Draw Media

News / Kurdistan

In 4 years of the Turkish occupation of Afrin, (SOHR) has documented over 2,300 violations

Turkish of Afrin four years on | Nearly 7,500 kidnappings and arrests and 2,300 other violations by Turkish forces and their proxy factions Draw Media The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) has documented the death of 639 Kurdish civilians in Afrin, including 95 children and 86 women in explosions of IEDs and car bombs, airstrikes and ground bombardment by Turkish forces and executions, while some died under torture in prisons run by Turkish-backed factions. Also, SOHR has documented, since the beginning of the Turkish occupation of Afrin until the evening of March 17, 2022, the kidnapping and arrest of over 7,497 Kurdish civilians from Afrin, 1,300 of whom remained imprisoned, while the rest have been released, after most of them paid large ransoms which factions of the Turkish-backed “National Army” required. According to SOHR statistics, over 4,180 families from different Syrian provinces were settled in Afrin, after having been forced to displace from their land, as a part of Turkey’s plan to change the demography of Afrin. Under Russian-Turkish agreements, Afrin was handed over to the Turks in return for allowing the Syrian regime to capture eastern Ghouta. The Syrian Observatory has been all along warning against the Turkish plan of systematic demographic change in Afrin since the first day of the Turkish occupation, where over half of the population of Afrin canton has been forced to displace from their homes, while thousands of families from other provinces have been settled in the canton instead; all of this has taken place in full view of the international community which seemed to be indifferent and kept silent.

Iran’s Attack Was Response to Secret Israeli Attack on Drone Site

Draw Media The New York Times Israel and Iran are pushing the boundaries of a long-running clandestine war that is increasingly spilling out of the shadows. By Farnaz Fassihi, Ronen Bergman and Eric Schmitt Iran fired a barrage of ballistic missiles into Iraq over the weekend, striking what it claimed was an Israeli target and leaving some analysts scratching their heads about what exactly precipitated the blitz and why Iraq. Now, officials say, the attack was retaliation for a previously secret Israeli airstrike on an Iranian drone factory last month. And, according to some officials, the Israeli intelligence operatives who launched the airstrike were based in Iraq. The tit-for-tat strikes represent an alarming escalation in the long-running shadow war between Israel and Iran, as both sides push the boundaries of a conflict that has also entangled the United States and now Iraq. For Israel, the attack on the Iranian drone facility is part of a new approach in countering Iran’s growing drone program, a tacit recognition that it is easier to pre-emptively destroy a drone than to intercept one en route. Iranian drones have been deployed in numerous attacks against Israel, as well as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and, last October, a U.S. base in Syria, according to intelligence officials. For Iran, the missile strike in Erbil, Iraq, on Sunday reflects both a more aggressive policy of responding to Israeli attacks and a more overt one: Unlike most previous attacks attributed to Iran, Iran, not one of its proxies, immediately claimed responsibility for this one, a sign of confidence that it can do so with impunity. Iran’s use of ballistic missiles instead of rockets or drones was also a serious escalation. For years, Israel and Iran have engaged in a largely covert war, keeping their actions brief, limited and, if not completely secret, at least deniable, in an effort to prevent a full-scale direct war that neither side wants. But as the recent strikes demonstrate, each side is willing to test those limits. And in a sign of the increasing reliance on drones, or remotely piloted aircraft, Israel’s attack on the Iranian drone facility last month was carried out by drones. A senior intelligence official briefed on the operation said that six suicide quadcopter drones exploded into the Iranian facility near Kermanshah, Iran, on Feb. 12. The official, who asked not be identified when discussing sensitive intelligence issues, said the facility was Iran’s main manufacturing and storage plant for military drones, and that the Israeli attack destroyed dozens of them. Iranian officials have not confirmed that the facility was used for drones, referring to it only as a base for the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, the paramilitary force that carries out much of Iran’s foreign military activities. Iran’s drone program has been the subject of increasing concern to Israeli and American officials, as well as to Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia and the Emirates. A document compiled by Israeli intelligence lists 15 drone attacks carried out by Iran or its proxies in the region from February 2018 to September 2021. Israeli military officials say that Israel has been attacked by Iranian drones several times. Last year, an Israeli F35 fighter jet intercepted two drones that Israel claimed had taken off from Iran, on their way to the Gaza Strip to drop off a supply of pistols for Hamas, the Islamist militant group that controls Gaza, the Israeli military said. American officials say that Iran also provides drone technology to proxy forces in Iraq and Syria, who carry out strikes against American personnel in those countries with Tehran’s blessing or direction. Last October, five so-called suicide drones were launched at the American base at Al Tanf, Syria, in what the military’s Central Command called a “deliberate and coordinated” attack. The attack caused no casualties but the drones were loaded with ball bearings and shrapnel in a “clear intent to kill,” a senior U.S. military official said. U.S. officials said they believed that Iran directed and supplied the local proxy forces that carried out the attack in retaliation for Israeli airstrikes in Syria, the first time Iran directed a military strike against the United States in response to an attack by Israel. The real wake-up call on the threat of Iran’s drone program came in 2019, with a pair of dramatic pinpoint strikes on two Saudi oil facilities carried out by a combination of drones and cruise missiles. A Saudi Aramco plant was attacked in 2019 by a combination of drones and cruise missiles.CreditCredit...Hamad I Mohammed/Reuters The strikes were claimed by the Houthis, a Yemeni insurgent group, but American and Israeli officials said they were directed and possibly carried out by Iran. Iran denied responsibility. That strike and others led Israeli officials to conclude that the best defense against Iranian drones was to attack the production and storage sites, like the one attacked last month, according to the senior intelligence official. It was unclear what role, if any, the United States played in the February strike. The senior intelligence official said that Israeli officials briefed the United States in advance. Iranian officials have not publicly linked Israel’s attack in Iran with their attack in Iraq, but others — including an analyst close to the Revolutionary Guards, an adviser to the Iranian government, an Iranian proxy force in Iraq and a Lebanese television station affiliated with Iran — have said the Iranian attack was retaliation for the Israeli one. Iran fired more than a dozen missiles on Sunday at a site in Erbil, Iraq, that Iranian officials say the site is a base for Israeli intelligence operations against Iran. Erbil is the capital of the semiautonomous Kurdistan region of Iraq. While the Iraqi government does not have diplomatic relations with Israel, the Kurdish regional government has a long history of close ties with Israel. The Iraqi prime minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi inspecting the site of the missile strike in Erbil. Iraqi officials denied there was an Israeli operation there.Credit...Iraqi Prime Minister's Office “We believe this building in Erbil was a center for coordinating and planning operations against Iran’s national security and several malicious activities against Iran happened from there,” Hossein Dalirian, a prominent defense analyst affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, said in an interview. Saeed Khatibzadeh, the Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, said Monday that “Iran will not tolerate that a location near its border be used for destructive and terrorist operations inside Iran.” Iraqi and Kurdish officials have denied that Israel operates a base there. Israeli officials have declined to comment. A senior U.S. official who was briefed on the strikes said the building hit in Erbil served as an Israeli intelligence outpost and training facility. But a senior Biden administration official rebutted that assessment, saying the administration believes that the building that was hit was a civilian residence only and did not also serve as an Israeli training site. The senior U.S. official and another U.S. official confirmed that Israel has conducted intelligence operations against Iran from Kurdistan, but declined to cite specific details. The two officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential intelligence assessments. In a statement on Sunday, the State Department spokesman Ned Price said the missiles struck a private residence near the new U.S. Consulate in Erbil, which is under construction. He said that no U.S. facilities were damaged and no American personnel were injured, adding that “we have no indications the attack was directed at the United States.” Iranian officials have claimed at least once before that they had attacked Israeli intelligence bases in Iraq and killed its field personnel. That claim could not be verified. Iran’s ambassador to Iraq, Iraj Masjedi, said in a speech in Karbala, Iraq, on Monday that Iran respects Iraq and considers it a close ally and that neither Iraq nor the United States were the targets of the attack in Erbil. But the attack does represent a more aggressive posture against Israel adopted by Iran’s relatively new hard-line government, defense analysts said. Officials in the previous Iranian government had professed a strategy of “strategic patience,” at least until the end of the Trump presidency in an effort not to give President Donald J. Trump an excuse to launch a war he seemed eager to wage. “Iran’s strategic patience has ended and from now on it will be answering attacks with attacks,” said Gheis Ghoreishi, an analyst who is close to the government. Iran is more confident about its regional policies, he said, because it is convinced that the U.S.’s maximum pressure policy — the Trump administration’s strategy of piling punishing sanctions on Iran in an effort to coerce its agreement to a more restrictive nuclear agreement — had failed. And as the Biden administration struggles to resurrect the nuclear agreement with Iran, Mr. Ghoreishi said, Iran is convinced that Washington has no appetite for another war in the region. The Revolutionary Guards, he said, have concluded that the most effective way to defend against Israel was to “increase the costs” and adopt an “eye for an eye” policy of strikes and counterstrikes.

