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Iraq

May 12, 2026

Baghdad 6:20 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

Iraq's Defence Minister Khaled al-Obeidi sits in a F-16 fighter jet, during an official ceremony to receive four of these aircrafts from the U.S., at a military base in Balad, Iraq, July 20, 2015. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani - RTX1L2B3

Lobbying 2015: Iraq turns to US to keep country together

Iraq launched a massive lobbying push two years ago to convince the US not to let the country fall apart. With the Islamic State finally on the defensive, are Kurdish dreams of independence the next target?

The site of a bomb attack is seen in Baghdad July 23, 2015. A car bomb exploded in a crowded marketplace in a mainly Shi'ite Muslim district of the Iraqi capital on Wednesday, killing at least 20 people, police and medical sources said. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad - RTX1LFX6

As terror attacks continue, Iraqi government prioritizes nightclub raids

The ongoing attacks against nightclubs and liquor stores in Baghdad suggest an alliance between religious currents and the Iraqi government.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari (R) welcomes his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif in Baghdad, July 27, 2015. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad - RTX1M0DY

Can Iraq bring Iran, GCC closer?

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif's recent visit to Iraq sends several important signals — all centering on increasing regional security in the Middle East.

Saving Middle East relics needs less talk, more action

International action is required to stop the plundering of Middle Eastern treasures and the devastation of historic sites.

Is PKK real target of Turkish strikes?

Turkey’s decision to open two fronts, against the Islamic State and the PKK, complicates US cooperation with Kurds in Syria.

Iraqi Kurdish President Massoud Barzani (R) and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi attend a joint news conference in Arbil April 6, 2015. Abadi said the Baghdad government would work with Kurdish authorities to liberate the northern province of Nineveh from Islamic State militants. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari - RTR4W8W4

Erbil-Baghdad oil relations swing between deal, no deal

Tensions are still high between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government over oil exports.

A Turkish Air Force C-160D Transall transport aircraft takes off from Incirlik airbase in the southern city of Adana, Turkey, July 26, 2015. Kurdish militants killed two Turkish soldiers in a roadside bombing on Sunday, the military said, apparently retaliating for Ankara's crackdown on the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) launched in tandem with strikes on Islamic State insurgents in Syria. Long a member of the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State, Turkey made a dramatic turnaround this week by granting t

Erdogan’s shift on Islamic State linked to Kurdish gains in Syria

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan finally takes on the Islamic State while attacking PKK bases in northern Iraq; Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu now the only US ally actively opposing Iran deal; Israel faces pressure to forgo demolition of Palestinian village.

U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Jack Lew (L) listens to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (R) as they appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington July 23, 2015. U.S. lawmakers skeptical about the nuclear deal with Iran promised to press senior Obama administration officials to make more information about it public at a Senate hearing on Thursday as Congress begins its two-month review of the agreement.
REUTERS/Gary Cameron
- RTX1LJNB

Congress gets extra dose of Iran before summer recess

A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of July 27.

Westerners who have joined the Iraqi Christian militia Dwekh Nawsha to fight against Islamic State militants, take a photograph together at the office of the Assyrian political party in Dohuk, northern Iraq February 13, 2015. Thousands of foreigners have flocked to Iraq and Syria in the past two years, mostly to join Islamic State, but a handful of idealistic Westerners are enlisting as well, citing frustration their governments are not doing more to combat the ultra-radical Islamists or prevent the sufferi

Iraqi Christian militia draws foreign fighters

Foreign fighters who have joined Dwekh Nawsha, a Christian military organization fighting the Islamic State in Iraq, are finally seeing combat.

U.S. Special Representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan James Dobbins speaks during a news conference in New Delhi June 27, 2013. REUTERS/Mansi Thapliyal (INDIA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX112Q6

Veteran US diplomat: After Iran deal, focus on Syria

US diplomat James Dobbins shared his thoughts on what is next for the US and Iran, and what the recent agreement means for further collaboration in the region.

What Iraq needs to survive

Social disintegration and other issues facing Iraq require a nationwide reform campaign.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden (L) meets with Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki during a joint news conference in Baghdad November 30, 2011. U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said on Wednesday the U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq opened a new phase in relations between the two countries, including a robust security partnership. REUTERS/Saad Shalash (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT MILITARY) - RTR2UN9O

Lobbying 2014: Podesta plays matchmaker for estranged US, Iraq

The United States and Iraq find themselves in intensive couples counseling as they try to save a failing marriage of convenience that could hold the key to defeating the biggest terrorist threat since al-Qaeda.