Tag: Iraq

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Weekly Summaries

27th of December 2021 – 3rd of January 2022

Election results in Iraq certified by court

The parliamentary vote actually already took place in October but this past week the court certified the results, although voter turnout was extremely low (only 41%). This means that Muqtada al-Sadr is now set to lead Iraq. His bloc, the Sadrist Bloc, was able to win 20 additional seats in Parliament, consolidating its position of being the largest bloc even further, which will be of great importance when he chooses the next prime minister.

Floods in Brazil

This past week floods in Brazil devastated entire parts of the country. More than 50,000 people had to flee their homes and at least 20 people were killed by the floods drowning the northeastern part of the country. The rain is especially problematic because northeastern Brazil has suffered from extreme droughts for the past 5 years and the heaviest rain recorded in the region over the past three decades has caused dams to collapse, aggravating the situation even further.

Other News

  • The super typhoon Rai of the Philippines has now killed almost 400 people and injured more than a thousand. Nearly 100 people are still missing while others are stuck in evacuation centers.
  • Somalia’s president suspended the country’s prime minister last week because of corruption investigations
  • Ashraf Ghani, the former president of Afghanistan, gave his first interview with the BBC after fleeing Afghanistan
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Weekly Summaries

26th of April – 2nd of May

The U.S. military’s withdrawal from Afghanistan

This past week, the U.S. military has begun its complete withdrawal from Afghanistan. The New York Times wrote this past week that the Afghan security forces are “unprepared to face the Taliban, or any other threat, on their own. Over the past few years, the U.S. and NATO have spent tens of billions of dollars to build up the the Afghan security forces, but serious shortages of ammunition, the low pay, and abundant corruption are still causing problems.

Other News

  • A fire in an Iraqi hospital caused by an exploding oxygen cylinder killed at least 82 people
  • In the Somali capital of Mogadishu, gunfire erupted when forces loyal to the president confronted groups that sided with his rivals
  • A spacecraft built by Elon Musk’s SpaceX company arrived at the International Space Station last weekend
  • This past month, Iranian military vessels are supposed to have “harassed American ships in the Persian Gulf” twice, according to the New York Times
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Weekly Summaries

18th of January – 24th of January

President Biden’s Inauguration

This past Wednesday was Trump’s last day in office. He became the first US President to leave the White House before his successor’s (Joe Biden) inauguration. Biden became the 46th President of the United States and Kamala Harris officially became the first woman and person of colour to take up the position of vice president. Since then, President Biden has already released a national pandemic response plan.

US accuses China of Genocide

The US State Department declared on Tuesday — former US President Trump’s last full day in office — that the Chinese government is committing genocide and crimes against humanity. There has long been criticism of China for suppressing Muslim minority groups, including Uyghurs, in the region of Xinjiang. US officials later said that they hope that other countries will follow in their footsteps.

Other News:

  • Armin Laschet was named the next leader of Angela Merkel’s CDU Party. Elections will take place in Germany in fall.
  • On Thursday morning two bombers wearing explosive vests killed at least 32 people in an attack at a busy market in central Baghdad, Iraq.