Abdul Qadir al-Dakhil, governor of Nineveh, the province whose capital is Mosul, cancelled three contracts at Mosul International Airport late on Saturday 7 November over their alleged links to armed groups1. He acted after meeting Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi and Court of Appeal chief judge Raid Hamid al-Musleh in Baghdad. The contracts covered the counters, the car park and the taxi office, and will be re-awarded to international companies. Al-Dakhil said the Transport Ministry had signed them "without the knowledge or approval of the local government", and he named no group or company.
US envoy Tom Barrack said al-Zaidi was "sending a clear message: militia influence has no place in Iraq's institutions." Weapons are a harder case for Baghdad. The deadline for militias to put their arms under state control, first set for 30 September, now runs to 30 June 2027 at the earliest, and two Iran-aligned groups, Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat al-Nujaba, refuse until foreign troops leave.
On the banking side Washington gave Baghdad more time. On Thursday 29 October OFAC issued General Licence FF-1, which extends to 1 December the period foreign firms have to unwind business with the International Development Bank for Investment and Finance (IDBIF)2. It replaced General Licence FF, issued on 15 October when Washington designated the bank, which Treasury says sends profits to Iran monthly in dollars. FF-1 came with no press release and no guidance.
