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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

An oil tanker passes through the Bosphorus to the Black Sea in Istanbul September 1, 2012. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: ENERGY MARITIME) - RTR37D2S

Turkey Adds Fuel to Fight Of Iraqi Kurds for Independence

Despite Turkey’s age-old fear of Kurdish independence in contiguous regions near its border, energy ties are growing between Turkey and Iraq's Kurdistan Region.

People sit outside a cafe in Baghdad December 1, 2011. The last 13,000 U.S. troops will pull out of Iraq by the end of the year. Violence in the country has dropped sharply since the heights of sectarian slaughter in 2006-2007, but at least 10 people were killed in a bombing just north of the capital Baghdad. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (IRAQ - Tags: MILITARY CONFLICT SOCIETY) - RTR2UPPL

New Religious Campaign Targets Baghdad's Cafes

Authorities in Baghdad have begun to encroach on personal freedoms, closing cafes even when they only serve coffee and tea after Ramadan fasting is over.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (R) and Iraqi Kurdish President Masoud Barzani (L) talk as they hold a joint news conference in Baghdad, July 7, 2013. Barzani visited Baghdad on Sunday for the first time in more than two years, in a symbolic step to resolve disputes between the central government and the autonomous region over land and oil. The visit follows an equally rare trip by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki who met Barzani in Kurdistan last month, breaking ice between leaders who have repeated

Iraqi MP: Maliki, Barzani Close to Solving Oil Dispute

Rapport between Baghdad and Erbil seems relatively warm as the two governments continue to settle oil disputes.

Members of Hezbollah Iraq carry the coffin of their comrade Reza Khudair al-Khalidi, who was also a Shi'ite fighter and killed in clashes with the Free Syrian Army, during his funeral in Kerbala, 110 km (70 miles) south of Baghdad, June 5, 2013. Hundreds of Iraqis attended the funeral on Thursday, and relatives of Khalidi said he was killed while fighting on the outskirts of the border town of Qusair. REUTERS/Mushtaq Muhammed (IRAQ - Tags: CONFLICT CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) - RTX10CYT

Leader of Hezbollah in Iraq Threatens More Sectarian Violence

The leader of Hezbollah in Iraq, Wathiq al-Battat, continues to amp up talk of Shiites exacting revenge against al-Qaeda and Baathists.

Iraqi Sunni Muslims wave the old flags of Iraq during an anti-government demonstration in Falluja, 50 km (31 miles) west of Baghdad May 3, 2013. Tens of thousands of Sunni Muslims poured onto the streets of Ramadi and Falluja in the western province of Anbar following Friday prayers, in their biggest show of strength since the outbreak of protests last year. REUTERS/Mohanned Faisal (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION CIVIL UNREST) - RTXZ987

Iraq's Anbar Province Struggles To Form Government

Three months following elections in Iraq’s protest-riddled Anbar province, its various factions have still not managed to create alliances and form a local government.

Iraqi men walk past posters advertising a pornographic film at a cinema
in Baghdad, April 30, 2003. Pornography and prostitution was officially
banned under the regime of Saddam Hussein until his ousting from power
by U.S.-led forces two weeks ago.

REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra - RTRMOD7

Iraq’s Sex Trade Thrives

Given the lax security situation since the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, the country’s sex trade has proliferated.

$Members of the new Iraqi Parliament attend a session at the Parliament headquarters in Baghdad, November 11, 2010. Iraq's fractious politicians have agreed to return Shi'ite Nuri al-Maliki as prime minister, ending an eight-month deadlock that raised fears of renewed sectarian war, but leaving some Sunnis sceptical he can forge national unity. The pact on top government posts brings together Shi'ites, Sunnis and Kurds in a power-sharing arrangement similar to the last Iraqi government and could help prevent$

Iraqi Politicians Push For More Power to Provinces

The Iraqi parliament’s passing of the Provincial Powers Law has led to calls for the establishment of the Federation Council, which would further decentralize power as stipulated in the 2005 constitution.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on their ability to film or take pictures in Tehran.

Iranian clerics talk to each other during break time at a religious conference centre in Qom, 120 km (75 miles) south of Tehran, March 9, 2011. The clerics are attending the International Conference of Religious Doctrines and the Mind-Body Problem. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN - Tags: RELIGION SOCIETY) - RTR2JNWP

Shiite Seminaries in Najaf, Qom Struggle With Dual Roles

Shiite seminaries in Najaf and Qom struggle to balance between preserving Shiite identity, while at the same time maintaining their distance from any sectarian conflict and supporting Islamic unity.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (R) meets with Iraqi Kurdish President Masoud Barzani (L) in Baghdad, July 7, 2013. Barzani visited Baghdad on Sunday for the first time in more than two years, in a symbolic step to resolve disputes between the central government and the autonomous region over land and oil. The visit follows an equally rare trip by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki who met Barzani in Kurdistan last month, breaking ice between leaders who have repeatedly accused each other of violating

Barzani's Goodwill Baghdad Tour

Massoud Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, met with Baghdad's key political leaders in an attempt to generate consensus and compromise.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (centre L) attends a meeting with Iraqi heads of parliamentary blocs at the parliament house in Baghdad, December 6, 2012. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3B9XR

Iraqi Law to Reform Political Financing Blocked in Parliament

The Iraqi Council of Representatives is blocking a law that would create financial transparency for financing political parties.

Iraq's Parliament Speaker Osama al-Nujaifi (R) meets with Iraqi Kurdish President Masoud Barzani (L) in Baghdad, July 7, 2013. Barzani visited Baghdad on Sunday for the first time in more than two years, in a symbolic step to resolve disputes between the central government and the autonomous region over land and oil. The visit follows an equally rare trip by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki who met Barzani in Kurdistan last month, breaking ice between leaders who have repeatedly accused each other of vi

Iraqi Kurdish Parties Dispute Law Extending Barzani Presidency

Due to its general disregard for the internal bylaws of the Iraqi Kurdistan region’s parliament, members of President Massoud Barzani’s party and the opposition both have objected to a law extending his term.

Female members of the Muslim Brotherhood and supporters of deposed Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi with a drum and flags shout slogans as they rally at the Rabaa Adawiya square, where they are camping at, in Cairo July 11, 2013. Political infighting threatened to stall Egypt's transition plans on Thursday, as the military cracked down on Muslim Brotherhood leaders it blames for inciting a clash in Cairo in which troops shot and killed 53 protesters. Monday's violence between supporters of Mursi, Egypt's fi

Iraqi Kurdistan's Islamist Parties Condemn Egyptian Coup

The Kurdistan Region of Iraq’s Islamist parties consider the coup that ousted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi a setback for democracy.