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Iraq

August 21, 2026

Baghdad 4:04 am

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Masrour Barzani, Prime Minister of the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government, gives a press conference in the autonomous region's capital Arbil on June 25, 2025.

Interview

Barzani calls for enhanced air defense for Kurdistan Region to counter drone attacks

Iraqi Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani backs US-led regional economic integration efforts and lauds US partnership in an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor.

Masrour Barzani

Masrour Barzani

KRG Prime Minister

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP via Getty Images

Exclusive

Saudi Arabia wants Iran-backed militia 'heads to roll' in Iraq amid talks with Tehran

Riyadh is pressing Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi to act against the groups behind attacks on the kingdom as Baghdad struggles to balance ties with Tehran and Washington.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

Iraq seeks special Hormuz access from Iran in scramble to keep oil flowing

As Iran's parliament speaker holds talks in Baghdad, Iraq has asked Tehran for special consideration for its oil exports.

Latest News

Iran’s Ghalibaf makes high-level visit to Iraq ahead of disarmament deadline

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf speaks during a press conference at the site where Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed by a US airstrike in 2020 near the airport upon his arrival in Baghdad, on Aug. 19, 2026.

Explainer

Why Iran targeted Barzani family stronghold in Iraqi Kurdistan

Smoke rises after explosions were heard and air defences activated near the airport in Erbil, on July 24, 2026.

Iraq intel and security officials visit Saudi Arabia after drone attacks

A man inspects the damage at the site of a strike in Bartalla, in the northern Iraq's Nineveh province, after US-Saudi attacks on militias, July 29, 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

Meet the agency that brought World Press Photo's images to Iraq

World Press Photo Foundation has launched an exhibition in Iraq for the first time thanks to the efforts of one pioneering photo agency which wanted to realize the dream of its founder.

Will Iraqi Kurdistan government be able to solve PKK issue?

Despite their deep rivalry, both the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) emphasize the importance of dealing with their longstanding conflicts peacefully.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi attends the election campaign, along with his supporters in Kirkuk, Iraq April 28, 2018. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed - RC1866072A60

Former Iraqi premier opens up about PMU, new PM, Iran

In an interview with Al-Monitor, former Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi explained that his faction's opposition to the current government is a matter of personal responsibility and that any criticism is meant to be constructive.

TOPSHOT - A fighter of the Hashed Al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization units) flashes the victory gesture while carrying a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) launcher during the advance through the town of Tal Afar, west of Mosul, after the Iraqi government announced the launch of the operation to retake it from Islamic State (IS) group control, on August 26, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / AHMAD AL-RUBAYE (Photo credit should read AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images)

As US pressure increases on Iran-backed militias, they turn to Iran

Iran-backed PMU factions are under intense pressure from the Iraqi government and the public, leading them to Iran.

An Iraqi woman arrives to cast her vote at a polling station during the parliamentary election in the Sadr city district of Baghdad, Iraq May 12, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC18D4CCE020

Amendments to Iraqi provincial elections law spark controversy

Large political blocs in the Iraqi parliament voted for a new law organizing provincial elections for 2020 that gives the blocs an advantage over smaller groupings.

Oil, budgets, Kirkuk still nag Baghdad-Erbil relations

Baghdad and Iraqi Kurdistan representatives have held a series of high-level meetings to try to resolve their longstanding issues, but so far without much apparent success.

US sanctions on a Christian militiaman reignite conflict among Iraqi Christians

As the United States imposes sanctions on a Christian militiaman, conflict among Iraqi Christians flares up.

More victims of Saddam's purge found, Kurds seek justice

The recent discovery of additional mass graves of Iraqi Kurds is prompting renewed calls for collaborators with the former Iraqi regime to be prosecuted.

Basra church restored, but few Christians left to worship there

Basra's Virgin Mary Chaldean Church has reopened after a $228,000 renovation, but the Christians still in the city are dwindling.

Iraqi fighters of the Hashed al-Shaabi units stand guard during a campaign gathering for the Fateh Alliance, a coalition of Iranian-supported militia groups, in Baghdad on May 7, 2018, ahead of Iraq's parliamentary elections to be held on May 12. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP) (Photo credit should read AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iraq’s ever-increasing enforced disappearances

The number of forcibly disappeared persons in Iraq remains significant, amid no serious measures from the Iraqi government to address the issue.

Division threatens Islamic Dawa after Maliki’s reelection

The Islamic Dawa Party could on the verge of division after the reelection of Nouri al Maliki as its secretary-general; however, many party leaders see the party as continuing to be a strong and unified one.

Israeli Air Force F-35 flies during an aerial demonstration at a graduation ceremony for Israeli air force pilots at the Hatzerim air base in southern Israel December 26, 2018. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RC1B826A4350

Tinderbox: Israeli military attacks in Iraq could complicate US strategy in Middle East

Washington may need to draw some red lines to protect its larger regional interests.