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raying feverishly under her breath, the wife of a critically ill Covid-19 patient paces the corridors of the Baghdad coronavirus ward against a sudden tide of doctors. Behind her on the hospital bed, her asthmatic husband starts to spasm painfully as his airways close.Exhausted medics rush to save his life. Against the insistent sigh of ventilators, with her head bowed, his wife pleads for a miracle.

It is another difficult afternoon for the Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) staff working at the al-Kindi hospital in the Iraqi capital which over the last few weeks has witnessed an unprecedented surge in Covid cases that threatens to overwhelm the healthcare system. Funded by our Supporter Programme, The Independent spoke to staff about their fears for the coming months.

Today all 51 beds for serious and critical patients are full. There are people waiting in the emergency room for a bed to become free, Omar Ebeid, MSFs project coordinator in Baghdad, says.

We are receiving many seriously ill people and many are dying. With the highest ever number of cases in Iraq declared we expect this situation to continue for a while, and that is very worrying.

In many countries across the world, people have been tentatively celebrating the light at the end of the tunnel after a year of the pandemic. Lockdowns are gradually lifting and vaccine programmes are in full swing.

In Iraq, however, the opposite is happening. The war-ravaged country is now in the grips of its worst wave of the deadly virus so far: on Wednesday last week the health ministry registered over 8,300 cases, its highest ever daily figure. Since then, the numbers have remained consistently high and, because of a woeful lack of testing, the true number of infections is expected to be far higher. Overall, official numbers show more than 940,000 have been infected with the virus while nearly 14,800 people have died.

After a dip in numbers over winter, Covid-19 appears to have returned with full force, raging through the 40 million-strong population, which has struggled to impose social distancing.

Iraqs health ministry has warned of the dire consequences of citizens failing to heed coronavirus prevention measures, which it said were almost non-existent in most regions of Iraq. It called on tribal sheikhs, activists and influential figures to speak out and inform the public on the severity of the pandemic.

Just a few months ago the team at MSF which runs a joint facility with the Iraqi ministry of health thought the numbers had sunk so low they would wind down their clinic.

We had started to consider when we could pull out. In the end, we had to cancel the exit, says Catherine Moody, head of MSFs mission in Iraq. These numbers are real. This is not a little bump, they are continually going up.

Teams are now working around the clock to keep people alive and it has led to signs of burnout, says Dr Ali al-Keel, one of MSFsIraqi staff members.

The second wave came really fast, he says, wearing multiple layers of personal protective equipment as family members sleep on the floor of packed wards behind him. Its like running a marathon but the finish line keeps moving.

MSF medics rush to help open the airways of an asthmatic Covid-19 patient in their clinic in Baghdad

(Bel Trew)

One of the key problems is the lack of vaccines. While several countries have already successfully inoculated a significant proportion of their population, Iraq is trailing far behind. It received its first shipment of vaccines only last month 336,000 AstraZeneca jabs from the World Health Organisation-supported Covax programme with 50,000 Pfizer jabs following last Sunday.

Before that, the country had received just 50,000 doses as a donation from China to immunise healthcare workers.

So far the health ministry says more than 110,000 people have been vaccinated. The new doses would barely cover the 216,000 or so medical workers believed to be in Iraq.

Officials tell The Independent that, while they are preparing 80 field hospitals across the country and several thousand Covid-19 beds, they still worry it will not be enough. We saw this surge in numbers coming months ago and we issued tens of statements warning people about what will happen if they do not follow the health rules, health ministry spokesman Saif al-Badr says. But there has been no thorough application of the measures.

Its related to health education, we set the rules but we are not responsible for enforcing them and people are not following them.

The country has imposed several round-the-clock curfews that in some areas, such as central Baghdad, have been policed by heavily armed members of the security forces.

But in other cities, towns and villages particularly those ravaged by recent wars like Mosul, the former Isis stronghold few people wear masks while market places and streets are jammed.

Badr tells The Independent that they hoped the vaccine rollout would help, adding that they had so far negotiated the procurement of 6 million vaccines but that was not enough to ensure herd immunity.

We are even worried about another surge, even worse than now, he continues.

He says there were particular concerns about 1.4 million people internally displaced within the country, many of whom live in makeshift tents where social distancing is impossible. Because of this, MSF staff argue that Iraq should be considered a global priority.

