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Iraq

May 9, 2026

Baghdad 6:42 pm

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Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada Sadr gives a speech in Iraq's central holy shrine city of Najaf on August 30, 2022.

Iraq’s Sadr says 'exclude' armed groups from next government as pressure builds

The cleric's call comes as Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi tries to form a government amid political divisions and US demands to curb the influence of Iran-backed actors.

Popular Mobilization Forces

US sets expectations for Iraq’s next PM to confront Iranian militias

The Trump administration is cautiously sizing up Iraq’s new prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, as a potential partner in pushing back on Iranian influence.

Zaidi

Analysis

Iraq’s Zaidi offers economic promise for Turkey but unknowns loom

Iraq’s prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, is expected to sustain growing economic and strategic ties with Turkey thanks to his business-oriented approach, though uncertainty over his political stance could test cooperation on sensitive issues.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Latest News

Analysis

US banking on Iraqi turnaround with nomination of Zaidi as new PM

Ali Al-Zaidi

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Analysis

MENA wheat importers face food security risks as Hormuz crisis festers

Crops of wheat and barley in Terbol village on May 10, 2022, in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Trump congratulates Iraq PM-designate Zaidi in call: What to know

Iraq's prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, at Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's office on April 28, 2026.

Meet Ali al-Zaidi, businessman and Iraq's new prime minister-designate

Prime Minister Mohammed S. al-Sudani met with Prime Minister-designate Ali Faleh al-Zaidi on April 28, 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

What does Hezbollah mean by 'painful concessions' in Syria?

UN Syria envoy meets Hezbollah official; Erdogan sets back Turkey-Iran ties and points out US "mistake"; Israel seeks to suppress "silent intifada" in Jerusalem.

Students attend a class on the first day of the new school term in Kerbala, 110 km (68 miles) south of Baghdad, September 24, 2013. REUTERS/Mushtaq Muhammed (IRAQ - Tags: EDUCATION SOCIETY) - RTX13Y2I

Religious reforms imposed in Iraqi schools, universities

Protests erupted in Iraq following a decision to impose gender segregation in schools and universities.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (R) speaks with Turkish officials while meeting Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan in Tehran December 3, 2006. REUTERS/ISNA (IRAN) - RTR1K0EK

Iranian-Turkish relations strained over Syrian agendas

Turkey's desired outcome in Syria would result in massively scaling back Iran's influence in the region, with Tehran losing its ally in Damascus, Hezbollah confined to Lebanon and Iraq threatened.

Militant Islamist fighters on a tank take part in a military parade along the streets of northern Raqqa province June 30, 2014. Militant Islamist fighters held a parade in Syria's northern Raqqa province to celebrate their declaration of an Islamic "caliphate" after the group captured territory in neighbouring Iraq, a monitoring service said. The Islamic State, an al Qaeda offshoot previously known as Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), posted pictures online on Sunday of people waving black flags

The Islamic State's media warfare

The Islamic State’s strategy of warfare in Syria and Iraq seems to be based on ways to disseminate their ideas, mainly through online media.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during Friday prayers in Tehran September 14, 2007. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN) - RTR1TTSE

Khamenei preaches Shiite-Sunni unity against Islamic State, US

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's Eid al-Ghadeer speech revealed his concern that the coalition against the Islamic State might give Sunnis and the United States the upper hand in the region.

Female school students wearing a full veil (niqab) walk along a street in the northern province of Raqqa March 31, 2014. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has imposed sweeping restrictions on personal freedoms in the northern province of Raqqa. Among the restrictions, Women must wear the niqab, or full face veil, in public or face unspecified punishments "in accordance with sharia", or Islamic law. REUTERS/Stringer (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT RELIGION SOCIETY EDUCATION TPX

IS imposes new rules on education in Syria, Iraq

The Islamic State is leading a cultural revolution in Iraq and Syria, issuing new regulations to bring the educational system in line with Sharia and its Salafist ideology.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) and Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu talk to the media before a meeting in Ankara September 12, 2014. Kerry will meet Cavusoglu, as well as Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and President Tayyip Erdogan during his two-day visit to the capital Ankara, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR45Z12

Ankara struggles to maintain bearings in Kobani

The Turkish government has been compelled to change track under US pressure and the need to undo the international perception that Turkey supports the Islamic State.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov talk as they walk into the Chief of Mission Residence in Paris October 14, 2014. REUTERS/Carolyn Kaster/Pool (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4A5UI

IS threat unlikely to help US, Russia bridge divide

A common fear of the Islamic State does not appear to be enough for the United States and Russia to resolve their differences over Ukraine and other issues, despite positive signs from a meeting between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Paris.

LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 13: Singer Beyonce performs at the Staples Center on July 13, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Beyonce

Beyonce in Baghdad

When Beyonce sang "I Was Here" at the the UN General Assembly on World Humanitarian Day in 2012, it inspired a volunteer campaign in Baghdad by the same title.

A view shows actors during the filming of the set of the television series, whose title is loosely translated as "State of Myths" in Baghdad October 10, 2014. Humour and silly puns are being used as the latest weapons in the fight against extreme militants who now control large swathes of Iraqi territories. Playing on the words Kalifa (Caliphate) and Kurafa (myths or superstitions), the new Iraqi comedy show 'Dawlat al-Khurafa' (State of Myths), began airing on Iraqi state television early this month. Pictu

Corruption plagues Iraqi TV, film industry

The poor production quality of the Iraqi entertainment industry is the direct result of mismanagement made intractable by rampant corruption.

A man walks past a damaged building in the Anbar province town of Hit October 6, 2014. Iraqi forces backed by Shi'ite volunteer fighters are fighting to retake control of the western Iraqi town of Hit from the insurgents of the Islamic State, residents said. Residents said that fighting is going on in the outskirts of the town, which was captured by IS militants a week ago. Picture taken October 6. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR49ECK

Is Anbar Islamic State's Achilles' heel?

The Islamic State’s control of Anbar province and the city of Fallujah is key to their survival, and if lost the group's demise would follow.

Iraqi police display men arrested for drug smuggling in Baghdad February 11, 2012. Seven men were arrested attempting to smuggle over 4 kg of hashish into Iraq, according to Iraqi police. REUTERS/Saad Shalash (IRAQ - Tags: CRIME LAW DRUGS SOCIETY) - RTR2XNBL

Drug use spreads among Iraqi youth

Many Iraqi youths are using drugs to escape the hardships of their lives, as some are unemployed or come from fragmented families.