Iraq - AL-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent since 2012

Iran cover image

Iraq

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

Iraqi Kurdish regional President Massoud Barzani (R) shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi at Arbil International Airport April 6, 2015. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari - RTR4W82R

Is Abadi key to resolving Kurdish conflict?

As the political divide and violent protests worsen in Iraqi Kurdistan, will Baghdad be able to keep the situation under control through peaceful means?

United States Secretary of Defense Ash Carter prepares to testify at a Senate Armed Forces Committee hearing on "United States Strategy in the Middle East" in Washington October 27, 2015. REUTERS/Gary Cameron - RTX1TGBO

Pentagon outlines its '3Rs' Islamic State strategy

Democrats and Republicans alike have misgivings about the Pentagon's push for a greater US role in Iraq and Syria.

Supporters of Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki hold his portrait outside al-Dawa party's headquarters as they celebrate his return to Baghdad, 05 January 2008. Maliki arrived home today a week after flying to Britain for medical tests, saying in a newspaper interview he was determined to bring about reconciliation in the deeply divided country. AFP PHOTO / AHMAD AL-RUBAYE (Photo credit should read AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images)

Is Iraq’s Dawa Party on verge of division?

The Dawa Party, the main party in Iraq's ruling coalition in Iraq, is suffering divisiveness, with lines drawn between Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and his predecessor, Nouri al-Maliki.

Turkish Foreign Minister Feridun Sinirlioglu (L), U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (2nd L), Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir (3rd L) and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov pose during a photo opportunity before a meeting in Vienna, October 23, 2015. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri - RTS5SVT

No breakthrough in Syria possible without Iran

Russian foreign minister dismisses rumors of a deal on Assad ahead of Syria talks; Hezbollah takes casualties in Hama; Turkey’s headache over US support for Syrian Kurds; days of rage in Gaza.

Senate to grill Kerry on Russian war in Syria

A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of Oct. 26.

Religious events in Iraq become show of force

Religious events in Iraq have come to serve as opportunities for sects to make a show of force, as tensions persist in the country.

Who is spreading rumors about a coup in Iraq?

A rumor about an imminent coup spread in Baghdad at the end of September, which the Iraqi government rushed to deny.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi (L) talks to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, May 21, 2015. Moscow and Baghdad are expanding military cooperation, Putin said on Thursday during talks with al-Abadi in the Kremlin. REUTERS/Kirill Kudryavtsev/Pool - RTX1DYWB

Can Iraq meet US, Russia halfway?

As political forces have called for Russia to intervene in Iraq, as it has in Syria, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has been cautious about what steps to take regarding Russia and the United States.

Iraqi doctors plagued by threats, extortion

Iraqi doctors are living under constant threat of death and kidnapping by tribes and gangs seeking to extort them in what some suspect is a plot to empty the country of its scientific assets.

Iraqi Kurdish regional President Massoud Barzani speaks during a ceremony in Dohuk, northern Iraq August 3, 2015. Barzani is marking the first anniversary of Islamic State's surge on Yazidis of the town of Sinjar. REUTERS/Ari Jalal - RTX1MVM6

Iraqi Kurdistan's brewing crisis

In addition to Iraqi Kurdistan's struggle with the Islamic State, now it has to cope with domestic crises that may require intervention by the US and Europe.

Iraqi security forces arrest suspected militants during a raid and weapons search operation in Baghdad's Shaab neighbourhood, July 26, 2015. REUTERS/Stringer - RTX1LU5B

The danger of Iraq's informants

Thousands of Iraqis were arrested based on information provided by informants and turned out to be innocent, thus raising questions about Iraq’s judiciary system and human rights policies.

U.S. Defence Secretary Ashton Carter (R) speaks during a news conference with his British counterpart Michael Fallon at Lancaster House in London, Britain October 9, 2015. U.S. President Barack Obama will overhaul Washington's approach to supporting Syrian rebel forces following this year's deeply troubled launch of a U.S. military training program, Carter said on Friday. REUTERS/Jonathan Brady/pool - RTS3QRE

Is it time for a surge in Syria?

A group of current and former US officials concludes that current US policy toward the Islamic State is not working, and that more needs to be done in both the diplomatic and military spheres to end the Syrian civil war.