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Iraq

March 23, 2026

Baghdad 12:10 am

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A view of the oil refinery on March 17, 2026 in Erbil, Iraq.

Exclusive

Iraqi oil flows to Turkey after US pledges role in Baghdad-Kurds customs dispute

A US-brokered breakthrough between Baghdad and Erbil has restarted Iraqi oil exports through Turkey after a weeklong standoff.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

A picture shows smoke billowing from the Central Production Facility 1 gas refinery in Iraq's southern Maysan province on May 29, 2022.

Exclusive

Dana Gas evacuates Khor Mor staff in Iraq's Kurdistan Region after Iran threats

Tehran has warned it will target Gulf oil and gas facilities following Israel's strike on South Pars.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

An Iraqi oil tanker waits at the Khawr Abd Allah canal leading up to Al-Faw port in southern Iraq, on June 6, 2024.

Desperate to sell its oil, Iraq turns to Turkey amid standoff with Kurds

As Iraq looks to reroute oil to Turkey, Baghdad is also using the plan to push the Iraqi Kurds to greenlight exports through their territory.

Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

CENTCOM: Six killed after US refueling tanker aircraft crashes in Iraq

The KC-135 is the fourth American military aircraft downed since the war against Iran began.

Latest News

Interview

Yadlin: Israel's war goal to weaken Iran, not immediate regime change

Retired Israeli general and executive director of Tel Aviv University's Institute for National Security Studies Amos Yadlin attends a session at the Manama Dialogue security conference in the Bahraini capital, on Dec. 5, 2020.

Oil jumps above $100 as energy crisis called worst in history: What to know

Commercial vessels are pictured offshore in Dubai on March 11, 2026. AFP via Getty Images

US warns of kidnapping threat in Iraq as Iran-backed militia hits diplomatic facility

Fighters lift flags of Iraq and paramilitary groups, including al-Nujaba and Kataib Hezbollah, during a funeral in Baghdad for five militants killed a day earlier in a US strike in northern Iraq, on Dec. 4, 2023.

Exclusive

Baghdad, US turn to Iraqi Kurds for oil exports as Iran war hits supplies

The sun sets behind burning gas flares at the Dora Oil Refinery Complex in Baghdad on Nov. 24, 2025.

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

Head of the Badr Organisation Hadi al-Amiri (C) walks with Shi'ite fighters in Makhoul mountains, north of Baiji, October 17, 2015. Iraqi forces and Shi'ite militia fighters recaptured most of the country’s largest oil refinery from Islamic State militants on Thursday, security officials said. The report could not be independently confirmed because it is too dangerous for journalists to enter the battle zone around the refinery near the town of Baiji, about 190 km (120 miles) north of Baghdad. REUTERS/Thaie

Why Saudis may take on Iraq’s Shiite militias

Saudi Arabia sees Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units, formed from various Shiite militias to fight the Islamic State, as a dangerous long-term foe for the Sunni Islamic world.

Iraqi president Saddam Hussein admires a photograph of himself, presented to him by the Iraqi Information Ministry during an exhibition of gifts June 2001, presented to the Iraqi president for his birthday on April 28 2001. Picture taken June 2001.

fk/AA - RTRJZ1U

Were Iraqis really better off under Saddam?

Iraq's current security chaos appears to be inspiring a bit of nostalgia for Saddam Hussein’s days, though it is unclear who, exactly, is reminiscing.

What is Abadi doing to protect Iraq’s Christians?

The Islamic State is known for forcing Iraq's Christians out of their homes, but the terror group did not start the ugly trend.

How one Kurdish doctor is helping to treat victims of IS

A German psychologist tells Al-Monitor about his work with rape victims of the Islamic State, lauding their strength and resilience.

Staff from the South Oil Company (SOC) demonstrate to demand higher salaries and better benefits, in Basra, 420 km (261 miles) southeast of Baghdad, February 19, 2013. REUTERS/Atef Hassan (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST ENERGY) - RTR3DZET

Will Iraqi government employees face more wage cuts in 2016?

The Iraqi government’s austerity plan has now reached civil servants, raising fears of an uncertain future in light of the plunging oil revenues and increasing military expenses in the fight against the Islamic State.

How one Kurdish woman went from child soldier to Swedish lawmaker

Swedish parliamentarian Amineh Kakabaveh tells Al-Monitor about her remarkable journey from Kurdish guerrilla camps in Iraq’s mountains to the rostrum of European politics.

Iraq begins construction on Baghdad wall

While the central Iraqi government claims that a wall is needed around the capital for security reasons, Sunnis suspect that Baghdad is being isolated in preparation for annexation to a Shiite region.

Tunisian Foreign Minister Taieb Baccouche (R) shakes hands with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Tunis, Tunisia November 13, 2015. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi - RTS6SST

Kerry sells foreign aid budget

A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of Feb. 22.

Why this Iraqi city is starving

Residents of Fallujah, Mosul and other Iraqi cities under the Islamic State’s control are suffering under an IS strategy calculated to turn them against their government.

Iranian anti-narcotics policemen protect themselves from blowing sand at a police barracks on the border with Afghanistan near Zabol, 1,605 kilometers (1,003 miles) southeast of Tehran May 20, 2009. Iran, which shares a 900-km (560-mile) border with Afghanistan, is a conduit for smuggling drugs to the West from its insurgency-ridden neighbour. REUTERS/Caren Firouz (IRAN CRIME LAW POLITICS SOCIETY) - RTXKMQR

Iran struggles with border security

An IRGC commander says the elite Saberin Unit has provided Iran with security on its borders.

Zoroastrianism in Iraq seeks official recognition

Al-Monitor interviewed Zoroastrian spiritual leader in Iraq Peer Luqman Haji, who spoke about the resurgence of this millennia-old religion, the challenges and the need for tolerance in a region plagued by growing religious radicalism.

Beer cans are seen on the ground at the Ashurbanipal cultural society in Baghdad after an attack January 16, 2011. Men armed with steel pipes last week raided the Christian social club boasting a bar, and vandalized liquor shops in Baghdad, raising fears of a creeping fundamentalism as Iraq's new government gets to work. Picture taken January 16, 2011. REUTERS/Saad Shalash (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST RELIGION) - RTXWPQJ

Can Iraq separate religion and state?

Campaigns against social activity in Iraq call for a state that imposes its own rules and where Islamic factions have no power or influence.