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Iraq

August 13, 2026

Baghdad 9:27 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

Members of a Syrian refugees family, who fled the violence back home, are seen at the Domiz refugee camp in the northern Iraqi of province Dohuk July 25, 2012. The number of refugees that have fled to Iraq's Kurdistan region is in excess of 11,000 refugees, and they are settled in the region's three provinces: Arbil, Dohuk and Sulaimaniya. As for the Domiz refugee camp, the number of refugee families reached 696 families, equivalent to 2,800 people, but on the other side of the camp, where young refugees ar

Iraqi Kurdistan Struggles to Meet Needs of Displaced Syrian Kurds

The Kurdistan Region of Iraq is struggling with the number of displaced Syrian Kurds flowing into the region, writes Abdel Hamid Zebari.

A general view of Khurmala oilfield in Arbil, 310 km (190 miles) north of Baghdad July 18, 2009. Iraq's largely autonomous Kurdistan region opened a new oil refinery on Saturday, with a projected capacity of 40,000 barrels per day (bpd), the director of the group that built the refinery said. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari (IRAQ BUSINESS ENERGY) - RTR25SW8

Turkey Contributes To Iraqi Fragmentation

Turkey’s relationship with the Kurdistan Regional Government may be undermining its long-term economic and energy interests in Iraq, writes Necdet Pamir.

The clock tower of Qushla is seen at noon in central Baghdad April 2, 2012. Qushla, or the Ottoman government headquarters on the bank of the Tigris River in Baghdad's Rusafa side is one of the city's important archaeological sites and tourist attractions. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: SOCIETY) - RTR308PW

Iraq Restores Historic Ottoman Site

The Iraqi government is paying more attention to the country’s heritage sites, such as the old Ottoman headquarters of Qishla in Baghdad, writes Omar al-Shaher.

Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani speaks during the first International Energy Arena in Arbil, about 350 km (217 miles) north of Baghdad, May 20, 2012. Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region expects to start exporting oil from its fields along a new pipeline to the Turkish border when the line is complete in August 2013, the region's natural resources minister Ashti Hawrami said on Sunday. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags : - Tags: ENERGY POLITICS) - RTR32CEM

Iraqi Kurdistan 'Will to Achieve' Key to Success

The Iraqi Kurdistan Region's economic success is rooted in a will to achieve that has outpaced the rest of Iraq, writes Mustafa al-Kadhimi.

Iraq's Supreme Court chief judge Midhat al-Mahmoud holds a news conference in Baghdad June 1, 2010. Iraq's Supreme Court certified the final results of a March 7 parliamentary election on Tuesday, an important step toward the formation of a new government. REUTERS/Saad Shalash (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR2EMDW

Iraqi Judicial Reforms Include Removal of Chief Justice

Amendments and changes to laws on the books from the former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein regime and the American occupation are shaking up the Iraqi judicial system, reports Ali Abel Sadah.

A pressman keeps watch on the print run of the first Baghdad edition of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan's newspaper April 22, 2003. The printing press in the Bab al-Muadham district used to print the official al-Iraq newspaper, and also issued the last editions of Iraq's three other main official newspapers because other presses were out of action. But it has been taken over by a Kurdish group, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), and will now produce a newspaper called Al-Ittihad. - RTXLWW2

Iraqi Kurdistan Region Slammed For Violating Press Freedoms

A new report by Human Rights Watch has criticized the government in Kurdistan for what it calls “serious violations” of freedom of speech, as a draft law would make it illegal for journalists to insult politicians, reports Abdel Hamid Zebari.

Massud Barzani, the president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region (C-bottom) sits amidst Kurdish peshmerga security forces during a visit to the disputed north Iraq province of Kirkuk on December 10, 2012 on the outskirts of the Kirkuk. The visit may increase already-high tension with Baghdad, which has seen both sides deploy military reinforcements to areas in north Iraq. The dispute over territory in northern Iraq is the biggest threat to the country's long-term stability, diplomats and officials say. T

Is Barzani Assuming Talabani's Role As Mediator in Iraq?

Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani has taken up the roles of both broker and mediator in Iraqi politics given Iraqi President Jalal Talabani's absence, in the midst of a tense situation in the country, writes Abdel Hamid Zebari.

Iraqi Sunni Muslims shout slogans during an anti-government demonstration in Falluja, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad,February 1, 2013. Chanting "No" to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, tens of thousands of Sunni Muslims protested after Friday prayers in huge rallies against the Shi'ite premier that are raising the spectre of renewed sectarian unrest. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani (IRAQ CONFLICT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3D8BA

Baghdad Bickers With Regions Over Iraqi Budget

The yearly argument over the budget in Iraq has yet again come to the fore, as the parliament cannot decide on what proportion to give to each of Iraq’s regions, writes Omar al-Shaher.

Kurdish Peshmerga troops are deployed on the outskirts of Kirkuk, some 250km (155 miles) north of Baghdad December 3, 2012. Iraq's Kurdish region has sent reinforcements to a disputed area where its troops are involved in a standoff with the Iraqi army, a senior Kurdish military official said, despite calls on both sides for dialogue to calm the situation. Picture taken December 3, 2012. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3B6TV

Militias Persevere in Modern Iraq

Militias have been a feature of Iraqi politics and society since the founding of the modern state, writes Mushreq Abbas.

Iraqi Sunni Muslims attend Friday prayers during an anti-government demonstration in Falluja, 50 km (31 miles) west of Baghdad,February 8, 2013. Tens of thousands of Sunni Muslims protested after Friday prayers in huge rallies against Shi'ite Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, demanding that he steps down. REUTERS/Mohanned Faisal (IRAQ CONFLICT POLITICS) - RTR3DHV6

Iraqi Sunnis May Postpone March on Baghdad

Protesters in Anbar province are considering calling off their planned protest in Baghdad, amid unprecedented security measures from Iraqi authorities in the capital, writes Ali Abel Sadah.

An Iraqi couple ride a motorbike during a biker show on Abu Nawas Street in Baghdad October 19, 2012. Drag-racing in California, you say? No, this is Baghdad, where youthful rebellion and American biker style clash with conservative mores in Iraq, a country where just a few years ago militias imposed their own radical Islamic views at gunpoint. Picture taken October 19, 2012. To match Feature IRAQ-CULTURE/BIKERS REUTERS/Saad Shalash (IRAQ - Tags: SOCIETY SPORT MOTORSPORT) - RTR39IOY

Most Iraqis Unaware Of Insurance Rights

While the Iraqi government provides insurance for a variety of claims to all its citizens, many are ill-informed or simply unaware of their rights, reports Omar al-Shaher.

Pope Benedict XVI (R) meets in a private audience with Louis Raphael I Sako (L), the Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Babylon and the Head of the Chaldean Catholic Church, in Vatican February 4, 2013 in this picture provided by Osservatore Romano.
REUTERS/Osservatore Romano/Handout (VATICAN - Tags: RELIGION)
ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS PICTURE IS DISTRIBUTED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A

New Iraqi Chaldean Patriarch Seeks Interfaith Mediation

Louis Raphael I Sako, the new patriarch to the Iraqi Chaldeans, hopes to reverse the exodus of Iraqi Christians from Iraq, reports Abdel Hamid Zebari.