Newsletter: Daily Briefing Lebanon becomes first Arab country to abolish death penalty Hormuz shipping traffic falls to one-week low amid hostilities; Netanyahu rejects Trump’s Gaza plan while quietly implementing it; and more. By Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO
Analysis What Qaani's Baghdad visit reveals about Iran's post-war dilemma The Quds Force commander's Baghdad visit is occurring as Iran faced difficult choices in Iraq where the government is moving to bring powerful armed groups under state control after the recent war. By A correspondent in Tehran In Tehran, reporting on politics
IRGC chief Qaani reportedly in Iraq ahead of militia deadline Esmail Qaani, who heads the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force, has been heavily involved in Iran’s relations with Iraqi militias. Iraq
Analysis How Turkey is deepening energy and economic ties with Iraq as Iran weakens Turkey and Iraq are accelerating energy, infrastructure and trade cooperation as the Hormuz crisis increases the strategic value of northern export routes. By Barin Kayaoglu In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security
Newsletter: Daily Briefing Israel strikes south Lebanon after 2 soldiers killed By Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO
Newsletter: Daily Briefing Iran denies negotiations with US after Trump calls off strikes By Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO
Iraq Must Accommodate Foreign Workers to Boost Investments In a sign of bureaucratic inefficiency, Iraq admits that it has not been properly accommodating foreign workers coming into the country working for oil companies. Iraq
'Baghdad Belt' Deals With New Sectarian Tensions Once a paradigm of multi-sectarian coexistence, the towns in the area circling the Iraqi capital known as the "Baghdad belt" have been some of the first victims of increased security measures and sectarian incitement in a turbulent Iraq. Iraq
Iran Divides Iraqi Politicians Iran’s long-standing and deep involvement in Iraqi politics has recently witnessed a backlash. Iraq
Sadr Reconsiders Political Role, Mahdi Army Tensions have boiled over between the Mahdi Army and Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq near Baghdad, as the Sadrist movement re-evaluates its military wing and vies for greater political sway. Iraq
Kurdish Jihadists Fight Kurds in Syria Some young Iraqi Kurdish men are being lured by al-Qaeda's call for jihad in Syria, even if it puts them into combat with their Kurdish brethren. Iraq
Iraqi Kurdistan Elections Could Be Turning Point The legislative elections on Sept. 21 could bring new political alliances to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Iraq
Iraq to Reinstate Sahwa Forces The Iraqi government is trying to revive the Awakening Movement — the Sahwa forces — among Sunni tribes to combat the rise in terrorism. Iraq
Iraqi Dinar Exchange Rate Linked To Oil Exports, Federal Reserves Experts estimate that Iraq’s federal reserves have reached $80 billion, and are likely to grow given an expected increase in oil output. Iraq
Reports of Syria Chemical Attack Split Iraqis The alleged chemical attack in Syria has revealed a sectarian rift in Iraq, with some Sunnis accusing Syria’s Alawite regime, while some Shiites blame the massacre on the opposition. Iraq
Iraq’s Missing Parliament Iraq’s parliament appears to play a largely superficial role, while political blocs and alliances make the decisions that matter. Iraq
Ongoing Political Deadlock Spurs Iraqi Civil Activists Iraqis headed to the polls six times in 10 years, and they continue to live in a society that is insecure and has an inadequate infrastructure and deepening gap between the different groups. Iraq
Maliki's Own Party Urges Him Not to Run Leaders in the State of Law Coalition, led by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, are trying to convince the prime minister not to run in the upcoming legislative elections, fearing that it could spell the end of the coalition itself. Iraq