Who Is Sheikh Baz? His Mansion Attracted the World's Attention

Draw Media He is a graduate of the Technical College and does not have any special certificate in the oil and gas sector, Despite that, he gets a lot of money from the wages of transporting oil through the Kurdistan oil pipeline to the Turkish port of Jayhan. He makes (one million dollars) a day and (30 million dollars) per month and (360 million dollars) annually. Also, his company liquidates Kirkuk oil and exports part of it, acquiring the largest oil field in Kurdistan province, (Sheikh Baz Al-Barzanji) the man that Iran's missiles introduced him to the whole world. Iranian Missiles and Sheikh Baz Erbil, the capital of Kurdistan province, was attacked late Sunday night (March 13th) by 12 ballistic missiles fired from outside of the Iraqi border, which landed near the U.S. consulate, causing material damage to buildings and homes. Iran says that it targeted (the Zionist Strategic Center in Erbil), but the government of the Kurdistan region denied that “there is no Israeli headquarters and the rockets landed on the house of a citizen of Erbil ( Sheikh Baz)”, and the KRG called on the central government to speed up the formation of local and international commissions of inquiry and to refute the Iranian allegations, these events made (Sheikh Baz) famous on the global media when most of the citizens of the region did not know enough about this man. Who is Sheikh Baz? He does not like to appear in the media, rarely finds him talking to journalists, although he is wealthy, most people know very little about him. his name (Baz Karim Al-Barzanji) over the age of 50, a resident of Erbil province, founded his first company in 1999 and worked in the construction sector, worked with The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for a while, other sources indicate that he founded his first company in 1992. In 2003, Sheikh Baz had the opportunity to become one of the richest and most well-known men, working with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in the Iraqi reconstruction projects and also working with Turkish companies in this field. In one of the secret documents published by the Wikileaks website, Sheikh Baz's name was mentioned. "Until 2003, the government was fully running the oil sector, but then the government decided to cooperate with the private sector in managing the oil field," sheik Baz said in an interview with a Western media outlet. “Then we decided to participate in the oil sector as KAR group company, and in 2004 we received the first oil contract, which was the Khurmala field contract." Kar group which is led by Sheik Baz owns 40 percent of the pipelines that export the Kurdistan Region’s oil. According to the Deloitte Company report, in the first half of 2021, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has sold 76.8 million barrels of crude oil, worth 4 billion dollars. And 454 million dollars which are 11 percent of the total oil revenue were spent on pipeline transportation. This means Sheikh Baz received 181 million dollars in total oil revenues for the pipeline wages, (40 percent of the region's oil transport costs were for Sheik Baz's company), only during that period (the six months of January 2021). On average He makes (one million dollars) a day and (30 million dollars) per month and (360 million dollars) annually. In addition, Sheik Baz's company holds the Khurmala field, which produces 175,000 barrels of oil a day. Last month's revenue from this field was 400 million dollars, according to the president of the Kurdistan region, 43 percent of oil revenues per month goes for the oil production companies. According to this, 43 percent of the oil revenue goes to Sheikh Baz's company, which is $170 million. According to Darw information, within the framework of an agreement between the Iraqi Ministry of Oil and the KAR Company: • 100,000 barrels of oil are sent daily from Kirkuk to the Kalak oil refinery, belonging to the KAR Company. The refined oil will also be sent to Mosul and its surrounding areas. The cost of refining a barrel of oil is about $10, meaning the oils refinery revenue is $30 million per month. • 90,000 barrels of oil are sent daily from Kirkuk through pipelines to the Port of Jaihan. The income is for the Iraqi National Oil Marketing Company" SOMO", but the transportation wage of the oil is also for the KAR Company, which is about $10 per barrel, meaning monthly revenues reach $27 million. Sheikh Baz is a graduate of the Technical College and does not have any special certificate in the oil and gas sector. Those who know him from nearby say he is a generous person who gives a lot of charity to the poor, formerly known as a friend of Nechirvan Barzani, but after forming the ninth cabinet of the Kurdistan Regional Government, he became close of Masrour Barzani, previously accused of corruption by KDP officials. On November 24, 2019, Prime Minister Masrour Barzani met with a delegation, who represented the region to discuss oil and budget with Baghdad. In this meeting, an unusual face was seen, the CEO of KAR group company, Sheikh Baz. His participation in the meeting soon became news in the local media. When the post of Minister of Natural Resources was not filled, therefore, Sheikh Baz's presence at the meeting was interpreted in a way that he will receive the post of minister of natural resources. The event coincided with a statement by Awat Sheikh Janab, the finance minister of the Goran Movement, "I wish we had several people like Sheikh Baz, which he has great potential and experience." This statement was very similar to Fazil Mirani's description, for Ashti Hawrami in 2016, who said, "Our oil minister is one of the smartest ministers in the Middle East".

