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Iraq

October 4, 2026

Baghdad 12:24 pm

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Members of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization) paramilitary forces stand guard during an election rally for the "Asaib Ahl al-Haq" movement in the capital Baghdad, on October 7, 2021.

Analysis

After US exit, Iran gains space in Iraq and a harder balancing act

For Iran, the easier part may have been getting Washington out, but it may now have to struggle turning the absence into durable influence and reviving its allied militias without provoking instability.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

US President Donald Trump meets Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa (L) on the sidelines of the NATO Summit at Bestepe Presidential Compound in Ankara, on July 8, 2026.

Trump’s integration policies build on Gulf, Turkey ties and Syria success

Iran’s influence, and the potential for renewed conflict, complicate progress in Iraq.

An Airbus A321 airliner arrives at the Mehrabad international airport during the delivery of the first batch of planes to the Iranian state airline Iran Air in the capital Tehran on Jan. 12, 2017.

Iraq announces Iran flights to resume: What to know

Iraqis protested the latest move aimed at pressuring Iran and an Iran-backed militia vowed a response if the flights do not come back.

Latest News

Analysis

Can Turkey’s Bashiqa withdrawal pave the way for deeper Iraq ties?

Turkish soldiers conduct military exercises near the Habur crossing gate between Turkey and Iraq on Sept. 27, 2017 in the Silopi district, southeast Turkey.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Analysis

How militias in Anbar could complicate Iraq’s energy ambitions

Iraqi soldiers from the new 'desert battalion' special forces stand next to military vehicles as the take part in a graduation ceremony, after months of training by the French military, at the Ain al-Asad air base in Anbar west of Baghdad on February 29, 2024. (Photo by Ahmad AL-RUBAYE / AFP) (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP via Getty Images)

Shelly Kittleson

By Shelly Kittleson

In Baghdad, reporting on Iraqi politics

Explainer

Turkey agrees to hand over contentious Bashiqa base to Iraq

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi meets with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in New York City, Sept. 23, 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

Iraqi government considers sales tax to relieve budget crisis

Iraq is mulling the possibility of imposing a sales tax amid concerns over the consequences of such a move on Iraqis already struggling in a down economy.

Egyptian soldiers stand guard during an organised tour for diplomats to mark the 150th anniversary of the inauguration of the Suez Canal, in the northeastern city of Ismailia on November 17, 2019. - One hundred and fifty years after the Suez Canal opened, the international waterway is hugely significant to the economy of modern-day Egypt, which nationalised it in 1956. The canal, dug in the 19th century using "rudimentary tools" and which links the Mediterranean to the Red Sea, was opened to navigation in 1

Egypt, Iraq deepen defense ties

Egypt and Iraq are expanding defense industry ties in a sign of deepening engagement among Cairo, Baghdad and Amman.

Shiite factions close to Sistani move to separate from Iran-backed militias

Brigades close to top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani announced the formation of a mobilization force affiliated with the chief of staff of the Iraqi armed forces, rather than Iran.

Muqtada Sadr is preparing a bid to gain Iraq’s prime minister position

The populist cleric appears to be gearing up for the upcoming parliamentary elections slated for June 2021 in a bid to win the premiership.

The remains of carved feet of a "Lamassu" statue, an Assyrian deity often depicted as a winged-bull with a human head, stands inside the destroyed museum of Mosul on April 2, 2017 after Iraqi forces recaptured it from Islamic State (IS) group fighters.
Iraqi forces seized the museum from IS on March 7 as they pushed into west Mosul as part of a vast offensive to oust the jihadists from the northern city. / AFP PHOTO / AHMAD GHARABLI (Photo credit should read AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Scarred but still standing, Mosul museum reopens at last

Ninevah’s renowned cultural heritage museum, known for the Islamic State's disastrous attack on its treasures, has finally reopened to the public.

Activists fear Iraqi cybercrime law could limit press freedoms

The Iraqi cybercrime bill makes a reappearance amid widespread objections by civilians and activists who label it as repressive of freedoms and rights guaranteed in the Iraqi Constitution.

Islamic State increases attacks in Iraq’s Sunni areas

The Islamic State has conducted several attacks in recent weeks on the Sunni-majority provinces of Anbar and Salahuddin.

Iranian commander killed in airstrike on Iraq-Syria border

No one has yet taken responsibility for the bombing that killed the IRGC commander.

Will reopening of border crossing drive Saudi investment in Iraq?

Iraq and Saudi Arabia are opening the Arar border crossing, a move that should boost Saudi investment in Iraq.

A F-16 jet fighter of Royal Dutch Air Force lands on the runway of Volkel air base, southern Netherlands, on January 2, 2019. - The Dutch Air Force took part in the Air Task Force Middle East mission to fight against ISIS in Iraq and Eastern Syria. (Photo by Remko de Waal / ANP / AFP) / Netherlands OUT (Photo credit should read REMKO DE WAAL/AFP via Getty Images)

The Netherlands to send new troops to Iraq as coalition shifts to advisory role

The Dutch now take the helm of a training mission that focuses on "expert specialized capabilities."

An Iraqi woman stands at passport control as she waits to have her passport stamped at the Arar southern Iraqi border crossing with Saudi Arabia on November 11, 2009. A group of Iraqi Shiite Muslim pilgrims left their homes in the city of Karbala to join an overland tour that will taken them to the Saudi holy city of Mecca where they will take part in the annual Hajj or pilgrimages. AFP PHOTO / MOHAMMED SAWAF (Photo credit should read MOHAMMED SAWAF/AFP via Getty Images)

Iraq-Saudi border crossing reopens after 30 years

The Arar crossing has remained closed since Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.

Iraq increases deficit to pay salaries

The Iraqi parliament voted on the funding deficit law so that it can borrow to pay salaries that have been in arrears for more than two months.