Latest news with #KRG
Rudaw Net
5 hours ago
- Business
- Rudaw Net
US passes Syria sanctions bill, ties relief to reforms
Also in World Rubio tells Sudani important to pay KRG salaries 'consistently' Brawl breaks out between pro-Damascus, Kurdish rallies in Germany's Dusseldorf US encourages Iraq to end tensions with Kurdistan Region US orders return of Baghdad embassy, Erbil consulate staff A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United States House of Representatives on Tuesday passed the Syria Sanctions Accountability Act, aiming to maintain pressure on Damascus while allowing flexibility to support Syria's transitional government. 'The goal is to give them the chance to succeed while ensuring accountability for any malign activities,' said US Congressman Mike Lawler, a member of the committee behind the bill. According to the US Congress website, the legislation proposes maintaining and expanding targeted sanctions on individuals and entities linked to the former regime, human rights violations, narcotics production, and activities threatening Syria's stability or hindering transitional justice. It also calls on US financial agencies to review banking restrictions and push for enhanced economic monitoring at international institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. The bill ties the lifting of remaining sanctions to measurable progress in several areas, including ending attacks on civilians, ensuring humanitarian access, releasing political prisoners, and halting the targeting of religious minorities. 'My bill provides the administration with the flexibility to ensure that our posture is in line with the current environment and provides Congress with the information we need to act,' Lawler added. In May, US President Donald Trump, during a trip to the Middle East, announced his decision to effectively lift most broad, economy-wide sanctions on Syria. He also met with Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa during a summit in Riyadh hosted by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Since taking office in January, following the toppling of longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad, Syria's new leadership has prioritized lifting international sanctions. Several countries, including members of the European Union, which officially lifted its sanctions in May, have expressed openness to removing Assad-era restrictions but have emphasized the need for inclusive governance and strong counterterrorism efforts. In a recent interview with Reuters, US envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack said he had urged Sharaa to embrace a more inclusive political approach in the wake of recent sectarian violence, warning that failing to do so could undermine international support and risk further fragmentation of the country. A fresh wave of violence between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes has rocked the southern Druze-majority Suwayda province since July 13, leading to a regional crisis as Israel intervened in support of the Druze, striking several targets, including Syrian state forces and an airstrike on the defense ministry building in Damascus. Sharaa's forces have been accused of siding with the Sunni tribes. 'We're, of course, aware of those reports and we're aware that some who might be affiliated but not directed by the Syrian Government may be a part of that [violence],' US Department of State Spokesperson Tammy Bruce told Rudaw's Diyar Kurda during a press conference on Tuesday. At least 1,265 people have been killed in the violence in Suwayda, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. A Washington-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Syria was announced on Saturday by Barrack, with the truce seemingly holding. The Druze are in control of the province, while Syrian government forces are guarding the entrance to prevent Sunni fighters' entry in a bid to avoid further tensions. In June, the Observatory reported that 7,670 people, mostly civilians, were killed in the first half of the year due to ongoing violence and widespread 'security chaos.' A fact-finding committee probing sectarian violence in Syria's coastal Alawite-majority areas in March said on Tuesday that it identified nearly 300 suspects in connection with the events, which left more than 1,700 people dead, mostly from the Alawite community. Investigations by the committee documented 'serious violations against civilians,' including 'murder, premeditated murder, looting, destruction and burning of homes, torture, and sectarian insults,' committee spokesperson Yasser al-Farhan said during a Damascus presser. In March, violence erupted in Syria's Alawite-majority coastal areas after armed groups, many loyal to ousted president Bashar al-Assad, launched attacks on forces allied with the government, prompting Damascus to respond with force.
