Today we look restrictions on Venezuela’s access to the IMF’s Special Drawing Rights funds, the upcoming parliamentary elections in Iraq, and more

The Iraqi Communist Party, which was part of the leading alliance in the last elections in 2018, announced in July that it will not participate in the upcoming national elections in October due to the lack of a conducive political atmosphere

Adnan Al-Zurfi presented his proposed government to the Iraqi parliament which will debate and vote on its ratification. However, his nomination has been opposed by major Shia blocks, including the Fateh bloc and the Sairoon alliance

The casualties on Wednesday, raise this week’s total death toll of foreign forces in Iraq to five. The Iraqi parliament had passed a resolution in January asking the US and other foreign troops to leave the country

The vote of confidence for the new government in Iraq will now take place on February 29, Saturday, to approve the cabinet proposed by prime minister-designate Mohammed Allawi

Besides being of some symbolic and political significance, the resolution does not have any legal value and is non-binding

Newsclick’s Prabir Purkayastha talks about the blatant provocation by the US in assassinating Major General Qassem Soleimani.

Anti-war protests were held across the US and UK over the weekend in response to the targeted assassination of Qassem Soleimani, commander of Iran’s Al-Quds forces.

The US president has also threatened Iraq with severe economic sanctions after the country’s parliament passed a resolution demanding the withdrawal of foreign forces