Popularity of Putin sky high in Iraq
10/8/15
Baghdad: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s bullish entry into the Syrian conflict has worked wonders for his popularity in neighbouring Iraq, where some await “Hajji Putin” like a saviour.
Sitting at his easel in his central Baghdad workshop, painter Mohammad Karim Nihaya touches up a portrait of Putin he copied from the internet.
“I have been waiting for Russia to get involved in the fight against Daesh,” he says, referring to the terror group that last year declared a “caliphate” straddling Iraq and Syria.
“They get results. The United States and its allies on the other hand have been bombing for a year and achieved nothing,” the bespectacled artist says.
The US-led coalition has had some successes in helping Iraqi forces reconquer territory lost to Daesh in 2014 but overall the campaign has also suffered setbacks.
Russian warplanes began bombing targets in Syria on September 30 and on Wednesday Moscow ramped up its air war, unleashing cruise missiles from the Caspian Sea.
Some of them crossed Iraqi airspace and many here, especially among the Shiite community, would welcome a bit of Russia’s firepower on home soil as a much-awaited game-changer.
Only a fraction of Russian air strikes in Syria may have been destined for Daesh but Mohammad, a young jobless man outside the painter’s shop, does not let statistics cloud his enthusiasm.
“We don’t want the international coalition, we want only Russia and we will slaughter a sheep to welcome them,” he says.
Some Iraqis see Moscow — which has staunchly backed Damascus and Tehran in recent years — as a more natural ally than the United States, that occupied the country for eight years.
Putin’s patented leadership brand of bare-chested antics and cold determination is a also hit in Iraq, where the cult of the strong leader is alive and well 12 years after Saddam Hussain’s ouster.
On social media, many have already made him an honorary citizen, with one widely circulated joke even detecting phonetic evidence of Iraqi antecedents in the Russian president’s name.
It goes like this: Putin’s father was an Iraqi grocer from the Shiite south, near Nasiriyah, who introduced figs (“teen” in Arabic) to local markets and thus became known as “Abu Teen”.
After the Second World War, he moved to the Soviet Union, married “a blonde Russian girl” and named their son Abdul Amir. That proved a bit of a mouthful for locals who Russianised it into Vladimir.
The apocryphal nature of the story appears lost on some Facebook users, who have embraced “Putin the Shiite” and even replaced their profile pictures with a portrait of the Russian strongman.
“We should give Putin Iraqi and Syrian citizenship because he loves us more than our own politicians,” says Mohammad Al Bahadli, a student walking on a street in the Shiite shrine city of Najaf.
“Muslims bomb us because we are Rafidha,” says Saad Abdullah, who owns a convenience store in Najaf, employing a term which means “rejectionists” and is used by Daesh to refer to Shiites.
“Meanwhile Putin, who is an Orthodox man, is defending us... Maybe he really is a Shiite and we didn’t know about it,” he says before flashing a huge smile.
Taxi driver Ali Al Rammahi says Putin is the only reason he hasn’t already joined the thousands of Iraqis fleeing the country to knock on Europe’s doors.
“I thank Putin because he convinced me to stay in Iraq... Hajji Putin is better than Hussain Obama,” he says, using the title given to Muslims who have performed the pilgrimage to Makkah.
“Putinmania” has also gripped some of Iraq’s politicians, creating some confusion over Baghdad’s stance on a Russian intervention.
Hakim Al Zamili, the head of parliament’s defence committee and a leader in a Shiite militia that once fought US forces, has suggested Baghdad has decided to request Russian air strikes.
Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi, who is supported by the West, has been more equivocal but has not ruled out enlisting Russia’s help.
Moscow recently increased its footprint in Iraq by joining a coordination cell set up in Baghdad to pool intelligence on Daesh fighters with non-coalition members Syria and Iran.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
10/8/15
Baghdad: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s bullish entry into the Syrian conflict has worked wonders for his popularity in neighbouring Iraq, where some await “Hajji Putin” like a saviour.
Sitting at his easel in his central Baghdad workshop, painter Mohammad Karim Nihaya touches up a portrait of Putin he copied from the internet.
“I have been waiting for Russia to get involved in the fight against Daesh,” he says, referring to the terror group that last year declared a “caliphate” straddling Iraq and Syria.
“They get results. The United States and its allies on the other hand have been bombing for a year and achieved nothing,” the bespectacled artist says.
The US-led coalition has had some successes in helping Iraqi forces reconquer territory lost to Daesh in 2014 but overall the campaign has also suffered setbacks.
Russian warplanes began bombing targets in Syria on September 30 and on Wednesday Moscow ramped up its air war, unleashing cruise missiles from the Caspian Sea.
