Daily Links — Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Tuesday's Iraq desk is dominated by pressure and the exchange rate. The big one: the U.S. reportedly warns Baghdad to disarm the militias by September 30 or dollar transfers stop — a hard deadline with the PMF law still being pushed through parliament. On the currency itself, the Central Bank is moving to shrink the dollar gap with a unified rate for exchange agents nearing 1,320, even as commentary warns the dinar is 'disappearing' from Baghdad and floats abolishing the banknote. PM Al-Zaidi is in Paris and Berlin, and the community is buzzing over claimed Rothschild interest in Iraq. On the wider board, Hormuz is being called 'closed' after a supertanker hit a mine, Saudi oil routes narrow, the UK weighs helping the Saudis against the Houthis, and Ukraine hits a Russian refinery amid a global diesel crunch. Here's everything on the desk.

Iraq & the Dinar

• U.S. warns Iraq: disarm the militias by Sept. 30 or dollar transfers stop — Kurdistan 24
• The Central Bank moves to reduce the dollar gap: a unified rate for exchange agents approaching 1,320 — Al-Mustaqila (Arabic)
• 'Baghdad's dinar is disappearing — close the borders': the last-resort idea of abolishing Iraq's banknote — 964 Media
• Al-Hasnawi: we are continuing to legislate the Popular Mobilization (PMF) law despite attempts to bring it into bargaining — Al-Maaloumah (Arabic)
• Al-Zaidi in Paris and Berlin — Al-Sabah
• Community chatter: claimed Rothschild interest in investing in Iraq, with speculation building on a new dinar rate — X (dinar community)

Money & Markets

• Treasury's Bessent sanctions Russia's VTB Bank via OFAC for aiding the Iranian regime and Iranian banks — X

Around the World

• Supertanker explodes after hitting a mine, IRGC says, asserting 'the Strait of Hormuz is closed' — ZeroHedge
• Saudi oil routes narrow: the kingdom eyes a Hormuz export surge after a pipeline attack — ZeroHedge
• UK mulls military support for the Saudis against the Houthis after an MbS appeal — ZeroHedge
• Energy truce in shambles: Ukraine strikes a Russian refinery despite Trump's warning amid a global diesel crisis — ZeroHedge
• Northern Irish, Scottish, and Welsh leaders meet to plan the break-up of the United Kingdom — The Telegraph

Home Front

• John Brennan subpoenaed as part of a DOJ investigation — The Epoch Times
• Mitch McConnell reappears after a three-month hiatus — ZeroHedge

Links are shared for discussion. Not financial advice — always do your own research.