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Iraq

August 13, 2026

Baghdad 3:53 pm

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The commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Esmail Qaani, speaks during a commemoration ceremony marking the anniversary of the 2020 killing of Guards general Qasem Soleimani (on screen) in the capital Tehran on Jan. 3, 2024.

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.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Qaani

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.

a worker inspects an oil field in 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.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Latest News

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

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

Analysis

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

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) /

Mustafa Salim

By Mustafa Salim

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 Sunni Muslims take part in an anti-government demonstration in Falluja, 50 km (31 miles) west of Baghdad, April 5, 2013. Thousands of Sunni Muslims protested after Friday prayers in huge rallies against Shi'ite Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, demanding that he step down. REUTERS/Mohanned Faisal (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) CIVIL UNREST) - RTXY9JG

Maliki Seeks 'Majority Government' In Iraq

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki seeks to establish a "majority government" that would further marginalize his Sunni and Kurdish political rivals, writes Mushreq Abbas.

The room where Iraq's parliament was to meet today, for only the second time since it was elected in December, remains empty after politicians cancelled today's session, April 20, 2006. Iraq's Shi'ite Alliance said on Thursday it would hold a new internal vote to name a prime minister, raising the possibility that Ibrahim al-Jaafari will be removed to end a months-long impasse over a unity government. REUTERS/Ahmad Rubaye/Pool - RTR1CMS1

Iraq: The Parliament That Barely Meets

The Iraqi parliament, already not known for its long hours, barely met in March amid a new power struggle between Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, writes Ali Abel Sadah.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden talks with soldiers at Camp Victory on the outskirts of Baghdad, July 4, 2009. Biden met U.S. troops preparing to mark their Independence Day holiday on Saturday, on the third day of a visit he has used to urge Iraqi politicians to do more to reconcile rival factions. REUTERS/Khalid Mohammed/Pool (IRAQ CONFLICT POLITICS MILITARY ANNIVERSARY IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR25B7I

Iraqi Panel Promotes 'Biden Plan' For Federal Iraq

The key to securing Iraq’s political future is to place administrative responsibilities in the hands of the regions, and hold power centrally in Baghdad, writes Mushreq Abbas.

Iraqi journalists inspect the equipment after attack by an armed group at the newspaper's headquarters of Addustour newspaper in Baghdad April 2, 2013. Employees of Iraq's Addustour newspaper on Tuesday inspected the damage caused by an armed group attack at the newspaper's headquarters the day before. The armed group broke into the newspaper building in Karrada district in central Baghdad on Monday, beating guards and journalists and burning editions of the newspaper, said an eyewitness.REUTERS/Thaier al-

Attacks on Iraqi Media Call Press Freedom Into Question

Following attacks on the offices of three different Iraqi newspapers on April 1, press freedom in Iraq is once again called into question, writes Mushreq Abbas.

Employees of the state-run South Oil Company (SOC) join a new oil storage tank to the oil pipelines near the southern city of Basra January 14, 2013. The head of the state-run South Oil Company said the new facility will add a capacity of one million barrels to the existing 5.5 million barrels available. REUTERS/Atef Hassan (IRAQ - Tags: ENERGY CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3CG6G

Iraq Lagging in Foreign Investment

Iraq is still struggling to attract foreign investors amid dated laws, political instability and a conservative society, writes Mustafa al-Kadhimi.

A girl and her father look at books at the Guadalajara International Book Fair in Guadalajara November 24, 2012. REUTERS/Alejandro Acosta (MEXICO - Tags: SOCIETY) - RTR3AUCG

Kurdistan Book FairShowcases Mideast Talent

A book fair in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan's capital, showcased regional and international literary talent and served as a unifying event against a backdrop of violence and sectarianism, writes Abdel Hamid Zebari.

A flame rises from a pipeline at Taq Taq oil field in Arbil at the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region of northern Iraq, about 350 km (220 miles) north of Baghdad, September, 5, 2012. To match Analysis IRAQ-OIL-KURDISTAN/ REUTERS/Azad Lashkari (IRAQ - Tags: ENERGY BUSINESS) - RTR37KBL

Iraqi Government Warns Kurdistan Region Against 'Smuggling' Oil

The ongoing dispute over oil between the central Iraqi government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government in Erbil has intensified, writes Omar al-Shaher.

A man works at a construction site in Iraq's northern province of Arbil September 25, 2010. While most Iraqis struggle under the detritus of a seven-year war, the people of Arbil in Iraqi Kurdistan can frolic in a public pool, ride an elevated cable car over freshly planted parkland or escape stifling heat in a new ice skating hall. The new luxuries of Iraq's northern Kurdish region seem a world apart from the dust and grit of Baghdad, where suicide bombers are an everyday fear, dirt-gray blast walls domina

KRG Minister: Our Problem With Baghdad Lies in the Budget

The Kurdistan Regional Government’s reconstruction minister talks about the ministry’s plans to revitalize the housing sector and notes that the region’s problems with Baghdad center on budget allocations, writes Abdel Hamid Zebari.

Employees of the state-run South Oil Company (SOC) join a new oil storage tank to the oil pipelines near the southern city of Basra January 14, 2013. The head of the state-run South Oil Company said the new facility will add a capacity of one million barrels to the existing 5.5 million barrels available. REUTERS/Atef Hassan (IRAQ - Tags: ENERGY CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3CG6G

Iraq Set to Expand Free-Trade Zones

Iraq is preparing to expand existing free-trade zones and create new ones throughout the country, writes Omar al-Shaher.

Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari (L) shakes hands with Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamed bin Jassem Jaber al-Thani (C) during preparatory meeting with Arab foreign ministers ahead of the annual Arab League Summit in Doha March 24, 2013. REUTERS/Stringer (QATAR - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXXVRM

Iraq’s Arab-League Presidency: Wasted Opportunity?

Iraq's term as president of the Arab League left no mark, writes Mustafa Al-Kadhimi.

Iraqi pilots stand near a Boeing 777 jet at Baghdad's international Airport December 15, 2012. Three Boeing twin-aisle 777-200LR jets arrived in Baghdad in a move aimed to boost the transportation sector in a country suffering decades of wars and sanctions. REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS TRANSPORT BUSINESS) - RTR3BLS6

Iraqi Aviation Industry Takes Off

More than 10 years after the US invasion of Iraq, the country’s aviation industry is starting to show strong signs of recovery, reports Omar al-Shaher.

Head of the Sunni-backed Iraqiya political bloc Iyad Allawi speaks during a news conference for the seniors of Iraqiya bloc in Baghdad January 18, 2012. REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2WGNS

Iraqiya List Frays As Constituents Splinter

As Iraq continues to struggle with widespread anti-government protests, the prominent Sunni Iraqiya list has gone through a series of defections that have dealt a serious blow to its influence, writes Ali Abel Sadah.