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Iraq

July 16, 2026

Baghdad 1:18 am

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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

Latest News

Analysis

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

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

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

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

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

Are Iraq's politicians to blame for Baghdad terror attacks?

The Islamic State attacks in three different parts of Baghdad on May 11 are an indication that the political crisis has affected security.

Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr speaks during a news conference in Najaf, south of Baghdad, Iraq April 30, 2016. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani - RTX2C8B9

Muqtada al-Sadr, the most powerful man in Iraqi politics?

Many believe the storming of the Iraqi parliament by pro-Sadr protesters will only destroy the space for political work in a country where armed conflict has long been a way of settling differences.

Followers of Iraq's Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr shout slogans at Grand Festivities Square within the Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq, May 1, 2016. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani - RTX2CCQK

Why Shiites are divided over Iranian role in Iraq

Shiites have started to act based on political orientations instead of their sectarian affiliations, which is viewed as an edge in the Shiite public awareness.

Who are Syria's Alawites?

Alawite doctrine differs in many ways from Sunni and Shiite Islam, but Alawites believe they should be respected and accepted as an independent Muslim sect.

Participants pose for a picture during a ceremony opening a representative office of Syrian Kurdistan in Moscow, Russia, February 10, 2016. Syrian Kurdistan is also known as Western Kurdistan or Rojava region - the term commonly used by Kurds living in Syria. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov - RTX26BWH

How Russia sees Kurdish quest for autonomy

Russia is carefully crafting its policies regarding Kurds, seeking to take a leadership role in the Syrian situation without actually offending anyone.

Young Arab and Kurdish soldiers, coming from the newly-declared federal region -unifying territory run by Kurds across several Syrian provinces- take part in a training session as part of a compulsory military service on March 24, 2016 in Rmeilan, a border town in Syria's northeast Hasakeh province.
Syria's Kurds on March 17, 2016 declared a federal region in areas under their control in the north of the conflict-riven country, a move rejected by both the government and opposition. The new "federal system"

Why Syria's Kurds can’t count on long-term commitment from Russia

Russia appears to be looking ahead to strengthen its post-conflict political position in Syria by exploiting Kurds’ anxiety over America’s role there.

A displaced boy, who fled from Salahuddin province stands in a tent at a refugee camp, on the outskirts of Kirkuk, December 17, 2014. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed (IRAQ - Tags - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST SOCIETY POVERTY) - RTR4IESO

Fleeing Tuz Khormato residents add more strain on Iraq's Kirkuk

The renewed fighting in Tuz Khormato has prompted many more families to leave for Kirkuk, which is already struggling to host a large number of displaced people.

Muqtada al-Sadr, chameleon of Iraq's politics

Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr is taking advantage of the current popular protests in Iraq to expand his influence and thus become an undisputable leader on the Iraqi political scene.

French envoys bear surprising message from Mideast Christians

A French delegation to Lebanon, Iraq and Syria found that many Christians in the Middle East believe Western policies place economic interests ahead of their well-being.

Tunisian-born Holocaust survivor Susana Peretz, 79, sits in her home in the southern city of Beersheba April 4, 2013. Some 192,000 Holocaust survivors live in Israel and about a third have sought aid from the Foundation for the Benefit of the Holocaust Victims in Israel. According to surveys by the foundation, 19 percent of the survivors have admitted to going without adequate amounts of food and 14 percent had to forego medical treatment at least once a year due to financial hardship. The report said that

Israel's Arab Jews officially recognized as victims of Holocaust

Roughly 1,000 of Israel's North African and Iraqi Jews have requested to receive a one-time compensation grant that recognizes the suffering of those communities under the Nazi regime.

Why Tuz Khormato clashes were more than just local skirmishes

In Tuz Khormato, Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units and Kurdish peshmerga forces recently fought what appears to be a battle in the Shiite-Sunni power struggle, and not just a localized skirmish.

Iraqi journalists light candles at the site where Mohammed Badawi, the Baghdad bureau chief of Radio Free Iraq, was shot dead by a Kurdish officer in Baghdad's Jadriyah district March 22, 2014. Badawi was shot dead by the Kurdish officer at a checkpoint in Baghdad on Saturday as he went to work, provoking protests by other journalists and a promise by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to arrest the perpetrator. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MEDIA) - RTR3I6H4

Why journalists in Iraq face death threats

Journalists in Iraq are divided on why press freedom is restricted in the country, as some say that some reporters bring death threats on themselves by fabricating reports.