The value of Kurdistan's oil; exporting through SOMO or independently

Draw media In 2021, the KRG has sold 151 million barrels of oil, with only 25 dollars per barrel remaining, the total will be 3.8 billion dollars. While, if the same amount of oil were exported through The Iraqi National Oil Marketing Company SOMO, it would have earned nearly three times as much revenue, in a way that would have been 10 billion dollars revenue. How? More details are available in this report. First: The difference in the value of Kurdistan's oil; exports through SOMO or independently (before excluding expenditures) According to the information, in 2021, the KRG has exported 151.2 million barrels of oil through the Turkish port of Jayhan. The average price of Brent oil per barrel in 2021 was 71 dollars. While the Kurdistan Region’s oil is sold for 10 dollars less than the price of crude oil, The average price of oil per barrel of KRG oil was 61 dollars. So, the KRG's total oil exported in 2021 was 9.2 billion dollars before excluding expenditures. But what would be the difference if the same amount of oil exported by the Kurdistan Region in 2021 was exported through the central government and the Iraqi oil marketing company SOMO? According to the Iraqi Ministry of Oil, SOMO has sold an average 72 dollars per barrel of oil in 2021, which means the amount of oil the KRG has sold independently if it was through SOMO, would have been worth 10.3 billion dollars, according to which the Kurdistan region's oil has been sold 1.1 billion dollars cheaper than the Iraqi oil in 2021. Second: The difference in the value of Kurdistan's oil; exports through SOMO or independently (after excluding expenditures) According to both the KRG President and the Minister of Natural Resources, more than 58% of oil revenues are given to oil companies and oil production expenditures, in a way that 20% goes for the cost of oil production and 14% goes for the oil companies and 6% for the transportation. What remains is for the compensation of the debts. So, after extracting the costs of the oil process and selling it for a cheaper price, only 3.8 billion dollars remains from selling 151.2 million barrels of oil, meaning that on average, only 25.62 dollars per barrel of oil has remained for the KRG during the year. This comes at a time when, on the same assumption as before, if the Kurdistan Region would have exported the same amount of oil through the Iraqi oil marketing company SOMO, for each barrel of oil, the KRG would have had a total of $42.76 in 2021, making it a total of 6.4 billion dollars. In other words, instead of 3.8 billion dollars, the KRG would get about three times that amount. Which would have been 10.3 billion dollars revenue. Oil revenue between Iraq and the Kurdistan region According to data from the Iraqi ministry of oil in 2021, the Iraqi government exported 1.1 billion barrels of oil through the SOMO oil marketing company, which was 75.6 billion dollars. In 2021, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) exported 151.2 million barrels of oil, the revenue of the oil exported by the Kurdistan Regional Government before excluding expenditures was 10.6 billion dollars, and the remaining income for the KRG was 3.8 billion dollars. Iraq’s oil revenue in 2021 was 75.6 billion dollars, but KRG’s oil revenue for the same year was 3.8 billion dollars. According to that, the Kurdistan region's oil sales in 2021 were 13% of Iraq's oil sales, but the KRG’s oil revenues were only 5% of Iraq's oil revenue. In other words, the Iraqi government has received 68 dollars from each barrel of oil, while the KRG has only received 25 dollars. Therefore, if the KRG would have handed over oil to SOMO, it would have received 43 more dollars per barrel. Also, if the KRG would have sold its oil at the price of SOMO, instead of 3 billion dollars, would have received 10 billion dollars in revenue. This means KRG lost 7 billion dollars in revenue in 2021.

