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Iraq

May 9, 2026

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Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada Sadr gives a speech in Iraq's central holy shrine city of Najaf on August 30, 2022.

Iraq’s Sadr says 'exclude' armed groups from next government as pressure builds

The cleric's call comes as Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi tries to form a government amid political divisions and US demands to curb the influence of Iran-backed actors.

Popular Mobilization Forces

US sets expectations for Iraq’s next PM to confront Iranian militias

The Trump administration is cautiously sizing up Iraq’s new prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, as a potential partner in pushing back on Iranian influence.

Zaidi

Analysis

Iraq’s Zaidi offers economic promise for Turkey but unknowns loom

Iraq’s prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, is expected to sustain growing economic and strategic ties with Turkey thanks to his business-oriented approach, though uncertainty over his political stance could test cooperation on sensitive issues.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Latest News

Analysis

US banking on Iraqi turnaround with nomination of Zaidi as new PM

Ali Al-Zaidi

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Analysis

MENA wheat importers face food security risks as Hormuz crisis festers

Crops of wheat and barley in Terbol village on May 10, 2022, in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Trump congratulates Iraq PM-designate Zaidi in call: What to know

Iraq's prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, at Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's office on April 28, 2026.

Meet Ali al-Zaidi, businessman and Iraq's new prime minister-designate

Prime Minister Mohammed S. al-Sudani met with Prime Minister-designate Ali Faleh al-Zaidi on April 28, 2026.

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

Syrian Kurds continue to blame Turkey for backing ISIS militants

In a report from northeast Syria, Syrian Kurds, locked in a bloody battle with the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), also fear a potential clash with Syrian government forces.

A man, who was injured during a suicide bomber attack in Mwafaqiya village at Mosul, lies in a hospital bed after he was brought for treatment in a hospital in Arbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdistan region, June 6, 2014. Militants fought Iraqi security forces in the northern city of Mosul on Friday, a day after parts of another city were briefly overrun by insurgents. A curfew was imposed on Mosul on Thursday, when Sunni Islamist insurgents moved into parts of the city of Samarra, bringing them wit

ISIS 'hit and run' tactics reveal Iraqi security weaknesses

The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) is briefly occupying Sunni neighborhoods then immediately withdrawing, to weaken confidence in Iraqi forces and display its power.

Iraqi Shi'ite youths use computers at an internet cafe in Sadr City in Baghdad May 3, 2014. Iraq is now gripped by its worst violence since the heights of its 2005-2008 sectarian war, and Sunni Islamist insurgents who target Shi'ites have been regaining ground in the country over the past year. But despite the instability, daily life continues in poor Shi'ite neighbourhoods of Baghdad such as Al-Fdhiliya and Sadr City - a sprawling slum marred by poor infrastructure and overcrowding. Picture taken May 3, 20

Iraqi entrepreneurs strike it rich reselling goods on Facebook

Iraqi entrepreneurs have launched Facebook pages selling US and European products to Iraqis, who usually do not have access to international goods.

Blindfolded suspected militants, with possible links to al-Qaeda, are seen at Iraqi police headquarters in Diyala province, north of Baghdad December 5, 2011. Police forces arrested 30 suspected militants during a raid in Diyala province, a police source said. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CONFLICT) - RTR2UVUD

Transitional justice fails in Iraq

After the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003, measures to implement transitional justice have been largely unsuccessful.

TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY SALAM FARAJ
An Iraqi boy uses the light at the end of a lighter to study during a power outage in Baghdad on March 19, 2014. As recently as the 1970s, the Iraqi capital was lauded as a model city in the Arab world, but now, after decades of seemingly endless conflict, it is the world's worst city according to the latest survey by the Mercer consulting group. AFP PHOTO/ALI AL-SAADI (Photo credit should read ALI AL-SAADI/AFP/Getty Images)

Lights out on Maliki's electricity promises

Ali al-Fayyad, deputy head of the Iraqi parliament's Energy Committee, said he's hoping the private sector steps in to ease the electricity crisis that the people have suffered from for decades, especially in the scorching summer months.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani shake hands before their meeting in Istanbul April 19, 2012. REUTERS/Stringer/Pool (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR30XVH

How Turkey lost its influence in Iraq

Ankara's tilt toward the Kurdistan Region of Iraq has undermined its once considerable influence in Iraq.

Un Muayad, (L) a Ramadi resident fighting alongside tribal fighters, fires her rifle during clashes with the al Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Ramadi May 19, 2014. Muayad has been fighting against the Al-Qaeda branch since the the beginning of the uprising in her city, where a relative of her husband was killed by the ISIL. More than 420,000 people have already escaped the two main cities of western Anbar province, Falluja and Ramadi, in fighting since the start of the year. Res

Maliki’s call for unity conference in Anbar may be too late

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki recently called for a conference to solve the Anbar crisis, which might be futile if the tribal and political differences are not settled first.

Iraq's Kurdistan Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani 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 au

KRG risks isolation in Iraq by exporting oil through Turkey

Erbil’s decision to export oil without consulting the Baghdad government could also increase Turkish leverage on the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

A worker adjusts the valve of an oil pipe at Khurmala oilfield on the outskirts of the city of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region December 4, 2013. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ENERGY) - RTX163IS

Turkey’s Kurdish oil gamble

Turkey’s sale of Iraqi Kurdish crude oil could backfire for Ankara and the Kurdistan Regional Government.

IRAQ-APRIL 15: Woman walk aimlessly in a courtyard April 15, 2003 at a psychiatric hospital in Baghdad, Iraq. While most hospitals in Iraq are suffering, the psychiatric wards and hospitals have, for the most part, been completely forgotten. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Iraqis' epidemic of mental illness

Although statistics from international organizations indicate that mental illness is on the rise in Iraq, social stigma prevents patients from getting treated and students from studying psychology and psychiatry.

Sarbast Mustafa (C), chairman of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC), speaks during a news conference to announce the final results of the parliamentary election in Baghdad May 19, 2014. Prime Minister Nouri Maliki won the largest share of Iraqi parliamentary seats in last month's national elections, dealing a blow to Shi?ite, Sunni and Kurdish rivals who opposed his serving a third term. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR3PULT

Will Iraqi elections be decided in Iraq?

Given the internal divisions and sectarian tensions characterizing the Iraqi scene, external powers maintain strong influence in the country.

Shi'ite people place copies of the Koran on their heads during a ceremony marking the death anniversary of Imam Ali at his shrine in the holy city of Najaf, about 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad, July 30, 2013. Imam Ali, the son-in-law of Prophet Mohammad, was wounded in the head during a battle and died after two days in 661 AD in Najaf. REUTERS/Ahmad Mousa (IRAQ - Tags: RELIGION TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) FOR BEST QUALITY IMAGE ALSO SEE: GM1EA3R14QL01 - RTX124BU

Sunni, Shiite scholars attempt to ease Iraqi political conflicts

As Iraq's sectarian conflicts have always exacerbated political strife, communication networks between Shiite and Sunni clerics are sorely needed.