A staff member stands in front of a Huawei shop in Beijing, China, on March 7, 2019. (Reuters photo)

BAGHDAD, March 7 (Xinhua) -- Chinese tech giant Huawei launched the first phase of the Safe City Solution project in Baghdad's Karrada neighborhood to promote security measures in the Iraqi capital, an official newspaper reported Thursday.

The launch of the project was announced in a ceremony held at the headquarters of Baghdad Operations Command (BOC), state-owned al-Sabah newspaper said.

The ceremony was attended by the Chinese charge d'affaires, representatives of Huawei, Iraqi military commanders and high-level government officials.

"The new surveillance camera solution will make easier the job of the security forces by monitoring the streets and detecting the suspected people in order to arrest them," said Jalil al-Rubaie, commander of BOC, during the ceremony.

"The project consists of smart surveillance cameras capable of detecting people's faces and tracking various individuals at the same time, which would help reduce the classical security check points in the city," al-Rubaie added.

According to Riyadh al-Adhadh, head of Baghdad Provincial Council, Baghdad needs more than 20,000 security surveillance cameras to cover all streets and neighborhoods.

The new project, which was also funded by Huawei, aims to improve the security situation in Iraq, particularly after the Iraqi authorities declared full liberation of all areas once seized by the Islamic State militants late in 2017.