Iraq's oil revenue was 75 billion dollars and the Kurdistan region was 4 billion dollars, in 2021

Draw Media The Iraqi government exported more than 1 billion barrels of oil in 2021, with revenues of 75 billion dollars, while the KRG exported more than 151 million barrels of oil, after extracting the coast of the production process, only 3 billion and 870 million dollars of revenue have left for the KRG. First: Iraq's oil exports and revenues in 2021 According to data from the Iraqi ministry of oil in 2021, the Iraqi government exported 1 billion, 102 million, 188 thousand, and 981 barrels of oil through the Iraqi oil company SOMO. On average, Iraq exported 3 million, 19 thousand and, 520 barrels of oil daily. The Iraqi government's total revenue from oil sales was 75 billion, 650 million, and 606 thousand dollars. Second: Iraq's exported oil source in 2021 According to the data, the total oil exported by the Iraqi government was 1 billion, 102 million, 188 thousand and, 981 barrels of oil. The oil is mostly exported from the oil fields in central and southern Iraq, particularly in Basra province, an area that produces the lion’s share of the crude exporting country’s oil. The Basra province alone exported 96.65 percent of all oil exports from Iraqi, which was 1 billion, 65 million, 414 thousand, and 695 barrels for more than 73 billion dollars. The remaining amount of oil exports were from the fields in Kirkuk province, which were 36 million, 774 thousand, and 286 barrels. Its only 3.45 percent of all oil exports from Iraqi, with a value of only 2 billion, 449 million, 754 thousand, and 946 dollars. Third: the KRG's oil revenues in 2021 The Kurdistan region's oil revenues, at the price of the international market In 2021, the KRG has exported 151 million and 211 thousand barrels of oil. The average price of oil per year was 70.6 dollars. The value of the oil exported by the KRG was 10.6 billion dollars. The KRG's oil sales and revenues, after extracting the coast of the production process and selling it at a lower price On June 28, 2021, at a joint meeting between the Kurdistan Parliament and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), Kamal Atrushi, minister of natural resources, announced that 58% of oil revenues would be spent on the companies and oil production costs, in a way that 20% goes for the cost of oil production and 14% goes for the oil companies and 6% for the transportation. What remains is for the compensation of the debts. This is despite the fact that the region's oil is constantly sold for $10 less than the world markets, so after extracting the costs of the oil process and selling it for a cheaper price, only 3.8 billion dollars remains from selling 151 million and 211 thousand barrels of oil, while the amount of 5.3 billion dollars goes to the costs of the production process and companies’ loans.

The KRG’s oil income in February

Draw Media The region's oil revenues for February this year were revealed by Masrour Barzani as follows: Last month, February, was 28 days. • The region has sold (422,000) barrels of oil every day. • In February, (11 million and 816,000) barrels of oil were sold. • The average price of a barrel of oil was 83 dollars in February. • Total revenue was: (980) million dollars. • From The oil sales revenues for last month, only 420 million dollars have remained for the government. • 58 million dollars of the oil revenues have gone to the company's debt. • The amount of 67 million dollars of the revenues have gone to the pipeline rent. • The amount of 435 million dollars of oil revenues have gone to the oil companies spending. • The net revenues that have returned to the government treasury were 420 million dollars. • out of the 420 million dollars of the revenues, 134 million dollars were spent on the employees’ paycheck. • Now, only 286 million dollars are left from the February revenues.