Iraq recently registered its highest daily figure for Covid cases

(Bel Trew)

It is one of the hardest-hit nations on the planet: its health system has been weakened by years of conflict and its economy is struggling in the wake of the crash in the price of oil. All of which mean it is ill-equipped to halt the spread of the virus.

Back in the clinic, MSF workers say that, of the 414 admissions to their wards since the end of September, 156 have been in the last month alone. They are already at full capacity and fear this will be the case in hospitals across the country.

Ziyad Ismeel, an MSF medical assistant, says he is also concerned that in this second wave the patients are younger and they are arriving in a more critical state. Ebeid, meanwhile, describes the mortality rate as frightening.

Zohour Assaid, 55, one of MSFs patients who is recovering after almost dying from the virus, says she has noticed cases soar in her community over the last month and urged the population to take care.

Please take this seriously, wear your masks, stay home, its real its deadly, she says, struggling to talk from her hospital bed. I hope, God willing, Iraq will be safe.

Read the original post:
Iraqs deadliest coronavirus wave is only just beginning - The Independent

The mission of U.S. forces in Iraq has shifted to training and advisory roles, allowing for redeployment of combat forces remaining in the country, U.S. and Iraq delegates said Wednesday after a third round of strategic U.S.-Iraq talks.

Statements issued by both sides, however, said the timing of such a redeployment would be determined in upcoming technical talks, without specifying when they would take place. They also stressed the need for continued security cooperation.

The talks held virtually because of the pandemic began in June under the Trump administration. Wednesday's round, the first under President Biden, centered on an array of issues, including the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq.

Iraq had requested the latest round, partly in response to pressure from Shiite political factions and militias loyal to Iran that have lobbied for the remaining U.S. troops to leave Iraq. Participants included U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs David Hale, and Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hassan.

A State Department statement following the talks said that with increasing capacity of Iraqi security forces, the mission of U.S. and coalition forces "has now transitioned to one focused on training and advisory tasks, thereby allowing for the redeployment of any remaining combat forces from Iraq."

The Pentagon press secretary, John Kirby, said Wednesday's statement does not represent an agreement to begin a further withdrawal of U.S. forces.

Iraqi military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Rasool said later that Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has ordered the formation of a committee that would hold technical talks with the American side to approve "mechanisms and timings" related to the redeployment.

Al-Kadhimi has walked a tightrope as he negotiates with the Americans while coming under growing pressure from local militias loyal to Tehran.

Last week, a convoy of heavily armed Shiite militiamen drove openly through Baghdad, denouncing the U.S. presence and threatening to cut off al-Kadhimi's ear, a display that clearly sought to undermine the premier.

Angered, al-Kadhimi asked Iran's leaders to rein in Iran-backed militias in Iraq and suggested he would confront the factions, two Iraqi officials said Wednesday. In the note, al-Kadhimi threatened to "announce clearly who backs these groups," the officials said.

It was not immediately clear who the message was given to. The timing suggested al-Kadhimi, who has appeared powerless in confronting the militias, was looking to appease the Americans ahead of Wednesday's talks.

The message led to a two-day visit this week by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's Quds Force chief Ismail Qaani to Baghdad, where he met with militia and Shiite political leaders and called for calm, according to a senior Iraqi Shiite politician.

The two Iraqi officials and the Shiite politician all spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters.

U.S.-Iraq ties plummeted after a Washington-directed airstrike that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad last year. At the time, outraged Shiite lawmakers passed a non-binding resolution to end U.S. troop presence in Iraq.

Iraqi and U.S. officials have said they support a scheduled withdrawal from Iraq but questions remain over timings and the scope of the threat posed by the Islamic State group. According to the Pentagon, the number of U.S. troops in Iraq has dropped to about 2,500 over the past months.

Iraq's Foreign Minister Fuad Hassan said in a statement during Wednesday's talks that Iraq still needs U.S. support related to training, arming and advising its military.

Iraqis, particularly under former President Donald Trump, have often felt squeezed and pressured by both their allies, the U.S. and Iran. Tehran, for instance, seeks billions of dollars in payment for crucial gas and electricity supplies to Iraq. Iraqi officials say the money is sitting idle in an account at the Trade Bank of Iraq because of U.S. restrictions and fears of sanctions.

