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Iraq

October 31, 2026

Baghdad 2:30 pm

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Zaidi

Iraq's Zaidi meets Sharaa on first Syria visit: What to know

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has sought to assuage concerns about his past militant activity in Iraq, whose oil trade and security cooperation with his two country is rising.

Safin HAMID / AFP via Getty Images

Iran says deal reached with Iraq to expel Kurdish separatists: What to know

Iran said an agreement was reached with Iraq to expel or hand over members of Kurdish separatist groups based in Iraqi Kurdistan.

Trucks loaded with goods wait to cross over to Syria

Analysis

How Hormuz crisis is reshaping economic ties between Iraq and Syria

Iraq and Syria are expanding trade and energy cooperation, but security risks, economic challenges and longstanding mistrust raise questions about whether their growing partnership can endure.

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Oct. 14, 2026, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Iraq’s Zaidi, Saudi crown prince discuss security as Houthi attacks escalate

Iraq has moved to improve ties with Saudi Arabia after Iran-backed militias struck the kingdom and amid the conflict with the Houthis in Yemen.

Latest News

Explainer

PKK pulls out of Metina in northern Iraq amid Turkey peace process

Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters arrive in the northern Iraqi city of Dohuk on May 14, 2013, after leaving Turkey as part of a peace drive with Ankara.

Analysis

Why Syria and Iraq are taking different approaches to armed groups

Demonstrators ride through a street while waving Syrian flags

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

Iraq devalues dinar 13% as Hormuz disruption hits oil revenue

A man walks past a closed foreign exchange office in Baghdad on October 7, 2026. Iraq's central bank devalued the dinar currency against the dollar on October 7, with the country facing a deepening crisis brought on by the Middle East war. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images)

Explainer

What Iraq’s US troop withdrawal means for security after Kirkuk killings

A member of the Iraqi security forces flashes the victory sign during a military parade

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

Iraqi-Kurdish peshmerga officers.

US reduces peshmerga funding amid Iraqi Kurdish political tensions

The reduction comes as the KRG has already been struggling financially due to budget disputes with Baghdad, fluctuating oil prices, and the cost of hosting more than a million refugees and IDPs.

A military marching band plays outside during the first provincial council elections in a decade, at a polling station in the central city of Najaf, on December 18, 2023. The vote comes at a time of widespread disillusionment among the country's 43 million inhabitants, with endemic corruption eating away at the oil-rich nation. (Photo by Qassem al-KAABI / AFP) (Photo by QASSEM AL-KAABI/AFP via Getty Images)

2023 in review: Iraq's pro-Iran factions make gains, but so do Sunni groups

December's provincial elections across Iraq saw big gains for the ruling Coordination Framework and for the Sunni minority and Muhammad al-Halbousi list.

Honor guards carry the coffin of Sayyed Razi Mousavi.

Funeral held for Iran's IRGC commander killed by Israel as Tehran vows revenge

Iran said Sayyed Razi Mousavi was killed in an Israeli strike in Syria. The death of the commander, who was mourned in Syria and Iraq, could ignite war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Smoke plumes billow from a fire at a lumber warehouse in southern Khartoum amidst ongoing fighting on June 7, 2023. Eight weeks of fighting have pitted Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan against his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo -- commonly known as Hemeti -- who commands the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). A number of broken ceasefires have offered brief lulls but no respite for residents of Khartoum, where witnesses again reported "the sound of heavy artillery fire" in the ca

2023 in review: From Sudan to Syria, here are Mideast's forgotten conflicts

More than 12,000 people were killed in the war in Sudan this year, while violence persisted in parts of Syria, Iraq and other countries across the Middle East and North Africa.

collage 2023

2023 in review: Al-Monitor's special coverage from across Middle East

Iraq drought

How are climate change, water scarcity weighing on Iraq’s agriculture?

The Norwegian Refugee Council said farmers are being hurt economically by climate change, and suggested better irrigation techniques and water monitoring technology to improve the sector.

Amberin and Fabrice webinar

The Israel-Hamas war: A view from Iraq and Syria

Join a live Q&A webinar with Amberin Zaman and Fabrice Balanche on Friday, Dec. 1 at 11 am ET (Pro members only).

US jets

Pentagon expands strikes on Iran-backed groups amid Iraq backlash

Iraq's government slammed US airstrikes that targeted Kata'ib Hezbollah command centers as 'an unacceptable violation of sovereignty' as Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani seeks to balance his support base with Baghdad's ties with Washington.

US gunship

US gunship strikes Iran-backed militias in Iraq after ballistic missile attack

US commanders ordered lethal strikes in quick response to a missile attack on the Ain al-Asad air base, in a sign the military is taking matters into its own hands to defend its personnel in Iraq.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein talks to the press during a EU-Iraq Cooperation Council, at the European Council Building in Brussels on March 19, 2023.

Iraqi FM says unless US stops Israel, conflict in Gaza will 'burn all of us'

Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein worries that the conflict in Gaza will drag on and expand beyond Israel’s borders.

Iraqi Parliament Speaker Muhammad al-Halbousi addresses France's President Emmanuel Macron (unseen) during a meeting at the parliament in the capital Baghdad, on August 28, 2021. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP) (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images)

Resignations at Iraq's parliament after supreme court ends Halbusi’s term

The powerful Sunni politician has been mired in controversy amid political tensions in Iraq.

Elizabeth Tsurkov

Proof of life video of Russian-Israeli scholar suggests Iraqi captors want to negotiate

The first video appearance of kidnapped Russian-Israeli scholar Elizabeth Tsurkov could mean her Shiite militia captors are seeking a deal for her release.