Iraq's oil minister dismisses SOMO chief: source

Shafaq News/ Iraq's Oil Minister, Hayyan Abdul-Ghani, has dismissed Alaa al-Yasiri, the Chief of the State Organization for Marketing of Oil (SOMO), and appointed Ammar al-Ankabi as his replacement, a source familiar with the matter revealed on Thursday.

Al-Yasiri, who has been SOMO's Chief since 2018, oversaw Iraq's oil sales during a period of political and economic turmoil, including the COVID-19 pandemic and a historic oil price crash. He is a former executive at Royal Dutch Shell and has been credited with improving SOMO's operations and transparency.

Ammar al-Ankabi is a well-known figure in Iraq's oil industry, having held several senior positions in the past, including as the head of Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) in 2015.