In a positive sign, the Biden administration last month permitted a 120-day sanctions waiver for Iraq to continue importing energy from Iran, the maximum time frame allowed. Waiver renewals under Trump were often for shorter periods and laden with conditions.

However, Iraqi officials say they require U.S. leniency to repay Tehran directly for the crucial energy imports, forgoing a complex payment system designed to evade U.S. sanctions over trading with Iran.

Iraq relies on Iranian supplies for a third of power needs, especially during peak summer months. Electricity cuts over payment issues resulted in violent protests in the southern province of Basra in the summer of 2018. As Iraq plans for nationwide parliamentary elections in October, the need to avoid unrest is high.

Currently, Iraq can pay Iran indirectly for the supplies in several ways. It can pay in humanitarian goods or medicines, cancel Iran's foreign debt, and foot bills such as Iranian Embassy expenses, the costs of Iranian companies operating in Iraq and those of Iranian pilgrimages to Shiite holy sites in Iraq.

But doling out these payments has been difficult, partly because U.S. conditions are so strict.

Read the original:
No timetable for withdrawal of troops after U.S.-Iraq ...

April 7 (UPI) -- The United States and Iraq on Wednesday reached an agreement on the eventual withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from the nation.

In a joint statement following the conclusion of the third round of talks between the United States and Iraq known as the Strategic Dialogue -- the first two of which were conducted under the Trump administration -- the two sides agreed the U.S. military presence would begin to shift to a non-combat role.

"Based on the increasing capacity of the [Iraq Security Forces], the parties confirmed that the mission of U.S. and Coalition forces has now transitioned to one focused on training and advisory tasks, thereby allowing for the redeployment of any remaining combat forces from Iraq, with the timing to be established in upcoming technical talks," the statement said.

The statement went on to say that the transition of U.S. and other international forces away from combat operations "reflects the success of their strategic partnership" to combat the presence of the Islamic State terror group in Iraq.

Iraq's national security adviser, Qasem al-Araji, said in a news conference the discussions resulted in "important progress" toward the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops.

About 2,500 U.S. troops remain in Iraq helping the ISF combat the IS, according to the Pentagon.

Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told reporters there was "no specific agreement of a date certain or a certain number of troops by a certain date," but assured the United States has never intended to keep troops in Iraq indefinitely.

"I think we all realized when we were invited in by the government of Iraq, that this mission was aligned against ISIS and that there was no expectation that it was going to be a permanent, enduring mission or footprint," said Kirby, using an alternate abbreviation for the terror group.

Originally posted here:
United States, Iraq reach agreement on plans to withdraw U ...

On my most recent visit to the Mesopotamian marshes, in March, I arrived at Sayeed Hithams for breakfast. The pandemic had kept me away for more than a year.

The sun was just rising, the sky pink and golden. Hana, Hithams wife, stood smiling near the door to their reed house. Tea is ready, bread is ready, she said. Come on in.

We sat on the worn-out carpet around a glowing kerosene heater, sipping tea and dipping the flat naan Hana had just baked into hot buffalo milk. What took you so long, Emi? Sayeed asked with a tone of reproach. We havent seen you in forever.

Indeed. A year was the longest Id gone without visiting the Mesopotamian marshes since I began documenting the area in late 2016.

At that time, when journalists and photographers were flocking to the north of Iraq, where the battle for Mosul was raging, I took the opposite path and headed south. I was in search of another view of the country, something different from the war Id been covering for the previous year and a half.

It was a moment of real discovery for me one of those few times when you connect with a place, with a people.

The Mesopotamian marshes, a series of wetlands that sit near Iraqs southeast border, feel like an oasis in the middle of the desert which they are. The ruins of the ancient Sumerian cities of Ur, Uruk and Eridu are close at hand. The broader region, known as the cradle of civilization, saw early developments in writing, architecture and complex society.

The marshes are home to a people called the Madan, also known as the Marsh Arabs, who live deep in the wetlands, mostly as buffalo breeders in isolated settlements, a majority of which are reachable only by boat. Others live in small cities on the banks of the Tigris or Euphrates rivers, which feed the marshes.

Many of the Madan left decades ago, when the marshes were ravaged by war, famine and repression.

