Iran Is Demanding War Reparations From Iraq

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi speaks during a ceremony in Najaf, Iraq, Jan. 7, 2018.

Ali Mamouri, Al-Monitor: Iran-Iraq tensions rise as Tehran demands war compensation

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said Aug. 7 that Iraq will abide by US sanctions on Iran to protect Iraq's own interests. Abadi spokesman Saad al-Hadithi confirmed Aug. 13 that Iraq will not violate US sanctions on Iran and that “Iraq's stance toward the US sanctions imposed on Iran stems from the general interest of Iraq, and was not impetuous or hasty, but was subjected to study, and was not affected by the positions of other states or political parties.”

After Iraq said it would abide by US sanctions, several Iranian officials raised their voices against Iraq, calling it traitorous and demanding the country pay compensation for damages caused in the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War that took place under Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, who was executed in 2006.

The controversy over Iraqi acceptance of the US sanctions and then Iran’s demands for war compensation has divided the Iraqi street into two opposing camps.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: It always comes down to money.

Iranian Weapons Are Flooding Into Iraq Including T-72 Tanks

Qasem Soleimani, commander of Iran’s elite Quds force. Rudaw

Adam Rawnsley, War Is Boring: Iranian Weapons Flood the Battle of Tikrit

Tehran sends tanks, rocket launchers and drones

Iraqi and Shia militia forces have been taking back ground from Islamic State, pushing the jihadist fighters out of much of the town of Tikrit.

But in a sign of Tehran’s growing military presence in the Iraq, Iranian weapons were a nearly ubiquitous sight in images and videos coming out of the offensive to take the mostly Sunni city.

Ever since Islamic State shocked the region with its capture of Mosul last summer, Iran has opened up its arsenals and flooded clients, proxies and friends in Iraq with arms and vehicles.

Now, as Iraqi forces have brushed off their American advisers during the push into Tikrit, Iranian weapons — and advisers — are helping to spread the Islamic Republic’s influence.


Update: Iran’s Expanding Sphere of Influence: Iranian T-72 Tanks in Iraq -- Belling Cat

WNU Editor: Not surprising .... some in Iraq are appreciative of this Iranian support .... Iraqi commander slams US, hails Iran in fight against ISIS in Tikrit (AP)

Iran Ready To Assist Iraq In The Same Way That It Is Helping Syria

A member of the Iraqi security forces opens fire during clashes with fighters from Sunni militant group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Ibrahim bin Ali village, west of Baghdad, June 24, 2014. Credit: Reuters/Ahmed Saad

Iran General Says Ready To Help Iraq Against Militants -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Iran is ready to help Iraq fight an armed revolt using the same methods it deployed against opposition forces in Syria, an Iranian general said, suggesting Tehran is offering to take a larger role in battling Sunni militias threatening Baghdad.

Iranian leaders to date have said they would help defend Shi'ite Muslim shrines in neighboring Iraq if necessary, but have also said Iraqis are capable of doing that job themselves.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamanei on June 22 also said he rejected intervention in Iraq by Washington or any other outside power against Sunni militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militia.

Read more ....

Update: Iran 'ready to use Syria methods' in Iraq -- Al Jazeera

My Comment: Iran's involvement in Iraq is only going to exacerbate sectarian divisions and make the civil war into what ISIS has been claiming all along what what it is .... A Sunni - Shiite war. In the meantime .... Iraqi lawmakers are now facing a July 1 deadline to form a government to confront the crisis.

Iran Escalating Military Aid To The Beleaguered Iraqi Government

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (R) and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meet at the Prime Minister's Office in Baghdad on June 23, 2014. Kerry met Iraq's prime minister in Baghdad on Monday to push for a more inclusive government, even as Baghdad's forces abandoned the border with Jordan, leaving the entire Western frontier outside government control. Reuters/Brendan Smialowski

Iran Secretly Sending Drones and Supplies Into Iraq, U.S. Officials Say -- New York Times

BRUSSELS — Iran is directing surveillance drones over Iraq from an airfield in Baghdad and is secretly supplying Iraq with tons of military equipment, supplies and other assistance, American officials said. Tehran has also deployed an intelligence unit there to intercept communications, the officials said.

The secret Iranian programs are part of a broader effort by Tehran to gather intelligence and help Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki’s government in its struggle against Sunni militants with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

Gen. Qassim Suleimani, the head of Iran’s paramilitary Quds Force, has visited Iraq at least twice to help Iraqi military advisers plot strategy. And Iran has deployed about a dozen other Quds Force officers to advise Iraqi commanders, and help mobilize more than 2,000 Shiite militiamen from southern Iraq, American officials said.

