The Baghdad Municipality requested the leadership of the Baghdad operations and the Ministries of Interior and Defense to advise the checkpoints in Al-Karkh and Al-Rasafa to facilitate the work of their staff, so that they may complete the service operations required in Al-Shoala and Sadr City.

“The Baghdad Municipality staff are putting forth extraordinary efforts to provide local services in both of these areas,” said Adel Al-Ardawi, a spokesperson in the Baghdad Municipality, “including collecting a large amount of garbage and debris, repairing water pipes, dealing with sewage overflows, and taking advantage of the spring season to finish converting empty spaces into green areas.”

Al-Ardawi noted that the Baghdad Municipality is awaiting the arrival of a number of specialized vehicles that will help bring about a qualitative change in the nature of the services provided to the citizens of Baghdad. The municipality signed a contract with a Japanese company for the purchase of 250 specialized vehicles for waste collection.

“The daily work of cleaning will take place in morning and evening shifts,” he added. “The evening one will continue up until 10 p.m., depending on the security conditions in each area. It will focus on collecting garbage, debris and solid waste, as well as other public works to support the daily morning shift.” Al-Ardawi’s statement emphasizes the linkage between security and essential services, for no community will have services without first establishing a secure environment, free of guns and armed gangs, that prevent services from functioning or being provided.

It is worth noting that the curfew for vehicles is still in place in Al-Shoala and Sadr City. This is part of the security plan imposed by government forces following the latest security plan in Basra, “Charge of the Knights,” which aims to eliminate outlaws and criminal gangs.