2nd Edition of the Kurdistan Social Forum Takes Place in Sulaymaniyah!
2nd Kurdistan Social Forum 24-25 October 2018, Sulaimani University Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region of Iraq Un Ponte Per (UPP), Peace and Freedom Organization (PFO) and the Iraqi Civil Society Solidarity Initiative (ICSSI) would like to invite you to the annual event of the Kurdistan Social Forum, to take place in Sulaymaniyah from 24-25 October 2018...
Councils for Social Cohesion Launched in 4 Governorates
The Iraqi and Kurdistan Social Forums have launched a new initiative to promote social cohesion in 4 governorates. “Councils for Social Cohesion” have been established in Sulaymaniyah, Baghdad, Amara and Ramadi, coordinated by civil society organizations belonging to the working groups (masar) of the social forums. Within these councils community leaders, local authorities and civil...
First Mesopotamian Water Forum Announced for Sulaymaniyah March 2019 – Call for Contributions!
Save the Tigris Campaign and partners announce the first alternative civil society forum for water in Mesopotamia: the Mesopotamian Water Forum will be held in Spring 2019 in Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and will involve civil society actors from the states of Iraq, Iran, Turkey, Syria. It will be an open space to give...
Mrwary Festival in Sulaymaniyah Highlights Success Stories of Women
Arabic | عربي The city of Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdistan Region held its first festival to celebrate women’s rights. The working group on women’s rights of the Kurdistan Social Forum organized its ‘Mrwary Festival’ from 24-25 August in Hawary Shar Park in Sulaymaniyah. Through this festival, the working group aimed to promote the economic independence...
Basra Residents Reeling From Contaminated Drinking Water
Arabic | عربي Mustafa Saadoun, Al Monitor, August 31 2018 BASRA, Iraq — Human rights advocates and health officials estimate that 17,000 to 18,000 residents of Basra province have been poisoned by heavily polluted and salty drinking water. On Aug. 26, hundreds of residents stormed the Basra Health Directorate to protest the poor health services provided to those made...
Iraqi Experts Say Iran Bears Responsibility for Drought in Hawizeh Marshes
Arabic | عربي Asharq Al-Awsat It seems that geographic realities linking Iraq to Iran have caused inescapable problems that are compounding their turbulent political relations. Issues between Baghdad and Tehran go beyond problems of borders and oil field demarcation, extending to water supplies. Iraq accuses Iran of cutting river water flowing from its territory and...
Arab Coordination Group Established Within World Heritage Watch
Manama – Kingdom of Bahrain, June 25th, 2018 In the margins of the 5th International Civil Society Forum on World Heritage which was organized by the World Heritage Watch (WHW), and took place in Manama 2018, and at the kind invitation of Dr. Essa Amin and Dr. Abdul Aziz Ali Sweileh, the representatives of...
World Heritage Watch Resolution On Water Infrastructure Threatening World Heritage
The 5th International NGO Forum on World Heritage at Risk Manama, Bahrain 22 – 23 June 2018 Prior to the 42nd Session of the World Heritage Committee meeting in Manama, Bahrain, 24 June – 4 July 2018 **** We, the Civil Society Organizations who have attended the 5th International NGO Forum on World Heritage at...
UNESCO Needs to Recognize the Upstream Dam Threats to the Iraqi Marshes – We Call to Work With Independent Civil Society!
Statement by World Heritage Watch/Save the Tigris and Iraqi Marshes Campaign 23 June 2018, World Heritage Watch Civil Society Forum, prior to the 42nd Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee *** We, the Civil Society Organizations who have attended the 5th International NGO Forum on World Heritage at Risk organized by World Heritage Watch...
Multi-Billion Dollar Budget Needed To Keep Iraq’s Water Flowing
Ibrahim Saleh, NIQASH, 14 June 2018 In Baghdad, locals have been fretting about dramatic falls in the level of the Tigris river. The government has a plan. Only problem is, that plan requires billions in funding that Iraq does not have. The passengers in the small bus all peer out anxiously as the vehicle crosses...
Impoundment of Ilisu Dam Reservoir Has Not Yet Started – Drought in Iraq Has Other Reasons
Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive Hasankeyf Matters Press statement Impoundment of Ilisu Dam Reservoir has not yet started – Drought in Iraq has other reasons 11.06.2018 On June 1, 2018 news began to circulate that the impoundment of the reservoir of the controversial Ilisu Dam on the Tigris River in the Kurdish Southeast of the...
Fostering Citizenship Through Media: Journalists As Peacebuilders
Media is essential in order to foster a sense of citizenship in Iraq. The working group on IDPs and Minorities, which is part of the Iraqi Social Forum and lead by Masarat Foundation for Cultural and Information Development, delivered two series of workshops for journalists on how to report on issues related to minorities and...
