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Iraq signs deals with Western oil firms, including to revive Syria pipeline

Iraq’s government has struck dozens of agreements with Western oil companies, including to restore an energy supply route that Baghdad could use to export its oil without using the Strait of Hormuz.

The preliminary deals, signed at a United States-Iraq business summit at the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC, on Friday, come as Baghdad seeks to move away from dependence on the strait.

Iraq and Syria signed a cooperation agreement to reconstruct the long-defunct Iraq-Syria crude oil pipeline, which runs from the oil-rich Kirkuk region in northern Iraq to Syria’s Mediterranean port of Baniyas.

Iraq’s state news agency reported that the major US energy company Chevron would carry out the project under the agreement.

US consulate activates air defences as drones target Erbil

The US consulate in Erbil has activated its air defence system amid new attacks by explosive-laden drones on the capital of Iraq’s Kurdish region, with several explosions heard in the skies over the city, according to the BasNews news agency.

Iran closes two border crossings with Kurdish region of northern Iraq

Iran’s border guard command has closed the Marivan and Hawraman border crossings and urged citizens to avoid the surrounding frontier areas, according to Kurdish-language satellite channel Aryen TV.

The border authority called on the public to refrain from approaching the border strip in Dehreh-ki, Dezli and other border zones, and to avoid any activity or movement in these areas until further notice, according to the report.

The crossings link Iran’s Kurdistan province with the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of Iraq.