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☆ More than 100 dead, 150 injured in fire at Iraq wedding party
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( Timour Azhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NINEVEH, Iraq, Sept 27 (Reuters) - More than 100 people were killed and 150 were injured in a fire at a wedding party in Hamdaniya district in Iraq's Nineveh province that left civil defence searching the charred skeleton of a building for survivors into the early hours of Wednesday. Nineveh Deputy Governor Hasan al-Allaq told Reuters that 113 people had been confirmed dead, with state media putting the death toll at at least 100, with 150 injured. The fire ripped through a large events hall in the north-eastern region after fireworks were lit during the celebration, local civil defence said, according to state media. Preliminary information indicated that the building was made of highly flammable construction materials, contributing to its rapid collapse, state media said. Ambulances and medical crews were dispatched to the site by federal Iraqi authorities and Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, according to official statements.

Persons: Hasan al, Allaq, Timour Azhari, Enas, Sonali Paul, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: Reuters, Thomson Locations: NINEVEH, Iraq, Hamdaniya district, Iraq's Nineveh, Nineveh, Kurdistan, Baghdad, Cairo

☆ Iraq set in 'battle' against dollar smugglers, c.bank governor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Timour Azhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Last month, the U.S. Treasury Department and the Fed barred 14 Iraqi banks from conducting dollar transactions as part of a wider crackdown on dollar smuggling to Iran via the Iraqi banking system, U.S. officials said. Allaq said that action related to transfers from 2022, before a new platform that aimed to improve transparency went live. He said the central bank was undertaking a review of the banking sector and introducing new regulations that he said would likely see some banks close. "It would be very normal in the coming period to see a reduction in the (number of private banks)," he said. Since January the central bank has asked banks to provide detailed information on senders and recipients of transfers via an online platform.

Persons: Ali al, Allaq, Timour Azhari, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Reuters, U.S . Treasury Department, Fed, U.S . Federal, U.S, Thomson Locations: Iraq, Iran Baghdad, Washington, Tehran Banking, BAGHDAD, Iran, Turkey, Syria, United States, U.S, Tehran, Iraq's

U.S. financial authorities last week barred 14 Iraqi banks from conducting dollar transactions as part of a wider crackdown on dollar smuggling to Iran via the Iraqi banking system, Iraqi central bank officials have said. Iraqi central bank (CBI) Governor Ali al-Allaq said on Wednesday the institution was following up on the issue and he had no indication the U.S. would sanction more Iraqi banks. He also noted that other banks were able to cover the market's needs for dollar transactions, with the 14 sanctioned banks representing just 8% of external transfers. The 14 banks have been banned from undertaking dollar transactions but can continue to use Iraqi dinars and other foreign currencies. The latest U.S. sanctions, along with previous ones on eight banks, have left nearly a third of Iraq's 72 banks blacklisted, two Iraqi central bank officials said.

Persons: Ali al, Allaq, Haider al, Shamma, Ahmed Rasheed, Timour, Richard Chang Organizations: U.S . Treasury Department, New York Fed, CBI, U.S ., Thomson Locations: BAGHDAD, Iraqi, United States, Iran, U.S, Tehran, Iraq's, Baghdad

U.S. financial authorities last week barred 14 Iraqi banks from conducting dollar transactions as part of a wider crackdown on dollar smuggling to Iran via the Iraqi banking system, Iraqi central bank officials have said. U.S. State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said the measures were not sanctions, as they have been referred to by Iraq's Central Bank governor. Iraqi central bank (CBI) Governor Ali al-Allaq said on Wednesday the institution was following up on the issue and he had no indication the U.S. would impose "sanctions" on more Iraqi banks. The 14 banks have been banned from undertaking dollar transactions but can continue to use Iraqi dinars and other foreign currencies. The latest U.S. measures, along with previous curbs on eight banks, have left nearly a third of Iraq's 72 banks blacklisted, two Iraqi central bank officials said.

Persons: Vedant Patel, Patel, Ali al, Allaq, Haider al, Shamma, Ahmed Rasheed, Timour, Richard Chang, Daniel Wallis Organizations: . State Department, Iraq's Central Bank, Treasury Department, Federal Reserve Bank of New, Central Bank of, U.S . Treasury Department, New York Fed, CBI, U.S ., Thomson Locations: BAGHDAD, Iraqi, United States, Iran, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, U.S, Tehran, Iraq's, Baghdad

☆ Iraq’s Prime Minister Dismisses Central Bank Governor Amid Currency Drop
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Ghassan Adnan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

BAGHDAD—Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani has dismissed the country’s central bank governor amid growing anger over the weakening of the local currency in recent weeks that has caused the price of food and imports to rise. Mr. Sudani said Monday he decided to replace the governor, Mustafa Ghaleb Mukheef, who requested to be relieved of the post he has held since 2020. The prime minister named Muhsen al-Allaq as the new central bank governor, according to the state-backed Iraqi News Agency. Mr. Allaq previously served in that role between 2014 and 2020.

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