Al-Nakheeb District: A ticking bomb shored up by a toothpick

What might be deemed by some as unnecessary inconveniences in a vulnerable razor-thin balance, others argue that is a situation that must be defused cautiously to curb any attempt that might trigger an uncontainable Skyfall; in a time, local officials from both governorates emphasize upon avoiding friction by resorting to administrative and legal procedures.

For the second week in a row, deployments from various armed factions continue in Al-Nakheeb, in the southwest of Al-Anbar, bordering Saudi Arabia, adjacent to Karbala. Troops development in the disputed district is accompanied by digging trenches and raising dirt fences as part of what the factions say is aimed at preventing terrorists from infiltrating into the Iraqi territory.

Changing administrative borders

Officials from al-Anbar say that the new measures have usurped large areas of the district and annexed it to Karbala governorate's territory. The scenario is similar to the "Baghdad Security Wall," which annexed vast areas of al-Anbar's territory to Baghdad's Abu Ghraib district.

According to the official of al-Anbar provincial office, "The armed factions have set up walls and dug trenches labeling them as the borderline between Karbala and Al-Anbar. This is deliberate manipulation of the administrative borders between the two governorates."

The official continued, "these factions act independently from the federal state, the army, and the law. They have drawn new borders under the pretext of preventing the infiltration of terrorism, even though the area is safe and there has been no security breach there for years."

"We have received complaints from citizens of these areas regarding these deeds. Government agencies in Baghdad were addressed regarding these abuses, not only to the administrative borders but also usurping administrative land and manipulating the region's map. These moves have political intentions that have nothing to do with security or the war on terrorism", he added.

Rumors and allegations

Jassim al-Asal, Deputy Governor of al-Anbar for technical affairs, stated, "rumors about Al-Nakheeb's annexation to Karbala is inaccurate, as it is a part of al-Anbar. Moreover, the news that Karbala governorate has dug several wells in the district are also unfounded, for the Western Sahara Water Department that carried out this project to seven Al-Nakheeb's citizens."

"Al-Nakheeb is affiliated with al-Anbar. The provincial administration and its political team will not allow anyone - whether political or otherwise - to manipulate the borders of the governorate," he added.

Law is the key

With several officials in Karbala refusing to give a statement upon this issue, including Governor, Nassif Al-Khattabi, and the first deputy Governor, Ali Al-Mayali, Karbala's second Deputy Governor, Jassim Al-Fatlawi simply replied, "I have no comment regarding this matter because we do not need new problems added to the problems the country is experiencing."

"These issues are administrative. Those who want to solve their problems should follow legal and constitutional methods. It is difficult to raise such issues at the moment between al-Anbar and Karbala because current circumstances are very susceptible. We have to follow legal methods to solve such crises," he concluded.

Geographical significance

"The recent period has witnessed the movements of pro-Iranian armed parties in more than one Iraqi city with intentions to create political, security, and even sectarian crises," Iraqi political and security expert, Ghanim Al-Abid, told Shafaq News agency.

He added, "The government's position is quite vulnerable to the armed factions' movements. It is unable to object or stop them, whether at the level of demographic change plans, population displacement, and seizing areas."

"Al-Nakheeb's strategic position is vital because it is located on the Iraqi-Saudi border. In the future, it could become a border triangle with Jordan and Syria. This has made the district a destination for those factions - which of course do not move apart from Iranian directives," he continued.

 "Iraq as a whole may witness many similar projects that exploit the vulnerability of the Iraqi decision-makers in working to preserve the unity of the country and impose the prestige and sovereignty of the state," al-Abid said.