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Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) The inflation rate in Iraq rose during September 2022 by 0.2 percent, compared to August, and the annual inflation rate rose to 5.3 percent, according to the Iraqi Ministry of Planning.

The official spokesperson for the Ministry of Planning, Abdul Zahra Al-Hindawi, mentioned in a statement that the annual inflation rate increased by 5.3 percent compared to what it was during September 2021.

The monthly change in inflation is caused by an increased rate in the food and non-alcoholic beverages sector by 1.6 percent, against decreased rate in the clothing and shoes sector by 0.7 percent, Al-Hindawi explained.

The inflation rate in the housing sector decreased by one percent as a result of the decrease in water and electricity supplies by 5.1 percent. The inflation rate in fuel decreased by 0.5 percent, Al-Hindawi stated.

Al-Hindawi indicated that home supplies and equipment recorded a 0.2 percent increase, while tobacco maintained its same level as in August.

Al-Hindawi elaborated that other sectors recorded a slight increase in their rates during the month of September. These sectors include the transportation sector which rose by 0.1 percent, the communication sector by 0.2 percent, the entertainment and culture sector by 0.8 percent, the education sector by 0.2 percent, and the restaurants and hotels sector by 0.2 percent.

A recent study made by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) indicates that the Iraqi economy is growing by 9.3 percent to be in the first place among the Arab economies by the end of 2022.

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Annual inflation rises to 5.3 percent in Iraq - Iraqi News

It seems like a lifetime ago and in some ways it was. It has been 17 years this week since I was in Iraq with the men and women of Georgias 48th Brigade Combat Team. Even today, it is an experience seared in my brain.

How I ended up there was due to my friend, Bill Stewart, of Brunswick. A former chief of staff to Georgias U.S. Sen. Mack Mattingly, Stewart suggested to a one-time staff member of his that he should invite me to Iraq for a visit. That staff member happened to be the now-Brig. Gen. Stewart Rodeheaver, commander of the 48th BCT.

Much to my surprise, I got an email from Gen. Rodeheaver shortly thereafter and an invitation to come over and see things for myself. Sharing the invitation with some of my media colleagues, I was advised to turn it down. I was told that public information staff would keep tight reins on me and I would see only what they wanted me to see within the Green Zone, a relatively safe area (if there was such a thing) in that war torn region.

That prompted me to email the general back and say in effect if that was the case, I would pass on the opportunity. I did not intend to hang around the pressroom all day and pretend I had witnessed the war. I received assurance from him that I was free to go wherever I wished and without any handlers. Gen. Rodeheaver was true to his word, although I suspect had I pushed the limit too far, he would have changed the rules quickly. Generals can do that kind of thing, you know.

I did see the war up-close and personal and a bit too up-close for comfort. I wangled an invitation to join a convoy of Humvees as they swept through the notorious Triangle of Death so called because of the terrorist activity in the area between the cities of Mahmudiayah, Yusifiyah and Lucafiyah looking for IEDs. That is military jargon for improvised explosive devices, or simply bombs.

We found one. Right under the Humvee in which I was riding. The IED detonated on my side of the vehicle and just behind me. Sparks, smoke and asphalt were everywhere. Had we been going a few seconds slower, or had the bad guys been a little faster on the draw, we might not be having this conversation.

Viewing the scene upon our return from the mission, it was amazing to see how large a crater the bomb had made in the road. I still have the photograph of the incident to remind me that war is real and people do get killed. We were lucky that day and may I never forget it.

The 48th Brigade Combat Team is a part of the Georgia National Guard, a group of citizen-soldiers from across the state who leave jobs and families to serve their country. In this case, in Iraq. Lt. Col. Tom Carden gave me a succinct description of their duties there. What we do is find out who are the good guys and who are the bad guys, he said, and then we get rid of the bad guys. Today, Maj. Gen. Carden is Adjutant General of the Georgia Department of Defense.

At the same time they were fighting the omnipresent terrorists, members of the 48th BCT were employing their back-home skills helping construct bridges, repairing dams, installing power lines, running medical clinics and showing the best of us to a people who had known only the brutality of a despicable dictator.

Today, I wonder what has become of this special group of people. I do know that in addition to Gen. Carden, Gen. Stewart Rodeheaver is retired and living in Eatonton. I still correspond with him on occasion. Colonel and later Maj. Gen. John King is Georgias able insurance commissioner, appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp and currently running for a full term in office.

But there are all the others with whom I spent perilous days and nights that I dont know about. They hailed from across our state: Places like Statesboro and Montezuma, Palmetto and Gray, Dublin and Brunswick. Back home they were mechanics, firefighters, schoolteachers, postal workers, doctors, nurses, correctional officers, police officers and the like. Your friends and neighbors.