Read more ....

More News On Iran Increasing Military Aid To Iraq

Iran Now Flying Spy Drones Over Iraq, U.S. Says -- Wall Street Journal
Syria and Iran Step Up Involvement in Iraq Conflict -- Time
Iran Flying Drones Over Iraq, Providing 'Substantial' Military Aid, US Says -- IBTimes
3 Iranian Troops Killed in Attack Near Iraq Border -- AP
Iran returns military aircraft to Iraq after 20 years -- Middle East Monitor
Iran rejects U.S. action in Iraq as militants push east -- Reuters
Iranians rally to support Iraq; some blame U.S. for Sunni insurgency -- L.A. Times

Iran Offers It's Military And Intelligence Services To Iraq In It's Fight Against ISIS

Fars News/Reuters

Iran Offers Iraq ‘Everything It Needs’ To Fight ISIS -- Eli Lake, Daily Beast

As ISIS marches closer to Baghdad, the world's leading sponsor of terrorism, Iran, is offering the Iraqi government the use of its army and spies.

As President Obama weighs whether to re-enter the Iraq war, the country’s neighbor, Iran, is looking to step into the void.

U.S. and senior Iraqi officials tell The Daily Beast that Iran is now offering the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki its army, its spies and highly trained irregular units from its revolutionary guard corps to root out the Sunni insurgency that now threatens Baghdad. Gen. Qassem Solaimani, the commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force, arrived in Baghdad last week with an entourage of military advisers to begin preparations for such a counter-offensive. A member of the Quds Force has already allegedly been killed fighting in Iraq.

While last week a spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry said his government received no formal requests for military assistance from Iraq’s government, senior Iraqi officials tell The Daily Beast that Iran has offered such support nonetheless.

Read more ....

My Comment: All that I can say is that in the event that the Iraqi government does agree to this Iranian offer .... it will tell me that they are now very desperate.

Update: The Iranian "volunteers" are starting to line up .... Over 5,000 Iranians 'sign up to defend Iraq holy sites' -- AFP

Iran Deploys Three Battalions Of Revolutionary Guards To Fight Sunni Militants In Iraq

Sept. 22, 2011: Members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard march during a parade to commemorate the anniversary of the Iran-Iraq war (1980-88) in Tehran.Reuters

Iran Deploys Forces to Fight al Qaeda-Inspired Militants in Iraq -- Wall Street Journal

Iranian Revolutionary Guard Forces Helped Iraqi Troops Win Back Control of Most of Tikrit, the Sources Said.

BEIRUT—Faced with the threat of Sunni extremists eclipsing the power of Shiite-dominated Iraq, Iran sprang into action to aid its besieged Arab ally and deployed Revolutionary Guards units to Iraq, according to Iranian security sources.

At least three battalions of the Quds Forces, the elite overseas branch of the Guards, were dispatched to aid in the battle against the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, an offshoot of al Qaeda rapidly gaining territory across Iraq, they said.

One Guards unit that was already in Iraq fought alongside the Iraqi army, offering guerrilla warfare advice and tactics and helped reclaim most of the city of Tikrit on Thursday.

Two Guards' units, dispatched from Iran's western border provinces on Wednesday, were tasked with protecting Baghdad and the holy Shiite cities of Karbala and Najaf, these security sources said.

Read more ....

Previous Post: Iran To Assist The Iraqi Government In Their Fight Against Sunni Jihadists

More News On Iran Deploying Military Forces To Iraq

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard deploys to Iraq to stop Sunni terror group -- Washington Times
As jihadists take aim at Baghdad, Iran steps in to help historical foe -- FOX News
Iran vows to combat 'terrorism' in Iraq -- Al Jazeera
Iraq Isis Invasion: Iran's Republican Guards Rushed to Defence of Baghdad -- IBTimes
Iran Is Deploying Experienced Fighters To Beat Back Militants In Iraq -- Business Insider
Iran deploys forces to fight rebels: WSJ, citing Iranian sources -- CNBC
Iran just sent an elite military unit to fight in Iraq -- VOX

My Comment: After the U.S. said no to the Iraqi government's plea for air strikes .... the Iraqi government had only one other option left, and that was to ask the Iranians for help. For the Iraqi government to agree to this deployment .... a deployment that I am sure that most Iraqis would be strongly against .... tells me that the Iraqi government in Baghdad is now desperate. They know that their army has collapsed, and they no longer have any trust in those units that are still in the field.

