Iraq extends coronavirus lockdown until August 15: high committee
The United States set a record for coronavirus cases on Saturday (August 8), with more than 5 million people now infected, according to a Reuters tally, as the country’s top infectious diseases official offered hope earlier this week that an effective vaccine might be available by year-end.
Iraq’s High Committee for Health and National Safety said on Saturday (August 8) that the ongoing partial coronavirus lockdown has been extended to August 15.
The federal Ministry of Health said on Friday (August 7) that it recorded 3,325 new cases of coronavirus and 74 deaths in the country over the past 24 hours.
Erbil Traffic Directorate said on Saturday (August 8) that it has extended working hours at its offices from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00, in order to deal with pent-up demand for processing of routine business.
Lebanese riot police fired tear gas at demonstrators trying to break through a barrier to get to the parliament building in Beirut on Saturday during a protest over the government’s handling of this week’s devastating explosion in the city.
A member of the Council of Representatives on Saturday (August 8) demanded that the federal Ministry of Health and Environment provide information about recent medical supply purchases worth $20 billion, in order to ensure that they were free of corruption.
Spokesperson for the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) Ministry of Electricity Omed Ahmad said on Saturday (August 8) that the Region will provide governorates in central and southern Iraq with electricity on the condition that doing so would not have an impact on the Kurdistan Region’s ability to supply power to its own residents.
Turkish warplanes bombed several locations in Duhok governorate on Saturday (August 8), including Nerwa in Shiladze sub-district and Linki Mountain in Deraluk sub-district.
Polish border guards have detained 34 people from the Middle East, including four women and four children, who were traveling in a trailer of the lorry that came from Turkey via Slovakia, authorities said on Saturday.
Arab League Chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said on Saturday he would seek to mobilize Arab efforts to provide support to Lebanon after this week’s catastrophic explosion in Beirut destroyed parts of the capital.
Crude oil prices were down on Saturday (August 8), compared with the previous day.
NRT Digital Media broadcasts another episode of “Kurdistan This Week” on Saturday (August 8).
The deadly warehouse blast in Beirut this week devastated Lebanon’s already faltering healthcare system and UN agencies are scrambling to support hundreds of thousands of people, officials said on Friday (August 7).
US President Donald Trump will host a visit of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi to the White House on Aug. 20 to discuss challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic as well as security, energy and economic issues, the White House said in statement on Friday (August 7).
The Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) Ministry of Health said on Friday (August 7) that it has recorded 413 new cases of coronavirus infection in the Kurdistan Region.
Lebanon’s president said on Friday (August 7) its investigation into the biggest blast in Beirut’s history would examine whether it was caused by a bomb or other external interference, as residents sought to rebuild shattered homes and lives.
An unconfirmed but large number of civilians, including children, were killed in air strikes in northern Yemen on Thursday (August 6), the United Nations said.
The US State Department said on Friday (August 7) that it was responsible for a text message campaign that left a trail of confusion and ridicule across Russia and Iran.
Turkish warplanes bombed Halkera and Gali Rash villages in the Bradost area of northern Erbil governorate on Friday (August 7), igniting a brush fire in the area.
A senior Iranian official said on Friday (August 7) there was no difference between the outgoing and incoming US special envoys for Iran because American officials “bite off more than they can chew”.
Three people died in a multi-car pile-up on the Erbil-Koya Road on Friday (August 7).
The federal Ministry of Health said on Friday (August 7) that it recorded 3,461 new cases of coronavirus and 75 deaths in the country over the past 24 hours.
The federal Ministry of Interior’s Intelligence Agency said on Friday (August 7) that its forces have arrested two Islamic State (ISIS) militants in Kirkuk governorate.
President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday (August 7) that Turkey had resumed drilling operations in the eastern Mediterranean as Greece had not kept its promises regarding energy exploration in the region.
Israel’s military said on Friday (August 7) it had shot down a drone overnight that crossed into Israeli airspace near Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights, a strategic plateau at the frontier with Syria.
Mayor of Mawat district Kamaran Sharbazheri has said that Turkish warplanes bombed targets near Qamish village on Friday afternoon (August 7), igniting a brush fire on the mountainsides.
A committee set up to investigate accusations that a lack of oxygen supplies at Erbil’s Rizgari Hospital contributed to the deaths of patients being treated for COVID-19 said in a statement on Friday (August 7) that there were deficiencies of management at the hospital, but no fatalities were directly caused by supply problems.
Iraq said on Friday (August 7) it would cut its oil production by another 400,000 barrels per day in both August and September to compensate for its overproduction in the past three months.
The People's Defense Forces (HPG) claimed in a statement on Thursday (August 6) that the group’s fighters killed five Turkish soldiers in the Haftanin area of Duhok governorate on August 4.
The death toll from the Beirut port explosion has risen to 154, state news agency NNA cited Lebanon’s health minister as saying on Friday (August 7).
Crude oil prices were down on Friday (August 7), compared with the previous day.