Some of them crossed Iraqi airspace and many here, especially among the Shiite community, would welcome a bit of Russia’s firepower on home soil as a much-awaited game-changer.
Only a fraction of Russian air strikes in Syria may have been destined for Daesh but Mohammad, a young jobless man outside the painter’s shop, does not let statistics cloud his enthusiasm.
“We don’t want the international coalition, we want only Russia and we will slaughter a sheep to welcome them,” he says.
Some Iraqis see Moscow — which has staunchly backed Damascus and Tehran in recent years — as a more natural ally than the United States, that occupied the country for eight years.
Putin’s patented leadership brand of bare-chested antics and cold determination is a also hit in Iraq, where the cult of the strong leader is alive and well 12 years after Saddam Hussain’s ouster.
On social media, many have already made him an honorary citizen, with one widely circulated joke even detecting phonetic evidence of Iraqi antecedents in the Russian president’s name.
It goes like this: Putin’s father was an Iraqi grocer from the Shiite south, near Nasiriyah, who introduced figs (“teen” in Arabic) to local markets and thus became known as “Abu Teen”.
After the Second World War, he moved to the Soviet Union, married “a blonde Russian girl” and named their son Abdul Amir. That proved a bit of a mouthful for locals who Russianised it into Vladimir.
The apocryphal nature of the story appears lost on some Facebook users, who have embraced “Putin the Shiite” and even replaced their profile pictures with a portrait of the Russian strongman.
“We should give Putin Iraqi and Syrian citizenship because he loves us more than our own politicians,” says Mohammad Al Bahadli, a student walking on a street in the Shiite shrine city of Najaf.
“Muslims bomb us because we are Rafidha,” says Saad Abdullah, who owns a convenience store in Najaf, employing a term which means “rejectionists” and is used by Daesh to refer to Shiites.
“Meanwhile Putin, who is an Orthodox man, is defending us... Maybe he really is a Shiite and we didn’t know about it,” he says before flashing a huge smile.
Taxi driver Ali Al Rammahi says Putin is the only reason he hasn’t already joined the thousands of Iraqis fleeing the country to knock on Europe’s doors.
“I thank Putin because he convinced me to stay in Iraq... Hajji Putin is better than Hussain Obama,” he says, using the title given to Muslims who have performed the pilgrimage to Makkah.
“Putinmania” has also gripped some of Iraq’s politicians, creating some confusion over Baghdad’s stance on a Russian intervention.
Hakim Al Zamili, the head of parliament’s defence committee and a leader in a Shiite militia that once fought US forces, has suggested Baghdad has decided to request Russian air strikes.
Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi, who is supported by the West, has been more equivocal but has not ruled out enlisting Russia’s help.
Moscow recently increased its footprint in Iraq by joining a coordination cell set up in Baghdad to pool intelligence on Daesh fighters with non-coalition members Syria and Iran.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Today at 12:00 pm by Rocky
» utube 5/9/24 MM&C 0:02 / 46:46 PM - Al-Sudani - Golden Opportunity - Private Sector - Contra
Today at 11:57 am by Rocky
» utube MM&C 5/11/24 Iraqi Dinar - IQD Update - International - IraqTiming - 2024 Budget Schedule - Sp
Today at 11:55 am by Rocky
» Bahr Al-Ulum calls for legislating the renewable energy law and localizing the solar panel industry
Today at 11:49 am by Rocky
» In numbers: the rise in internal debt in Iraq
Today at 11:49 am by Rocky
» Jordan demands that Iraq continue to export oil for another three months
Today at 11:46 am by Rocky
» Iraq is the largest producer.. OPEC+ is pumping higher than scheduled and in anticipation of the Jun
Today at 11:44 am by Rocky
» Close to the coordination framework: There is no intention to change the internal regulations of Par
Today at 11:43 am by Rocky
» Central Bank sales exceed $274 million today
Today at 11:41 am by Rocky
» But the representative of the exchange companies is pessimistic... Why did the dollar fall?... The C
Today at 11:38 am by Rocky
» Jordan addresses Iraq to extend a memorandum of understanding to purchase oil
Today at 11:36 am by Rocky
» Bribes increased from 3,000 to 50,000 dollars.. What is the condition of alcohol in Iraq after the p
Today at 11:34 am by Rocky
» Presence movement: Sunnis and Kurds while the Americans remain in Iraq
Today at 10:31 am by Rocky
» A deputy reveals the contents of the first water strategy in Iraq
Today at 10:29 am by Rocky
» Soon...the second reading of the proposed red card law
Today at 10:28 am by Rocky
» The discovery of 10 new oil and gas fields in the Anbar desert
Today at 10:27 am by Rocky
» A bloc announces to “Al-Ma’louma” the date of the parliamentary speaker’s election session
Today at 10:26 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Finance explains the mechanism for amending the retirement law
