Iran iraq

Iran-backed Iraqi militias may lash out amid increased pressure from US - analysis

Iran-backed militias in Iraq have played a central role in expanding Tehran’s influence in the country, particularly through their involvement in the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).

Fighters lift flags of Iraq and paramilitary groups, including al-Nujaba and Kataib Hezbollah, during a funeral in Baghdad for five militants killed a day earlier in a US strike in northern Iraq, on December 4, 2023.
Iraqi security forces stand at the Shalamcheh border crossing with Iran after Iraq closed the crossing following airstrikes on the Iranian side that security sources said killed an Iraqi citizen, Iraq, April 4, 2026.

Iraq's government struggling amid threats of rebellion, protests, rising Iran tensions - analysis

Iraqi security forces stand at the Shalamcheh border crossing with Iran after Iraq closed the crossing following airstrikes on the Iranian side that security sources said killed an Iraqi citizen, Iraq, April 4, 2026.

Iraq braces for renewed Iran conflict after 1,000 strikes on Kurdistan, 600 militia attacks

Supporters of the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) chant slogans and wave flags at a rally celebrating the end of the U.S. military presence in Iraq on September 30, 2026 in Baghdad, Iraq.

Mysterious explosion hits Baghdad, injuring soldiers from Iranian-backed militias in Iraq


Strategy or physical withdrawal: What does Washington’s shift from airstrikes to sanctions signify?

Despite the apparent success of the US’s blockade and sanctions campaign, Iranian officials have repeatedly expressed that they would not falter in maintaining control over the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump reacts as he speaks to the media with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent behind him, on the day of a NATO leaders' summit in Ankara, Turkey, July 8, 2026.

Iraq's 20,000 illiterate electric ministry employees is indicator of larger dysfunction - analysis

The problem is that the 20,000 employees are working in a key energy infrastructure field in a country that is now at the center of the Iran conflict with the US and Israel.

 The electricity supply problem can be seen everywhere on the streets of Iraq.

Iran plans to weaken Kurdish forces in Iraq to prevent disarmament of militias - analysis

Iran will use the militias to do whatever is necessary to preserve its role in Iraq, while also aiming to weaken its Kurdish rivals in the country.

Iranian Shi'ite pilgrims walk along a road to enter Iraq through the Shalamcheh border crossing between Iran and Iraq to make their way to the holy city of Karbala to attend the Arbaeen pilgrimage, following US strikes on the Iranian side of the border crossing, in Basra, Iraq, July 23, 2026.

Iranian drones target Iraq's Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani's office

Two drones launched from Iran targeted offices linked to KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani and a senior security official, with no casualties reported.

Iranian Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Freedom Party, known as PAK take part in a training session at a base on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq February 12, 2026.

Iraq seeks Saudi, Syrian ties as it faces pressure to rein in Iran-backed militias - analysis

Iraq’s militias have threatened US forces and Israel in the past. They have kidnapped journalists and carried out hundreds of attacks on the Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi delivers a televised address after assuming office, in Baghdad, Iraq May 16, 2026.

Trump’s agenda now: Destroy Iranian regime's ability to govern – opinion

With the American president’s plan to target the Islamic Republic’s infrastructure rather than the IRGC or nuclear sites, his principal objective has become dismantling its leadership

A woman walks next to a banner with a picture of Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei in Tehran, earlier this month.

US-Saudi joint strikes on Iran-backed militias are a milestone in cooperation - analysis

US CENTCOM said that American forces and “the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces conducted precision strikes in Iraq, July 28, against Iran-aligned terrorists that the IRGC directed to attack US forces."

A US military aircraft flies at an unknown location, during what U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) says are strikes on Iran, in this screengrab taken from a handout video released on July 20, 2026.

Iraq's militia disarmament won't stop Iran using proxies across Middle East - analysis

Iran is activating allied militias in Iraq to launch drones at Saudi Arabia and Kurdistan, while threatening Jordan, Syria, Israel and US forces.

Security personnel stand guard on the day of a funeral procession for Iran's late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on February 28 in Israeli and US airstrikes, in Najaf, Iraq, July 8, 2026.

Iraq forced to balance US, Iran relations after separate meetings with Trump, Iranian ambassador

Over the last decade, Iraq has been weakened from within because of Iranian-backed militias. Some of the militias have historical ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Iran.

Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi speaks during a parliamentary session to vote in a new government headed by Ali al-Zaidi as prime minister, at the parliament headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, May 14, 2026.

Iran targets Kurdistan in regional escalation, spiking gas prices and tensions - analysis

Iran’s attacks on the Kurdistan Region come as the Iraqi prime minister has wrapped up his visit to the US.

Iranian Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Freedom Party, known as PAK take part in a training session at a base on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq February 12, 2026.