During the Iran-Iraq war, waged between 1980 and 1988, the wetlands proximity to the Iranian border turned the area into a conflict zone, a theater for bloody battles. Later, in the early 1990s, in the aftermath of a Shiite uprising against his Baath Party, Saddam Hussein intentionally drained the region where many of the Shiite rebels had fled as a punishment and a way to stifle the insurrection.

The marshes turned into a desert for more than a decade, until the United States-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

By then, damage had already been done. By the early 2000s, less than 10 percent of the areas original wetland existed as a functioning marshland.

Today, after being re-flooded and partially restored, the marshes are once again endangered by climate change, lack of ecological awareness on a local level and, perhaps most dramatically, by the construction of dams in Turkey and Syria and upriver in Iraq.

In 2018, an extremely hot summer followed by a lack of rain caused a serious drought. In some areas, the water level fell by more than three feet.

Thats it, I remember thinking, as the small boat crossed the marsh where corpses of young buffaloes floated in the water. Buffalo breeders like Sayeed Hitham lost about a third of their livestock, and many had to leave when areas turned into a desert. They migrated to neighboring cities or farther still, to the poor suburbs of Karbala, Basra or Baghdad.

But then, a few months later, the water began to rise. People returned. I photographed the renewal, just as Id photographed drought the year before. But it felt then it still feels now like a sword of Damocles hung over the region.

The stakes are high, both ecologically and for the people who live here. If the already-depleted marshes dry up again, the Madan may have no choice but to leave, to cast away from a peaceful enclave into a troubled land.

Still, Ive kept coming back. Over the years, Ive seen drought and abundance, freezing winters and burning summers. Ive seen children born, and watched them grow up. Ive followed Sayeed Hitham and his family as they moved around the marsh, the location of their new home dependent on the water level and each time built out of reeds.

Ive even gotten used to the huge water buffaloes, known locally as jamous, which represent the main source of income for most of the Madan.

The buffaloes scared me at the beginning. But Ive learned to walk through a herd of horns, to let them smell me, to pet the fluffy, friendly calves the ones that try to lick my hand like oversized dogs.

When I outlined my progress to Sayeed, as we wrapped up breakfast, he burst into his wonderful, exuberant laughter. You still know nothing, Emi, he said. You cant even tell the mean jamous in the herd.

Then, serious, and still smiling, he said: Its OK. You have time to learn.

Original post:
In Iraq, Drought and Abundance in the Mesopotamian Marshes - The New York Times

Travelling down the river, Salim noticed that most boats were made of metal, not traditional materials. Ancient Mesopotamian boats and crafts had survived multiple invasions over many millennia, explains Salim. But the displacement and destruction of recent conflicts disrupted the traditional ways of teaching these crafts, often passed down from father to son.

Never before had these strata of knowledge, of engagement of [local] material ever disappeared. This was the very first time, says Salim.

Salim began tracking down the last few living craftspeople in Iraq who knew how to build traditional boats.

Through boat reconstruction and oral history workshops, he has documented six traditional boats, including the tarada, which was the Marsh Arabs war canoe, designed to cut through the reeds with its high curved prow. The others are the guffa, a coil-basket coracle made from grasses, palm and pomegranate stems; the kelek, a raft used to carry goods and people; and the meshouf, the kaiya and the zaima.

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As momentum grew, Salim and his partner, Hannah Lewis, in 2017 co-founded Safina Projects, which aims to preserve and revive Iraqs endangered craft heritage, particularly its ancient boats.

The study of boats [internationally] developed considerably in the 40 years that Iraq has been off the map, says Salim. Theres still a vast amount of knowledge to gather. Already people that have been sources for key information have died, so we are in an emergency state of gathering. Its the last chance to capture knowledge, and to understand it.

The maritime heritage curriculum unit that Jotheri is co-developing builds on Salims fieldwork. The unit will be embedded in Iraqs third-year undergraduate heritage course and is set to launch at universities across Iraq in October.

The unit will cover all aspects of maritime heritage, from industry to management to culture, and will be accompanied by a book that Jotheri and four colleagues at the University of Al-Qadisiyah, at Al-Diwaniyah, in south central Iraq, are writing.

Continue reading here:
Iraq's Maritime Heritage Finds a Haven in the Classroom - Al-Fanar Media