ISTANBUL

Iraqis are worried that Israel's attacks on Lebanon following the Gaza Strip will further spread to Iraq.

The Iraqi government has taken a series of steps in support of Lebanon following the intense attacks launched by Israel.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shiya al-Sudani allowed Lebanese refugees to enter the country without a visa due to the ongoing Israeli attacks.

In this context, the visas of Lebanese refugees in Iraq will be extended again at the end of the 30-day visa period without leaving the country. Those who violate the deadline will be exempted from any penalties. Lebanese citizens will also be able to benefit from the education system in Iraq.

Iraqis feel like a target of Israel

While these developments are taking place in the country, Iraqis are worried that Israel will spread its attacks to the region after Syria and carry them to Iraq.

Speaking to Anadolu, Ali Suheyil from Kirkuk said that the Middle East has started to get complicated and countries are being dragged into the war one by one.

Stating that the situation in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen has not calmed down yet, Suheyil said that the wars target all people, including women, children and the elderly.

Suheyil said that Sudani's order to allow Lebanese to enter the country without a visa is good from a humanitarian point of view, but they are worried that Iraq will be targeted by Israel.

Iraq's economy affected

Iraqi citizen Qais al-Zubeydi said: “With the onset of attacks and wars in the region, the Iraqi economy has already been negatively affected.”

Pointing out that the country's economy will get worse, Zubeydi said: “The countries where attacks and wars have started are the countries bordering Iraq. Therefore, Iraq started to receive refugees, especially from Lebanon. These migration waves will definitely affect Iraq's economy. The Iraqi dinar has already started to lose value against foreign currency. These developments will further exhaust Iraq's already tired economy.”

Intervention necessary against Israeli aggression

Another Iraqi citizen, Abdullah Firas, said that Arab countries and the world must intervene to stop this aggression of Israel, which is getting more and more violent, and wished for peace and stability in the world, especially in the Middle East.

Pointing out that inhumane events have been taking place in Gaza for a year, Firas said that Israeli aggression is expanding step by step and they are worried that it will soon spread to Iraq.

Firas said that in the absence of an international intervention, war would ravage the Middle East.

'Region heading towards military, political chaos'

Iraqi Qais Birwari, who stated that Iraq was very negatively affected by the mutual missile attacks of these two countries due to its location between Iran and Israel, reminded that Iraqi airspace was closed to all flights at least once in the last month.

Birwari noted that the closure of the Iraqi airspace to flights negatively affected the security of the country and emphasized that these developments also had a negative impact on the country's commercial market.

Birwari said that the region is heading towards military and political chaos and asked the Iraqi government to take the necessary steps.

Birwari also stated that Iraq has been moving towards stability in recent years, but these recent developments in the region have begun to seriously worry Iraqis.

*Writing by Efe Ozkan