Update: We now know the answer to this debate .... Will Iran Intervene in Iraq? -- Iran Wire

Iran To Assist The Iraqi Government In Their Fight Against Sunni Jihadists

As Iraq Islamists Advance, Iran Says It Will Enter Fight -- Times of Israel

Iranian president doesn’t specify what Tehran intends to do to halt Islamist advance toward Baghdad

Predominantly Shiite Muslim Iran will combat terrorism by Sunni extremists in neighboring Iraq, President Hassan Rouhani warned Thursday.

Rouhani did not say exactly what Iran intended to do to help stop an offensive by fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) that is pushing toward Baghdad after seizing several cities and towns to the north.

“This is an extremist, terrorist group that is acting savagely,” Rouhani said live on state television, adding that Tehran will not “tolerate this violence and terror.”

Read more ....

More News On Reports That Iran Will Assist The Iraqi Government In Their Fight Against Sunni Jihadists

Iran Reiterates Full Support for Iraqi Gov't, Army in Anti-Terrorism Campaign -- FARS News Agency (Iran)
Iran backs Iraq in fight against Takfiri militants -- Press TV (Iran)
Iran offers Iraq support against 'terrorism' -- AFP
Iran to combat terrorism in Iraq: Iran President Rouhani -- The Straits Times

Did Iraq Do An Arms Deal With Iran?

Iran's ambassador to Iraq, Hassan Danaifar, denied there was any arms deal. Radio Free Europe

Iraqi Leaders Give Conflicting Answers On Reported Iran Arms Deal -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Iraqi officials gave contradictory accounts on Tuesday about whether or not Baghdad had agreed to buy $195 million worth of arms and ammunition from Iran as reported by Reuters, a deal that if confirmed could damage Iraqi-U.S. relations.

The Defence Ministry denied any such deal had been done, while a senior Iraqi government lawmaker who heads parliament's security and defence committee said Baghdad had bought "some light weapons and ammunition" from Tehran.

The United States has demanded explanations from Iraq since such a deal would violate U.S. and U.N. sanctions imposed on Iran over its disputed nuclear program. An influential U.S. senator said the sale of 24 Apache attack helicopters to Iraq should be reconsidered until the matter was cleared up.

Read more ....

Previous Post: Iraq Agrees To A Major Arms Deal With Iran Thereby Violating The UN Arms Embargo On Iran

More News On Iran And Iraq Denying Reports That They Have Signed An Arms Deal

Washington in uproar over reported Iran-Iraq arms deal -- Al Bawaba
Iraq denies reports it bought weapons from Iran -- FOX News
U.S. Says Baghdad Denies Iran Arms Deal -- Radio Free Europe
Ambassador denies reports Iraq has weapons deal with Iran -- Washington Times
No military request from Iraq, Tehran says -- UPI
Envoy: No Military, Arms Agreement Inked between Iran, Iraq -- FARS News Agency

My Comment: The Iranians are saying that no deal was made .... Reuters is saying that there is a deal. Who is right .... my money is on Reuters. This should concern Iraq .... if Iraq did sign an arms agreement with Iran they would be in violation of UN sanctions .... and that will give the U.S. the excuse to not give Iraq the billions in arms that they sorely need.

Iraq Agrees To A Major Arms Deal With Iran Thereby Violating The UN Arms Embargo On Iran

Masked Sunni Muslim gunmen take up position with their weapons during clashes with Iraqi security forces outside the city of Falluja, 70 km (44 miles) west of Baghdad, February 23, 2014. (REUTERS/STRINGER )

Exclusive: Iraq Signs Deal To Buy Arms, Ammunition From Iran - Document -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Iran has signed a deal to sell Iraq arms and ammunition worth $195 million, according to documents seen by Reuters - a move that would break a U.N. embargo on weapons sales by Tehran.

The agreement was reached at the end of November, the documents showed, just weeks after Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki returned from Washington, where he lobbied the Obama administration for extra weapons to fight al Qaeda-linked militants.

Some in Washington are nervous about providing sensitive U.S. military equipment to a country they worry is becoming too close to Iran. Several Iraqi lawmakers said Maliki had made the deal because he was fed up with delays to U.S. arms deliveries.

Read more ....

