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Iraq

October 25, 2026

Baghdad 12:53 am

19°C

Safin HAMID / AFP via Getty Images

Iran says deal reached with Iraq to expel Kurdish separatists: What to know

Iran said an agreement was reached with Iraq to expel or hand over members of Kurdish separatist groups based in Iraqi Kurdistan.

Trucks loaded with goods wait to cross over to Syria

Analysis

How Hormuz crisis is reshaping economic ties between Iraq and Syria

Iraq and Syria are expanding trade and energy cooperation, but security risks, economic challenges and longstanding mistrust raise questions about whether their growing partnership can endure.

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Oct. 14, 2026, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Iraq’s Zaidi, Saudi crown prince discuss security as Houthi attacks escalate

Iraq has moved to improve ties with Saudi Arabia after Iran-backed militias struck the kingdom and amid the conflict with the Houthis in Yemen.

Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters arrive in the northern Iraqi city of Dohuk on May 14, 2013, after leaving Turkey as part of a peace drive with Ankara.

Explainer

PKK pulls out of Metina in northern Iraq amid Turkey peace process

The withdrawal comes as the peace process between Turkey and the militant group gains momentum alongside increasing security cooperation between Ankara and Baghdad.

Latest News

Analysis

Why Syria and Iraq are taking different approaches to armed groups

Demonstrators ride through a street while waving Syrian flags

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

Iraq devalues dinar 13% as Hormuz disruption hits oil revenue

A man walks past a closed foreign exchange office in Baghdad on October 7, 2026. Iraq's central bank devalued the dinar currency against the dollar on October 7, with the country facing a deepening crisis brought on by the Middle East war. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images)

Explainer

What Iraq’s US troop withdrawal means for security after Kirkuk killings

A member of the Iraqi security forces flashes the victory sign during a military parade

Analysis

After US exit, Iran gains space in Iraq and a harder balancing act

Members of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization) paramilitary forces stand guard during an election rally for the "Asaib Ahl al-Haq" movement in the capital Baghdad, on October 7, 2021.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Beatrice Farhat

Associate Editor (Lebanon)

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Suadad al-Salhy

In Baghdad, reporting on politics and security

Lyse Mauvais

In Amman, reporting on humanitarian crises

Winthrop Rodgers

In Sulaymaniyah, reporting on Kurdish issues

General view of a building of the University of Mosul destroyed during the battle with Islamic State militants, in Mosul, Iraq January 30, 2017. Picture taken January 30, 2017. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah - RTX2YYOF

Will Mosul see peace post-Islamic State?

While the number of internally displaced persons returning to Mosul has increased significantly recently, the city's residents wonder when they can live in peace again.

Members of the new Iraqi parliament attend a session at the parliament headquarters in Baghdad July 1, 2014. Newly elected Iraqi lawmakers convene on Tuesday, under pressure to name a unity government to keep the country from splitting apart after an onslaught by Sunni Islamists who have declared a "caliphate" to rule over all the world's Muslims. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3WMTV

Sexual harassment common even for Iraqi women professionals

As Iraqi women expand their presence in the workplace, they are increasingly subjected to sexual harassment, including at public institutions.

Students attend class on the first day of the new school term in Baghdad October 22, 2014. As the school year starts in Baghdad, a number of schools could not welcome pupils in as they are still housing refugees from areas controlled by the Islamic State. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: EDUCATION) - RTR4B7BZ

Iraqi teachers unsafe in own classrooms

The Iraqi prime minister has called on the security forces to protect schoolteachers from attacks by their students while the parliament considers penalizing crimes against educators.

Shi'ite fighters ride on the back of a truck with their weapons in al-Fatha, northeast of Baiji, October 18, 2015. Iraqi forces backed by Shi'ite militia fighters say they have retaken a mountain palace complex of former President Saddam Hussein from Islamic State fighters, as government forces push ahead on a major offensive against the insurgents. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani - RTS4Z28

Shiite militias open offices in Iraq's liberated Sunni areas

The Popular Mobilization Units are expanding their domination in Sunni-majority areas liberated from the Islamic State, raising concerns among the local population.

Why did Russia offer autonomy for Syria’s Kurds?

Draft constitution from Russia seeks to decentralize Syrian state authority, limit presidential powers; Turkish forces struggle in two-front campaign against both the Islamic State and Syrian Kurds; Al-Monitor offers in-depth reporting on Syrian Kurdish region.

Iraq welcomes return of foreign archaeological missions

Iraq has signed a contract with a British exploration mission for further excavation at the historic Tell Khaiber site west of Nasiriyah.

Protesters hold protraits of Iraqi female journalist Afrah Shawqi during a demonstration calling for her release on December 30, 2016, in Baghdad.
Shawqi, 43, who is employed by Asharq al-Awsat, a London-based pan-Arab newspaper, was abducted on December 26, 2016, from her home in a southern neighbourhood of the Iraqi capital. / AFP / SABAH ARAR (Photo credit should read SABAH ARAR/AFP/Getty Images)

Why are kidnappings on the rise in Baghdad?

As the Islamic State is being forced out of Iraq, abductions, robberies and other crimes are on the rise as a result of the proliferation of militias.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (L) speaks during a news conference with Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari in Baghdad, July 27, 2015. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad - RTX1M0DA

Will Iraq succeed in bringing Iran, Saudi Arabia closer?

Iraq has been stepping up its mediation efforts to achieve a Saudi-Iranian reconciliation amid a conducive political and economic environment.

Iraqis celebrate addition of Khidr Elias feast to UNESCO heritage list

UNESCO's addition of Iraq's Khidr Elias feast to its Intangible Cultural Heritage List is reviving interest in the religious and social tradition.

Members of the Saraya al-Salam (Peace Brigades), a group formed by Iraqi Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, grieve in a procession alongside a coffin during the funeral a fighter who was killed the day before in the northern city of Samarra during an attack by the Islamic State group (IS), on January 17, 2017 in the southern city of Basra. / AFP / HAIDAR MOHAMMED ALI (Photo credit should read HAIDAR MOHAMMED ALI/AFP/Getty Images)

Sadr’s fighters guard Shiite shrines, Sunni inhabitants in Iraq's Samarra

The predominantly Sunni city of Samarra, which includes one of the main Shiite holy shrines and is under the control of mostly Shiite militias, continues to be a prime target for IS and criminal groups.

TO GO WITH STORY BY BRYAN PEARSON Habib al-Sadr, director general of Iraq's biggest television company, Al-Iraqiya, answers questions during an interview with AFP at his Iraqi Media Network company headquarters in Baghdad's upmarket Al-Karrada suburb, 23 August 2007. Sadr has far-reaching plans to expand his ever-growing media empire -- provided he can outlive the constant threats to his life. All is in place for the launch mid-September at the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan of a new religious ch

Will Egypt join Iraq in the 'Axis of Resistance'?

Iraq is playing the role of broker to include Egypt in the Axis of Resistance, led by Iran.

Iraqi security forces stand next to burnt car at the site of an attack on a police checkpoint, near the town of Qadisiyah, 40km south of the Iraqi holy Shiite city of Najaf on January 1, 2017.
Gunmen wearing suicide vests and driving an explosives-laden vehicle opened fire on the checkpoint near the town of Qadisiyah, which lies around 180 kilometres (110 miles) south of Baghdad. / AFP / Haidar HAMDANI (Photo credit should read HAIDAR HAMDANI/AFP/Getty Images)

Losing ground in north, IS targets Iraq's Shiite south

As the Islamic State is attacked from all sides in Mosul, it is making a last ditch effort to disrupt military operations by carrying out attacks in Iraq's predominately Shiite province of Najaf.