Day: November 20, 2021

The Iraqi army has denied reports about extending the date for the withdrawal of US combat forces from the country.

“The date for the departure of (US) combat forces on Dec. 31 is fixed and there is no change,” Major General Tahsin al-Khafaji, spokesman of the Joint Operations Command, told the official Iraqi News Agency.

Baghdad and Washington agreed in July to withdraw US forces from Iraq by the end of 2021. However, an unknown number of US forces would remain to advise and train Iraqi forces.

“The relationship between the two sides after the departure of the combat forces will be an advisory relationship, in the fields of training, armament, intelligence, and security against the Daesh/ISIS terror group,” al-Khafaji said.

The US has, at the invitation of the Iraqi government, led an international coalition since 2014 to fight the Daesh/ISIS terror group, which captured almost one-third of Iraq’s territory in 2014.

The terrorist organization, however, was defeated by the Iraqi army, with the help of the US-led coalition, in 2017.

The Iraqi denial came after the Kataeb Sayyid al-Shuhada faction, which is allied to Tehran, said it would welcome volunteers to join its ranks to fight the American forces after the end of this year.

Over the past months, military bases housing US forces in Iraq have been targeted with missile attacks and Washington has often accused armed factions loyal to Iran of being responsible.

Currently, there are around 3,000 troops, including 2,500 US forces, fighting in the anti-Daesh/ISIS coalition.

Iraqi political forces have called for the withdrawal of the US troops from the country under a parliamentary decision issued on Jan. 5, 2020.

Source: Anadolu Agency

A two-day travel fair aimed at reviving the tourism industry kicked off on Saturday at the World Trade Centre (WTC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The regular event organized by the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) had to be postponed after COVID-19 epidemic outbreak in the country.

Various countries set up stalls at the fair to provide information and offer travel and vacation packages.

After a 21-month hiatus due to the pandemic, the fair is back for the 49th time, with regional countries South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Japan represented.

Turkey was the only non-regional country represented in the show, according to the Turkish Embassy in Malaysia, and it was a source of great pride.

East Malaysian State President Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Hajiji bin Noor and Minister of Interior Datuk Seri Panglima Sr. Haji Safar Bin Untog, as well as Turkey’s Ambassador to Malaysia Merve Safa Kavakci, paid a visit to the Turkey booth.

The Malaysian officials were given information on post-pandemic travel conditions in Turkey.

“Malaysia is an important tourism center in the region. Our country also has a similar leadership in its geography. It is important that the two friendly countries cooperate in this field as well, and share their experiences and join forces, especially in the context of the rapidly rising concept of halal tourism in the world. For this, we are working together with our Malaysian friends,” the ambassador told Anadolu Agency.

During the two-day fair, the Kuala Lumpur Culture and Promotion Counselor will give information about destinations and tourism products in Turkey and answer guests’ inquiries about post-pandemic travel conditions.

The tourism organizations at the Turkish booth will inform attendees about the Black Sea and Southeastern Anatolia vacation packages, as well as the destinations of Istanbul, Cappadocia, Pamukkale, and Konya, which attract great attention in Malaysia.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Head of northern Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), Masrour Barzani, and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin have underlined the importance of implementing the Sinjar Agreement signed with Baghdad.

This came during a meeting of the two sides on Saturday on the sidelines of a regional security summit in the Bahraini capital, Manama, according to a statement issued by the KRG.

Austin reaffirmed KRG as “an important ally and partner of the United States in the region” and renewed Washington’s “commitment to continue supporting the Kurdistan region and the Peshmerga forces in confronting Daesh/ISIS,” the statement said.

The statement noted that Barzani and Austin stressed the importance of “implementing the Sinjar Agreement, and resolving outstanding issues between Baghdad and Erbil.”

On October 9, 2020, Baghdad announced a “historic deal” with the KRG to bolster the federal government’s authority in Sinjar under the constitution in terms of governance and security.

The agreement also stipulates ending the presence of the PKK terrorist organization in Sinjar and canceling any role for entities associated with it in the region.

The PKK terror group managed to establish a foothold in Sinjar in 2014 under the pretext of protecting the local Ezidi community from the Daesh/ISIS terror group.

Some 450,000 Ezidis escaped Sinjar after Daesh/ISIS took control of the region.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK — listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and the EU — has been responsible for the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The Taliban’s interim administration in Afghanistan announced on Saturday that they have collected over $270 million in revenue since taking power in August.

Ahmad Wali Haqmal, the spokesman for the Finance Ministry, told a news conference in Kabul that revenue collection is picking up momentum with each passing day. Without going into detail, he identified customs and other taxes as the primary sources of revenue.

According to the local Hasht-e-Subh daily, the previous government was generating a lowest average of about 22 billion afghanis ($235 million) revenue a month even during the coronavirus pandemic when businesses were down.

The Taliban official added a regular mechanism would be put in place to pay all government civil servants the unpaid salary for the past three months in one go. He added that pending pensions would be paid to all retirees.

Charging the previous government of corruption, the Taliban official said over 60,000 pensioners have not been paid their dues over a year.

The cash-strapped country, which has been ravaged by 20 years of war, is now in a catastrophic economic crisis, with some people selling assets and begging for bread to survive.

On Aug. 17, two days after the Taliban seized control of Kabul, the US government froze about $9.5 billion of Afghanistan’s central bank assets. Many donors and international organizations, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, have stopped making payments to the interim Taliban regime.

The UN forecasts that around 22.8 million people or over half of Afghanistan’s population, will face severe food problems.

Afghanistan is facing famine, the Human Rights Watch warned earlier this month urging the UN, and international financial institutions to urgently adjust existing restrictions and sanctions affecting the country’s economy and banking sector.

Source: Anadolu Agency