Rudaw Net
6 hours ago
- Business
- Rudaw Net
UK smuggling sanctions target 10 individuals from Iraq, Kurdistan
Also in Iraq Iraq eyeing 'sustainable' diversification away from oil: PM advisor Diyala council seeks to block Qaratapa district upgrade Iraq's ruling coalition condemns drone attacks on Kurdistan Region Iraqi parliament fails to discuss drone attacks on Kurdistan Region A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Ten Iraqi nationals, including individuals from the Kurdistan Region, were sanctioned under a new United Kingdom sanctions regime targeting smuggling networks, the British consulate in Erbil said on Wednesday. The UK announced on Tuesday the launch of what it described as the world's first sanctions regime specifically aimed at smuggling gangs and their facilitators. 'The first designations under the regime, announced today, include 10 Iraqi nationals who have been exploiting and endangering vulnerable people, including from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and threatening the security of the UK and the KRI [Kurdistan Region of Iraq],' the UK consulate general in Erbil said in a statement seen by Rudaw. 'These sanctions are part of a wider effort, in coordination with international partners, including the KRG [Kurdistan Regional Government], to stop this cruel trade and promote regional and international stability,' it added. The new Global Irregular Migration and Trafficking in Persons (GIM) sanctions target individuals and organizations involved in smuggling and trafficking worldwide, including those who fund or enable such activities. Measures include travel bans, asset freezes, and restrictions on access to the UK's financial system. With these sanctions, the UK government does not have to rely on criminal or counter-terrorism laws. They require less evidence and do not involve the apprehension of the suspect. Criminal law also takes effect after a crime has been committed, while sanctions serve as a proactive tool to disrupt criminal activity and publicize the individuals involved. 'For too long, criminal gangs have been lining their corrupt pockets and preying on the hopes of vulnerable people with impunity as they drive irregular migration to the UK. We will not accept this status quo,' UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said in a statement on Tuesday. 'That's why the UK has created the world's first sanctions regime targeted at gangs involved in people smuggling and driving irregular migration, as well as their enablers,' he added. The BBC reported the announcement following a protest outside a hotel housing asylum seekers in southeast England's Essex county. The protest was triggered by the arrest of an asylum seeker for alleged sexual assault. It also reported that around two dozen names of the first batch of targeted individuals will be announced. Per the UK consulate general's statement, it is clear that ten of the individuals are Iraqi nationals, including from the Kurdistan Region. AFP released the identities of some of them, including several with Kurdish names. 'The first targets will cover a range of wrongdoing, from the supply of small boats being used on cross-Channel journeys, to the trade in fake passports, as well as middlemen facilitating payments through Hawala networks, to the gang leaders themselves,' the British government's statement said. Hawala networks are an informal and trust-based system for transferring money across borders without physical transfer of money. Separately, the UK has signed a 'one in, one out' agreement with France, allowing the return of illegal migrants arriving from France in exchange for accepting a set number of legal asylum seekers from France subject to security checks, according to the BBC. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer also recently reached agreements with France and Germany aimed at curbing the arrival of small boats. Thousands of people from Iraq and the Kurdistan Region take on perilous routes towards Europe on a yearly basis in hopes of escaping unemployment, political instability, and corruption. The UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) has previously worked with the KRG against organized crime. 'We maintain a positive relationship with law enforcement partners in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and work with them against a range of shared threats, including organised immigration crime," a spokesperson for the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) press office told Rudaw in November 2024. Kurdish criminal groups control the increasingly lucrative cross-Channel migration routes, according to the NCA, which said in its 2023 assessment that the groups are mainly based in northern Europe. Also in November last year, a French court sentenced 18 people, mostly Kurds from the Kurdistan Region, to prison terms of up to 15 years for operating a smuggling network that transported people across the English Channel. In May 2024, Kurdish police in Sulaimani arrested a Kurdish man accused of heading an organized crime group that smuggled people into the UK. The regime was previously outlined by foreign minister David Lammy in January.