Today at 10:24 am by Rocky
» Sovereignty accuses Al-Halbousi of obstructing the election of a Speaker of Parliament
Today at 10:23 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Agriculture accuses Kurdistan of harming the farmers of the center and south
Today at 10:22 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani confirms Iraq's readiness to host the Arab Network conference
Today at 10:21 am by Rocky
» Nechirvan Barzani calls on the Iraqi government to allocate a budget to confront climate change
Today at 10:20 am by Rocky
» “Iraq is in danger.” Political warnings against ending the work of the UN mission
Today at 10:19 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi Interior Minister announces the signing of a security cooperation memorandum with Syria
Today at 10:17 am by Rocky
» The Minister of Oil told “Al-Iqtisad News”: The 5th and 6th rounds will add 3 Mqmq of gas to Iraq’s
Today at 10:16 am by Rocky
» Economist: Tax revenues from the private sector should be 4 trillion dinars annually
Today at 10:14 am by Rocky
» The Real Estate Bank calls on the Iraqi Central Bank to determine a plan to allocate a new initiativ
Today at 10:13 am by Rocky
» More than one billion and 400 million dollars...CBI sales within a week
Today at 10:12 am by Rocky
» Oil: Iraq achieved self-sufficiency in liquid gas and began exporting the surplus
Today at 10:10 am by Rocky
» Iraq begins exporting liquid gas
Today at 10:09 am by Rocky
» The Cabinet Secretariat sets to Al-Iqtisad News the completion date for the Chinese agreement school
Today at 10:09 am by Rocky
» Securities: The most recent law of the Authority in the Arab and regional countries
Today at 10:07 am by Rocky
» A European desire to strengthen security and economic cooperation with Baghdad
Today at 10:06 am by Rocky
» The close selection of a person for the position of Speaker of Parliament
Today at 10:05 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary law excludes the exchange of penalties for cash amounts
Today at 10:04 am by Rocky
» An agreement with Italy to finance industrial projects
Today at 10:02 am by Rocky
» The Najaf Chamber of Commerce signs a “memorandum of understanding” with its Thai counterpart
Today at 10:01 am by Rocky
» Baghdad, Arab Forum
Today at 10:00 am by Rocky
» Specialists: Economic integration and job opportunities await development
Today at 9:59 am by Rocky
» The President of the Republic, Nechirvan and Barzani stress the necessity of coordinating efforts be
Today at 9:57 am by Rocky
» The Judicial Institute announces the names of those accepted for the 48th and 49th sessions
Today at 9:56 am by Rocky
» Today's newspapers are interested in launching the fifth licensing supplement rounds and the sixth l
Today at 9:55 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani receives the Secretary-General of the Arab Network for National Human Rights Institutions
Today at 9:53 am by Rocky
» Trade participates in the meetings of the Economic and Social Council at the level of senior officia
Today at 9:52 am by Rocky
» The Minister of Transport discusses with the Tunisian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration wa
Today at 9:50 am by Rocky
» Iraq recorded an increase in its oil exports to the United States last week
Today at 9:49 am by Rocky
» It is governed by three dimensions.. Parliament talks about a strategic priority for Iraqi national
Today at 9:48 am by Rocky
» To what extent do Arab countries influence politically Iraq? It has become more independent
Today at 9:46 am by Rocky
» The Iranian ambassador in Baghdad: Iraq has paid its debts, and the security agreement includes thre
Today at 9:45 am by Rocky
» Dollar exchange rates decline slightly on the Baghdad Stock Exchange
Today at 9:44 am by Rocky
» China has 18% of the fields in the two new rounds, and 11 countries share the remainder
Today at 9:43 am by Rocky
» On the table...a proposal for the Kurdistan oil crisis and an effort to conclude a similar agreement
Today at 9:42 am by Rocky
» Al-Awadi: A government decision to provide sovereign guarantees and guarantees to encourage the inve
Today at 9:40 am by Rocky
» 6 Chinese companies are among the winners of developing Iraqi oil and gas fields
Today at 9:38 am by Rocky
» Baghdad gives UNAMI the end of 2025 to leave the country after fiery briefings
Today at 9:37 am by Rocky
» Dhi Qar clarifies: The quarry burying radioactive materials is regular and does not pose a danger
Today at 9:36 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: There are 64 lagging projects in Babylon
Today at 9:34 am by Rocky
» The housing crisis is expanding and planning confirms: Iraq needs 3 million housing units to solve i
Today at 9:34 am by Rocky
» 90 billion dinars were recovered from social protection violators
Today at 9:32 am by Rocky
» Iraq seeks to increase its oil reserves to more than 160 billion barrels
Today at 9:31 am by Rocky
» After keeping the numbers secret... Did the rain increase Iraq's water reserves by 120%?
