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Iraq

January 15, 2026

Baghdad 8:21 pm

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Sadaf Ebrahimi walks down a row of demonstrators at Lafayette Park in front of the White House during the "Free Iran" rally on Jan 10, 2026, in Washington.

Analysis

Trump dials up risky Iran tariffs that would hit China, UAE and others: What to know

Any country trading with Iran now faces a 25% tariff, per the White House, but the move is unlikely to ratchet up pressure on Tehran in the short term.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Iranians gather while blocking a street during a protest in Tehran, Iran, on Jan. 9, 2026.

From Iraq to Yemen, how Iran proxies are responding to protests

Iraqi militias and the Houthis are growing more vocal in their defense of Iran amid the protests sweeping the country, while Hezbollah and Palestinian groups are remaining relatively quiet.

Safin HAMID / AFP via Getty Images

Sharaa tells Iraq's Barzani Kurds integral to Syria amid fears of Aleppo spillover

More than 140,000 people have been displaced by fighting between Syrian government and Kurdish forces in Aleppo and the situation has captured the attention of Kurdistan Region and federal government leaders in neighboring Iraq.

The Iranian-flagged oil tanker Fortune is docked at the El Palito refinery after its arrival to Puerto Cabello in the northern state of Carabobo, Venezuela, on May 25, 2020.

Analysis

Venezuelan crisis unlikely to impact MENA crude exporters in short term

Oil prices inched up on Monday as global oversupply concerns outweighed output disruption fears over the upheaval in Venezuela.

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

Latest News

Analysis

After Iraq’s election, what are US priorities for next government?

Armoured vehicles of the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Forces are deployed outside the US embassy building in Baghdad's Green Zone on June 12, 2025, after an announcement by a US official the previous day that staff levels at the diplomatic mission in Iraq were being reduced over security concerns. Despite reporting progress in earlier rounds of talks between Iran and the United States, tensions have reached a fever pitch this week as Washington moved non-essential staff from bases in the region following US medi

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

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

Syria seizes anti-aircraft missiles near Iraqi border: What to know

Syria's security directorate in al-Bukamal seized SAM-7 missiles being prepared for smuggling into Iraq, on Dec. 22, 2025.

Analysis

What Turkey wants from Iraq to renew pipeline deal

A worker turns a valve at the Shirawa oil field, where oil was first pumped in Iraq in 1927, outside the northern city of Kirkuk, Jan. 19, 2004.

David O'Byrne

By David O'Byrne

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

Andrew Parasiliti

President and Chief Content Officer

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, national security

Suadad al-Salhy

In Baghdad, reporting on politics and security

Lyse Mauvais

In Amman, reporting on humanitarian crises

Vehicles of Kurdish Peshmarga Forces are seen near Altun Kupri between Kirkuk and Erbil, Iraq October 20, 2017. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari - RC1FFF872240

Congress abandons constraints on Kurdish aid

US lawmakers wary of Iraqi Kurds’ independence push have shelved their concerns amid Baghdad’s Iran-backed push to reassert control.

Turkey’s misguided Middle East policy: From Syria, Iraq to the Gulf

Turkey’s misguided foreign policy has increasingly become apparent in three main spheres: Syria, Iraq and the Gulf region.

Dust storms sweep across Iraq as government solutions falter

Dust storms are becoming a growing problem in Iraq, leaving many human victims as well as environmental damages and economic losses in their path, and the government's attempts to counter the storms have so far been unsuccessful.

Kurds divided over blame for loss of Kirkuk

The recapture of Kirkuk by Iraqi forces in the aftermath of the independence referendum is a heavy blow for Kurds in Iran, Syria and Turkey.

The other Iranians fighting in Iraq

While much focus was on Iranian fighters among the Iraqi forces that retook disputed areas in October, other Iranian fighters played a key role in the other side of the fight.

Iraq’s intervention may change the equation in Syria's Kurdish regions

The closure of the Fish Khabur and Rabia border crossings between Iraq and Syria may jeopardize the Kurdish federal project in northern Syria.

The road to rebuilding Raqqa

The city of Raqqa, newly liberated from the Islamic State by the Kurdish-led and US-supported Syrian Democratic Forces, will now face the challenges of reconstruction and uprooting the jihadi threat once and for all.

Iraq-Turkey border confusion: Who's in charge here?

The sight of Turkish soldiers at the Habur border crossing with Iraq for the first time in 26 years raised many questions and a lot of conflicting answers.

Baghdad looks to take control of KRG oil

The federal government in Baghdad seeks to extend its full control over all oil wells in the disputed areas between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Region, even those within the region.

Russian President Vladimir Putin enters a hall to meet with members of the Presidential Council for Civil Society and Human Rights at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia October 30, 2017. REUTERS/Kirill Kudryavtsev/Pool - RC1E30F1E010

Putin, Khamenei agree they need each other

Iran and Russia deepen energy cooperation; Iran has Hezbollah’s back; does the CIA have a back channel to Assad?

Culture Alert: November the month for contemporary art, photography

Several major art events are entering their final weeks and months in the region.

Shi'ite Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) are seen in Zumar, Nineveh province, Iraq October 18, 2017. REUTERS/Ari Jalal - RC1E698CF530

Iran unlikely to sit idle as US targets Hezbollah, PMU

Tehran views US actions against Iran's friends in the region as nothing short of a plot to sabotage the republic's strength and restrict its area of influence.