Page 10 - aruba-today-20190518

A10 WORLD NEWS
Saturday 18 May 2019

Once again, Iraq caught up in tensions between U.S. and Iran

By QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA around the country, and announced trip to the publicly discuss the private could come as retaliation
and BASSEM MROUE scores of U.S. troops were Iraqi capital following the meetings in Baghdad and if the United States were to
Associated Press killed or wounded by the abrupt cancellation of a spoke on condition of ano- carry out a military opera-
BAGHDAD (AP) — When militia forces armed with so- visit to Germany, and as nymity, said Pompeo was tion against Iran.
U.S. Secretary of State The heightened tensions
Mike Pompeo sat down between Iran and the U.S.
with Iraqi officials in Bagh- come a year after Trump
dad last week as tensions pulled America out of Teh-
mounted between Amer- ran’s nuclear deal with
ica and Iran, he delivered world powers and as the
a nuanced message: If White House ordered an
you’re not going to stand aircraft carrier and bomb-
with us, stand aside. ers into the region over
The message, relayed to a still-unexplained threat
The Associated Press by two from Iran.
Iraqi government officials, On Sunday, the United
underscores Iraq’s delicate Arab Emirates alleged that
position: Its government is four oil tankers off its east-
allied with both sides of an ern coast were targeted
increasingly contentious by sabotage. On Tuesday,
confrontation. Yemen’s Iran-allied Houthi
As tensions escalate, there rebels said they launched
are concerns that Bagh- seven drones to target Sau-
dad could once again get di Arabia. The drones stuck
caught in the middle, just pumping stations along
as it is on the path to recov- the kingdom’s crucial East-
ery. The country hosts more West Pipeline, causing mi-
than 5,000 U.S. troops, and nor damage, Saudi offi-
is home to powerful Irani- In this May 29, 2016 file photo, Iraqi security forces and allied Popular Mobilization forces fire cials say. On the streets of
an-backed militias, some artillery during fight against Islamic State militants in Fallujah, Iraq. Associated Press Baghdad, some shrugged
of whom want those U.S. off the rising tensions while
forces to leave. phisticated Iranian-made the United States had been not contemplating any others worried their country
“The big question is how weapons. picking up intelligence that pre-emptive strikes on Iran could be sucked into an-
Iraqi leaders will deal with American forces withdrew Iran is threatening Ameri- or the use of Iraqi territory other war.
(their) national interests in from Iraq in 2011 but re- can interests in the Middle to stage military operations Aqil Rubaei said he was
a country where loyalty to turned in 2014 at the invita- East. against Iran. Pompeo’s worried that his country,
external powers is wide- tion of Iraq to help battle The two Iraqi officials said message, the officials said, which has been at war
spread at the expense of the Islamic State group Pompeo relayed intel- was that the U.S. wants to since a year before he
their own nation,” Iraqi po- after it seized vast areas in ligence information the avoid conflict but would was born, will be the place
litical analyst Watheq al- the north and west of the U.S. had received about a respond or defend itself if where the U.S. and Iran
Hashimi said. “If the state country, including Iraq’s threat to U.S. forces in Iraq necessary. will settle their accounts.
cannot put these (Iranian- second-largest city, Mosul. — but kept it vague. They The secretary told reporters The 38-year-old was born
backed militias) under con- A U.S.-led coalition pro- said he did not specify the on the flight that his meet- in 1981, a year after Iran
trol, Iraq will become an vided crucial air support nature of the threat. The ings with Iraq’s president and Iraq began their eight-
arena for an Iranian-Amer- as Iraqi forces regrouped officials, speaking on con- and prime minister were year war and was 9 years
ican armed conflict.” and drove IS out in a costly dition of anonymity to di- intended to demonstrate old when Saddam Husse-
Despite a series of provoc- three-year campaign. Ira- vulge confidential informa- U.S. support for “a sover- in’s forces invaded Kuwait
ative moves on both sides, nian-backed militias fought tion, said Pompeo told the eign, independent” Iraq, leading to a destructive
President Donald Trump alongside U.S.-backed Iraqi Iraqis that America did not free from the influence of war that forced Iraq out of
has said he doesn’t want a troops against IS, gain- expect them to side with neighboring Iran. Pompeo Kuwait and 13 years of crip-
war with Iran and has even ing outsized influence and the U.S. in any confronta- also said he wanted to pling sanctions.
said he is open to dialogue. power. tion with Iran, but that they underscore Iraq’s need to In 2003, the U.S. invaded
But tension remains high, Now, amid an escalating should not side against protect Americans in their and removed Saddam,
in part given the region’s conflict between the U.S. America. In other words, country. leading to the rise of ex-
fraught history. and Iran, Iraq is once again stand aside. A general at Iraq’s Defense tremist groups that cul-
For Iraq to be a theater for vulnerable to becoming A few days later, as U.S.-Ira- Ministry said Iraq was tak- minated in 2014 with the
proxy wars is not new. The caught up in the power nian tensions continued to ing precautionary security Islamic State group cap-
Shiite-majority country lies play. An attack targeting rise, the State Department measures in light of the in- turing large parts of Iraq
on the fault line between U.S. interests in Iraq would ordered all non-essential, formation about threats and Syria and declaring a
Shiite Iran and the mostly be detrimental to the non-emergency govern- against U.S. interests, al- so-called caliphate. The
Sunni Arab world, led by country’s recent efforts at ment staff to leave the though those measures war that followed left entire
powerhouse Saudi Arabia, recovering and reclaiming country. have not reached the Iraqi cities and towns de-
and has long been a bat- its status in the Arab world. U.S. officials said Pompeo highest levels. stroyed until Iraq declared
tlefield in which the Saudi- Earlier this year, Trump pro- told the Iraqis the U.S. had “Iraqi forces are worried victory in 2017.
Iran rivalry for regional su- voked outrage in Baghdad an “inherent right to self- that American forces could “Iraqi people are fed up
premacy played out. when he said he wanted defense” and would use it be targeted by factions loy- with war,” said Rubaei in-
During America’s eight- U.S. troops to stay in Iraq so if U.S. personnel, facilities or al to Iran,” said the official, side his cosmetics shop in
year military presence that they can “watch Iran,” sug- interests are attacked by who spoke on condition of Baghdad’s bustling Kar-
began with the 2003 inva- gesting a changing mission Iran or its proxies in Iraq or anonymity because he was rada neighborhood. “We
sion of Iraq, U.S. troops and for American troops there. anywhere else. not authorized to speak to don’t want Iraq to become
Iranian-backed militiamen On May 8, Pompeo made The three officials, who the media. He added that an arena for an Iranian-
fought pitched battles a lightning, previously un- were not authorized to any attack on U.S. troops American war.”q