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

Iran cover image

Iraq

May 2, 2026

Baghdad 1:59 pm

32°C

Crops of wheat and barley in Terbol village on May 10, 2022, in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Analysis

MENA wheat importers face food security risks as Hormuz crisis festers

Home to many of the world's largest wheat importers, the Middle East and North Africa face acute food security risks as the US-Israel-Iran war disrupts global fertilizer flows and pushes up prices.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Iraq's prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, at Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's office on April 28, 2026.

Trump congratulates Iraq PM-designate Zaidi in call: What to know

The US President was openly critical of previous nominee Nouri al-Maliki, seen as too close to Iran, but is now welcoming the new candidate put forward by Iraq’s leading Shiite bloc.

Prime Minister Mohammed S. al-Sudani met with Prime Minister-designate Ali Faleh al-Zaidi on April 28, 2026.

Meet Ali al-Zaidi, businessman and Iraq's new prime minister-designate

Legal sources familiar with the nominee told Al-Monitor that there are no US sanctions on Zaidi or financial institutions affiliated with him.

Ali al-Zaidi

Iraq's Shiite alliance nominates Ali al-Zaidi as PM candidate: What to know

Ali al-Zaidi, who leads a bank accused of money laundering, received support from previous nominee Nouri al-Maliki and incumbent Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, though it remains unclear whether the Trump administration will approve of him.

Latest News

Split over Maliki, Iraq’s Shiite bloc delays PM vote as deadline nears: What to know

Qais al-Khazali (L), head of the Asaib Ahl al-Haq group, stands along with former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki after casting their ballots at a polling station in Baghdad on Nov. 11, 2025.

How Syria's border opening with Iraq redefines Turkey-Kurd balance

Members of Iraq's security forces stand guard on the the al-Rabia border crossing with Syria on April 20, 2026.

IMF slashes Mideast outlook by nearly 3 points as Iran war hits economies

A man walks through the atrium during the 2026 IMF and World Bank Group Spring Meetings in Washington, DC, on April 14, 2026. (Photo by Kent NISHIMURA / AFP via Getty Images)

Bahrain, Saudi Arabia summon Iraqi diplomats over militia attacks: What to know

A photograph shows the damage in the aftermath of a drone strike in the Seef district of Manama on March 10, 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

Military honor guards dress an Iraqi flag as they prepare to greet Iraq's Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi upon his arrival to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama at the White House in Washington April 14, 2015. Al-Abadi and Obama will discuss the fight against Islamic State on Tuesday at a White House meeting likely to be dominated by Iraqi requests for U.S. arms and tension over Iran's role on the battlefield. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RTR4XARN

Cash-strapped Baghdad drops Podesta

Iraq has parted ways with its longtime Washington lobbyist.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets with Iraqi Shi'ite leader Muqtada al-Sadr in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia July 30, 2017. Bandar Algaloud/Courtesy of Saudi Royal Court/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTS19RFI

Saudi engagement with Iraqi Shiites stirs talk of opening with Iran

Saudi Arabia’s engagement with Iraqi Shiite figures gives rise to speculation about a potential opening between Tehran and Riyadh.

Recovered artifacts are seen at the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad July 15, 2015. The U.S. handed back to Iraq on Wednesday antiquities it said it had seized in a raid on Islamic State fighters in Syria, saying the haul was proof the militants were funding their war by smuggling ancient treasures. The Iraqi relics were captured by U.S. special forces in an operation in May against an Islamic State commander known as Abu Sayyaf. They included ancient cylindrical stamps, pottery, metallic bracelets and ot

Iraq eager to get back antiquities smuggled to US

Iraq is diligently working to recover relics from the United States that were looted from Iraqi archaeological sites.

Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Iraqi Vice President Nuri al-Maliki during their meeting in St. Petersburg, Russia, July 25, 2017. Sputnik/Alexei Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RTX3CTS4

Maliki’s visit to Moscow reflects many facets

Iraq’s vice president may have had upcoming elections and Iranian influence in mind when he visited Moscow recently.

Brett McGurk, U.S. envoy to the coalition against Islamic State, speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Embassy in Amman, Jordan, November 6, 2016. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed - RTX2S6NC

Ankara decries ‘provocative’ remarks by US anti-IS envoy

Turkey continues to be concerned about the relationship between the United States and the Syrian Kurds.

Disputed territories pose major challenge to Kurdish referendum

The upcoming Iraqi Kurdistan’s referendum will include the disputed territories, but given the practical and technical challenges, holding the referendum on Sept. 25 will be highly unlikely.

Iraq oil pipeline comes with major environmental costs

A gas pipeline that runs from Iran to the suburbs of Baghdad has caused environmental pollution and damaged agricultural land and archaeological sites in local areas.

A Peshmerga fighter stands next graffiti of the Islamic State (IS) group flag on a wall in Zummar city in the northern Iraqi Governorate of Nineveh on December 18, 2014, as they continue to battle Islamic State group fighters near the border with Syria. Kurdish forces backed up by US-led warplanes have recaptured a large area in Iraq near the Syrian border in an offensive this week against Islamic State jihadists, a US commander said. AFP PHOTO / SAFIN HAMED (Photo credit should read SAFIN HAMED/AFP/

Arab Sunni areas of Iraq see demands to join Kurdistan Region

The secessionist wing in Iraqi Kurdistan is working on using demands from some Sunni Arabs to join the region to support the upcoming referendum and independence.

A Yazidi boy, twelve year-old Imad Tammo rescued from Islamic State militants by the Iraqi army, is seen in Sina neighbourhood outside of Duhok, Iraq July 25, 2017. REUTERS/Ari Jalal - RTX3CVCQ

Yazidi boys forced to fight for IS still need psychological help

Hundreds of Yazidi boys indoctrinated by the Islamic State have managed to escape, but without professional treatment, their trauma continues.

With Islamic State gone, barbers are busy in Mosul

Mosul barbers, whose profession was outlawed during the Islamic State's rule, are becoming popular again in the newly freed city.

Appearances get people killed in Iraq

Several Iraqis have been killed or received death threats recently because they are gay, "look gay" or in some way don't meet extremists' religious mandates.

Iraqi Shiite fighters from the Popular Mobilization units ride on the back of a vehicle in the city of Baiji, north of Tikrit, in the Salahaddin province, on June 7, 2015. Iraqi forces advanced against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group in Baiji as they battled to retake the strategic town for a second time. AFP PHOTO / AHMAD AL-RUBAYE (Photo credit should read AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images)

Engaging with PMU necessary to check Iran's influence in Iraq

To those concerned about Iran’s role in post-Islamic State Iraq, there might be no choice but to engage with Tehran’s allies to balance the expansion of the Islamic Republic’s reach.