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Iraq

July 24, 2026

Baghdad 2:17 pm

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Iraq deepens Iran ties days after US investment push

The Iraqi premier visited Tehran shortly after his trip to Washington for talks focusing on economic cooperation and plans to develop a cross-border railway network.

Iraq

International oil firms halt production in Iraq’s Kurdistan amid US-Iran escalation

The move follows the deaths of two US service members in an Iranian attack on Jordan.

US President Donald Trump (R) shakes hands with Prime Minister of Iraq Ali al-Zaidi during a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office of the White House, Washington, July 14, 2026.

Analysis

What Zaidi's Washington visit means for US investment in Iraq

Iraq could greatly benefit from US investment in gas capture, which could help reduce the country's dependence on neighboring Iran.

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

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

Hussein FALEH / AFP via Getty Images

Chevron, ConocoPhillips advance Iraq's Hormuz alternatives

Oil agreements have been announced or are expected to be signed on Friday, toward the end of Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi's visit to the United States.

Latest News

Trump hosts Iraqi PM Zaidi as Iran war intensifies

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.

Analysis

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

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

Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr (C) takes part in Friday prayers participated by Sunni and Shi'ite Muslim worshippers in a gesture of unity at the Abdul Qadir Gilani Mosque in Baghdad January 4, 2013. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: RELIGION)

Sadr Allies With Sunnis in Challenge To Maliki

Muqtada Sadr has allied with Sunnis opposed to Prime Minister Maliki in order to help oust him from power, writes Mushreq Abbas.

Kurdish Peshmerga troops are deployed on the outskirts of Kirkuk, some 250km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, November 24, 2012. Iraq's Kurdish region has sent reinforcements to a disputed area where its troops are involved in a standoff with the Iraqi army, a senior Kurdish military official said, despite calls on both sides for dialogue to calm the situation. Picture taken November 24, 2012. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari (IRAQ - Tags: CONFLICT POLITICS MILITARY)

Iraqi Kurds Fear Rise of Military Threat From Baghdad

As tensions between Baghdad and Erbil escalate, Abdel Hamid Zibari argues that Kurdish fears are not exaggerated and that the armament of Iraqi forces poses a serious threat to the Kurdish region.

Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (L) stands next to Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr during a news conference in Najaf, 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad October 18, 2006. Maliki travelled to the holy city of Najaf on Wednesday and met Sadr and Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the leading Shi'ite cleric in Iraq. REUTERS/AliAbu Shish (IRAQ)

Sadr and Maliki Battle Over Iraqi Oil

Ali Abel Sadah examines the complex relationship between Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Muqtada al-Sadr.

People are seen as the sun sets over a beach in the Aqaba Gulf on the Red Sea, south of Amman November 25, 2011. Picture taken November 25, 2011. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: SOCIETY)

Iraqi Pipeline to Aqaba Sparks Memories of Kirkuk-Haifa Line

The oil pipeline to be constructed between Baghdad and Aqaba raises fond memories among Israelis of the Mandate-era Kirkuk-Haifa oil pipeline, a time that many would be happy to resurrect, writes Jacky Hugi.

An Iraqi worker with the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) load ballot boxes into the back of a truck for transport to a storage place, after the recounting process in Baghdad May 14, 2010. A recount of 2.5 million votes cast in Baghdad in Iraq's March 7 election has been completed and no fraud was found, an Iraqi election official said on Friday. REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS)

Iraqi Parties to Seek Revenge In Provincial Elections

Saleem Al-Hasani writes that the upcoming provincial elections will be seen as an opportunity for settling scores among Iraq's political parties.

Iraqi Sunni Muslims wave Iraqi national flags during an anti-government demonstration in Falluja, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad, December 28, 2012. Tens of thousands of protesters from Iraq's Sunni Muslim minority poured onto the streets after Friday prayers in a show of force against Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, keeping up a week-old blockade of a highway. Around 60,000 people blocked the main road through the city of Falluja, setting fire to the Iranian flag and shouting "out, out Iran! Baghd

Balance Key in Iran, Iraq Ties

The history of Iraq and Iran goes back centuries, but looking at their relationship today through just that lens would be a mistake, argues Mustafa al-Kadhimi.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (C) leaves after an Arab economy, finance and trade ministers meeting as part of the Arab League Summit in Baghdad March 27, 2012. The Arab leaders will meet on March 29 in Baghdad for the 23rd Arab League Summit. REUTERS/Ali Haider/Pool (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS)

Iraq's Central Bank a Political Battleground

In the midst of ongoing political disputes within Iraq, the country’s central bank is facing a number of problems, writes Omar al-Shaher.