More News On Iraq Signing A Deal To Buy Arms And Ammunition From Iran

Reports: Iraq signs arms deal with Iran -- Al Jazeera
Iran to Sell Iraq Arms to Fight 'War Against Terrorism' -- IBTimes
Report: Iran, Iraq Sign Arms Deal -- Voice of America
State Department pressing Iraq for answers after report of arms deal with Iran -- FOX News
US presses Iraq on reports of arms deal with Iran -- Channel News Asia/AFP
Iran, Iraq Sign Secret $195 Million Arms Deal, Causing Alarm In Washington -- IBTimes
Iran May Be Breaking a U.S. Embargo by Selling Arms to Iraq -- The Wire

My Comment: So much for U.S. embargoes and UN sanctions on Iran

Is Iraq About To Buy Weapons From Iran?

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (L) and Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari attend a joint news conference, Baghdad, Jan. 14, 2014. (photo by REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani)

Controversy Surrounds Alleged Iraq-Iran Arms Deal -- Al-Monitor

In a Feb. 4 interview with the semi-official Iranian Tasnim News Agency, Mohammed Majid al-Sheikh, Iraq’s ambassador to Iran, was reported to have revealed his country’s intention to strike a deal to buy weapons from Iran. The agency quoted Sheikh as saying, “Some well-informed sources said that the Iranian-Iraqi talks came in light of the Iraqi Ministry of Defense’s vision of the need to supply the Iraqi army with Iranian-made military equipment, given their efficiency and importance.”

This style of statement is inconsistent with the ambassador’s official role, which is to present the official position of the Iraqi government, from official Iraqi sources, not from “well-informed sources.” This calls into question the validity of this supposed news, especially since it has not been confirmed by Iranian authorities or the Iraqi officials typically involved in such deals.

Read more ....

My Comment: Why buy weapons from Iran when you can buy the same weapons (with better quality) from the U.S. and Russia. There is more to this story than what is being told.

Iran Offers Military Assistance To Iraq In Their War Against Al Qaeda

Iran Ready To Help Iraq Fight al-Qaeda: Iranian Cmdr. -- Press TV (Iran)

Deputy Chief of Staff of Iran's Armed Forces Brigadier General Mohammad Hejazi says if necessary, the Islamic Republic is prepared to give military equipment to Iraq to fight al-Qaeda.

Asked about some Iraqi media reports that Baghdad is seeking help from Iran and the US to assist its operations against al-Qaeda, Hejazi said on Sunday that no official request has been made on Iran in this regard.

“Nothing has been discussed about a joint operation against Takfiri terrorists, but if Iraqis need equipment and consultation, we will help them,” the Iranian commander added.

Certain Iraqi media had earlier claimed that the United States and Iran are both contributing troops to fight al-Qaeda in Iraq.

The Iraqi cities of Fallujah and Ramadi have been the scene of deadly clashes between security forces and al-Qaeda-affiliated militants over the past days.

Read more ....

Update #1: Senior Iranian military official says Iran is ready to help Iraq fight al-Qaida 'terrorists' -- FOX News/AP
Update #2: Iran ready to help Iraq battle Al-Qaeda: Military chief -- Economic Times/AFP

My Comment: If Iran becomes directly involved in Iraq .... a bloody civil war that will match what is now happening in Syria will be the end result.

Iraq - Iran Alliance Forming On Syria

Iraq Joins Iran In Opposing U.S.-Led Military Strike In Syria -- Washington Post

BEIRUT — Iran won Iraqi support for its efforts to oppose a U.S.-led military strike on Syria during a visit to Baghdad on Sunday by the new Iranian foreign minister, highlighting how close the two countries have grown since U.S. forces withdrew in 2011.

Speaking during his first visit abroad since he was appointed last month, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javed Zarif warned that U.S. intervention in Syria risks igniting a regionwide war.

“Those who are short-sighted and are beating the drums of war are starting a fire that will burn everyone,” Zarif said during a news conference.

Standing alongside him, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said all of Syria’s neighbors, including Iraq, would be harmed by American involvement in Syria’s two-year-old conflict.

Read more ....

My Comment: I expect this alliance to continue to grow.

The Iran - Iraq Alliance

Iraq And Iran Form Alliance Within OPEC -- Financial Times

Iran and Iraq are forming a strengthening alliance inside Opec, raising concerns among moderate Arab Gulf producers like Saudi Arabia and increasing the potential for discord in the oil producers’ group.

