This year was a much better one for Iraqis, who have suffered severe security, economic and political conditions during the past three years after Daesh militants overran the northern and western parts of the country and seized almost a third of its territories, killing tens of thousands of people and displacing millions.
All this was accompanied by a quasi-bankrupt treasury and a drain on the country’s financial and human resources because of the war on the militants, but the situation is much improved and Iraq has finally come out of the “neck of the bottle,” according to analysts.
“It is certainly a year of achievements and an end to most of the crises that have strangled Iraq over the past years,” Abdulwahid Tuama, a political analyst told Arab News.
“Liberating the Iraqi territories, ending the war against Daesh, lifting the long-term economic sanctions imposed on Iraq, the rise in oil prices and the significant improvement of the Iraqi-regional relationship are all major breakthroughs achieved in 2017,” Tuama said.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Abadi on Dec. 9 declared the end of the three-year-long war against Daesh and the liberation of the Iraqi territories. A day earlier, the UN Security Council unanimously voted on Iraq’s exit from Chapter VII and ended 26 years of economic sanctions imposed on the country since Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1991.
The battle to liberate Mosul, the largest populated Iraqi city-seized by Daesh, was the fiercest, the biggest and the longest in the campaign waged by Iraqi forces and its backers against the radical organization.
More than 100 000 Iraqi troops, backed by US-led military coalition air forces and the Shiite-dominated Popular Mobilization troops, fought for almost nine months to regain control of the city, which included the most important and largest strongholds of the militants, the headquarters of control and command and the biggest weapons depots of the organization in Iraq.
By the end of the battle on Feb. 19, more than 25,000 militants had been killed, military officers said.
“The battle to retake Mosul is the most important one, because it broke the backbone of the organization and completely paralyzed it (Daesh) and ended its military capacity,” Retired Gen. Emad Allow, a EU adviser on terrorism, told Arab News.
“This battle also witnessed a significant development in the combat skills of the Iraqi security forces, as the fighting was fierce and house-to-house because of the nature of the city,” Allow said.
Baghdad has been immersed in its war against terrorism in recent years. This has encouraged the regional government of the Kurdish region, semi-autonomous since the 1970s, to extend its control over the disputed areas which lie outside the 2003-constitutionally approved part of the region.
The northern oil hub city of Kirkuk and its lucrative oil fields are at the core of the disputed areas between Baghdad and Kurdistan since 2003. The Kurdistan regional government held a controversial referendum on independence in late September.
“Holding the referendum (on independence) was like an earthquake that hit the political process in Iraq. It was no less a force in its impact than the (2014) fall of the three provinces into the hands of Daesh,” political analyst Joma’ah Al-A’atoani told Arab News.
“Actually it (the referendum) was even more dangerous because, under the umbrella of national slogans calling for freedom of self-determination, Iraq almost entered a dark corner and it paved the way to cut off a large area of its territory,” A’atoani said.
Baghdad has responded by launching a huge military campaign to drive the Kurdish forces out of Kirkuk, its oil fields and most of the disputed areas. It has imposed a series of punitive measures on the region, including the banning of international flights to and from airports and the closing down of border crossings with Turkey and Iran.
“Gaining back control over the disputed areas and oil fields, shutting down the airports and crossing borders in the region is a major achievement and proved that the Iraqi government is capable of confronting anything that threatens the unity of the country and affects its sovereignty,” A’atoani said.
The year was not limited to military and political achievements. The policy of non-interference in the affairs of other countries in the region, which Abadi has adopted since he became prime minister, has also begun to bear fruit.
The Iraqi-regional relationship has significantly improved in 2017. Abadi has made several regional and international rounds during the past two months, culminating in the signing of several economic, security and military agreements with Turkey, France, Iran, Jordan and other countries.
The most important breakthrough for Iraqis was the improvement of relations between Baghdad and Riyadh, which had been fluctuating for the past three decades.
In February this year, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir was the first senior Saudi official to visit Baghdad since 2003.
Al-Jubeir’s visit was followed by a visit from Abadi to Saudi Arabia in June and another one in October to end the boycott between the two countries.
