Lights out on Maliki's electricity promises
Ali al-Fayyad, deputy head of the Iraqi parliament's Energy Committee, said he's hoping the private sector steps in to ease the electricity crisis that the people have suffered from for decades, especially in the scorching summer months.
A week ago, Mohammed Karim bought a small inflatable pool for his three children to ease the scorching heat during power outages. He has a two-year-old toddler who cannot bear the high temperatures at night, so Mohammed stays up late next to him until the power comes back so he can place him under the air conditioner.
Since the 1990s, Iraq has suffered from a significant shortage in power, after the US military targeted power stations during Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1991. And the electricity problem worsened after the occupation of Baghdad in April 2003.
