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

Iran cover image

Iraq

October 31, 2026

Baghdad 10:14 pm

22°C

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

HUSSEIN FALEH/AFP via Getty Images

Iraq's soccer team celebrates with militia leaders after Gulf Cup victory

The team held up a photo of militia leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who was killed by a US drone strike in 2020.

A man and a woman hold up a banner depicting the image of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died while in the custody of Iranian authorities, during a demonstration denouncing her death by Iraqi and Iranian Kurds outside the UN offices in Arbil, the capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on September 24, 2022. (Photo by SAFIN HAMED/AFP via Getty Images)

Fleeing repression, Iran's Kurdish activists struggle to find refuge in Iraq

The Kurdistan Region of Iraq has become a key escape route for an unknown number of Iranian Kurds fleeing brutal repression and torture in Iran, but most fail to find security and stability in Iraq.

Iraq dinar

Iraq's government struggles to control US dollar price

The Iraqi economy is suffering from the US dollar's rise as a result of smuggling dollars outside of Iraq.

ESSAM AL-SUDANI/AFP via Getty Images

In restive Iran-Iraq border area, support for firebrand cleric Muqtada al-Sadr holds strong

Al-Monitor traveled to Iraq’s impoverished southeast, known for drug smuggling and militia violence, to explore the continued support there for the Sadr movement.

A picture shows the Kurdish-run al-Hol camp, which holds relatives of suspected Islamic State (IS) group fighters in the northeastern Hasakeh governorate, during a security operation by the Kurdish Asayish security forces and the special forces of the Syrian Democratic Forces, on Aug. 26, 2022.

Iraq repatriates 580 citizens from Syria’s al-Hol camp

The Islamic State sees the tens of thousands of detainees at al-Hol and other prison facilities in Syria as key to rebuilding its army, US officials have said.

Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, Brett McGurk, speaks during a press conference in Amman on November 6, 2016. (Photo credit should read AHMAD ABDO/AFP via Getty Images)

Iraq's PM Sudani hosted US envoy ahead of meeting Iran's Quds commander

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani received high-ranking US and Iranian envoys separately for discussions of bilateral issues related to both countries.

Iraq Sadr

Iraq's Sadr indicates return to politics in public prayer session

Muqtada al-Sadr organized a public prayer on Friday, making a comeback to politics after months of silence.

Sudani germany

Iraqi PM in Germany to sign agreement with Siemens

Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia al-Sudani traveled to Germany Thursday to further economic ties between the two countries and sign an agreement with Siemens to repair Iraq's dilapidated electrical infrastructure.

Barzani

Iraqi Kurdistan PM discusses disputes with Iraq's Sudani

A high-ranking Kurdish delegation led by Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani met with officials in Baghdad over energy, security and finance disputes — but no resolution is expected.

Men ride scooters past a billboard depicting (L to R) the late commander of the Popular Mobilization Units Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Qassem Soleimani, Baghdad, Iraq, June 13, 2021.

Iraqi PM condemns former US administration for killing Soleimani

At a ceremony marking the anniversary of the assassination of Qassem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani condemned the former US administration for carrying out the strikes.

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Iraq judicial chief highlights arrest warrant for Trump over Soleimani killing

The 2020 US airstrike that killed Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad continues to be a sore point between the US and Iraqi governments.

Sistani

Iraq's Sistani calls on world not to abandon Afghans

Ayatollah Ali Sistani, Iraq's top Shiite cleric, asked the international community and the Muslim world to stand with the people of Afghanistan following a meeting with Afghan Shiites.