Kurdistan Natural Gas Knocks EU Market, If Could Withstand The Challenges

By Shahriar Sheikhlar* One week after Putin’s troops launches an invasion of Ukraine, the west is cautiously whispering the sanctions against Russia, as the European countries, even they believe the necessity of those sanctions, couldn’t suspend importing the energy fossil resources from Russia. Selecting the coldest days of winter for attacking Ukraine, shows not only the deep dependence of Europe’s energy security on Russia’s natural gas but proved the west leaders’ fault in diversifying EU’s energy suppliers. Russia’s Natural Gas share in the EU market, raised to 40% in 2021, against only 27% in 2011, which could be hiked to 50%, if U.S concerns didn’t ban gas flow in the Nord Stream II pipeline. Despite EU countries are avoiding removing all of the Russian banks from SWIFT, mainly to avoid the risk of even a short shutoff in Russia’s gas flow, which could shake their energy market, but now, U.S and European countries, more loudly think about new more reliable gas sources، but the choices are not abundant, or need a long time for developing their infrastructures to reach Europe. While, expanding current suppliers’ capacity, mainly Iran and Azerbayjan, could be technically complicated, developing the recent growing Mediterranean natural gas reservoirs, such as North Africa, Israel and Cyprus-Greece, is facing reserve ownership challenges, bilaterally and with Turkey. Another reliable option, is Kurdistan’s natural gas, rich semi-autonomous region in northern Iraq. Developing of the Kurdistan’s gas reserves, which is estimated to about 3 TCM (2% of world total), kicked off at 2007, but advanced after 2019. Kurdistan’s main gas field, has been developed by PEARL Petroleum, an international consortium, mainly directed by U.A.E gas companies, Crescent Petroleum and Dana Gas. The field’s production is reached to more than 450 MMSCUFPD and planned to more than 700 MMSCUFTPD by 2023 and double of current amount, by 2025. The consortium, recently secured $250 million in financing from the U.S. International Development Finance Corp (DFC) for its development plan. This boosting plans, enabled the KRG to evaluate different scenarios, including supply internal demands (mainly for Power Generation, Industrial and Residential consumers), or feed Iraq’s Power Plants, which now are mainly receive natural gas from Iran, or eventually think the foreign markets, including Turkey and Europe. Kurdistan’s geopolitical advantages, is a key factor in easy reach to Turkey and European markets. Also, the KRG’s natural gas reservoirs’ characteristics, which enabled its fast development, enhanced chance of this region in joining European strategic plan for diversifying their gas sources. While, Iraqi federal government has failed during last 18 years in developing its natural gas fields, and even gathering and treating its huge associated gas capacities, which are second world flared amount (about 1.7 billion Cubic feet per day), supplying fuels for the power plants becomes a crisis. Iraq’s current demand for electricity is estimated above 40,000 MW/hr, while the current potential capacity is less than 30,000 MW/hr, but about one-third of this amount is missed, mainly for lack of fuel. That’s why Iraq’s acting electricity minister visited Qatar, on February 7, 2022, to talk about importing natural gas from Qatar. This plan, not only could satisfy Iraq’s increasing demand for natural gas, from one of the biggest producers, in parallel with their current pipeline from Iran but could make Qatar – Turkey’s pipeline dream come true, which has been archived by the Syrian internal war. Kurdistan’s geopolitical location, connecting Iraq to Turkey, could expedite the development of Kurdistan’s natural gas infrastructure and production plan if could be connected to the Qatar pipeline. In the future, Kurdistan’s natural gas network could join Iran’s gas pipeline in the role of the regional gas hub to the EU and Turkey. Despite Kurdistan Gas having significant advantages, but should pass through a rocky road. The main challenge is the Iraqi federal government’s view on Kurdistan’s oil and gas. The obese government, heavy public payroll, undeveloped private sectors, and endemic corruption are the main encourages for the Iraqi federal government to be greedy for Kurdistan’s oil and gas. While, about one trillion dollars of Iraqi federal government incomes from oil revenue, during the last 18 years, are without significant improvement in public welfare or economic growth have been achieved, the Iraqi parties continuously attacking Kurdistan’s oil and gas but with no plan for more effective directing of the federal oil sector, which is producing more than 4,000,000 barrels of oil per a day. On the other hand, though, the second part of article 112 of the Iraqi federal constitution, which was approved in 2005, clearly authorized the Iraqi semi-autonomous regions, still only including the Kurdistan Regional Government, to manage the non-producing and future fields of oil and gas, but Iraqi central government has continuously sought ways to undertake the Kurdistan’s oil and gas. Several claims in internal and international courts, threatening International Oil Companies s (IOCs) working in Kurdistan, and complaints against Turkey, are only some attempts in pushing KRG to hand over Kurdistan’s oil and gas dossier to the central government. The last step against the region’s oil and gas was taken recently by the federal court. The court’s decision, 15 years after the region’s oil and gas law approval and 10 years of registering the complaint in the court, found the law to be “unconstitutional,” and therefore struck down the legal basis for the independence of the Kurdistan Region’s oil and gas sector, Rudaw English reported. Moat of analysis on the main causes for this court’s approach, which named “unconstitutional” and “unjust” by KRG, addressing the momentous step in Kurdistan’s gas industry. The court’s decision comes some days after the visit of the KRG’s President, Mr. Nechirvan Barzani, from Turkey’s President, Erdogan, on February 2nd, 2022, where they discussed mutually the opportunities for Kurdistan’s natural gas in Turkey’s and European markets. The Erdogan’s interview after his visit from Ukraine, two days after his meeting with President Barzani, ignited objections against Kurdistan’s natural gas industry in Baghdad, especially when it followed by the KRG’s Prime Minister, Mr. Masrror Barzani’s visit to Qatar, where he met with Qatar’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad, only some weeks after he met with Abu Dhabi’s crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed. While, Kurdistan’s natural gas requires rapid and radical improvements in administration, as well as fast expansion of infrastructures, to meet the export requirements, the recent confrontation of Baghdad, could slow down the Kurdistan gas’ development plan. Natural gas’s role in EU energy security and main suppliers’ stiff competition on the market share, which was interpreted as the main cause of Syria’s destiny, when were nominated as a potential gas route to Europe, could make Kurdish leaders more cautious on their gas expert project. Abandoning of Kurdish people in the Erbil and Baghdad’s conflicts against controlling Kurdish region outside the KRG, mainly the rich oil city of Kirkuk, clearly could show the unfriendly relationship between the two capitals and lack of Kurds to west supports for geopolitical conflicts. Then, the potential confrontation against natural gas, not only could deepen the bilateral conflicts but could threaten the plans for supplying natural gas to the EU, from both Kurdistan and Qatar. Now, it’s time for the US and EU to bring the two governments closer and resolve main constitutional disputes, as they have done during the last two decades. Calming down the conflicts could accelerate the expansion of the oil and gas field in disputed areas, according to article 140 of the Iraqi federal constitution, releasing significant potential to supply the EU’s market. Conducting this arrangement, of course, would be opposed by Russia, which has a critical position in Iraqi and KRG’s oil and gas sector. Russia’s Rosneft and Gasprom giant companies have a significant share in big oil and gas fields of both areas, which could be considered in any export or transit of gas from Iraq. Scaling down the US and EU involvement in Iraq’s oil and gas, sought as a strategic plan, opened the door for Russian and Chinese companies to Iraq’s oil and gas industry, what’s currently to be managed if the west looks Iraq to play a role in their European energy puzzle. Kurdistan’s natural gas could be a reliable and stable source for Turkey and the EU, only if US and EU are serious in withstanding the challenges, internally or with the competitors. Next, months could be vital for the EU’s energy security, to be diversified or dependent on Russia. * Shahriar Sheikhlar is independent energy security and strategic development analyst, in Erbil, Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Mr. Sheikhlar, holds a postgraduate in Management, Strategy. He is giving advice and services to some local and international think tanks and news agencies.

