Sadr’s call for committee to stop attacks on diplomats in Iraq gets backing

A call by populist Iraqi cleric Muqtada Al Sadr to form a joint committee to look at ways of halting attacks by militias on diplomatic outposts has been welcomed by politicians in the country.

The cleric’s call comes just days after he blasted militias for targeting diplomats following repeated rocket fire at the US embassy and as a British embassy vehicle was hit with an IED in Baghdad earlier this month.

Mr Al Sadr, whose Mahdi Army once fought pitched battles against US troops in Iraq, said that “given the seriousness of the security situation that threatens the country's present and future… we find it is an urgent interest to form a committee of security, military and parliamentary nature.”

He said that the aim must be to halt attacks on diplomats as it “harms Iraq's reputation in international forums.”

Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhimi and Parliament Speaker Mohamed Al Halbousi were both quick to praise the imitative.

“We affirm that the hand of the law is above the hand of those who violate it, no matter that some people think otherwise and that the alliance of corruption and uncontrolled weapons has a no place in Iraq,” the prime minister tweeted.

Mr Al Halbousi on Saturday tweeted that “We support this initiative, support it and call for the government, parliament and political forces to adopt [it] to preserve the sovereignty of state institutions and enforce the law to spare the country the slippery slope of unknown risk.”

Parliamentary Security and Defence Committee member, MP Badr Al Zayadi, told the state-run Iraq News Agency that a committee will be formed to study the recent attacks and will swiftly uncover those responsible.

Foreign Relations Committee member Rami Al Sakini also told INA that “Mr Al Sadr's proposal will distance the country from regional and international conflicts and limit the repeated targeting of diplomatic missions.”

For months, rockets have been fired at the US embassy in Baghdad on a near-daily basis, although few have hit the outpost and few casualties have been reported. No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, and no one has been detained for the attacks, even as security forces often quickly locate launchers and material after the incidents.

Washington blames such attacks on Iranian-backed militia groups. Iran has not directly commented on the incidents but little-known groups believed to be connected to Iran-aligned militias have claimed responsibility for some attacks.

The accusations have been levelled against hardline factions of the Popular Resistance Brigades, Iran-backed militias that are nominally under the control of the state and have broad support in the largely Shiite parliament.

On September 15, a British diplomatic vehicle was hit by an explosive device on the airport road in Baghdad but no one was injured. Two security sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the explosion was caused by a homemade explosive device that was planted on the side of the road.

On the same day, two Katyusha rockets landed inside the Green Zone, which houses government buildings and foreign missions, but caused no casualties or damage, the military said in a statement.

Iraq, often the scene of spillover violence from US-Iran tensions, seeks to avoid being drawn into any regional conflagration.

The Middle East came close to a full conflict in January after a US drone strike killed Iranian Maj Gen Qassem Suleimani and Iraqi PMF chief Abu Mahdi Al Muhandis at Baghdad airport.

Iran-aligned militias have sworn to avenge their deaths.

MEYDAN RESULTS

6.30pm Baniyas (PA) Group 2 Dh125,000 (Dirt) 1,400m

Winner ES Ajeeb, Sam Hitchcock (jockey), Ibrahim Aseel (trainer).

7.05pm Maiden (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,200m

Winner Galaxy Road, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi.

7.40pm Maiden (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,400m

Winner Al Modayar, Fernando Jara, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.

8.15pm Handicap (TB) Dh170,000 (D) 1,900m

Winner Gundogdu, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.

8.50pm Rated Conditions (TB) Dh240,000 (D) 1,600m

Winner George Villiers, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.

9.25pm Handicap (TB) Dh175,000 (D)1,200m

Winner Lady Parma, Connor Beasley, Satish Seemar

10pm Handicap (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,400m

Winner Zaajer, Fernando Jara, Ali Rashid Al Raihe

On Women's Day

Shelina Janmohamed: Why shouldn't a spouse be compensated fairly for housework?

Samar Elmnhrawy: How companies in the Middle East can catch up on gender equality

The National Editorial: Is there much to celebrate on International Women's Day 2021?

Justin Thomas: Challenge the notion that 'men are from Mars, women are from Venus'

Britain's travel restrictions

A negative test 2 days before flying
Complete passenger locator form
Book a post-arrival PCR test
Double-vaccinated must self-isolate
11 countries on red list quarantine

Why it pays to compare

A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.

Route 1: bank transfer

The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.

Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount

Total received: €4,670.30

Route 2: online platform

The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.

Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction

Total received: €4,756

The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.

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The halo that once crowned Suu Kyi has been replaced

Red flags

Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.

Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching

On Women's Day

Dr Nawal Al-Hosany: Why more women should be on the frontlines of climate action

Samar Elmnhrawy: How companies in the Middle East can catch up on gender equality

The National Editorial: Is there much to celebrate on International Women's Day 2021?

Justin Thomas: Challenge the notion that 'men are from Mars, women are from Venus'

Libya's Gold

UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.

The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.

Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.