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Iraq

October 29, 2026

Baghdad 11:23 am

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Zaidi

Iraq's Zaidi meets Sharaa on first Syria visit: What to know

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has sought to assuage concerns about his past militant activity in Iraq, whose oil trade and security cooperation with his two country is rising.

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.

Latest News

Explainer

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

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.

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

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

A man walks past election posters of Iraqi women candidates in Baghdad, April 24, 2014. As Iraq's general election draws closer, both men and women are vying for seats in the country's parliament. But this year's election, the first one after the withdrawal of U.S troops in 2011, has seen an increase in the number of female candidates. According to an Iraqi election official, women make up around 30 to 35 percent of the candidates in the April 30 election. "The total number of nominees in the 2010 parliame

Maliki diversifies Iraqi electoral lists

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has diversified his electoral lists to have a larger share of the votes in the upcoming parliamentary elections.

Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (front 3rd L) takes part in a ceremony to announce his election platform as well as promote candidates of State of Law coalition in Kerbala, southwest of Baghdad, April 17, 2014. REUTERS/Mushtaq Muhammed (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR3LQ8G

Maliki’s State of Law Coalition wants majority government

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s State of Law Coalition is blaming current problems on the "partnership" government, worked out in a power-sharing arrangement in 2010.

Ammar al-Hakim, leader of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI), gives a speech during prayers for the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha in Baghdad, October 16, 2013. Muslims around the world celebrate Eid al-Adha, marking the end of the haj, by slaughtering sheep, goats, cows and camels to commemorate Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail on God's command. REUTERS/Saad Shalash (IRAQ - Tags: RELIGION SOCIETY POLITICS) - RTX14DIE

Hakim-led Citizen Coalition could shake up Iraqi elections

New coalitions of moderate religious and secular origins could bode well for Iraqi politics and shake up the April 30 elections.

A woman with ink-stained fingers, holds a walking stick at a polling station in Baghdad's Sadr City March 7, 2010. Polling stations opened in Iraq on Sunday for a parliamentary election seen as crucial to the future of a country seeking stability after years of bloodshed. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) BEST QUALITY AVAILABLE - RTR2CEG2

Women prominent in coming Iraqi elections

Unlike in past elections, many female candidates are running in the Iraqi parliamentary elections scheduled for the end of this month.

A member of Iraqi security forces looks on during the digging operations to build a trench on the northern Iraqi border with Syria to prevent people from crossing over into Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on April 13, 2014 in Zakho. AFP PHOTO/SAFIN HAMED (Photo credit should read SAFIN HAMED/AFP/Getty Images)

KRG trench divides Syrian, Iraqi Kurds

The ditch dug by the Kurdistan Regional Government at Rojava, separating Syrian and Iraqi Kurds, adds another layer of complexity to the regional conflict.

Iraqi Sunni Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq (L) and Iraqiya Sunni speaker of parliament Osama al-Nujaifi hold a news conference for the seniors of Iraqiya bloc in Baghdad January 18, 2012. REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2WGNT

Electoral race heats up among Iraq's Sunni factions

While the Iraqi parliamentary elections scheduled for the end of this month approach, competition is fierce among Sunni blocs.

A man looks at an election campaign poster of Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Hussain al-Shahristani in Baghdad April 3, 2014. Iraq's parliamentary election is scheduled for April 30. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3JUTM

Iraqi elections: all talk, no walk

Many political blocs have dismissed the Iraqi voter as unable to analyze complex and detailed political programs.

Baghdad, IRAQ: Iraqi tribal men march behind a poster of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani during a demosntration in the holy city of Najaf, south of Baghdad, 26 February 2006. Sistani called for Iraq's powerful tribes to be deployed to protect the country's holy places after three attacks on Shiite shrines in four days, his office said. "Ayatollah Sistani, who received a tribal delegation from Kufa, asked that the Iraqi tribes reclaim their role of protecting the shrines," said an official in Sistani's offic

Sistani calls on Iraqi voters to 'choose wisely'

Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani has called on the Iraqi people to "choose wisely" in the coming elections, holding Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki responsible for problems in Iraq and opposing a third term for him.

Photographer Mohamed Turjuman shows what he says are pictures that he took of Imam Musa al-Sadr, at his studio in Tyre, southern Lebanon, February 23, 2011. Sadr, the founder of the Shi'ite Amal movement, disappeared with his two companions on a visit to Libya in 1978. The uprising against Muammar Gaddafi has given Sadr's family hope that they may finally find out what happened to him if the Libyan leader is toppled, Rabab al-Sadr told Reuters on February 24, 2011. Picture taken February 23, 2011. REUTERS/

Lebanon's Shiite seminaries split between tradition, modernity

Although most Shiite seminaries in Lebanon still follow a traditional curriculum, a number of schools have begun to revise and develop their educational approaches.

Iraqi secular Sunni politician Mithal al-Alusi speaks during an election campaign rally ahead of March 7 parliamentary elections in Baghdad February 27, 2010. REUTERS/Saad Shalash (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR2AZUB

Iraqi secularists under attack ahead of elections

A religious leader with ties to the Islamic Dawa Party has issued a fatwa banning citizens from voting for secular candidates, as religious currents increasingly claim secular movements are tainted by links to the old regime of Saddam Hussein.

Police officers search a vehicle at a checkpoint, as security increases after a bomb attack, at Abu Ghraib district, west of Baghdad, January 9, 2014. A suicide bomber killed 13 Iraqi army recruits and wounded more than 30 in Baghdad on Thursday, police said, in an attack on men responding to a government appeal for volunteers to help fight al Qaeda-linked militants in Anbar province. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY) - RTX177MB

Maliki's use of SWAT forces questioned

In mid-March, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki criticized police manning checkpoints for delaying traffic, leading to the arrest of some officers by members of the SWAT forces.

A man walks past an election campaign poster of Mohammed Abed Al-Kazem Aqeeli (C) of Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's State of Law coalition in Baghdad April 3, 2014. Iraq's parliamentary election is scheduled for later this month. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3JUU1

Iraqi government submits controversial emergency powers bill

The bill would give near-absolute powers to Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and is filled with loopholes and vague language.