The fate of the KRG’s oil sector after the decision of the federal court

Draw Media Following the federal court's decision, the KRG is facing several options and scenarios, the most dangerous for the KRG to hand over the entire oil process. From the beginning of the Kurdistan Regional Government's decision for selling oil independently, the KRG was constantly in conflict with the Iraqi government, until the conflict in 2014 led to cutting the region's share of Iraq's public budget. On January 15, 2022, a decision by the federal Supreme Court on the region's oil and gas sector, complicated the case much more. The implementation of the decision will be a major disadvantage for the Kurdistan Region. First, the federal court's decision on the region's oil case On January 15, 2022, the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court, in the presence of 9 members of the court and with a majority of 7 members and 2 votes against, decided on the invalidity of the region's oil and gas law and the unconstitutionality of oil sales by the KRG. according to the court's decision; 1. The region's oil and gas law, No. 22, 2007, is unconstitutional and against the articles (110, 111, 112, 115, 121, and 130.) 2. The KRG will abide by handing over all the region's oil products to the Iraqi ministry of oil. 3. The right has been given to complainants to pursue the cancellation of oil contracts signed by the regional government with the outside parties, the states, and the companies. 4. The decision allows the Iraqi Ministry of Oil and the Financial Supervisory Board to review all oil contracts to scrutinize and determine the financial bonds that are on to the regional government. Then under the light of that, the region's share of the federal budget will be determined. Second, the reasons behind the federal court's decision Regarding the federal court's decision on the region's oil case, different interpretations are made for the reasons behind the court's decision, particularly the time of the decision. Since two other complaints about the same issue have been filed before the court in 2012 and 2019, no decision has been made. But choosing this moment arises a few questions, Among them, for 15 years, the Kurdistan Parliament has approved the regional oil and gas law, began extracting oil in 2009, and exporting oil since 2014. Why has this matter been brought before the federal court after all this time? Therefore, we see that the political parties and officials have different interpretations and responses to the reasons behind the federal court's decision; 1. The federal supreme court's decision to take legal action, but has been postponed under the influence of some cases, said Ali al-Tamimi, a legal expert, in a statement to the al-Hara website. “Iraq is a federal country, not a confederation, and the Iraqi oil marketing company SOMO should be the only party to export oil.” 2. Another group of experts believes that the decision is more political rather than a legal issue, and they attribute the reason for the rapprochement of political forces such as the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Sadr Bloc, led by Muhammad al-Halbousi. 3. The third group says; Whether political or legal, the decision does not change much, but the fact is that after the referendum in the Kurdistan Region and the events of October 16, 2017, the region's position in Baghdad has continued to weaken, and Baghdad does not want the region's position to be strong. 4. Another group believes that; start exporting the region's gas; with the arrival of the new year (2022). The in efforts to industrialize the region's gas and export gas to Turkey and European countries similar to oil. Therefore, some observers attribute the federal court's decision to the KRG's move, which they consider to be against gas investment, not oil. Third, the scenarios and options in front of the KRG regarding the federal court's decision Although the decision is decisive and must be implemented, according to Article 94 of Iraq's permanent constitution, the court's decisions are decisive, stating that "all powers must abide by it", according to which the KRG will face several scenarios and options, including; 1. The implementation of the decision has to do with the rapprochement and nature of political relations and the relationship between the Kurdish and the Iraqi parties. It can be worked out through political relations to keep the decision on the paper and not being implemented. 2. Launching diplomatic efforts in the Kurdistan Region and putting pressure on the central government to prevent the court's decision from being implemented. 3. The KRG would surrender oil fields bordering disputed areas outside the KRG's control (Mosul, Kirkuk, Diyala, and Salahaddin). 4. The Kurdistan Region work to pass the oil gas law in the Iraqi parliament and be able to implement the law that would allow the KRG to manage the region's oil, or jointly. 5. The last scenario, which is a weak scenario, is handing over the region's oil revenues to the central government and managing oil fields by the KRG (which is impossible for both sides).

The U.S. Consul General visited Draw Media

Draw Media U.S. Consul General Robert Palladino visited the office of Draw Media in Sulaymaniyah. In the meeting, they discussed journalism and freedom of expression in The Kurdistan Region. The Consul General had a chance to learn about Draw media programs, including a grant awarded by the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), as well as the challenges faced by journalists and media outlets. U.S. Consul General said: “Independent journalism is important to Democracy and that is really we aspire for the Kurdistan Region to have a strong Democracy, so the United States will continue to support freedom of the press and will continue to support journalism and independent journalists, and it’s an honor to be here today.”

Last Month the KRG Has Sold a Barrel of Oil for $85

Draw Media: Last February, the Kurdistan regional government sold 11 million barrels of oil for 85 dollars, and the region's oil revenues in February were a trillion and 400 billion dinars, which remained 589 billion dinars for the government, with internal and allied revenues giving 784 billion dinars. Non-oil income • The region's non-oil revenues for February = (164 billion) dinars (only for government expenditures because domestic income is more than 350 billion dinars per month) • Coalition assistance for Peshmerga forces = (31 billion 500 million) dinars The region's share in Iraq's budget section = no amount of money has come Oil revenues (pipeline export) • In February 2022, the Kurdistan Region exported 11 million and 404,000 barrels of oil through the Turkish port of Jihan, which provides 407,285 barrels daily for 28 days in February. • The average price of Brent oil for February is $ 96.85. • Because the region sells its oil for less than $12, it has sold an average of $84.85 So, (11 million and 404 thousand) barrels X (84.85) dollars = (967 million, 629 thousand and 400) dollars. In IQD would be: (967 million, 629 thousand and 400) dollars X (1450) dinars = (1 trillion 403 billion, 62 million, and 630 thousand) dinars. • According to the Deloitte report, 58% of oil revenues will go to the oil production expenses and 42% will remain for the Ministry of Natural Resources. - So: (967 million, 629 thousand and 400) dollars X (58%) = (561 million, 225 thousand and 52) dollars go to the cost of the oil production process. -In IQD is (561 million, 225 thousand and 52) dollars X (1450 dinars = (813 billion, 776 million and 325 thousand and 400) dinars is oil expenditure. - (967 million, 629 thousand and 400) dollars X (42%) = (406 million, 404 thousand and 384) dollars of income remains. The KRG Oil revenue in IQD is 406 million, 404,384 dollars X (1,450) dinars= (589 billion, 286 million, 304,600) dinars. Total income in February 2022 (dinar) • (589 billion, 286 million, 304 thousand and 600) oil income + (164 billion) internal income + (31 billion 500 million) Coalition assistance for Peshmerga forces = (784 billion, 786 million and 304 thousand and 600) dinars