But for my short stay in Iraq, they were my band of brothers and sisters. Seventeen years later, they are still my heroes. I hope they are well.

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Remembering a group of heroes in Iraq | Editorial Columns | thebrunswicknews.com - Brunswick News

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture conducted a training workshop on the Event Mobile Application (EMA-i) in Baghdad from 17 to 19 October 2022.

Good quality disease information and reporting is needed in order to understand the disease situation, support decision-making, prevent potential disease incursion and respond quickly. Thus, it is crucial to apply a system at national level to enhance veterinary services capacities in disease reporting from the field to decision-makers and information sharing among stakeholders. For this reason, FAO has developed EMA-i for data collection and to facilitate real-time disease reporting to support veterinary services capacities in disease surveillance implemented in the field.

Using smartphones, animal disease information is collected with the EMA-i application from the field. These data, which are geo-referenced, are entered into the app and safely stored in the FAO Emergency Prevention System (EMPRES) Global Animal Disease Information System (EMPRES-i). Through the financial support of the United States Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), the training targeted 32 participants from the veterinary departments of six governorates; Al-Anbar, Al-Muthanna, Basrah, Dohuk, Ninewa and Wasit in addition to Baghdad and Erbil, and representatives from the Ministry of Health as part of the One Health approach. The training aimed to improve animal disease data collection and real-time reporting of animal disease outbreaks from the field to the national level by using the EMA-i application.

Dr. Salah El Hajj Hassan, FAO Representative in Iraq, underlined the importance of this joint collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources (KRG) to improve animal health and strengthen health and livelihoods in the region. He added: This training of trainers on the Event Mobile Application (EMA-i) aims at enhancing early warning systems and will ultimately contribute to the reduction of the food and health security threats posed by emerging, transboundary and endemic pathogens.

Veronica Quattrola, FAO Deputy Representative in Iraq stated that: The use of the EMA-i app in other countries has demonstrated major improvements in animal disease reporting and communication between districts and central level. This training on the use of EMA-i technology in Iraq is timely and will strengthen the overall capacity of the livestock and veterinary services in animal diseases, reporting, early warning and surveillance.

Using this technology will improve the quantity and quality of reports allowing for effective and immediate action during the occurrence of a disease outbreak in terms of detection, reporting and response.

Media contact:

Zeineb Marzouk, Communications Specialist, FAO Iraq | Zeineb.Marzouk@fao.org | +96407719966053

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FAO strengthens Iraq's animal disease surveillance and reporting system capacity through the Event Mobile Application (E MA-i) [EN/AR] - Iraq -...

The Iraq Economic Contact Group (IECG) met today with Iraqi representatives in Washington DC. Representatives from Iraq, the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and G7 discussed Iraqs economic challenges and opportunities and the need for significant economic reform.

Despite some progress achieved under the current government in a challenging context, Iraq continues to face daunting medium and long-term economic challenges which are compounded by the negative impacts of climate change - including water scarcity, desertification, drought, and soaring temperatures. The IECG encourages the Government of Iraq to drive forward an ambitious economic reform agenda and take decisive climate action.

Iraqs economic reform and recovery, the consolidation of its democracy, and increasing the participation of women and girls in all aspects of the countrys economic and political life, are all key to promoting stability not only in Iraq but also in the region.

Diversifying the economy and building an inclusive and dynamic private sector to complement the hydrocarbon industry will promote macroeconomic resilience and provide opportunities and livelihoods for the people of Iraq. This will require reforms that improve the business environment, modernise the financial sector, strengthen macroeconomic stability and public financial management, and fight against corruption; catalysing growth and creating the building blocks for the private sector to thrive.

Investing Iraqs oil revenues prudently - through good governance, effective fiscal management, and transparency will be important to rebuilding and climate-proofing infrastructure and improving basic services, creating the foundations for sustainable growth.

The IECG remains committed to supporting the Government of Iraq to tackle Iraqs important economic and social challenges.

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Joint statement by the Iraq Economic Contact Group - GOV.UK

Stimsons Syria Series, closed roundtables under Chatham House Rule for renowned regional and international experts, aims to unpack the complexity and enhance understanding of the policies and perceptions of players in the Syrian conflict.

As part of its roundtable activity Syria Series, Stimson Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Program held the second online edition entitled Regional Consequences of the Syrian Conflict on Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq on the 19th of September 2022, under Chatham House Rule.

