Iranwire.com | Shima Shahrabi 

The protests that started on Thursday, December 28 in Mashhad had, by Saturday, 30 December, reached Tehran. Since the aftermath of the disputed 2009 presidential election and the huge protests that followed, regime supporters have marked December 30 — the day when pro-government demonstrations were held as a counterpoint to the 2009 summer unrest — by organizing rallies against protesters who challenged the official results of the election that secured a second term for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Washingtontimes.com | By Rachel Avraham

Iraq’s prime minister denies Kurds equal rights

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

In recent times, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi has been mistreating the Kurdish citizens in his country. It is time for this to come to an end.

Rudaw.net | By Ranj Sangawi

Iraqi Vice President Nouri al-Maliki told Rudaw during an interview in Baghdad on Thursday that the federal government has to help the Kurdistan Region to solve the problems it is facing including the ongoing financial crisis before “it is too late.”

Rudaw.net

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — The International Monetary Fund believes Iraq's 2018 budget share proposals "do not suffice in our view to cover the needs of the Kurdistan Regional Government.” Baghdad’s proposal would slash the budget of the KRG by more than 4 percent.

rudaw.net |

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s Vice President Nouri al-Maliki strongly criticized French President Emmanuel Macron’s call on Baghdad for disbanding Shiite militia groups, chief among them Iran-backed Hashd al-Shaabi, saying Macron should not “meddle” in internal affairs of Iraq.

SUN, 3 DEC 2017 12:30 | KRG Cabinet

The delegation also included the Chief of Staff at the Kurdistan Region Presidency Fuad Hussein, KRG Spokesperson Safeen Dizayee, and the KRG Acting Representative in France, Ali Dolamari.

reuters.com | Michel Rose, Ahmed Aboulenein

PARIS/BAGHDAD (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday called on Iraq to dismantle all militias, including the government-sanctioned, Iran-backed Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), a rare public call to do so by a major Western leader. Macron’s call, which followed a meeting with Iraqi Kurdish leaders in Paris, underscores the tough balancing act Baghdad has to perform between its allies in the war on Islamic State, Iran and Western powers, which do not see eye to eye.

wsj.com | Ben Kesling
Reporter, The Wall Street Journal.

FALAH MUSTAFA BAKIR, THE HEAD OF FOREIGN RELATIONS FOR THE KURDISTAN REGIONAL GOVERNMENT, SAYS IN INTERVIEW, ‘WE FEEL WE ARE UNDER A HUGE THREAT’

KRG Cabinet | gov.krd | 21 NOV 2017

Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq (cabinet.gov.krd) – In a press conference, Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani stressed the importance of the full implementation of the Iraqi Constitution as the key to stability of Iraq.

Al-monitor.com | Mahmut Bozarslan

"Had the civilization here dated back 70,000 years instead of 7,000, the same thing would have happened," said Serefhan Aydin, the president of the Chamber of Architects in Diyarbakir. Aydin looked resigned as he gazed around the ancient town that resembled a building site.