RAND PAUL AND THE DEMOCRATS WISH IT WEREN"T:

Quite often when the mainstream media report on Iraq's security, they drastically fail to differentiate between the geography impacted by the so-called Islamic State (also known as ISIS or Daesh) and the other safe regions of the country. False media alarms extend to further exaggeration in describing the various armed groups operating in southern Iraq, making it often impossible for business to be conducted whilst misleading public opinion, thereby deterring investors not to engage in business and sometimes even pushing foreign governments to wrongly advise their citizens not to visit Iraq.

Painting all Iraq as a 'red-zone' is completely misguided and wrong. Two-thirds of the country enjoys a significant level of security equal to countries such as Egypt or Morocco while suicide incidents in Kurdistan of Iraq or south of the country are no more than those occurring in Saudi Arabia. Foreign companies are still operating normally in the south with tens of thousands of employees, and scores of international flights cruising in and out of Iraq everyday filled with businessmen. On the security front, oil-rich provinces such as Basra, Maysan and Dhi Qar are some 300 miles from the frontlines with Daesh, meanwhile all the pro-state Shia and Sunni militias have been regulated under the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), reporting to the Commander-in-Chief, Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi to ensure security across the majority of Iraq.

During my recent visits to the northern region of Iraq (Kurdistan) and the southern provinces of Najaf, Karbala, Babil, Dhi Qar, Maysan and Basra, I witnessed zero incidents, while many foreign journalists and many businessmen went about their business without personal security details, with the exception of a small number of executives.

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