“Rosneft finances the cost of the Russian war in Ukraine"

Draw Media The Russian company Rosneft, which works at 6 of the Kurdistan region's oil farms and owns 60 percent of the Kurdistan Region's oil pipeline, is accused of financing the cost of the Russian war in Ukraine. The British Petroleum Company, a British group known as BP, announced its withdrawal from its 19.75% stake in the Russian company, Rosneft. BP accuses Rosneft of financing the war: “Rosneft finances the cost of the Russian war in Ukraine, and as a protest against the war, we are pulling out of our partnership with this company." Bernard Looney resigned from the board of Rosneft with immediate effect. “The Ukrainian war has led us to reconsider our work with Rosneft," (BP) chief executive officer Bernard Looney said in a statement. The decision of some global oil companies has shown an effect on Russia’s economy, particularly the Shell Company, which owns 27.5% of (Gazprom’s Sakhalin II), and Exon Mobil, which has been dealing with Russian companies belonging to the Rosneft Group for 25 years. Another company, Glinkur, owns 11 percent of the Russian energy company AN+, along with several other companies that work with Russia. The Suspension of British BP with Russian Rosneft comes after the western allies-imposed sanctions on Russia over Russia's attack on Ukraine. Including the expulsion of some Russian banks into the Swift system of international financial exchange. This poses a major risk to the Russian company’s work. Rosneft in The Kurdistan Region The Russian company Rosneft owns 60% of the Kurdistan region's oil pipeline shares (the part of the pipeline that is inside the region's territory on Turkey’s border). In addition, the company is searching for oil in 6 Kurdistan fields, which are located on the Erbil-Duhok border, including: • Bartla • Zaweta • Harir • Bejil • Qasrook • Daratu

The Kurdistan region between Russia and Ukraine

Russia owns 60% of the Kurdistan Region's oil pipeline, but Ukraine had only some trades with the Kurdistan Region such as; cattle, Indomie, wheat, and coal, which has been terminated by the war. The region's government and leadership have not yet expressed their stance on the Russia-Ukraine war. But the Kurdistan regional government and leadership have not yet taken any action. The region between Russia and Ukraine It has been a few days since Russia's attack on Ukraine has begun, most countries in the region and around the world have expressed their stance on the war, but the Kurdistan regional government has not yet taken any action. To understand the Kurdistan Region's relationship with both sides of the war, we have to take a look at the region's economic relations with Russia and Ukraine. The economic relations of the KRG with Ukraine According to the Sulaymaniyah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the region’s trade with Ukraine has completely terminated since Ukraine has imposed a state of emergency for 30 days. Ukraine has a lot of trade relations with the Kurdistan Region and Iraq, and because of the war, all business has now been suspended. “Ukraine had significant trade relations and cooperation with Kurdistan Region, but escalating Ukraine-Russia crisis will greatly harm our business.” Said: Peshawa Sirwan, a businessman in Sulaymaniyah. According to Sirwan, Ukraine’s products exported to the region were: • Food • Juice • Milk • Indomie • Cleanser • Coal • Sunflower oil • Wheat • Cattle The war situation has led traders to find alternatives to Ukrainian products, particularly in neighboring countries such as Iran and Turkey so that they continue their business. According to the director of Sulaymaniyah International Airport, in 2017, (86,144) cattle have been imported to Sulaymaniyah, and most of them were imported from Ukraine. Some traders from the Kurdistan region have been importing Ukrainian wheat and mixing it with the wheat of the region's farmers and handing it over to Baghdad. This was a reason for the Iraqi government to delay farmers’ payments. Economic relations between Russia and the KRG Russia was one of the countries that did not support the fall of the Baathist regime in Iraq, but soon after the fall of the regime, Russia began building a new relationship and opened its consulate in Erbil in 2007. Russia now has economic interests in the Kurdistan Region, the 60% share of the Kurdistan Region's oil pipeline is owned by the Rosneft Company. The Kurdistan regional government sold pipelines in return for receiving loans from this Russian company. According to data, the owner of The Rosneft Company, who has close ties to the Russian president Vladimir Putin, earned $272 million in revenue from the region's oil pipeline in just six months of 2021. The contract for selling the Kurdistan Region's oil pipeline to Rosneft company was signed on June 2, 2017, in Saint Petersburg, Russia. 60% of the Kurdistan Region's pipeline share was sold to the Russian company for one billion and 700 million dollars. In addition, the Russian Gazprom company operates in two oil fields in Garmian, Sulaymaniyah, which was launched in 2012. This was the beginning of the Kurdistan Region's economic relationship with Russia after Saddam's fall. Russia maintained its neutrality between Baghdad and the region during the 2017 Kurdistan Regional Government's independence referendum and has not clearly expressed its stance. Russia is now one of the countries that, similar to the Europeans, is looking at natural gas in the Kurdistan Region.

