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Iraq

July 2, 2026

Baghdad 6:12 pm

43°C

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images

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

Watchdogs and financial institutions regard Iraq as a significantly corrupt country as the new prime minister works to recover public funds.

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

Analysis

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

Iraq’s new prime minister has launched a sweeping anti-corruption campaign ahead of key talks in Washington, but analysts say the real test will be whether it reaches Iraq’s most powerful Iran-backed actors.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

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

Explainer

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

Iraq is seeking a higher production quota as the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has slashed oil revenues and plunged the country into a fiscal crisis.

Latest News

Iraq taps Krikor Der-Hagopian as first Armenian Christian ambassador to US

Krikor Der-Hagopian at the 9th Sulaimani Forum, in Sulaimaniyah, Iraq, on April 16, 2025.

Exclusive

Barrack heads to Iraq as US presses Baghdad on Iran-backed militias

Tom Barrack

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Culture

World Cup opens amid visa disputes for Iran, Iraq and Somalia

Members of the Iranian national soccer team including midfielder Alireza Jahanbakhsh (R) arrive at Tijuana International Airport on June 7, 2026, in Tijuana, Mexico.

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

Honor guards carry the coffin of Sayyed Razi Mousavi.

Funeral held for Iran's IRGC commander killed by Israel as Tehran vows revenge

Iran said Sayyed Razi Mousavi was killed in an Israeli strike in Syria. The death of the commander, who was mourned in Syria and Iraq, could ignite war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Smoke plumes billow from a fire at a lumber warehouse in southern Khartoum amidst ongoing fighting on June 7, 2023. Eight weeks of fighting have pitted Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan against his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo -- commonly known as Hemeti -- who commands the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). A number of broken ceasefires have offered brief lulls but no respite for residents of Khartoum, where witnesses again reported "the sound of heavy artillery fire" in the ca

2023 in review: From Sudan to Syria, here are Mideast's forgotten conflicts

More than 12,000 people were killed in the war in Sudan this year, while violence persisted in parts of Syria, Iraq and other countries across the Middle East and North Africa.

collage 2023

2023 in review: Al-Monitor's special coverage from across Middle East

Iraq drought

How are climate change, water scarcity weighing on Iraq’s agriculture?

The Norwegian Refugee Council said farmers are being hurt economically by climate change, and suggested better irrigation techniques and water monitoring technology to improve the sector.

Amberin and Fabrice webinar

The Israel-Hamas war: A view from Iraq and Syria

Join a live Q&A webinar with Amberin Zaman and Fabrice Balanche on Friday, Dec. 1 at 11 am ET (Pro members only).

US jets

Pentagon expands strikes on Iran-backed groups amid Iraq backlash

Iraq's government slammed US airstrikes that targeted Kata'ib Hezbollah command centers as 'an unacceptable violation of sovereignty' as Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani seeks to balance his support base with Baghdad's ties with Washington.

US gunship

US gunship strikes Iran-backed militias in Iraq after ballistic missile attack

US commanders ordered lethal strikes in quick response to a missile attack on the Ain al-Asad air base, in a sign the military is taking matters into its own hands to defend its personnel in Iraq.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein talks to the press during a EU-Iraq Cooperation Council, at the European Council Building in Brussels on March 19, 2023.

Iraqi FM says unless US stops Israel, conflict in Gaza will 'burn all of us'

Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein worries that the conflict in Gaza will drag on and expand beyond Israel’s borders.

Iraqi Parliament Speaker Muhammad al-Halbousi addresses France's President Emmanuel Macron (unseen) during a meeting at the parliament in the capital Baghdad, on August 28, 2021. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP) (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images)

Resignations at Iraq's parliament after supreme court ends Halbusi’s term

The powerful Sunni politician has been mired in controversy amid political tensions in Iraq.

Elizabeth Tsurkov

Proof of life video of Russian-Israeli scholar suggests Iraqi captors want to negotiate

The first video appearance of kidnapped Russian-Israeli scholar Elizabeth Tsurkov could mean her Shiite militia captors are seeking a deal for her release.

The Iraqi government is trying to avoid becoming a battleground in the Israel-Hamas war as Iran-backed militias continue to attack US forces there, but Baghdad has limited options to deter them.

Analysis

Iraq struggles to thwart Iran proxies' attacks as US ups rhetoric

The Iraqi government is trying to avoid becoming a battleground in the Israel-Hamas war as Iran-backed militias continue to attack US forces there, but Baghdad has limited options to deter them.

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Excess hydrocarbons being burned off at the Nahr Bin Omar natural gas field, north of the southern Iraqi port of Basra, January 22, 2018.

Iraq and Turkmenistan make progress toward deal to transport gas via Iran

Iraq, currently dependent on Iran for gas and electricity, is seeking to develop its own gas supply as well as import gas from Turkmenistan.