Defense minister arrives in Basra to inspect forces

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Iraqi Defense Minister Abdul Qader al-Ubeidi arrived in Basra on Wednesday to inspect the military forces deployed there, the official spokesman for the defense ministry said. “Al-Ubeidi visited Basra leading a high-level military delegation to inspect military forces deployed in the southern oil-hub,” General Mohamed al-Askari told IraqiNews.com. He did not add further details. Basra, 590 km (340 miles) south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, has an estimated metropolitan population of 2,300,000 in 2008. Basra, a Shiite province with 20% of the population are Sunnis, is the cradle of the first civilization of Sumer. It has the seven main Iraqi ports. The first built in Islam 14 A.H. (After Hegira), the city played an important role in early Islamic history. The area surrounding Basra has substantial petroleum resources and many oil wells. The city’s oil refinery has a production capacity of about 140,000 barrels per day (bpd). The only Iraqi outlet to the sea, Basra is in a fertile agricultural region, with major products including rice, maize corn, barley, pearl millet, wheat and dates as well as livestock. A network of canals flowed through the city, giving it the nickname “The Venice of the Middle East” at least at high tide. The only Iraqi outlet to the sea, Basra has the commercial ports of Iraq. SH (P) 1