Nazaha uncovers Iran violations of Iraq oil

From Alsumaria.

Vice President of Nazaha (Virtue) commission Faraj Moussa revealed to Al Hayat Newspaper about Iranian violations of Iraqi wells through inappropriate excavation, crossing borders, and seizing oil wells after dismissing Iraqi architectural cadres and operators therein. Moussa explained that there are more than 1000 oil well linked to 12 pipelines in Basra, six of which hold in crude oil and six others are used for oil derivatives in a region near Bucca detention facility. Oil smugglers perforate oil pipelines and pull oil into ponds to use them up via pipelines and transport them into floating tanks which pour them into ships parked in illegal ports in Shat Al Arab. Moussa noted that the Oil Ministry is incapable of determining the quantity of oil in pipelines or the quantity extracted from wells because they are not equipped with counters. He added that smuggling does not include only crude oil but also imported oil derivatives especially through Safwan village near Kuwaiti borders. Moussa related that tankers loaded with oil derivatives crossing this passage return back with their full load after conspirators stock and refinery managers hand tanker drivers official documents of handing shipments. He asserted that cases of oil smuggling in the region extending from Al Nassiriya till Basra have been brought to justice after the commission uncovered names of smugglers and conspirators of facility protection forces in Basra and pointed out locations of smuggling and illegal ports through air footage. Moussa affirmed that a detailed study has been submitted to the ministerial council including information on oil smuggling and means to solve this problem. It is to be noted that a source from the Oil Ministry in Tehran denied these accusations clarifying that Baghdad and Tehran have signed during the term of Prime Minister Ibrahim Al Jaafari a deal that consist of pulling Iraqi oil via a special pipeline from Basra into Abadan refineries to treat it and return it via another pipeline. He added that the deal has entered in force after current Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki signed it during his latest visit to Iran.

This may be a reason that Iraqi President Jalal Talabani announce on 26 December 2007 the cancellation of the 1975 Algiers Accord which divides the Shatt Al Arab waters. Preisdent Talabani later retracted this statement, but stated there were issues which Tehran needed to deal with.