The humanitarian, security and economic dynamics of Syria are interlinked with that of Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq after more than eleven years of a devastating war. The drowning of more than 77 Lebanese and Syrians among others after their boat heading to Europe sank off the Syrian shores on September 23 highlights the cross-border dimensions of the humanitarian misery for both countries.The security impact of the ongoing conflict in Syria has transformed from the movement of non-state-actors across borders to established networks for smuggling drugs to Jordan en transit to the Gulf. And the US-Iran confrontation is played out in both countries, making the US presence in Syria and Iraq increasingly interconnected.

To discuss the regional interconnections between Syria and its three neighbors Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq the Stimson MENA Program, gathered experts and policy makers from the EU, Germany, Iran, Russia, Switzerland, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, and the US to share insights on this important aspect of the Syrian crisis. The roundtable was moderated by Kawa Hassan, Executive Director Stimson Europe, Director MENA Program and Senior Fellow, and Abdulla Ibrahim, Non-resident Fellow, Stimson MENA Program.

The war in Ukraine has diverted the international communitys political, financial and media attention from Syria with two immediate consequences. First, it deprived Syria as well as the region from much needed material support in the middle of an unprecedented regional economic collapse: Syria and Lebanon with depended economic disaster, Jordan, and Lebanon with increased burden of the Syrian refugees, Jordan with the drugs and smuggling networks, and Iraq with the endemic corruption. These economic woes are interconnected to political challenges. Second, it left the Syrian conflict with no horizon for a political solution due to the polarization of global politics. The Russian preoccupation with Ukraine has also left a security vacuum that is filled by Turkey, Iran, ISIS, and many others. That has led to eroding the long-held stalemate in Syria, as one expert suggested. With dire consequences for Syria and the region, attention is urgently warranted, and a new, proactive policy is required.

With dire consequences for Syria and the region, attention is urgently warranted, and a new, proactive policy is required

Caring for the Syrian refugees in a failing Lebanese state is as hard as providing for Lebanese citizens. Lebanon has been hit by consecutive economic crises lately: covid-19 pandemic in 2020/2021, after the economic crisis in mid-2019. This has resulted in a drastic deterioration of the rights and living conditions of both Lebanese citizens and Syrian refugees. Lebanon has a poor record in treating refugees, and Syrians are no exception. Syrian refugees are treated as guests and denied basic rights like to employment and education. Around 80% of Syrians in Lebanon are not legal residents and are therefore vulnerable to political and economic abuses.Within Lebanon, there is an increasingly discriminatory discourse against Syrian refugees with a tendency to blame them for all the countrys failures, mentioned one of the experts

Despite the push factors to leave Lebanon, voluntary return to Syria has not increased. Since 2016, only 70.000out of 1.5 millionhas returned to Syria, with many of them coming back to Lebanon again. In 2021, there were only roughly about 5.000 returning Syrian refugees to Syria according to Human Rights Watch (HRW). The majority of Syrians in Lebanon are thus still opting to remain in Lebanon. Concerning Syrians that have opted to come back to Lebanon after returning to Syria, they were confronted with several grave human rights violations that included kidnapping, execution, and sexual assaults according to a study by HRW on returnees between 2017-2021.Refugees also spoke about the struggle to survive in Syria due to electricity cuts and a lack of food. In line with HRW findings, the Syrian Commission of Inquiry states that Syria continues to be unsafe to return.

Supporting the Syrian refugees in Lebanon cannot be effective without addressing the wider crisis in Lebanon.

Supporting the Syrian refugees in Lebanon cannot be effective without addressing the wider crisis in Lebanon. The Lebanese state is unable to support its own citizens and channeling more aid to Syrian refugees living next to poor Lebanese raises moral and political questions in addition to societal tensions. Experts warned that the confluence of the growing volatility on the ground and the increasing economic dire straits is very dangerous for Lebanon and beyond including Europe, and therefore there is a need for an out of the box thinking and approach by international players and donors. They suggested some ideas to address this immense challenge ranging from supporting the Lebanese state, devising solutions to grant access to education for Syrian refugees, improving the effectiveness of aid and assuring that it arrives to the right recipients, considering distinguishing between the Syrian refugees and economic migrants, and considering regional and global demographic burden sharing.

Jordan felt the shocks of the Syrian crisis on its security and economy since day one. The negative indirect impact affected the economy of the north of Jordan in terms of increased unemployment, reduced growth, and swollen poverty. The issue of refugees in Jordan is becoming routine, and it has become a new reality for Jordanian society, as one expert explained.The smuggling of drugs has now become a devastating factor not only to Jordans security but more importantly to its social fabric. The protraction of the unresolved Syrian crisis has increased the inefficiency of the whole Jordanian state institutions.

