An American newspaper: Iraq suffers economically, politically, securityly, and healthily

[rtl]Follow up / Tomorrow Press:[/rtl]



[rtl]Iraq suffers on almost all levels, after declining oil revenues, the main source of income for the state, the failure to form a government since the resignation of Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi last November, the outbreak of the Corona virus and the government’s failure to obtain material assistance to combat the virus.[/rtl]





[rtl]According to the American New York Times report, the imposition of a curfew to try to combat the outbreak of the virus led to the closure of shops and the loss of most non-government employees.[/rtl]



[rtl]On the security side, armed factions continue to launch regular attacks on US forces, the last of which was on Thursday when two rockets landed near the US embassy in the Green Zone, threatening to further draw Iraq into an American-Iranian conflict, according to the newspaper report.[/rtl]



[rtl]The worst days[/rtl]



[rtl]For his part, Riyad Al-Shihan, 56, a retired military man, told the newspaper, "These are the worst days we lived in Iraq. I lived the Iran-Iraq war, the uprising, Saddam Hussein, but these days are worse."[/rtl]



[rtl]The newspaper pointed out that "the Iraqi authorities announced the registration of 547 confirmed cases of the Corona virus until Sunday, but they are carrying out very limited tests," stressing that "the true number is several times greater."[/rtl]



[rtl]In turn, the economist, on behalf of Antoine, stressed that "what makes the situation in Iraq dark is that the mix of crises that he suffers from has almost wiped out the entire economy."[/rtl]



[rtl]He said, "The current economic situation is worse than what we saw before because all productive sectors have been suspended. We are witnessing almost complete paralysis in economic life. There is no industry, no tourism, no transportation, and agriculture is affected to some extent."[/rtl]



[rtl]Antoine pointed out that "Iraq's reserves amount to 62 billion dollars, which the International Monetary Fund considers insufficient."[/rtl]



[rtl]The collapse of oil prices[/rtl]



[rtl]During the past weeks, the suffering of the Iraqi economy increased after the drop in oil prices to less than half due to the price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. The price of a barrel has become about $ 30, instead of $ 60 at the end of last December.[/rtl]



[rtl]Fatih Birol, executive director of the Paris-based International Energy Agency, stressed that "the drop in prices dealt a severe blow to the oil-dependent economies, but the stronger blow will be to Iraq due to the crises that it is suffering."[/rtl]



[rtl]"Iraq is the most affected country, because it does not have financial reserves and because 90% of its revenues come from oil, and all of these economic pressures come in a very tense political environment," he said.[/rtl]



[rtl]private sector[/rtl]



[rtl]The American newspaper pointed out that "the private sector in Iraq is limited, and has been subjected to a heavy blow because of the imposition of curfews for 24 hours after the outbreak of the Corona virus, and the extension of the ban until April 11 next."[/rtl]



[rtl]"Construction workers, itinerant vendors, and taxi drivers have been forced to stay in their homes, due to the embargo, which has exacerbated their suffering, because most of them live on what they earn daily, have no savings and they may soon be on the brink of hunger," she added.[/rtl]



[rtl]"It is difficult to say how long such a huge economic pain can be tolerated, but it is particularly difficult in the absence of political leadership," Iraqis told the newspaper.[/rtl]



[rtl]Iraq was already facing the worst political crisis in years before the virus spread and oil prices fell. Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets since October, demanding a new government, isolating the ruling political class and ending Iranian influence.[/rtl]



[rtl]Hassan Ali, 20, said, "The government is very weak, it is very tired, they have no solution to crises, and no solution for young people who have no jobs, no one can rely on the government."[/rtl]



[rtl]It is reported that in mid-March, the Minister of Health, Jaafar Sadiq Allawi, said that he would need $ 150 million a month to purchase the equipment he needed to combat the virus, but he only collected a small portion of this amount, which could exacerbate the Corona virus crisis in Iraq in weeks. Coming.[/rtl]







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