Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi launched what observers in Baghdad described as an “open battle” against the armed factions, and pledged that he “would not keep them.”
Al-Zaidi said, during his visit to “Sadr City” on Saturday evening, “I will never keep those who carry weapons,” adding that “if someone else kept them, it would be because he was benefiting from them.”
Al-Zaidi’s words came the day after a violent attack launched by the “Hezbollah Brigades” on him and his brother, after he directed on Saturday to cancel the contracts of 3 companies at “Mosul Airport” because of their links to armed parties.
This was accompanied by the Badr Organization, an ally of Tehran, expressing its “anger” at statements made by Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein regarding the closure of land crossings with Iran, with the exception of only two crossings, “at the official request of the United States.” The organization called for “opening the closed ports immediately,” and threatened that “our people and their national forces will not stand idly by.”
Sources reported on Sunday that production had stopped in the Khor Mor gas field in Iraq, one of the largest fields in the Kurdistan region, after it was targeted in a drone attack. Two sources in the Ministry of Electricity in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq said that the field’s production stopped after a drone targeted a liquefied petroleum gas storage tank, causing a fire that is still raging. Two security sources said that smoke was seen rising from the field. The two sources in the ministry stated that field workers were evacuated to safe places inside the facility following the attack. The Iraqi Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Ali al-Zaidi, said that the initial assessment indicates that the attack did not result in human casualties. A joint statement issued by the Ministries of Natural Resources and Electricity in the Kurdistan Region described the attack as “terrorist,” stressing that the two ministries are working to reduce its repercussions to a minimum. No party claimed responsibility for the attack. The field provides gas supplies needed to generate electricity in the region. The Ministry of Electricity in Iraqi Kurdistan said in a statement that the attack led to the loss of about 2.8 gigawatts of electricity generation capacity in the region. Dana Gas, which participates in operating the field, had suspended the main production facilities in the field earlier in July due to credible security threats and regional tensions, before resuming production later in the same month. Iraq was among the countries most affected by Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Traffic in the strait remains disrupted as ships continue to face attacks in the area. Baghdad is striving to achieve balance in its relations with neighboring Iran and the United States in the midst of the military escalation between the two countries. However, Tehran has launched attacks against Iranian Kurdish opposition groups in northern Iraq, while Iranian-backed militants in Iraq launched attacks against its Gulf neighbors earlier in the conflict. As part of the procedures for restructuring Syrian government institutions, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued three presidential decrees appointing three assistants to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, all of them young, in contrast to the Syrian diplomatic tradition of selecting assistants to the minister from the category of veterans involved in diplomatic work, at a time when many diplomats who defected from the previous regime are still waiting for their status to be settled. Behind the scenes, political circles in Damascus are witnessing controversy over the appointment of officials to high-ranking positions in sovereign ministries, amid unconfirmed news about government changes that include sovereign ministries and moves in the positions of prominent officials. Wael Alwan, researcher and executive director at the Jusoor Studies Center, told Asharq Al-Awsat: “There is talk about the possibility of Interior Minister Anas Khattab assuming the presidency of National Security, with Major General Abdul Qadir Al-Tahan succeeding him in the Ministry of Interior. There is also similar talk regarding the Ministry of Defense, but there is no accurate information until now,” denying his knowledge of the talk of Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani moving to another position. An unprecedented measure
On Saturday, Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa issued three presidential decrees bearing the numbers 205, 206, and 207 for the year 2026, appointing three assistants to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, and distributing tasks among them on the files of consular affairs, international cooperation, and executive affairs. The appointment of three assistants to the Minister of Foreign Affairs is an unprecedented measure in the history of Syrian diplomatic work, and an indication of the dismantling of the traditional administrative system that has existed in the country for many decades. The administrative structure of the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs usually includes only two assistants to the minister, mainly and permanently, between whom diplomatic, political, and administrative files are divided. In some exceptional periods, a third assistant was appointed, or advisors and advisors to the deputy ministers were relied upon for specialized tasks. However, the dominant feature over the decades was the institutionalization of the ministry with the presence of two assistants in addition to the position of “Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.” Alwan believed that the new appointments are practically a “restructuring,” and said: “The country’s new administration is not committed to what has been the norm, as it is completely separate from the previous regime.” Alwan pointed out that “the original is to select cadres within the internal institutional hierarchy, the functional hierarchy, or from long diplomatic experience; But in the case of a transitional government, the matter is different, as trust, in the sense of loyalty, takes precedence over competence. The researcher explained that this controversial trend often comes for “security reasons.” As for seeking the help of experienced diplomats who defected from the previous regime, Alwan said, “This is possible, but it is not a requirement, with priority given to the element of trust and compatibility with the current approach.” Young people with limited experience
As for those who were appointed, they are Muhammad Yaqoub Al-Omar (born in Idlib 1993), Assistant to the Minister of Foreign Affairs for Consular Affairs. He holds a Master’s degree in public policy from the University of Idlib, a Bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of the North, in addition to a degree in agricultural engineering from the University of Idlib, according to local media. Qutaiba Ali Qadish (born in Damascus in 1988) was also appointed Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for International Cooperation Affairs. He holds a degree in law from Damascus University. He previously held the Directorate of International Cooperation and Directorate of Protocol in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates. He also served as Assistant Minister of Development and Humanitarian Affairs in the Syrian Salvation Government, and Director of the Humanitarian and Development Projects Directorate in it. In addition to the appointment of Ubadah Khaled Diab, born in Damascus in 1996, as Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants for Executive Affairs. Diab holds an Executive Master's degree in Development Policy from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, and a Bachelor's degree in Foreign Service, specializing in International Economics, from Georgetown University. His previous experience includes heading the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and managing the Ministry’s Strategic Planning Office, an expert in information management and labor market research at the Qatari Ministry of Labor, and a data specialist at the Humanitarian Data Center of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), according to what SANA reported. Despite the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ decision to return dissident diplomats to work and assign many of them to head missions and represent Syria in regional and international capitals, the files of a large number of them are still stuck in the corridors, awaiting the settlement of their status and the completion of administrative reviews. The presidential appointments in the Syrian Foreign Ministry were accompanied by the decision of Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani to appoint broadcaster Muzna Mamdouh Al-Atrash, daughter of the city of Suwayda, as an advisor for peace affairs. While some saw this decision as giving momentum to the national reconciliation files, especially the Suwayda file, others criticized this appointment against the backdrop of the creation of an unclear position, namely “peace affairs,” in addition to Al-Atrash’s previous political positions, which supported Bashar al-Assad and the army’s practices through her work on state television.
