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Iraq

September 6, 2026

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A man walks past a mural depicting oil pumps and the Venezuelan flag, with portraits of Venezuelan independence leader Simon Bolivar (L) and former late President Hugo Chavez (R), in Caracas, Venezuela, on Sept. 3, 2026.

Analysis

Could Trump’s oil push in Venezuela upend OPEC’s energy order?

Washington’s growing role in controlling the Latin American country's crude riches could help reshape an energy order centered on OPEC as the Hormuz crisis pressures Gulf exports.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

After gun found in lake, French police probe link to 2012 Iraqi family murder

A recently discovered Luger pistol may have been used in the mysterious 2012 killing of the al-Hilli family near the Alpine town of Chevaline in eastern France.

AFP via Getty Images

Iraq sentences kidnapper of US journalist Shelly Kittleson to 15 years: What to know

The first sentencing in relation to Shelly Kittleson’s abduction comes as Iraq moves to rein in Iran-backed militias.

Iraqi army troops patrol the Iraq-Saudi Arabia border

Iraq reinforces Saudi border security amid militia tensions: What to know

Iraq is sending the reinforcements in response to Iran-backed militia attacks and as it looks to build security ties with Riyadh.

Latest News

Iraq summons Iran envoy over 'Persian Gulf' post, Baghdad name origins: What to know

Fred TANNEAU / AFP via Getty Images

Exclusive

Iraq's Zaidi set to make European debut with Macron in France

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi delivers a speech in Baghdad, May 16, 2026.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

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 buyer inspects a weapon inside a shop selling firearms in Baghdad March 2, 2006. Fearful of sectarian attacks since the bombing of a Shi'ite shrine on February 22, Iraqis are barricading homes and stocking up on weapons in a country already awash with guns. Picture taken March 2, 2006. REUTERS/Faleh Kheiber - RTR16W8K

Shopping for guns in Sadr City

In Baghdad's Sadr City neighborhood, a weapons market opens its doors every night to tribesmen who buy all kinds of arms, while the government claims to be unaware of the situation.

A woman walks past a Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) campaign poster for Iraq's parliamentary elections in Sulaimaniya April 28, 2014. Picture taken April 28, 2014. To match IRAQ-ELECTION/KURDS REUTERS/Jacob Russell (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3N0GU

Would PUK cut separate deal with Maliki?

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) did well in the Iraqi national elections, and may be flirting with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to strengthen its hand in Iraqi Kurdish politics.

BAGHDAD, Iraq: Supporters of the dominant Iraqi Shiite "United Iraqi Alliance" list flash the "V" sign near a picture of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani during a political rally in Baghdad's poor neighborhood of Sadr city, 12 December 2005. The United Iraqi Alliance list put on a show of force ahead of Iraqi elections for a full-term parliament, staging a rally that drew thousands in eastern Baghdad. Iraqi violence shadowed special early polling Monday ahead of a general election for a full-term parliament

Sistani keeps distance from Iraqi election politics

Although there have been attempts to embroil Iraqi cleric Ali al-Sistani in the country’s ongoing political disputes, he has continued to stress his non-involvement in these issues.

Iraqi forces walk during a patrol looking for militants from the al Qaeda faction, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), explosives and weapons in a neighbourhood in Ramadi May 14, 2014. Thousands of civilians have fled Falluja since last week after the Iraqi military intensified shelling in a new bid to crush a five-month old Sunni uprising, killing scores of people in what residents describe as massive indiscriminate bombardment. More than 420,000 people have already escaped the two main cities

Maliki got election assist from Anbar crisis

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki skillfully used the Anbar crisis to deepen the sense of collective danger among Shiite voters.

Turkey's Energy Minister Taner Yildiz speaks at the Iraq-Kurdistan Oil and Gas Conference at Arbil in Iraq's Kurdistan region, December 2, 2013. Turkey said on Monday it stood by a bilateral oil deal with Iraq's Kurdistan region that bypassed central government but wanted to win Baghdad's support by drawing it into the arrangement. Reuters reported that Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan signed a multi-billion-dollar energy package last week, infuriating a central Baghdad government which claims sole authority over

Turkey pivots to Baghdad to close deal on Kurdish oil

Turkey has realized it can’t sell Kurdish oil without Baghdad’s blessing.

An election poster of Mahmoud Al-Hassan of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's State of Law coalition is displayed along a street at the start of the election campaign in Baghdad April 18, 2014. Iraq is holding its national election at the end of this month. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3LSZ3

Iraqi MP fined for offering land for votes

A video of an Iraqi MP from the State of Law Coalition distributing deeds to plots of land in exchange for votes for the coalition has triggered controversy, and raises broader questions about a rise of political patronage in the country.

A member of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) sleeps during a vote counting session for the parliamentary election at an analysis centre in Baghdad May 11, 2014. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR3ON4B

Iraqi political blocs mislead with leaks on election results

A number of Iraqi politicians and political blocs have used social media for what they claim are leaked election results from last month’s parliamentary elections.

Osama al-Nujaifi (C), speaker of the Iraqi Council of Representatives, holds up his ink-stained finger as he casts his vote at a polling station during a parliamentary election in Baghdad April 30, 2014. Iraqis headed to the polls on Wednesday in their first national election since U.S. forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011, with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki seeking a third term amid rising violence. REUTERS/Mahmoud Raouf Mahmoud (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR3N8ZF

Uncertain prospects for Iraqi 'Sunni Alliance'

It is unclear whether the three currents can unite on unified Sunni interests.

A worker stands and works on a campaign billboard of presidential candidate and Egypt's former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, along a highway in Cairo May 12, 2014. An influential Qatar-based Islamist whose fiery sermons have caused tension between Gulf states said on Sunday that Egyptian presidential front runner Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will only bring downfall to the country. Sisi is expected to easily win the May 26-27 presidential election. The only other candidate is leftist politician Hamdeen Sabahi, w

The false promise of Mideast elections

The coming presidential elections in Egypt, Syria and Turkey offer little hope for a regional trend toward stability and democracy.

Israeli film sows nostalgia among Iraqi Jews

The Israeli film “Farewell Baghdad” explores the Jewish community in Iraq that was expelled from the country in the 1950s and 1960s, and has sparked feelings of nostalgia among Iraqi Jews.

ATTENTION EDITORS - VISUAL COVERAGE OF SCENES OF INJURY OR DEATH

People carry a wounded woman after an accidental explosion caused by leftover ordnance at Bustan al-Diwan, in old Homs City, May 10, 2014. Hundreds of residents return to Homs, after rebels left the city. REUTERS/Khaled al-Hariri (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) TEMPLATE OUT - RTR3OKXD

What can we learn from Homs?

Given the collapse of the Geneva process, and the Syrian government’s staying power, localized cease-fires may be the latest trend in the conflict.

An employee of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) checks the numbers written on boxes containing the parliamentary elections ballots at an analysis centre in Baghdad May 9, 2014. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: ELECTIONS POLITICS) - RTR3OFS6

Iraqi elections will not be decisive

While some Iraqi politicians and media outlets tried to portray last month’s elections as “decisive” or “a matter of life and death,” they are merely one part of a long, democratic process.