Some families say it is better to know and mourn. Others say finally learning what happened is worse than dying themselves.
At least one Iraqi soldier was killed and four others were wounded in a mortar attack by Islamic State (ISIS) militants in western Khanaqin district on Thursday (August 6), according to a security source.
Saudi Arabia’s energy minister and Iraqi counterpart stressed, in a phone call on Thursday (August 6), their countries’ full commitment to an OPEC+ deal curbing oil production, Iraqi state news agency said on Friday citing a joint statement from both ministries.
Lebanese authorities have taken into custody 16 individuals as part of an investigation into the Beirut port warehouse explosion that shook the capital, state news agency NNA said on Thursday (August 6).
The Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) Ministry of Health said on Thursday (August 6) that it has recorded 507 new cases of coronavirus infection in the Kurdistan Region.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi decided to pay the salaries of public sector workers at the Kurdistan Region’s dams, and to transfer responsibility for paying those workers to the federal Ministry of Water Resources.
US Iran envoy Brian Hook is leaving his post and US Venezuela envoy Elliott Abrams will add Iran to his role “following a transition period” with Hook, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Thursday (August 6).
Republican and Democratic senators will introduce legislation as soon as Thursday (August 6) that would block international sales of American-made drones to countries that are not close US allies, a Senate aide said.
Two Iraqi soldiers were killed and three others were wounded in an Islamic State (ISIS) attack on the Iraqi Army in Saladin governorate in northern Iraq on Wednesday evening (August 5).
Economic recovery around the world could come faster if any COVID-19 vaccine is made available to all as a public good, World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Thursday (August 6).
Iraq said on Thursday (August 6) it would make an additional cut in its oil production of about 400,000 barrels per day in August to compensate for its overproduction over the past period under the OPEC+ supply reduction pact.
The holy Shi’ite city of Kerbala, which used to host pilgrims from all around the world, is now quarantining dozens of COVID-19 patients in apartment buildings owned by Imam Hussein shrine, one of Iraq’s most powerful religious authorities.
The federal Ministry of Health said on Thursday (August 6) that it recorded 3,047 new cases of coronavirus and 67 deaths in the country over the past 24 hours.
Turkish women did four times as much household and care work as men during lockdowns aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus, research supported by the United Nations Development Programme showed on Thursday (August 6).
Turkish central bank head Murat Uysal has stuck to the rate-cutting script since President Tayyip Erdogan hired him to lift Turkey out of a recession and currency crisis.
Sulaimani Central District officials said on Thursday (August 6) that 64 places of business were shut down because of coronavirus-related public health violations and nearly 48 tons of expired food and other goods were seized during July.
French President Emmanuel Macron called for urgent support for Lebanon where he arrived on Thursday, two days after a devastating blast ripped through Beirut, killing 145 people and generating a seismic shock that was felt across the region.
As the coronavirus outbreak continues to hit the governorate hard, Erbil Central District said on Thursday (August 6) that markets and bazaars, motorcycle and bicycle yards, and automobile shows will be closed on Fridays as a measure to contain the spread of the virus in the city.
The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Iranian-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen on Thursday said it shot down an explosive-laden drone heading towards the kingdom, a statement published by Saudi state news agency SPA said.
Three Islamic State (ISIS) militants were killed in an airstrike by the US-led Coalition Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR) in the Hamrin mountain range in Diyala governorate on Wednesday (August 5).
Soran Traffic Directorate said on Thursday (August 6) that drivers and passengers must wear protective face masks, adding that it would fine any driver 50,000 Iraqi dinars ($42.06) if they fail to do so.
Bus and taxi drivers protested at a transportation terminal in Erbil city on Thursday (August 6) calling on the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to re-open routes between Erbil and other areas of the Kurdistan Region and Iraq.
Following the devastating explosion at Beirut’s port, Iraq’s General Authority of Customs announced on Wednesday (August 5) that it would revisit and strengthen its procedures for the storage and transfer of hazardous chemicals and other dangerous materials.
Crude oil prices were up on Thursday (August 6), compared with the previous day.
A fire broke out at the Kabartu 2 displacement camp in Semel district in Duhok governorate on Wednesday (August 5), damaging four tents belonging to Ezidi internally displaced persons (IDPs).
The World Bank Group said on Wednesday (August 5) it stands ready to assess Lebanon’s damage and needs after a devastating Beirut port explosion and will work to help mobilize public and private financing for reconstruction and recovery.
The United States is pushing ahead with its bid to extend an international arms embargo on Iran by way of a second draft UN Security Council resolution, despite what some diplomats say is a lack of enthusiasm for such a move among its 15 members.
The Kirkuk National Security Service said on Wednesday (August 5) that it has arrested an Islamic State (ISIS) field commander in Kirkuk city.
An Iraqi delegation headed by the Iraqi oil minister met the Lebanese prime minister, Hassan Diab, on Wednesday and informed him that Baghdad will provide fuel aid to Beirut after the blast on Aug. 4, according to a statement by the Lebanese government.
