Iraq - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Iran cover image

Iraq

July 15, 2026

Baghdad 1:14 pm

45°C

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi meets with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House, Washington, DC, July 14, 2026.

Trump hosts Iraqi PM Zaidi as Iran war intensifies

President Donald Trump emphasized Iraq’s “tremendous oil reserves” and possible deals with US companies.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi at a Council of Ministers meeting in Baghdad on July 11, 2026.

Analysis

On first foreign trip, Iraqi PM Zaidi woos Trump but Iran casts long shadow

Iraq's new prime minister is in Washington promising business deals and closer ties with the United States, but convincing the Trump administration he can rein in Iran-backed militias may prove his toughest challenge.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

An aerial view shows port of the western Syrian port city of Latakia, on Dec. 18, 2024.

Analysis

Can a UAE-backed Syria-Iraq corridor become Gulf's next trade route?

On June 26, Emirati and Syrian officials discussed plans for a logistics corridor connecting Syrian ports to Gulf markets via Iraq.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Latest News

Here's what to know about Iraq's corruption as Zaidi launches crackdown

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Iraqi PM’s anti-corruption drive comes as US pressure mounts on Iran-backed militias

aqi security personnel patrol in a vehicle along a street in Baghdad on June 28, 2026.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Explainer

After UAE and Qatar, could Iraq be next to leave OPEC?

A worker at a market for fuel oil and automotive fuel on March 17, 2026, in Erbil, Iraq.

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 Shi'ite al Hawza cleric Sheikh Jassim Al-Saidi prays in a Baghdad
mosque June 3, 2003 after being released from detention by U.S. forces.
Al-Saidi said that he had been accused of instigating violence towards
American forces occupying Iraq. REUTERS/Faleh Kheiber REUTERS

CLH/ - RTROS2A

Competition Heats Up Between Qom, Najaf

The long-standing competition for influence between Shiites' two holiest cities is growing.

Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters stand at formation in northern Iraq May 14, 2013. The first group of Kurdish militants to withdraw from Turkey under a peace process entered northern Iraq on Tuesday, and were greeted by comrades from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), in a symbolic step towards ending a three-decades-old insurgency. The 13 men and women, carrying guns and with rucksacks on their backs, arrived in the area of Heror, near Metina mountain on the Turkish-Iraqi border, a Reuters witness sa

PKK Members Withdraw To Iraqi Kurdistan

Following a call by PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan from prison on Imrali island, members of the party have begun to move from Turkey into the Iraqi Kurdistan Region.

An Iraqi man casts his vote at a polling station in Basra, 420 km (261 miles) southeast of Baghdad, April 20, 2013. Iraqis voted for provincial councils on Saturday in their first ballot since U.S. troops left the country, a key measure of political strength before parliamentary elections next year. REUTERS/Atef Hassan (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTXYT1X

Basra Becomes Battleground For Iraqi Politics

Basra has become Iraq’s latest political battleground as the country’s prominent Shiite factions seek to win over the local population of the majority-Shiite city in southern Iraq.

A view of a destroyed makeshift camp at a public square in Hawija, near Kirkuk, 170 km (100 miles) north of Baghdad April 23, 2013. Iraqi forces stormed the Sunni Muslim protest camp on Tuesday, and more than 50 people were killed in the ensuing clashes which spread beyond the town of Hawija, to other areas. Picture taken April 23, 2013. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST MILITARY POLITICS) - RTXYZEU

Iraqi Judiciary Opens Hawija Investigation

Nearly a month after the deadly attacks on protesters by internal security forces in the town of Hawija, Iraq’s judiciary investigates the events and the people involved.

Iraq's Kurdistan Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani (L) and Ali Babeer, the leader of the Kurdish Islamic Group, hold a news conference in Arbil, 310 km (193 miles) north of Baghdad July 27, 2009. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari (IRAQ CONFLICT) - RTR264CT

Iraqi Politics Needs a Roadmap For the Future

Following Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani’s visit to Baghdad at the end of April, Iraq’s political class still has many challenges.

A customer counts Iraqi dinars at a money changer in Baghdad October 1, 2012. Many Iraqis have lost faith in their dinar currency but to some foreign speculators, it promises big profits. The contrast underlines the uncertainties of investing in Iraq as the country recovers from years of war and economic sanctions. Picture taken October 1, 2012. To match IRAQ-ECONOMY/DINAR REUTERS/Saad Shalash (IRAQ - Tags: BUSINESS POLITICS) - RTR38QU1

Baghdad Struggles to Halt Devaluation of Iraqi Dinar

The Central Bank of Iraq has taken measures to slow the fall of the Iraqi dinar, which has plummeted against the US dollar in recent weeks.

A Kurdish fighter from the "Popular Protection Units" (YPG) gestures after firing towards Syrian government forces inside a building in the majority-Kurdish Sheikh Maqsud district of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, on April 21, 2013. Syria's National Coalition head Ahmad Moaz al-Khatib has refiled his resignation and an interim leader is being sought, a fellow member and a source close to the main opposition group said. AFP PHOTO/MIGUEL MEDINA (Photo credit should read MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/Getty Ima

Iraqi Kurds Reportedly Among Jihadists in Syria

Iraqi Kurdish youth have reportedly been fighting alongside jihadists in Syria.

Head of the Sunni-backed Iraqiya political bloc Iyad Allawi speaks during a news conference for the seniors of Iraqiya bloc in Baghdad January 18, 2012. REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2WGNS

Ayad Allawi: Demonstrations Won’t Stop Unless Maliki Resigns

During a meeting with Iraqi journalists at his Baghdad home, Iraqiya List leader Ayad Allawi said demonstrations in the country wouldn't stop unless Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki resigns.

Iraq's fans hold up placards during the team's international friendly soccer match against Syria at Baghdad's Shaab stadium March 26, 2013. Iraq will be allowed to play friendly matches at home again following approval from soccer's world governing body FIFA on Thursday. Iraq were banned from playing all games at home for security reasons after losing a World Cup qualifier 2-0 to Jordan at the Franso Hariri Stadium in Arbil in September 2011. The reprieve does not apply to World Cup qualifiers for which Ira

Iraq’s Political Crisis Spreads To Sports Stadiums

Iraq’s political crisis has spread to the country’s soccer stadiums, with fans from rival teams carrying out politically motivated attacks against one another.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki (L) speaks next to Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Hussain al-Shahristani during a meeting of the Council of Ministers in Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad May 8, 2012. On top right hangs a picture of Iraq's President Jalal Talabani. REUTERS/Iraqi Prime Minister Media Office/Handout (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY

Speculation Mounts in Iraq Over Maliki’s Health

Across the Iraqi media, speculation has been rife about the current health of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, with conflicting reports from government and opposition sources.

Ammar al-Hakim (L), leader of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI) and Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr hold a news conference in Najaf, 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad, May 8, 2013. REUTERS/Haider Ala (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXZEUL

Iraqi Shiite Political Leaders Opposing Al-Maliki

Two of Iraq’s top Shiite leaders, Muqtada al-Sadr and Ammar al-Hakim, recently met to discuss current political affairs.

U.S. President Barack Obama (L) and Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan take part in a family photo during the G20 Summit of major world economies in Cannes November 3, 2011. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTR2TKEP

Obama’s Talking PointsFor Erdogan

Henri Barkey considers what President Obama might, and should, say about Syria when he meets Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan in Washington on May 16.