Iraq’s highest court will on Wednesday hear a request from the country's leaders to reinstate a water pact with Kuwait that some current and former officials claim would “sell out” Iraqi sovereignty.
The Khor Abdullah deal, under which Iraq and Kuwait shared a waterway into the Arabian Gulf, has been on hold since the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court struck down the maritime agreement in September 2023.
Kuwait, supported by Gulf Co-operation Council states, has expressed concern about the court decision and asked Baghdad to return to the agreement. This month, Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid and Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani asked the court in separate requests to reverse its decision.
However, their requests resulted in a public backlash in Iraq, heating up long-standing border disputes and raising sovereignty questions.
“Iraqi citizens are taking a stand today against any attempts to sell out Iraq’s wealth and sovereign rights, and to affect its maritime boundaries,” MP Soud Al Saiedi told a gathering at Baghdad’s Tahrir Square.
“It is about the future of our nation, our children and our people’s livelihood,” added Mr Al Saiedi, who led the campaign to revoke the law in 2023. “Iraqis are determined to protect their homeland and defend their rights.”
On the other hand, the government pointed out that the agreement does not primarily concern border demarcation, but instead regulates navigation in Khor Abdullah.
Path to the Gulf
Khor Abdullah is a narrow waterway that leads from the Arabian Gulf, curving around Kuwait's Bubiyan and Warba islands on one side and Iraq's Al Faw Peninsula on the other. It is Iraq's only entrance to the Gulf, through which most of its oil exports flow, alongside its imports.
After Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 833 three years later which determined the land border between Iraq and Kuwait. However, the delineation of the maritime border was left to the two countries.
The deal draws a line in the middle of Khor Abdullah and stipulates that “each party shall exercise its sovereignty over that part of the waterway which lies within its territorial water”. It provides that the agreement “shall remain in effect indefinitely” but can be mutually terminated with six months' notice.
The court previously annulled a law ratifying the 2012 deal, in a case filed by several Iraqi MPs. It held that the law was unconstitutional because it should have been passed with a two-thirds majority in parliament, not a simple majority.
Shortly after the ruling, the GCC and US issued a joint statement in which they called on the Iraqi government to “ensure that the agreement remains in force”.
Critics consider the agreement unfair, saying Kuwait has no right to control any part of Khor Abdullah, historically known as an Iraqi canal. They argue that the agreement is meant to delineate a maritime border rather than regulate navigation.
“It’s a humiliating and disastrous agreement for Iraq,” said Amir Abdul-Jabar, who served as transport minister from 2008 to 2010. He said he had filed a lawsuit against Mr Al Sudani for “blocking the court’s ruling”, by refusing to have copies of it deposited at the UN and the International Maritime Organisation.
There was no statement from the government or the presidency on the two lawsuits. Requests for comment from The National to the government went unanswered.
“We are accustomed to our officials making concessions to neighbouring countries in order to gain their support,” said Mohammed Hafidh Ali, an Iraqi engineer. “I see it as a betrayal,” he added.
Key developments in maritime dispute
2000: Israel withdraws from Lebanon after nearly 30 years without an officially demarcated border. The UN establishes the Blue Line to act as the frontier.
2007: Lebanon and Cyprus define their respective exclusive economic zones to facilitate oil and gas exploration. Israel uses this to define its EEZ with Cyprus
2011: Lebanon disputes Israeli-proposed line and submits documents to UN showing different EEZ. Cyprus offers to mediate without much progress.
2018: Lebanon signs first offshore oil and gas licencing deal with consortium of France’s Total, Italy’s Eni and Russia’s Novatek.
2018-2019: US seeks to mediate between Israel and Lebanon to prevent clashes over oil and gas resources.
How Beautiful this world is!
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'The Predator'
Dir: Shane Black
Starring: Olivia Munn, Boyd Holbrook, Keegan-Michael Key
Two and a half stars
Gifts exchanged
- King Charles - replica of President Eisenhower Sword
- Queen Camilla - Tiffany & Co vintage 18-carat gold, diamond and ruby flower brooch
- Donald Trump - hand-bound leather book with Declaration of Independence
- Melania Trump - personalised Anya Hindmarch handbag
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Top goalscorers in Europe
34 goals - Robert Lewandowski (68 points)
34 - Ciro Immobile (68)
31 - Cristiano Ronaldo (62)
28 - Timo Werner (56)
25 - Lionel Messi (50)
*29 - Erling Haaland (50)
23 - Romelu Lukaku (46)
23 - Jamie Vardy (46)
*NOTE: Haaland's goals for Salzburg count for 1.5 points per goal. Goals for Dortmund count for two points per goal.
If you go
The flights Etihad (www.etihad.com) and Spice Jet (www.spicejet.com) fly direct from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Pune respectively from Dh1,000 return including taxes. Pune airport is 90 minutes away by road.
The hotels A stay at Atmantan Wellness Resort (www.atmantan.com) costs from Rs24,000 (Dh1,235) per night, including taxes, consultations, meals and a treatment package.
Other must-tries
Tomato and walnut salad
A lesson in simple, seasonal eating. Wedges of tomato, chunks of cucumber, thinly sliced red onion, coriander or parsley leaves, and perhaps some fresh dill are drizzled with a crushed walnut and garlic dressing. Do consider yourself warned: if you eat this salad in Georgia during the summer months, the tomatoes will be so ripe and flavourful that every tomato you eat from that day forth will taste lacklustre in comparison.
Badrijani nigvzit
A delicious vegetarian snack or starter. It consists of thinly sliced, fried then cooled aubergine smothered with a thick and creamy walnut sauce and folded or rolled. Take note, even though it seems like you should be able to pick these morsels up with your hands, they’re not as durable as they look. A knife and fork is the way to go.
Pkhali
This healthy little dish (a nice antidote to the khachapuri) is usually made with steamed then chopped cabbage, spinach, beetroot or green beans, combined with walnuts, garlic and herbs to make a vegetable pâté or paste. The mix is then often formed into rounds, chilled in the fridge and topped with pomegranate seeds before being served.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Where to buy
Limited-edition art prints of The Sofa Series: Sultani can be acquired from Reem El Mutwalli at www.reemelmutwalli.com
The years Ramadan fell in May
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- Margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars
- Energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- Infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes
- Many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts
if you go
The flights
Fly to Rome with Etihad (www.etihad.ae) or Emirates (www.emirates.com) from Dh2,480 return including taxes. The flight takes six hours. Fly from Rome to Trapani with Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) from Dh420 return including taxes. The flight takes one hour 10 minutes.
The hotels
The author recommends the following hotels for this itinerary. In Trapani, Ai Lumi (www.ailumi.it); in Marsala, Viacolvento (www.viacolventomarsala.it); and in Marsala Del Vallo, the Meliaresort Dimore Storiche (www.meliaresort.it).
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
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Company%20profile
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Honeymoonish
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