The visits opened the door for the countries to exchange visits and sign joint agreements, particularly in the oil, reconstruction, transport and anti-terrorism sectors. Last month, Saudi Arabia appointed Abdul Aziz Al-Shimari as the new ambassador to Iraq.
“Saudi-Iraqi rapprochement will ease the sectarian strife inside Iraq and deprive the Iraqi rival parties of playing the sectarian card,” Abdulwahid Tuama said.
“Also, it (rapprochement) will bring much economic gain to both countries. Iraq is looking to reach the ports of the Red Sea to export its oil, in return it can offer significant investment opportunities for Saudi companies and goods in many areas and sectors,” Tuama said.
Iraq ‘out of neck of the bottle’ by end of 2017: political analysts
Iraq ‘out of neck of the bottle’ by end of 2017: political analysts
Weakened Iran could pursue nuclear weapon, White House’s Sullivan says
Iran has suffered setbacks to its regional influence after Israel’s assaults on its allies, Palestinian Hamas and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, followed by the fall of Iran-aligned Syrian President Bashar Assad.
Israeli strikes on Iranian facilities, including missile factories and air defenses, have reduced Tehran’s conventional military capabilities, Sullivan told CNN.
“It’s no wonder there are voices (in Iran) saying, ‘Hey, maybe we need to go for a nuclear weapon right now ... Maybe we have to revisit our nuclear doctrine’,” Sullivan said.
Iran says its nuclear program is peaceful, but it has expanded uranium enrichment since Trump, in his 2017-2021 presidential term, pulled out of a deal between Tehran and world powers that put restrictions on Iran’s nuclear activity in exchange for sanctions relief.
Sullivan said that there was a risk that Iran might abandon its promise not to build nuclear weapons.
“It’s a risk we are trying to be vigilant about now. It’s a risk that I’m personally briefing the incoming team on,” Sullivan said, adding that he had also consulted with US ally Israel.
Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, could return to his hard-line Iran policy by stepping up sanctions on Iran’s oil industry. Sullivan said Trump would have an opportunity to pursue diplomacy with Tehran, given Iran’s “weakened state.”
“Maybe he can come around this time, with the situation Iran finds itself in, and actually deliver a nuclear deal that curbs Iran’s nuclear ambitions for the long term,” he said.
Netanyahu says Israel will continue to act against the Houthis
- On Thursday, Israeli jets launched a series of strikes against energy and port infrastructure in Yemen
- Response to hundreds of missile and drone attacks launched by Houthis since start of Gaza war
JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday Israel would continue acting against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, whom he accused of threatening world shipping and the international order, and called on Israelis to be steadfast.
“Just as we acted forcefully against the terrorist arms of Iran’s axis of evil, so we will act against the Houthis,” he said in a video statement a day after a missile fired from Yemen fell in the Tel Aviv area, causing a number of mild injuries.
On Thursday, Israeli jets launched a series of strikes against energy and port infrastructure in Yemen in a move officials said was a response to hundreds of missile and drone attacks launched by the Houthis since the start of the Gaza war 14 months ago.
On Saturday, the US military said it conducted precision airstrikes against a missile storage facility and a command-and-control facility operated by Houthis in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa.
Netanyahu, strengthened at home by the Israeli military’s campaign against Iran-backed Hezbollah forces in southern Lebanon and by its destruction of most of the Syrian army’s strategic weapons, said Israel would act with the United States.
“Therefore, we will act with strength, determination and sophistication. I tell you that even if it takes time, the result will be the same,” he said.
The Houthis have launched repeated attacks on international shipping in waters near Yemen since November 2023, in support of the Palestinians over Israel’s war with Hamas.
Iraq PM says Mosul airport to open in June, 11 years after Daesh capture
- On June 10, 2014, the Daesh group seized Mosul
BAGHDAD: Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani on Sunday ordered for the inauguration of the airport in second city Mosul to be held in June, marking 11 years since Islamists took over the city.
On June 10, 2014, the Daesh group seized Mosul, declaring its “caliphate” from there 19 days later after capturing large swathes of Iraq and neighboring Syria.
After years of fierce battles, Iraqi forces backed by a US-led international coalition dislodged the group from Mosul in July 2017, before declaring its defeat across the country at the end of that year.