Rudaw Net
9 hours ago
- Business
- Rudaw Net
Rubio tells Sudani important to pay KRG salaries 'consistently'
Also in World Brawl breaks out between pro-Damascus, Kurdish rallies in Germany's Dusseldorf US encourages Iraq to end tensions with Kurdistan Region US orders return of Baghdad embassy, Erbil consulate staff US says attacks on Kurdistan Region 'unacceptable' A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke by phone with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani, emphasizing the importance of ensuring uninterrupted salary payments to civil servants in the Kurdistan Region. Rubio also conveyed Washington's concerns regarding a pending bill in the Iraqi parliament that seeks to further institutionalize pro-Iranian militia groups, a State Department spokesperson said on Wednesday. The phone call came just hours after the Iraqi government decided to resume the payment of the salaries of public employees in the Kurdistan Region after nearly three months of suspension due to financial disputes with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). 'The Secretary noted the importance of paying Iraqi Kurdistan Region (IKR) salaries consistently,' read a statement from State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce. Sudani's office has yet to comment on the phone call. Tensions between Baghdad and Erbil escalated in late May when the federal finance ministry suspended transfers, accusing the KRG of exceeding its 12.67 percent share of the federal budget and failing to deliver the agreed oil volumes to Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO). The freeze affected more than 1.2 million public sector employees in the Kurdistan Region. Last week, the federal and regional governments reached a new deal over financial and oil disputes following the failure of several similar deals in the past. The Iraqi government approved the agreement during a cabinet meeting and decided to resume the disbursement of the salaries of KRG's civil servants on Tuesday. The payment will only cover the month of May, and the disbursement of salaries for the remaining months will depend on how the agreement is implemented moving forward. The Erbil-Baghdad agreement also includes the resumption of KRG's oil exports. The process has been halted since March 2023 when a Paris-based arbitration court ruled in favor of Baghdad against Ankara, saying the latter had violated the 1973 pipeline agreement by allowing Erbil to begin exporting oil independently in 2014. Under the agreement, the KRG must export its entire oil output through Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO), keeping 50,000 barrels daily for local use. In return, Baghdad is expected to make budget transfers and provide refined fuel if needed. The KRG is also obligated to hand over 120 billion Iraqi dinars (nearly $92 million) in non-oil revenues monthly for May. Washington has been pressuring Erbil and Baghdad to resume the Kurdish oil exports. Rubio told Sudani during the phone call that it is also important to resume the flow of the Kurdish oil to international markets through the Iraq-Turkey Pipeline, Bruce said in the statement. Kurdistan Region has come under nearly 20 drone attacks, including strikes on its oil fields, in recent weeks. The KRG has blamed Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi) for the drone attacks, a charge Baghdad has denied. The drones were seen by many as a pressure tactic by pro-Iran groups on the Kurdish government to make compromises to the federal government during negotiations over the resumption of the KRG's oil exports. The attacks have stopped since both governments finalized the agreement on Thursday. The Rubio-Sudani phone call focused on the drone attacks. Some of the targeted sites are operated by US companies. Rubio 'stressed the importance of the Iraqi government holding the perpetrators accountable and preventing future attacks,' Bruce noted in her statement. The attacks have been condemned internationally and locally, including by the US, UK and UN. The Iraqi government has launched an investigation into the strikes but has yet to announce the results. The federal parliament failed to discuss the matter on Monday after Kurdish lawmakers boycotted the session for unknown reasons. Rudaw has learned that some Kurdish parliamentarians feared that the Shiite factions could exploit the session to add a pending bill seeking more rights for the PMF members. The PMF was established in 2014 during the Islamic State group (ISIS) blitz, which saw the group seize control of large parts of Iraq's north and west. Although the PMF has been integrated into the security apparatus, the inclusion of some pro-Iran groups and their failure to answer to Sudani as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces has concerned Washington. The Iraqi government in February sent a bill to the parliament to further institutionalise the PMF, including retirement rights. 'The Secretary also reiterated serious U.S. concerns with the Popular Mobilization Commission (PMC) bill currently pending in the Council of Representatives (COR), emphasizing that any such legislation would institutionalize Iranian influence and armed terrorist groups undermining Iraq's sovereignty,' Bruce said. Rubio later said on X that he told Sudani that he desires to see an Iraq 'free of Iran's pernicious influence." Spoke with Iraqi PM Sudani about the recent attacks against oil companies in Iraq, including U.S. companies. We support a prosperous Iraq, free of Iran's pernicious influence. — Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) July 23, 2025 Iran is believed to have many proxy groups in Iraq, which it has used in the past to target US interests in the region. Washington has taken several measures to ensure that Baghdad is free of Tehran's influence, including the termination of a waiver which had allowed Iraq to buy Iranian electricity for years.
