Monday, January 16, 2012

Foreign Contractors Not Welcomed In Iraq

This month Iraqi authorities kept scores of contractors penned up at the airport for nearly a week until their visa disputes were resolved. Photo: Reuters

Flexing Muscle, Baghdad Detains U.S. Contractors -- New York Times

BAGHDAD — Iraqi authorities have detained a few hundred foreign contractors in recent weeks, industry officials say, including many Americans who work for the United States Embassy, in one of the first major signs of the Iraqi government’s asserting its sovereignty after the American troop withdrawal last month.

The detentions have occurred largely at the airport in Baghdad and at checkpoints around the capital after the Iraqi authorities raised questions about the contractors’ documents, including visas, weapons permits and authorizations to drive certain routes. Although no formal charges have been filed, the detentions have lasted from a few hours to nearly three weeks.

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More News On Iraq Detaining U.S. Contractors

Iraq detains foreign contractors: report -- Daily Star/AFP
Iraqis begin to assert themselves with a crackdown on foreigners -- Sydney Morning Herald
Iraq Asserts Sovereignity with the U.S. Contractors Who Have Remained -- Atlantic Wire

My Comment: As Iraqi politics gets messier, I suspect that restrictions on foreign contractors will only increase.

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