the launchpad has been determined and the perpetrators will be brought to justice.

The committee has sparked widespread controversy being the only body to arrest dozens of persons involved in corruption charges, including senior officials.

Political observers believe that Abu Ragheef became a target of the corrupt mafias targeting him and undermining his committee before the public.

A large explosion shook large parts of Baghdad on Wednesday after a locally-made Katyusha rocket fell on Abu Nawas Street on the Tigris River, opposite the Green Zone.

Security sources indicated that the missile was set to target the Green Zone but missed it and landed on an apartment building without causing any significant casualties.

On Wednesday, the Security Media Cell statement stated that the rocket was launched from east of Baghdad, near the al-Amana neighborhood.

The security forces arrested a suspect near Muzaffar Square, east of the capital.

The Green Zone, which hosts government and parliament buildings, many diplomatic missions, most notably the US embassy, and the houses of several senior Iraqi officials, has often been targeted by dozens of missiles landing in empty lots or on civilian homes.



Cohen Meeting Escalates Protests in Western Libya Against Unity Government

Pro-Dbeibah government forces intervening to disperse protesters in central Tripoli (AFP)
Pro-Dbeibah government forces intervening to disperse protesters in central Tripoli (AFP)
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Cohen Meeting Escalates Protests in Western Libya Against Unity Government

Pro-Dbeibah government forces intervening to disperse protesters in central Tripoli (AFP)
Pro-Dbeibah government forces intervening to disperse protesters in central Tripoli (AFP)

Protests have intensified in western Libya against the interim Government of National Unity, led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, following the revelation of a meeting between former Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush and then-Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen in Rome last year.

In response to the demonstrations, Dbeibah accused foreign nations of being “involved in conspiracies to divide the country” and alleged that domestic factions were “fueling the protests” that erupted in multiple cities across western Libya against his government.

While Dbeibah refrained from naming these local factions during a speech delivered on Friday at the conclusion of the Entrepreneurs Forum and General Gathering of Youth Hostel Members in Misrata, he accused them of “manipulating young people to create discord and drag Libya backward.” He stressed that these groups “only seek war, destruction, and corruption.”

Speaking of “real conspiracies to divide Libya,” Dbeibah pledged that the country would remain unified. He addressed the youth, saying: “You are the future. We need you to step forward and defend your nation. We will not accept a return to the logic of force after the February 17 Revolution, and we will not allow it.”

In eastern Libya, Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, leader of the Libyan National Army, and Speaker of the House of Representatives Aguila Saleh, refrained from commenting on Dbeibah’s statements.

Saleh, however, emphasized that the solution to Libya’s political gridlock lies in holding “free and fair elections, with all sides committed to respecting the results.”

He pointed out that the House of Representatives had enacted electoral laws to facilitate this process and called for the formation of a unified government to steer Libya toward stability.

In remarks broadcast by his media office on Friday, Saleh asserted that he had “taken no actions aimed at excluding or marginalizing any party.” He pointed to the importance of national reconciliation for achieving peace and security and denied aligning with any external or international forces.

Saleh further urged support for the National Reconciliation Law as a vital step toward resolving disputes, stressing “the significance of the peaceful transfer of power.”

On Friday evening, protests erupted in Misrata, Dbeibah’s hometown, coinciding with his visit. Demonstrators expressed their rejection of what they perceived as normalization efforts with Israel and demanded Dbeibah’s resignation. In a statement, some Misrata residents condemned the meetings between his government and Israeli officials as a “grave betrayal.”