Iraq Reconstruction News 12 February 2007

Iraq Reconstruction News
12 February 2007


1. GRD Construction Rollup: Project Starts, Completions 12 February 2007 http://www.grd.usace.army.mil/news/releases/NR07-02-12-3.pdf

2. Winds of Change Iraq Report, 12 Feb/07 http://www.windsofchange.net/archives/009450.php#more

3. UNDG Iraq Trust Fund Newsletter (January 2007) This issue features thematic issues in the Refugees, IDPs and Durable Solutions Cluster (F). As of end January 2007, the implementing UN agencies have legally committed $693 million (78%) and disbursed $591 million (66%) of total approved projects amounting to $893 million. http://www.irffi.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/IRFFI/0,,contentMDK:21216761~pagePK:64168627~piPK:64167475~theSitePK:491458,00.html

4. Baghdad, Kuwait aim to revive trade agreements. KUWAIT: A business delegation from Basra, Iraq met with the board of the Kuwaiti Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) yesterday in Kuwait. This paved the way for the possible revival of trade agreements and broke the long trade embargo between the two countries, which was hampered due to the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait in 1990. The talks centred on one product from Basra, particularly tomatoes. The delegation mentioned tomatoes were bountiful in Iraq and the supply was really high especially after Iraq adopted new agricultural technology offered by the British government after the fall of the Saddam regime. http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm/sidZAWYA20070205045734/SecCountries/pagIraq

5. Iraq slow to move on 350 polluted areas. Minister says two sites cleaned up, but plenty of 'hot spots' still out there.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com:80/id/17030442/

6. Iraqi Vice President receives Kuwait Fund Chief, and Shipping Company. Iraq’s government has identified hundreds of polluted sites that pose huge health hazards, but insecurity and lack of funds are stifling attempts to make them safe, a minister said on Wednesday.
http://www.iraqdirectory.com/DisplayNews.aspx?id=3115

7. Basra fishermen suffer security squeeze and fuel price hike. BAGHDAD (IRIN) - Fisherman Mazin Jawad, 36, cannot look at his seven children without feelings of shame and guilt overcoming him. Without the income he used to have, he has had to take four of them out of school and taken ‘luxuries’ such as meat out of their lives. http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=57531&SelectRegion=Middle_East&SelectCountry=Iraq

8. Maximum security correctional facilities help secure Iraq's Future http://www.grd.usace.army.mil/news/releases/NR07-02-08.pdf

9. USAID IZDIHAR Project Helps Banks Modernize Lending Techniques - The introduction of credit officers in two Iraqi banks is strengthening customer relationships and streamlining loan processing for greater profitability. Following technical assistance and training from the USAID IZDIHAR project, two Iraqi banks have introduced changes to establish more dynamic relationships with clients. http://www.izdihar-iraq.com/news/stories.html#story115

10. The Snake Eater. Subject: A case study of how the U.S. got bogged down in Iraq. Problem: If a cop in Anytown, USA, pulls over a suspect, he checks the person's ID remotely from the squad car. He's linked to databases filled with Who's Who in the world of crime, killing and mayhem. In Iraq, there is nothing like that. When our troops and the Iraqi army enter a town, village or street, what they know about the local bad guys is pretty much in their heads, at best. Solution: Give our troops what our cops have. The Pentagon knows this. For reasons you can imagine, it hasn't happened. http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/dhenninger/?id=110009638

11. Treasury support to exports to Iraq. EkoTürk News Agency / Ankara. After the petroleum products crisis between Turkey and Iraq, the Treasury decided to support the companies exporting to Iraq. Until December 31, 2007, the companies exporting to Iraq will be allowed to bring in without declaration the foreign exchange earned via the sales to Iraq up to 100 thousand dollars. The communiqué of the Turkish Treasury has been published in the Official Gazette. http://www.thenewanatolian.com/tna-22812.html

12. South Korea, Iraq agree to boost economic ties. South Korea and Iraq agreed Thursday to strengthen cooperation in various economic fields, including in construction, energy and information technology, South Korean Yonhap News Agency reported. http://www.iraqdirectory.com/DisplayNews.aspx?id=3121

13. $42 billion dollar budget approved http://www.azzaman.com/english/index.asp?fname=news\2007-02-11\kurd.htm

14. Judge Dismisses Contractor Fraud Charge. For the second time, a judge has dismissed a lawsuit against a military contractor that whistleblowers accuse of scamming the U.S. government out of tens of millions of dollars in the first months of the Iraq war. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III in Alexandria ruled in favor of Fairfax-based Custer Battles LLC, which has been pilloried in Congress and elsewhere as an example of the fraud and mismanagement that plagued the occupation of Iraq under the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority. http://www.topix.net/content/ap/0593765239350516128519281357442677749041

15. Baghdad traffic police expect the unexpected. USA TODAY - BAGHDAD — On a typical day, Baghdad's traffic police deal with gunfire, militias and speeding convoys with armed men. And, oh yeah, there's also the traffic. With stoplights often dead because of blackouts, security checkpoints blocking many roads and more cars than ever circulating in the city, Baghdad's 1,700 traffic cops have their hands full. http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2007-02-08-life-iraq-traffic_x.htm

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