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Iraq

July 14, 2026

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Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi meets with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House, Washington, DC, July 14, 2026.

Trump hosts Iraqi PM Zaidi as Iran war intensifies

President Donald Trump emphasized Iraq’s “tremendous oil reserves” and possible deals with US companies.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi at a Council of Ministers meeting in Baghdad on July 11, 2026.

Analysis

On first foreign trip, Iraqi PM Zaidi woos Trump but Iran casts long shadow

Iraq's new prime minister is in Washington promising business deals and closer ties with the United States, but convincing the Trump administration he can rein in Iran-backed militias may prove his toughest challenge.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

An aerial view shows port of the western Syrian port city of Latakia, on Dec. 18, 2024.

Analysis

Can a UAE-backed Syria-Iraq corridor become Gulf's next trade route?

On June 26, Emirati and Syrian officials discussed plans for a logistics corridor connecting Syrian ports to Gulf markets via Iraq.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Latest News

Here's what to know about Iraq's corruption as Zaidi launches crackdown

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Iraqi PM’s anti-corruption drive comes as US pressure mounts on Iran-backed militias

aqi security personnel patrol in a vehicle along a street in Baghdad on June 28, 2026.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Explainer

After UAE and Qatar, could Iraq be next to leave OPEC?

A worker at a market for fuel oil and automotive fuel on March 17, 2026, in Erbil, Iraq.

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

Iraqi forces walk during a patrol looking for militants from the al Qaeda faction, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), explosives and weapons in a neighbourhood in Ramadi May 14, 2014. Thousands of civilians have fled Falluja since last week after the Iraqi military intensified shelling in a new bid to crush a five-month old Sunni uprising, killing scores of people in what residents describe as massive indiscriminate bombardment. More than 420,000 people have already escaped the two main cities

Maliki got election assist from Anbar crisis

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki skillfully used the Anbar crisis to deepen the sense of collective danger among Shiite voters.

Turkey's Energy Minister Taner Yildiz speaks at the Iraq-Kurdistan Oil and Gas Conference at Arbil in Iraq's Kurdistan region, December 2, 2013. Turkey said on Monday it stood by a bilateral oil deal with Iraq's Kurdistan region that bypassed central government but wanted to win Baghdad's support by drawing it into the arrangement. Reuters reported that Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan signed a multi-billion-dollar energy package last week, infuriating a central Baghdad government which claims sole authority over

Turkey pivots to Baghdad to close deal on Kurdish oil

Turkey has realized it can’t sell Kurdish oil without Baghdad’s blessing.

An election poster of Mahmoud Al-Hassan of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's State of Law coalition is displayed along a street at the start of the election campaign in Baghdad April 18, 2014. Iraq is holding its national election at the end of this month. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3LSZ3

Iraqi MP fined for offering land for votes

A video of an Iraqi MP from the State of Law Coalition distributing deeds to plots of land in exchange for votes for the coalition has triggered controversy, and raises broader questions about a rise of political patronage in the country.

A member of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) sleeps during a vote counting session for the parliamentary election at an analysis centre in Baghdad May 11, 2014. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3ON4B

Iraqi political blocs mislead with leaks on election results

A number of Iraqi politicians and political blocs have used social media for what they claim are leaked election results from last month’s parliamentary elections.

Osama al-Nujaifi (C), speaker of the Iraqi Council of Representatives, holds up his ink-stained finger as he casts his vote at a polling station during a parliamentary election in Baghdad April 30, 2014. Iraqis headed to the polls on Wednesday in their first national election since U.S. forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011, with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki seeking a third term amid rising violence. REUTERS/Mahmoud Raouf Mahmoud (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR3N8ZF

Uncertain prospects for Iraqi 'Sunni Alliance'

It is unclear whether the three currents can unite on unified Sunni interests.

A worker stands and works on a campaign billboard of presidential candidate and Egypt's former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, along a highway in Cairo May 12, 2014. An influential Qatar-based Islamist whose fiery sermons have caused tension between Gulf states said on Sunday that Egyptian presidential front runner Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will only bring downfall to the country. Sisi is expected to easily win the May 26-27 presidential election. The only other candidate is leftist politician Hamdeen Sabahi, w

The false promise of Mideast elections

The coming presidential elections in Egypt, Syria and Turkey offer little hope for a regional trend toward stability and democracy.

Israeli film sows nostalgia among Iraqi Jews

The Israeli film “Farewell Baghdad” explores the Jewish community in Iraq that was expelled from the country in the 1950s and 1960s, and has sparked feelings of nostalgia among Iraqi Jews.

ATTENTION EDITORS - VISUAL COVERAGE OF SCENES OF INJURY OR DEATH

People carry a wounded woman after an accidental explosion caused by leftover ordnance at Bustan al-Diwan, in old Homs City, May 10, 2014. Hundreds of residents return to Homs, after rebels left the city. REUTERS/Khaled al-Hariri (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) TEMPLATE OUT - RTR3OKXD

What can we learn from Homs?

Given the collapse of the Geneva process, and the Syrian government’s staying power, localized cease-fires may be the latest trend in the conflict.

An employee of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) checks the numbers written on boxes containing the parliamentary elections ballots at an analysis centre in Baghdad May 9, 2014. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR3OFS6

Iraqi elections will not be decisive

While some Iraqi politicians and media outlets tried to portray last month’s elections as “decisive” or “a matter of life and death,” they are merely one part of a long, democratic process.

Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki shows his ink marked finger as he votes during parliamentary election in Baghdad April 30, 2014. Iraqis head to the polls on Wednesday in their first national election since U.S. forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011 as Prime Minister Nuri Maliki seeks a third term amid rising violence.
REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3N6JL

Iraqi Shiite religious leaders divided on Maliki

The Iraqi parliamentary elections are showing a deep division among the Shiite community, with rising tension between the Shiite religious authorities and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Employees of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) count ballots during Iraqi parliamentary elections in Arbil, capital of the autonomous Kurdistan region, about 350 km (217 miles) north of Baghdad April 30, 2014. Iraqis head to the polls on Wednesday in their first national election since U.S. forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011 as Prime Minister Nuri Maliki seeks a third term amid rising violence. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR3NATN

Iraqi voters shift from religious to 'political sectarianism'

Iraqi voters appear to be gradually changing their loyalties from religious authorities to political groups.

A member of the Independent High Electoral Commission prays near ballot boxes during a vote counting at an analysis centre in Najaf, 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad, May 2, 2014. Iraq held a democratic vote to choose a leader with no foreign troops present for the first time on Wednesday, as Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki sought to hold power for a third term in a country again consumed by sectarian bloodshed. The electoral commission said 60 percent of all voters had so far cast a ballot, accord

Hakim calls for return of Iraq's National Alliance

The leader of the Iraq Citizen Coalition is calling for a renewed National Alliance among Iraq's Shiite political parties.