Kurdistan Region's Oil Pipeline

Draw Media The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) created the Kurdistan Oil Pipeline and sold it in 2017 for one billion and 700 million dollars, but from the beginning of 2019 to mid-2021 the government paid $1 billion and $744 million to the rent of the oil pipeline. In Kurdistan Region's oil revenues in 2021 were $4 billion and $108 million, only one billion and 725 million dollars were for the government's treasury, and 454 million dollars alone were for the oil pipeline rent, which is 11 percent of the revenue. Ownership of Kurdistan region oil pipeline According to a statement from a member of Kurdistan Parliament, Ali Hama Salih, regarding the Kurdistan oil pipeline and the region's oil transport fee. The oil pipeline in the Kurdistan Region has been under construction since 2010, and at the end of 2013, the Kurdistan region's oil was transported to the Turkish port of Jayhan for the first time. According to the information, Kar Group built the oil pipeline, which was coasted 600 million dollars and 40 percent of the pipeline is owned by the company. 60% of the region's oil pipeline is owned by the Russian company Rosneft, when on June 2, 2017, in San Petersburg, in the presence of the KRG president and his deputy and minister of natural resources in The eighth cabinet, signed a contract with Rosneft's executive director. A part of which was the sale of 60 percent of the Kurdistan oil pipeline to Rosneft for 1 billion and 700 million dollars. The length of the Kurdistan Region's oil pipeline is 896 kilometers, starting at the Kurdistan Region's border at the Khurmala field and passing through (Erbil, Bardarash, Ain Safni, Jabal Kand, Alqush, Duhok, and Silvan) and it’s 221 kilometers till reaches Fishkhabur. According to which 24.6 percent of the oil pipeline is on the Border of the Kurdistan Region, owned by both companies Kar and Rosneft. The part of the oil pipeline on the Turkish border, owned by the Turkish energy company Botash, is extended from Fishkhabur to the Turkish port of Jayhan, which is 74.6 percent of the overall pipeline length. According to financial statements by the Singapore branch of Rosneft, the company has given 250 million US dollars to an external consultant to ensure that they get the oil agreements in the Kurdistan Region. The region's oil pipeline to The Turkish Port of Jahan The cost of transporting the region's oil through the Kurdistan Region pipeline According to Deloitte's reports on 1/1/2019- 30/6/2021, the KRG exported 393,528,260 barrels of oil through pipelines to the world markets. According to the company's report, 1,744,391,437 dollars have been spent as oil transport fares through the pipeline, which is 4.4 dollars per barrel. The cost is more than the amount the KRG received in 2017 by selling the Kurdistan oil pipeline to Rosneft, which amounted to $1 billion and $700 million, as we mentioned above. The cost of transporting the region's oil through the oil pipeline constantly rising. According to Deloitte's reports from the beginning of 2019 to the first half of 2021, the rise of the cost of transporting oil is clearly seen, for example in Deloitte's first report, which explained the details of exporting oil process during (1/1/2019- 31/3/2019). The KRG’s transport fee of one barrel of oil was 3.2 dollars on the KRG, but in the latest report of the audit company during (1/4/2021 - 30/6/2021) the transportation fee of one barrel of the region's oil was increased to 6.1 dollars. In a way that (1/1/2019 - 31/3/2019) the total cost of oil transportation of the region was (122,055,061) dollars on the KRG, but the latest Deloitte report focused on the KRG's total oil transport fee was (238,932,863) dollars during the period 1/4/2021- 30/6/2021. The Kurdish parliament member, Ali Hama Salih stated that from 2020 till the mid of 2021, a year and six months, (1 billion and 584 million DOLLARS) were paid for the region's oil transport through pipelines. In 2020, 21.3 percent of the total oil revenues were paid to the region's oil pipeline. When the Kurdistan region's border pipeline is only 24.6 percent of the total length of the oil pipeline from Khurmalawa to the Port of Jayhan but 70 percent of the total transport fee has been paid to this part. Based on the information, 70% of the oil transport fees have gone for (Kar and Rosneft) companies and only (30%) to the Turkish energy company. Is it possible that the oil pipeline at the Turkish border to be twice as much as an oil pipeline on the border of the Kurdistan Region, but the pipeline fee will be much higher than the Turkish border?

Pennsylvania Man Charged With Torturing Employee at Iraq Construction Site

A Pennsylvania man has been arrested on charges he allegedly tortured a victim in the Kurdistan region of Iraq in 2015. Ross Roggio, 53, from Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, allegedly suffocated the victim with a belt, threatened to cut off one of the victim’s fingers and directed Kurdish soldiers to inflict other severe pain and suffering in the victim, according to the superseding indictment. U.S. Attorney John C. Gurganus for the Middle District of Pennsylvania and The Department of Justice announced the arrest on Friday, Feb 18. The indictment stated that Roggio was managing a project in 2015 to construct a factory and produce weapons in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. One of Roggio’s employees had raised concerns about the weapons project, and Roggio allegedly arranged for Kurdish soldiers to abduct the employee. The employee was kept by Kurdish soldiers at their military compound for around 39 days. Roggio interrogated the employee several times and allegedly directed the soldiers to suffocate the individual with a bag, tased the individual in the groin and other areas of the body, beat the individual with fists and rubber hoses, violently jumped on the person's chest while wearing military boots and threatened to cut off one of their fingers while applying pressure with a large cutting tool. If convicted, Roggio faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each of the torture charges as well as a maximum total statutory penalty of 705 years in prison for the remaining 37 counts.

U.S. Ambassador to Iraq: We Committed to Not Allow the Oppression of the Previous Regime to Be Repeated

Draw Media On Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Matthew Tueller and U.S. Consul General Robert Palladino visited the Amna Suraka museum in Sulaymaniyah, which was a place of torturing and oppressing Kurdish people during the Ba'athist regime, and now it’s a national museum. After visiting the museum and seeing the suffering of the Kurdish people in the past, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq said, “It’s a deeply impactful reminder of the tyranny and oppression that the Kurdish and the Iraqi people suffered”. U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Matthew Tueller also said, “We committed to stand with those who want to ensure that future generations never again see the return of this type of tyranny and oppression.”