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Iraq

November 8, 2026

Baghdad 12:22 am

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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 Middle East, reporting on regional 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 Middle East, reporting on regional 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 artist Wissam Ghadi paints a portrait of Shi'ite Imam Ali in his Al Sadr city studio on the outkirts of Baghdad December 25, 2003. Repressed under three decades of secular Arab nationalist rule, Iraq's majority Shi'ite Muslims are enjoying the new-found freedom of painting religious figures to practice their faith with impunity. Picture taken December 25, 2003. TO MOVE WITH FEATURE STORY BC-IRAQ-SHI'ITES-PAINTING REUTERS/Ali Jasim CLH/AA - RTR9AJE

Despite controversy, religious art increasingly popular in Iraq

Iraqi artists who specialize in painting imams and sacred historical figures find themselves in demand even though their art provokes a religious backlash from some.

Iraqi prime Minister Haider al-Abadi (R) speaks at a news conference with Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Baghdad, November 20, 2014. REUTERS/Hadi Mizban/Pool (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4EWED

Ankara, Baghdad turn over new leaf in relationship

Prospects for political, economic and security cooperation between Ankara, Baghdad and Erbil look much better today despite issues that have to be ironed out.

Iraq's Oil Minister, Adel Abdul-Mehdi (L) meets with Iraq's Kurdistan Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani in Arbil, north of Baghdad, November 13, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ENERGY) - RTR4E0S5

Future uncertain for Baghdad-Erbil oil cooperation

Despite a breakthrough deal between the Iraqi federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government to cooperate on oil exports from northern Iraq, thorny issues remain.

Freedom Square offers refuge for Basra residents

Basra residents are finding respite in Hurriyah Square, where they can sit and talk freely without militias imposing their strict Islamic rules.

Sunni tribesmen take part in a military training, as they prepare to fight against militants of the Islamic State, on the outskirt of Ramadi, west of Baghdad, November 16, 2014. Islamic State's systematic massacre of hundreds of Iraq's Albu Nimr tribe should have been an unmistakable wake up call for a country that may not be able to stabilise without long-term support from Sunni tribesmen. Picture taken November 16, 2014. REUTERS/Ali al-Mashhadani (IRAQ - Tags: CONFLICT MILITARY POLITICS) - RTR4EH9R

Who represents Iraqi Sunnis?

Sunnis in Iraq are failing to find the representation that they so desperately need as the Islamic State continues to tighten its grip on Sunni towns and cities across the country.

Iraqi security forces pull down a flag belonging to Sunni militant group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) during a patrol in the town of Dalli Abbas in Diyala province, June 30, 2014. The leader of the al Qaeda offshoot now calling itself the Islamic State has called on Muslims worldwide to take up arms and flock to the "caliphate" it has declared on captured Syrian and Iraqi soil. Picture taken June 30, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) -

The Islamic State is here to stay

Unlike al-Qaeda, the Islamic State has been able to institutionalize jihad, thus guaranteeing its survival.

French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve (2nd R) hosts a meeting of the European G6 interior ministers on November 6, 2014 in Paris. Interior ministers of Spain, Germany, UK, Italy and Poland were meeting with Cazeneuve on November 6 to discuss the fight against terrorism and in particular the problem of "foreign fighters" traveling in Syria and ways to combat their recruiting online. The Turkish and Canadian interior ministers, as well as the American Ministers of Justice and Homeland Security were invit

EU ministers discuss jihadist travel to Syria, border security

While the G6 meeting of interior ministers on Nov. 6 focused on jihadists traveling from Europe to Syria via Turkey, the European Parliament is considering putting in place more stringent security checks and travel restrictions.

An Iraqi man joins other pilgrims on the way to Karbala (100km south of
Baghdad) April 19, 2003, to celebrate the Shi'ite Ashoura. The traditional
pilgrimage has been banned in Iraq for more than 30 years. PP03040058
REUTERS/Petr Josek

PJ/GB - RTRM2R2

Iraq's Arbaeen pilgrims walk new, safer path

A new road is being built to make it easier for Shiite pilgrims to walk to Iraq's holy city of Karbala, where they commemorate the death of Imam Hussein Bin Ali.

How a German doctor became a PKK hero

"Dr. Medya," a physician from Hamburg, talks about her more than 20 years in the Kurdistan Workers Party in a rare interview.

Iran nuclear deal could be key to resolving region’s conflicts

Iran has signaled a willingness to engage in Iraq and Syria.

Residents take a ride at an amusement park as they celebrate the Muslim festival of Eid-al-Adha in Baghdad October 5, 2014. Muslims around the world celebrate Eid al-Adha to mark the end of the haj pilgrimage by slaughtering sheep, goats, camels and cows to commemorate Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son, Ismail, on God's command. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad (IRAQ - Tags: RELIGION) - RTR490NA

Iraq's one too many holidays

Economists are warning Iraqi policymakers that the large number of official and unofficial holidays is crippling the economy against a backdrop of governmental indifference.

Iraq's Kurdistan Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani (R) speaks with Turkey's Energy Minister Taner Yildiz (L) 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, infuriatin

Turkey's Kurdish client state

Turkey has tremendous financial and security influence over the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, exposing Erbil to economic and political vulnerabilities.