In a Sunday statement, Sudani’s office said the premier directed during a visit there “for the airport’s opening to be on June 10, coinciding with the anniversary of Mosul’s occupation, as a message of defiance in the face of terrorism.”
Over 80 percent of the airport’s runway and terminals have been completed, according to the statement.
Mosul’s airport had been completely destroyed in the fighting.
In August 2022, then-prime minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi laid the foundation stone for the airport’s reconstruction.
Sudani’s office also announced on Sunday the launch of a project to rehabilitate the western bank of the Tigris in Mosul, affirming that “Iraq is secure and stable and on the right path.”
Turkiye’s top diplomat meets Syria’s new leader in Damascus
- Hakan Fidan had announced on Friday that he planned to travel to Damascus to meet Syria’s new leaders
- Turkiye’s spy chief Ibrahim Kalin had earlier visited the city on December 12, just a few days after Bashar Assad’s fall
ANKARA: Turkiye’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan met with Syria’s new leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa in Damascus on Sunday, Ankara’s foreign ministry said.
A video released by the Anadolu state news agency showed the two men greeting each other.
No details of where the meeting took place in the Syrian capital were released by the ministry.
Fidan had announced on Friday that he planned to travel to Damascus to meet Syria’s new leaders, who ousted Syria’s strongman Bashar Assad after a lightning offensive.
Turkiye’s spy chief Ibrahim Kalin had earlier visited the city on December 12, just a few days after Assad’s fall.
Kalin was filmed leaving the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, surrounded by bodyguards, as broadcast by the private Turkish channel NTV.
Turkiye has been a key backer of the opposition to Assad since the uprising against his rule began in 2011.
Besides supporting various militant groups, it has welcomed Syrian dissenters and millions of refugees.
However, Fidan has rejected claims by US president-elect Donald Trump that the militants’ victory in Syria constituted an “unfriendly takeover” of the country by Turkiye.
International sanctions on Damascus must be lifted “as soon as possible” to allow Syria to get back on its feet and refugees to return home, Fidan said.
“The sanctions imposed on the previous regime need to be lifted as soon as possible,” he said, adding: “The international community needs to mobilize to help Syria get back on its feet and for the displaced people to return.”
During a joint press conference, Al-Sharaa said that all weapons in the country would come under state control including those held by Kurdish-led forces.
Armed “factions will begin to announce their dissolution and enter” the army, Sharaa said during a press conference with Fidan, adding “we will absolutely not allow there to be weapons in the country outside state control, whether from the revolutionary factions or the factions present in the SDF area,” referring to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.
Syria alone was responsible for overthrowing Bashar Assad, Fidan also said.
“This victory belongs to you and no one else. Thanks to your sacrifices, Syria has seized a historic opportunity,” he said. Turkiye has repeatedly dismissed claims it had any hand in the lightning 12-day rebel offensive that ended with Assad’s overthrow on December 8.
Druze leader Jumblatt paves way for Lebanese-Syrian relationship without Assad
- Ahmed Al-Sharaa: ‘Syria’s interference in Lebanese affairs was negative’ in the past
- Walid Jumblatt said Assad’s ouster should usher in new constructive relations between Lebanon and Syria
BEIRUT: Syria’s new leader, Ahmed Al-Sharaa, vowed in a meeting in Damascus on Sunday not to negatively interfere in neighboring Lebanon.
A major political and religious delegation headed by prominent Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt met with Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham leader Al-Sharaa at the People’s Palace.
This marks the first visit of a Lebanese political figure to Syria following the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime.
Al-Sharaa made a series of unprecedented statements about Lebanese-Syrian ties following decades of strained and sometimes bloody relations with the former Syrian regime.
Al-Sharaa said, “Syria was a source of concern and disturbance for Lebanon, and its interference in Lebanese affairs was negative,” adding that “the former Syrian regime killed Kamal Jumblatt, Bashir Gemayel, and Rafik Hariri.”
He emphasized that Syria, in its new era, would “stay at equal distance from everyone in Lebanon” and no longer engage in “negative interference in Lebanon.”
