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Iraq

August 8, 2026

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Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa meets with Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani in Damascus, Aug. 3, 2026. IKRPresident/X

Iraqi Kurdish president’s meeting with Syria’s Sharaa signals shift in SDF dynamics

KRG President Nechirvan Barzani’s meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa underscored the Kurdistan Region’s growing role in Syria’s Kurdish politics.

Mourners carry one of the bodies of members of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi, or Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) who were killed earlier in Diyala in central Iraq by US-Saudi strikes, during the funeral in Baghdad on July 29, 2026. The US-Saudi strikes killed at least 20 militants, including Iranians, according to the Hashed al-Shaabi. The US and Saudi Arabia said the strikes were in response to attacks on US forces and Saudi oil facilities. (Photo by murtadha ridha / AFP via Getty Images) /

Analysis

Renewed Iraq attacks test Zaidi’s push to disarm Iran-backed militias

An attempt by Iraqi government forces to seize weapons belonging to an Iranian-backed faction encountered resistance, raising questions about Prime Minister Ali Zaidi’s pledge to disarm militias by Sept. 30.

Mustafa Salim

By Mustafa Salim

Latest News

Analysis

Iran-linked militias seek to draw Iraq into regional war

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.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Exclusive

US nears full withdrawal from Iraq as bases in Kurdistan Region face attacks from Iran, proxies

Patriot

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Zaidi cancels Riyadh trip after US-Saudi strikes on Iran-backed militias in Iraq

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi at a Council of Ministers meeting in Baghdad, July 25, 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

A member of the Iraqi security forces takes up position with his weapon in the desert between Anbar and Kerbala, February 24, 2015. Picture taken February 24, 2015. REUTERS/Mushtaq Muhammed (IRAQ - Tags - Tags: CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR4R3AU

Tribal divisions deepen Anbar battle controversy

The Islamic State will continue to move freely in Anbar province until Iraqi political parties agree on a joint force composed of the army and the Popular Mobilization Units, to lead the battles for the liberation of Anbar.

The residence of the military commander of the Houthi militant group, Abdullah Yahya al Hakim, is seen after an airstrike destroyed it in Sanaa April 28, 2015. Saudi-led aircraft pounded Iran-allied Houthi militiamen and rebel army units on Monday, dashing hopes for a pause in fighting to let aid in as relief officials warned of a catastrophic humanitarian crisis. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah - RTX1AM7D

Saudi Arabia’s Islamist-liberal divide

The Saudi regime needs to tend to internal divisions in the kingdom and scale back its interventionism in the region to improve its prospects for long-term stability.

A Kurdish flag is seen as a member of the Kurdish Peshmerga forces stands guard at a security point on Bashiqa mountain, overlooking Islamic State held territories of Mosul, 12 km northeast of Mosul City, March 7, 2015. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY CONFLICT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR4SF4S

Defense bill recognizes Iraq's Kurdish, Sunni militias as a 'country'

The draft House bill carves out 25% of anti-Islamic State funding for the peshmerga and Sunni tribes.

Iraqi gypsy families gather outside their shack that serves as their home in the southern Iraqi city of Diwaniya January 4, 2006. Scorned by religious Muslims and barely tolerated by the rest of society, Iraq's Gypsies have a precarious existence. Lacking education or skills, they form one of the lower rungs of Iraq's social system. To match feature IRAQ GYPSIES REUTERS/Imad Al-Khozai - RTR17RDG

Iraq's Gypsy communities face discrimination

Iraq’s Gypsy communities must lead clandestine lives to avoid persecution by the wider society in Iraq, particularly at the hands of religious extremists and conservatives.

Fighters of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) stand guard at a checkpoint in the northern Iraq city of Mosul, June 11, 2014. Since Tuesday, black clad ISIL fighters have seized Iraq's second biggest city Mosul and Tikrit, home town of former dictator Saddam Hussein, as well as other towns and cities north of Baghdad. They continued their lightning advance on Thursday, moving into towns just an hour's drive from the capital. Picture taken June 11, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNRE

The Islamic State’s Baathist roots

Although the presence and strength of former Baathist officers in the Islamic State is unlikely to revive pan-Arab nationalism, it has implications for a strategy to counter the Islamic State and eventually stabilize Iraq.

Iraq's Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi (L) and U.S. President Barack Obama deliver remarks to reporters after their bilateral meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington April 14, 2015. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RTR4XBNF

Iraq maintains neutrality in regional conflicts

On a visit to Washington, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi leveled criticism at Iran and Saudi Arabia, reflecting his desire to maintain a neutral position in their regional rivalry.

Supporters of Iranian opposition group Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK) hold flags showing Maryam Rajavi, head of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), as they rally against Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki hours before he is scheduled to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama, at the White House in Washington, November 1, 2013. The MEK fought on the side of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein during the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war, mounting attacks on Iran from Iraq, and are calling for the U.S. to hold Ir

MEK leader to testify before Congress

Maryam Rajavi will discuss the threat the Islamic State poses to members of the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq (MEK) at Camp Liberty.

Jordan's King Abdullah addresses the European Parliament during a debate in Strasbourg, March 10, 2015. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS ROYALS) - RTR4SQZH

Jordan focuses on IS fight while Gulf allies pull back

Jordan's King Abdullah expresses strong differences from many of his allies on how best to deal with the Islamic State, fighting regional terrorism, developments in Syria and US Middle East policy.

Shi'ite paramilitary fighters chant slogans as they celebrate victory in Tikrit April 2, 2015. The Iraqi security forces parade through the streets of Tikrit Thursday - a day after the Iraqi government claimed victory over Islamic State insurgents in the city. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad - RTR4VXHX

Controversy surrounds alleged violations by Shiite forces in Tikrit

Contradictory assertions have Iraqis divided on whether members of the Popular Mobilization Units are guilty of allegations that they looted and destroyed property in Tikrit during and after the city's liberation from the Islamic State.

A member of the Iraqi security forces stands guard with his weapon at Camp Habbaniyah between the cities of Fallujah and Ramadi, March 12, 2015. Picture taken March 12, 2015.REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS CONFLICT MILITARY SOCIETY) - RTR4T81N

Shiite militias' role in Anbar fight unclear

Although Shiite militia forces were withdrawn from the fight for Ramadi, they remain present and active in other areas of Anbar province.

Cherry trees are in full bloom in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington April 10, 2013. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXYGQL

Defense bill takes aim at Iran

The must-pass legislation requires Pentagon strategy for countering Iran's "growing unconventional warfare capabilities."

Tribesmen walk at a temporary camp set up to shelter Iraqis fleeing violence in Iraq's northern Nineveh province on June 12, 2014, in Aski kalak, 40 kms West of Arbil, in the autonomous Kurdistan region. Thousands of people who fled Iraq's second city of Mosul after it was overrun by jihadists wait in the blistering heat, hoping to enter the safety of the nearby Kurdish region and furious at Baghdad's failure to help them. many as half a million people are thought to have fled Mosul, which was captured by

IS courts Ninevah tribes in run-up to battle

The Islamic State is seeking allies among Iraq's tribes for the battle of Mosul and an opportunity to entrench itself in Iraqi tribal society.