The issue of refugees in Jordan is becoming routine, and it has become a new reality for Jordanian society, as one expert explained.

When it comes to drug smuggling, historically, Jordan functioned as a transit hub between Syria and the Gulf. But now Jordan is becoming a hub for well-rooted networks of criminality that is pervasive into the Jordanian society structure. The fall of ISIS and the collapse of arms smuggling have given way to drugs to fill the vacuum. These arms-based networks turned into drugs-based networks and have penetrated the region and are on their way to becoming institutionalized across borders in the region. The lack of a political horizon and the unstoppable state collapse in Syria threatens a resurgence of a new kind of radicalism. The risk of ignoring drugs-smuggling and finding a political solution to the Syrian conflict potentially will lead to a potential marriage and unholy alliance between ISIS and criminal networks, which is a serious threat to regional security. The international community should introduce a cooperation model similar to the anti-ISIS coalition, which includes intelligence sharing and enhancement of border control techniques and capabilities. Improving rule of law in Syria is inevitable for any strategy to curb drug production and smuggling to devastate social structures on the regional level. This new strategy requires a political solution in Syria.

Jordan launched a political initiative for the conflict in 2021 when it realized that there is a need for a realpolitik vision in dealing with the war in Syria. This initiative reflects the shifting priorities of Jordan to focus on stability, as well as for other Arab countries like the UAE. Given the unprecedented challenges arising from the lack of vision to end the ongoing conflict in Syria, finding a solution is a part of Jordans national security. However, Jordan cannot go far alone without support from its allies and with cooperation from the Syrian government. Despite the Jordanian interest to see a solution in Syria, there is a lack of vision on what the future Syria should look like. It is worth noting that Jordans relationship with the Syrian government has been historically filled with rivalries and mired with ideological and political rivalries, and personal differences. But in the end, Jordan and Syria do share a border, and stability in Syria is of Jorans national interest. The lack of vision and active policies toward a political solution in Syria from the international community is alarming to Jordan, and that is the motive behind its 2021 initiative.

For Iraqis, Syria has been a source of instability for years since the Syrian Government used to allow its borders for terrorists to cross to Iraq to attack the US forces and Iraqi civilians. After 2011, the crisis in Syria brought multiple economic and security challenges to Iraq, especially for the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region and Mosul. These intertwined security and economic challenges have affected internal Iraqi politics, such as the dynamics between Iraqi Sunni-Shite groups. In addition, the fragmentation of Iraqi politics has led to fragmented policies toward Syria.The instability in Syria has reduced the Iraqi GDP by 1.2 Percentage Point according to a study by The World Bank in 2020, due to the negative effects on investment, tourism, and Syrian refugees.

For Iraqis, Syria has been a source of instability for years since the Syrian Government used to allow its borders for terrorists to cross to Iraq to attack the US forces and Iraqi civilians.

Apart from the national impact on Iraq as a whole, the war in Syria is affecting Iraqi regions differently. In the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), the Syrian crisis influences the relationship between Kurdish parties such as the PYD/KDP, and the KDP/PKK, which are also influenced by regional players, such as Turkey and Iran. Economically, Syrian oil and products are refined in Iraqi Kurdistan before being exported through Turkey. It is important to note that much of the aid that goes to Syria crosses through KRI, which is often dependent on the border crossings that could be closed due to disagreements between the Iraqi KDP and the Syrian PYD. More to the south in Iraq, the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and the Iraqi central government are key players, where the Iraqi non-state-armed groups have a presence on both sides of the borders. This is an issue of great contention between Iraq, Iran, and the US. Iraq has furthermore formed a bridge for Iranian aid to Syria. Therefore, the US and Iranian presence in both countries is a source of destabilization in Iraq, and events in either country affect the other drastically.

There is also the issue of the ISIS camps and prisons in the Northeast of Syria that hold a lot of Iraqi citizens. For example, the al-Hol camp holds more than 50.000 ISIS family members, one third of them are Iraqis, which is a big problem for Iraq, Syria, and the international community. For Iraqis, the camp is a ticking timebomb and Iraqi officials have avoided dealing with the issue altogether.The key question here is: what can the international community do to address this problem? An expert noted that most stakeholders are not truly trying to solve the issue because there is a lack of jurisdiction in dealing with those detained in al-Hol, and there is no agreed-upon solution to this thorny issue.For Iraqis, unofficially, it a taboo to speak about al-Hol. On the other hand, the unclarity of the situation inside the camps makes it difficult to find a solution.

Excerpt from:
Regional Consequences of the Syrian Conflict on Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq Stimson Center - Stimson Center