With the EU sovereign debt crisis worsening and growing fears for the global economy, the deep divisions within Opec risk undermining the organisation’s ability to do its job of effectively managing oil supply and preventing violent price swings.

Read more ....

My Comment: I can only expect this 'alliance' to grow with time.

Will Iraq Become An Iranian Satellite State?

Mission Unaccomplished -- Yoel Guzansky and Gallia Lindenstrauss, Jerusalem Post

The question still remains whether Iraq will become an Iranian satellite state.

Pulling out of Iraq may have been the lesser evil for the US, but questions now loom regarding the ability of the Iraqi state to function, and the withdrawal does not resonate well among some of America’s allies in the region. In their eyes, the withdrawal of US forces from Iraq at this time is tantamount to unfinished business, eroding their confidence in the US.

Read more ....

My Comment: According to Iran's Qud's commander, Iraq is already under Iranian control.

Iran Wants Iraq To Pay $2 Trillion In War Compensations

Iran Plans To Demand Compensations From Iraq For Their Eight-Year War – 1980-88 -- Aswat al-Iraq

BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: Iran is planning to demand Iraq to pay compensations for the war, which the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s Spokesman said “had been imposed on the Islamic Republic of Iran” in 1980-88.

“The following up of the issue of forcing a compensation on Iraq due to the war imposed on Iran shall take into consideration the current circumstances in Iraq, but the issue is under discussion and shall be raised against the Iraqi side, after the restoration of security in the country,” Ramin Mehmanerest told the semi-official Iranian Mehr news agency.

Read more ....

Update: Efforts to obtain war reparations from Iraq underway: official -- Tehran Times

My Comment: Iran wants Iraq to give them 1,000,000 barrels of oil per day at $70 for 50 years (even though today's oil price is $100. Translated .... Iran wants almost $2 trillion in compensation.

Hmmmm .... it is not going to happen.

Tensions Over Oil Rising Between Iraq And Iran

An Iranian oil refinery seen from an Iraqi border village in 2008. Photo AFP

Iran Claims an Oil Field It Seized -- The New York Times

BAGHDAD — The Iranian government said Saturday that an oil field that its troops occupied a day earlier was on its side of the border with Iraq, despite Iraqi claims to the contrary.

A group of about 11 Iranian soldiers seized a portion of the remote Fakka oil field in Maysan Province in southeastern Iraq early Friday, according to Iraq.

Government officials in Baghdad said they had summoned the Iranian ambassador to protest the military action, but diplomatic efforts had so far failed to resolve the dispute.

Read more ....

More News On The Conflicting Claims Over Oil Between Iran And Iraq

Iran acknowledges oil well takeover -- AFP
Iran: Oil field is ours, not Iraq's -- Ynet News
Iranian Forces Occupy Iraq Oil Well -Iraqi Officials -- Wall Street Journal
Iraqis say oil well still being held; Iran denies claims -- CNN
Iraq sends forces to oil well seized by Iran -- AP
US: Iraq not 'pushed around' by Iran -- AP
Diplomatic solution sought over Iraq oilwell -- The Telegraph

Iran's Ongoing Proxy War in Iraq

IRAQ-IRAN BORDER — Soldiers from the Multinational Division Central-South stand at the entrance to Fort Tarik on the Iran-Iraq border. The Iraqi outpost helps secure the often contentious border. Defense Dept. Photo by Jim Garamone

From The Washington Institute:

In December 2008, shortly before assuming office, President Barack Obama called for "tough but direct diplomacy with Iran." As the new administration moves forward, it must realize that U.S.-Iranian negotiations will take place while Iran is killing Americans in Iraq and increasing its support for armed Iraqi factions. Like its predecessor, the Obama administration must prepare for the challenge of negotiating under fire.

Iranian-Backed Operations, 2003-2007

In addition to significant economic investment and relationship building among Iraq's political parties, Iran develops influence in Iraq by providing Iraqi militants with training, shelter, money, and equipment. Analysis of declassified interrogation and other intelligence material published by the West Point Counterterrorism Center, the Institute for Studying War, and the Long War Journal, has publicly revealed what military intelligence professionals have been piecing together for longer than five years: that Iran has been developing a covert action program in Iraq for decades, one that is open-ended, resilient, and well-funded, and that utilizes a broad range of Iraqi proxies.

Read more ....

My Comment: A very detailed and comprehensive report. If true, this report is a smoking gun on Iran's ambitions to be the regional superpower in the near future.