Iraq hosts Saudi counter-extremism centre chief to boost cooperation

The head of the Riyadh-based Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology (Etidal) arrived in Iraq on Monday for talks with officials on combating extremism.

Etidal Secretary-general Dr. Mansour Al-Shammari met with Iraqi National Security Adviser Qasim al-Araji, along with the Saudi ambassador in Baghdad, Abdul Aziz Al-Shammari.

"Iraq has a rich experience in the field of combating terrorism, which can be utilised to combat extremist ideology," Dr. Al-Shammari was quoted by Arab News as saying.

The Etidal chief added that his organisation "is at the service of Iraq and ready to support its efforts in the field of combating the thoughts and ideologies of extremist and terrorist organisations".

In a separate meeting, Al-Shammari also held talks with the head of Iraq's National Security Service, Abdul Ghani Al-Asadi, on how to enhance cooperation.

"Extremist ideology is the common enemy that we are combating together. We are happy to enhance cooperation to protect the current and future generations from its dangers," Al-Shammari said.

Iraq and Saudi Arabia have had sometimes fraught relations in the past decades, in part due to Baghdad's close relations with Iran. Relations have improved since the war against Islamic State group, with security cooperation boosted.