Today at 9:30 am by Rocky
» In the first quarter of 2024.. Iran will displace Iraq and become the second largest producer in OPE
Today at 9:28 am by Rocky
» Iraqi oil exports to Jordan stopped 20 days ago
Today at 9:27 am by Rocky
» Iraq and Syria sign a memorandum of security cooperation in several fields
Today at 9:25 am by Rocky
» Parliament recommends stopping electronic schools in Iraq
Today at 9:24 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary law rules out passing a law replacing penalties with sums of money
Today at 9:22 am by Rocky
» After a rare meeting... sources talk about Al-Sadr's future in political life in Iraq
Today at 9:21 am by Rocky
» The President of the Republic warns of climate change and its threat to food security and future gen
Today at 9:20 am by Rocky
» The Iranian ambassador to Iraq talks about negotiations for the withdrawal of American forces and Tu
Today at 9:19 am by Rocky
» Deputy: Iraq represents an important factor in the stability of the global oil market
Today at 9:16 am by Rocky
» Transportation: The Iraqi-Turkish technical committees continue to fulfill the requirements for impl
Today at 9:15 am by Rocky
» Economic: Raising the interest rate will reduce real estate prices
Yesterday at 12:20 pm by Rocky
» Did Barzani agree in Tehran to end the presence of Iranian groups in Kurdistan? - urgent
Yesterday at 12:16 pm by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: We are establishing a new situation for the global energy market through the Development
Yesterday at 12:14 pm by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: The government program devoted a wide scope to the government’s vision for oil and gas in
Yesterday at 12:11 pm by Rocky
» Al-Awadi: Ending the work of the UNAMI mission is consistent with the government’s vision in this fi
Yesterday at 12:10 pm by Rocky
» MM&C Floating the dinar" returns to the forefront.. Will the Central Bank of Iraq resort to it and w
Yesterday at 10:24 am by Rocky
» The Secretary of the Ministry of Defense meets with the Commander of the NATO mission
Yesterday at 10:17 am by Rocky
» Expert: The stability of the economy is linked to the political situation
Yesterday at 10:13 am by Rocky
» A parliamentary request to lift the injustice against 20,000 Iraqi employees
Yesterday at 10:09 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Finance criticizes the government's failure to send the budget schedules
Yesterday at 10:08 am by Rocky
» Minister of Oil: The 5th and 6th licensing rounds will take place within the framework of exploratio
Yesterday at 10:07 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: Iraq is a difficult number in the global market in the field of energy
Yesterday at 10:06 am by Rocky
» Al-Khanjar rejects Al-Halbousi’s request to head Parliament
Yesterday at 10:05 am by Rocky
» Revealing the date of the arrival of the 2024 budget schedules
Yesterday at 10:04 am by Rocky
» Al-Halbousi nominates Talal Al-Zubaie for presidency of the House of Representatives
Yesterday at 10:03 am by Rocky
» "A coup in Iraqi universities"... Replacement of presidents and deans under the new education law
Yesterday at 10:01 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: Iraq is a difficult number in the equation of energy and oil wealth in the region and the
Yesterday at 10:00 am by Rocky
» Minister of Oil: We hope to announce an increase in Iraq’s oil reserves to 160 billion barrels
Yesterday at 9:58 am by Rocky
» Iraq's mass graves...stories that did not end with the burial of their owners, and the "legacy of IS
Yesterday at 9:57 am by Rocky
» Pictures: New licenses in Iraq to extract “huge” quantities of oil and gas
Yesterday at 9:56 am by Rocky
» Transport reopens the Baghdad - Samarra railway line
Yesterday at 9:55 am by Rocky
» Al-Awadi: A government decision to provide sovereign guarantees and guarantees to encourage the inve
Yesterday at 9:54 am by Rocky
» Oil clarifies the mechanism for investing grant funds and licensing contracts
Yesterday at 9:51 am by Rocky
» A $700 million agreement is signed between Iraq and Italy to finance these projects
Yesterday at 9:50 am by Rocky
» Iraq recovers 90 billion dinars from social protection violators
Yesterday at 9:49 am by Rocky
» Sudanese officially launches the two licensing rounds and sets the date for stopping gas burning
Yesterday at 9:48 am by Rocky
» An economic vision for the standard of competition for exploratory plots in Iraq
Yesterday at 9:47 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi Islamic Bank announces an increase in its capital to 300 billion dinars
Yesterday at 9:46 am by Rocky