Rudaw Net
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Rudaw Net
Brawl breaks out between pro-Damascus, Kurdish rallies in Germany's Dusseldorf
Also in World Rubio tells Sudani important to pay KRG salaries 'consistently' US encourages Iraq to end tensions with Kurdistan Region US orders return of Baghdad embassy, Erbil consulate staff US says attacks on Kurdistan Region 'unacceptable' A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Five police officers were injured Sunday in a brawl between pro-Syrian and pro-Kurdish demonstrators outside the central station in Germany's western city of Dusseldorf, according to local police. 'A brawl involving several hundred participants triggered a large-scale police operation yesterday afternoon. Former participants of two different assemblies (pro-Syrian and pro-Kurdish) had clashed on the forecourt of the main train station,' Dusseldorf police said in a statement on Monday. During efforts to contain the violence, bottles and stones were thrown at officers, leaving five lightly injured. Police said they made several arrests and filed around 20 criminal charges for offenses including breach of the peace, dangerous bodily harm, and property damage. Participants from both demonstrations had crossed paths at Konrad-Adenauer-Platz in the city center Sunday afternoon. After an exchange of insults, violence broke out, the statement added. Police are aware of at least one injured civilian. According to the regional daily Rheinische Post, roughly 500 people had joined the pro-Kurdish demonstration, while about 200 took part in the pro-Syrian interim government rally. The Kurdish march was attacked by at least 50 people. The motive behind the attack remains unclear, and police told the newspaper it is not yet confirmed whether the attackers were directly linked to the earlier Syrian demonstration, though 'a connection is possible.' According to Rudaw's reporter on the ground, the Kurdish rally was organized by Kurds from northeast Syria (Rojava) and southeast Turkey, though most participants were from Rojava. The demonstrators expressed solidarity with Syria's minorities, including Alawites, Christians, and the Druze, and called for an end to hate speech targeting Kurds in Syria and the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the de facto army in Rojava. Investigations are ongoing. The new authorities in Syria - who toppled Bashar al-Assad in December - have come under repeated criticism by minorities for neglecting their rights and steering the country towards Islamic rule. Recent sectarian clashes in the southern Druze-majority Suwayda province have left over 1,000 dead and displaced over 128,000. The fighting started last Sunday between Druze militants and the Sunni Muslim fighters. Damascus has been accused of siding with the Sunni tribes. Three ceasefires between the Druze community and the new government in Damascus have collapsed, and although the latest one - brokered by Washington - appears to be holding, it remains fragile.
Rudaw Net
9 hours ago
- Business
- Rudaw Net
US says attacks on Kurdistan Region ‘unacceptable'
Also in World Rubio tells Sudani important to pay KRG salaries 'consistently' Brawl breaks out between pro-Damascus, Kurdish rallies in Germany's Dusseldorf US encourages Iraq to end tensions with Kurdistan Region US orders return of Baghdad embassy, Erbil consulate staff WASHINGTON DC - The United States warned on Wednesday that attacks on Kurdistan Region are 'unacceptable' amid increasing drone assaults on the Region's oil fields, including those operated by American companies. 'These kinds of attacks in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq are unacceptable. We've expressed our dismay and our problem with them,' US State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce told Rudaw during a press briefing. Several oil fields in the Kurdistan Region have been struck with explosive-laden drones in the last three days. At least four drone attacks were reported in Duhok province on Wednesday. Kurdistan Region's natural resources ministry said the recent attacks on Kurdistan Region's oil sector has caused a "significant material loss." It condemned the attacks and reiterated its call on the federal government to take action to stop these attacks. Aziz Ahmad, Deputy Chief of Staff to Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, said on X late Wednesday that the Region has lost nearly 200,000 barrels of oil production 'after a spate of drone attacks by criminal militias on the Iraqi government payroll.' He added that five oil fields, including two operated by US companies, have been struck so far. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) 'welcomed U.S. investment and companies. Now, those same investors are being pushed out in a calculated campaign to economically strangle us,' Ahmad noted, blaming Washington for denying the KRG the necessary tools to defend its energy and civilian infrastructure. 'We need them now to help us defend ourselves — we know exactly who's behind these attacks and where they're coming from.' Drone strikes in the Kurdistan Region have increased since the outbreak of a 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran that began on June 13 and ended with a US-brokered ceasefire. While no group has claimed responsibility for the latest attacks, the Region's interior ministry in early July accused the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) of involvement - a charge dismissed by Baghdad as 'unacceptable.' Erbil-Baghdad financial dispute The Iraqi government has not paid the KRG's share from the federal budget since May due to financial disputes between both governments. Despite ongoing talks between both sides, they have yet to reach a final agreement. The KRG's Council of Ministers on Wednesday convened and announced that it has reached a new "understanding" with Baghdad aimed at resolving the ongoing budget dispute that has left more than 1.2 million public employees in the Kurdistan Region without salaries for over two months. 'We have been vocal regarding actions that have happened with Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, we've made it clear that we expect Iraq to withdraw certain dynamics that they apply to the Kurds when it comes to issues of salaries and oil distribution, etcetera,' Bruce told Rudaw during the Wednesday press briefing.