Al-Sharaa said that “Lebanon needs a strong economy and political stability that Syria will support” and called on the Lebanese to "erase from their memory the legacy of the old Syria in Lebanon.”
The international community was unable to solve the Syrian problem over 14 years, Al-Sharaa said.
“We took a different path because we believe that people can claim their rights by taking matters into their own hands only,” he added.
Commenting on Hezbollah’s years-long involvement in Syrian affairs in support of Assad’s regime, he said: “This is a new chapter with all components of the Lebanese people, regardless of previous stances.”
Jumblatt saluted the Syrian people for their “great victories and for getting rid of oppression and tyranny.”
He said: “We have a long way to go, and we are suffering from Israeli expansion, so I will present a memorandum on Lebanese-Syrian relations on behalf of the Democratic Gathering.”
Jumblatt believes that “the crimes committed against the Syrian people are similar to those committed in Gaza and Bosnia-Herzegovina and constitute crimes against humanity,” adding that “it is worth referring the matter” to international inquiries.
The delegation headed by Jumblatt included Sheikh Akl of the Unitarian Druze Community, leader of the Progressive Socialist Party Dr. Sami Abi Al-Muna, Taymour Jumblatt, Druze MPs and religious figures.
Jumblatt said: “We hope that Lebanese-Syrian relations will return through the embassies and that all of those who committed crimes against the Lebanese will be held accountable.
“We also hope that fair trials will be held for all those who committed crimes against the Syrian people.”
Also on Sunday, the Lebanese Public Prosecution said that it received a telegram from the American judiciary regarding the arrest of Maj. Gen. Jamil Al-Hassan, director of administration for the Air Force Intelligence under the collapsed Assad regime.
Unconfirmed reports suggest that several officers from the Assad regime fled to Lebanon in the early hours following the collapse of the regime, utilizing illegal crossings managed by Hezbollah.
Those who entered Lebanese territory illegally included members of the Fourth Division, previously led by Maher Al-Assad, including officers of various ranks.
Security reports indicated that “several of them were apprehended while in possession of hundreds of thousands of dollars and quantities of gold, and the detainees were subsequently handed over to the Lebanese General Security.”
Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi confirmed last week that “some Syrian figures crossed overland into Lebanon, and some of them traveled via Beirut airport.”
He also said that photos of wanted Syrian officers had been disseminated to Lebanese air, sea, and land ports for their capture.
In a telegram circulated through Interpol, the US judiciary accuses Gen. Hassan of “war crimes, including genocide committed against the Syrian people by dropping explosive barrels.”
The international warrant has been disseminated to security services, which, as stated by a security source, are currently engaged in efforts to “ascertain whether Hassan is present in Beirut, in anticipation of his arrest and subsequent transfer to the judiciary.”
In a related incident on Sunday, unknown gunmen kidnapped Col. Ahmed Khair Beyk of the Syrian army on the Beirut Airport Road.
A security source linked the kidnapping to “drug and Captagon trafficking,” stating that “the perpetrators are a gang involved in the drug trade.”
Beyk had previously served as an aide to Brig. Gen. Ghassan Bilal in the Syrian army’s Fourth Division.
In other developments, the issue of detainees and opponents of the Syrian regime, held in Lebanese prisons for years, has resurfaced following the fall of the Assad regime in Syria.
Their families held a sit-in in downtown Beirut on Sunday to demand general amnesty.
The protesters called for “speeding up trials and releasing their sons, notably the religious leaders among them.”
The number of detainees stands at 350, including 180 Lebanese and 170 Syrians, many of whom were arrested for supporting the Syrian opposition and labeled as terrorists.
On the other side of the border, the Lebanese Red Cross received seven Lebanese citizens at the Naqoura crossing.
They had been kidnapped by Israeli forces that infiltrated Lebanese territory and subjected them to interrogation.
The Israeli army claimed through its spokesperson Avichay Adraee that the forces of the 188th Brigade uncovered a large Hezbollah combat complex that contained eight weapons depots above and below ground, connected through a network of underground tunnels.
Communication and electrical devices, anti-tank missiles aimed at northern Israeli towns, explosives, computers, and other items were found, said the spokesperson.
The complex was destroyed, and the weapons were seized.
