Attachments
Key Takeaways:
- POLITICS: Court Rejects Challenges to Three New Laws; Top Syria Diplomat to Visit Baghdad; Baghdad Signs Cooperation Agreements with Prague – On February 11, Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court rescinded its February 4 injunction that suspended the implementation of three laws that parliament passed in a single vote on January 21. The Court also said it dismissed objections filed by lawmakers who called for nullifying the vote over alleged procedural and other violations. The laws in question are amendments to the Personal Status Law, the General Amnesty Law, and a bill addressing the return of land confiscated by the Ba’ath regime. The Court’s sudden reversal comes after it faced strong pushback from Sunni political parties and Supreme Judicial Council President Judge Faeq Zaidan, who argued that the Court does not have the power to suspend the laws. President Abdullatif Rashid signed the three bills into law on Thursday. On February 12, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani revealed that he had received an official invitation to visit the Iraqi capital, adding that he “will be in Baghdad soon.” Reports indicate that Shaibani and Iraqi officials will discuss Syria’s possible participation in the Arab League summit meeting that Baghdad is expected to host later this year. On February 13, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani arrived in the Czech Republic, where he was met by his Czech counterpart, Prime Minister Petr Fiala. During the visit, Iraq and the Czech Republic signed a bilateral treaty for air transportation and four other agreements between their respective interior ministries, industry unions, and chambers of commerce, as well as between Iraq’s Oil Ministry and the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade. Iraq’s Ministry of Environment and its Czech counterpart also signed a statement of intent for future cooperation in environmental protection. In other developments, on February 10, seventeen demonstrators were reportedly injured when security forces used tear gas to block a convoy of Sulaymaniyah teachers from entering Erbil, where they intended to stage a protest demanding regular payment of their salaries, which have been embroiled in protracted disputes between the federal government and the KRG. more…
- SECURITY & HUMANITARIAN: Four Iraqis Killed, Several Wounded in Multiple IED and Remnants of War Explosions; Iraqi Airstrikes Kill Seven ISIS Militants – Between February 8 and 12, the explosions of two remnants of war and two improvised explosive devices in Basra, Salah ad-Din, and Anbar killed at least four Iraqis and wounded at least ten people, at least five of whom were children. Most of the casualties occurred when an old landmine detonated in the Rumaila desert, killing four people. Between February 10 and 12, two airstrikes by Iraqi F-16 jets targeted ISIS militants in the Pulkana region of Salah ad-Din province and the Rawa district of Anbar province, killing seven ISIS militants. In other developments, on February 13, Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani appointed Major General Mowafaq al-Jubouri as the new commander of the Ninewa Operations Command. Jubouri, who commands the Iraqi army’s 15th division, will replace the outgoing Major General Taha Askar. more…
- ECONOMY & CLIMATE: Iraq Expands Maysan Refinery; Preparations Underway to Resume Cross-Border Trade With Syria; KRG Resumes Sending Non-Oil Revenue to Baghdad – On February 10, Iraq’s Oil Ministry said it will add a new oil refining unit at the Maysan oil refinery to raise its capacity from 40,000 to 110,000 barrels per day (bpd). The statement did not mention the project’s cost, timeline, or the company undertaking the expansion, which will reportedly be done in accordance with the “Euro 5 standard” for emissions. On February 10, the head of the Iraqi-Syrian Business Council said that Iraq is preparing to resume cross-border trade with Syria in the coming days. The resumption of trade, disrupted by the fall of the Assad regime in December, awaits the signing of an agreement between Iraqi and Syrian authorities as the Syrian side works to equip its side of the al-Qaim/al-Bukamal border crossing with border guards and customs services. According to sources, the border crossing on the Syrian side is expected to be fully operational within days. On February 12, the KRG Finance Ministry said it deposited more than IQD 51.89 billion (approximately $39 million) into the Central Bank account of the federal Finance Ministry as remittance for non-petroleum revenue generated in January 2025. This latest transfer is the first since October 2024. The four-month gap in remittances occurred as disagreements escalated between Baghdad and Erbil in late 2024 before the two sides reached a “final” agreement on salaries on February 2. The agreement coincided with parliament passing a budget amendment designed to facilitate the resumption of halted oil exports from the Kurdistan region. more…
For more background on most of the institutions, key actors, political parties, and locations mentioned in our takeaways or in the stories that follow, see the ISHM Reference Guide.