IRAQ: Iraqi army inspects Fakka oilfield and says Iranian forces inflitrate Iraqi borders

Record ID: 343601

  • Title: IRAQ: Iraqi army inspects Fakka oilfield and says Iranian forces inflitrate Iraqi borders
  • Date: 27th December 2009
  • Summary: FAKKA OILFIELD, MAYSAN PROVINCE, IRAQ (DECEMBER 25, 2009) (REUTERS) TOP VIEW OF FAKKA OILFIELD IN MAYSAN PROVINCE MORE OF FAKKA OILFIELD MACHINE GUN ON TOP OF HILL / OIL WELL FLAMES RISING IRAQI FLAG IRAQI ARMY MILITARY VEHICLE INSPECTING FIELD IRAQI SOLDIERS DEPLOYING IN AREA OIL WELL SIGN ON WALL READING WELL NO.7 IRAQI SOLDIERS DEPLOYING IN FAKKA OILFIELD WID
  • Embargoed: 11th January 2010 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Iraq
  • Country: Iraq
  • Topics: Energy
  • Reuters ID: LVA87JGNVNV861ZTNX3T137WJ987
  • Story Text: Iraqi security forces inspected Fakka oilfield on Friday (December 25), saying Iranian forces had infiltrated Iraqi land.
    After a tour to Fakka oilfield in Maysan province, commander of the border forces, Brigadier Razzaq Hassoun, said Iranian forces were 100 meters inside Iraqi land.
    "This is oil well no.4 -- on maps it is part of Iraqi land and it is located on the Iraqi- Iranian border about 200 to 250 meter inside the Iraqi borders. As you see, there is an Iranian barricade behind the well, about 70 to 80 meters, and they have erected a concrete shelter inside an Iranian barricade. Now, the Iranian barricade is inside the Iraqi border, about 100 meters, but it is outside the well area," brigadier Hassoun said.
    Eleven Iranian soldiers on Friday raised their country's flag over the oil well in a border area disputed by the two countries. They have since withdrawn slightly, giving up control of the well, but Iraq has demanded a full withdrawal.
    Although the seizure was largely symbolic, what many Iraqis saw as a weak response from Maliki could spell trouble for the prime minister in a parliamentary election scheduled for March 7. A Shi'ite Muslim, he has historic ties to Shi'ite majority Iran.
    Border disputes between Iran and Iraq have festered for decades and were part of the impetus for a ruinous eight-year war between the two countries in the 1980s.
    The spat over the well spooked markets, pushing up the price of crude, and heightened the risks associated with a series of oil deals Iraq had agreed upon with global oil majors this year.
    The deals, awarded in Iraq's first energy auctions since the U.S.-led 2003 invasion, could more than quadruple output capacity to rival global leader Saudi Arabia.
    Iranian occupation of the well, which Iraq considers part of its Fakka Oilfield in southeast Maysan province, met little apparent resistance from Iraqi forces.
    Iran said its troops acted to dismantle a barrier erected recently by Iraqi soldiers. The well, inoperative for decades, is considered small by local standards.
    Many of Iraq's top politicians once sought refuge from Saddam Hussein's Sunni-led regime in Iran and since Saddam was ousted, Tehran has had warmer ties with Baghdad, to the point where many Iraqis accuse it of undue influence.
    Many Iraqis note disapprovingly that Maliki's government has delayed response to the incident and its outcry was muted.
    As Iraqis increasingly reject outside interference, politicians seen as close to Iran may fare badly in March, leaving Iran a small window to define borders on its own terms.
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