Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discusses Iraq’s future with Kurdistan’s president

The formation of a new government is on the horizon for Iraq and world leaders are taking note. Recently United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called autonomous Kurdistan regional President Masoud Barzani to discuss the current state of affairs in the region. The two leaders went over the need to continue bilateral consultations and relations […]

Turkmen Front leaders rejects the notion of Peshmerga returning to Kirkuk

According to Turkmen leader Hassan Turan, the Kurdish Peshmerga military forces must remain within the autonomous Kurdistan region’s borders and sending them back to Kirkuk would be “unconstitutional.” Turan, who is the Turkmen Front’s deputy head for Kirkuk, stated that, “The reason for our refusal to allow a Peshmerga return to the province of Kirkuk is because Article 121 […]

Iraqi Prime minister addresses concerns about Hashd al-Shaabi

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has cautioned Hashd al-Shaabi deputy commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis about refraining from not only politicizing the militia but also against restructuring the PMU without obtaining approval from Abadi first — given his status as commander-in-chief of Iraq’s military. The Prime Minister’s directive was issued with oversight from his secretary, Lt. Gen. Mohammed Hamid Kadhim; the directive […]

Hundreds hospitalized because of contaminated drinking water in Basra

In Basra, Iraq health officials have shut down around 100 unlicensed water desalination stations. The shutdowns come after the discovery of an outbreak of dysentery among Basra residents. Basra’s Department of Health Inspections head Zaki Abdulsadda told local press that the region has been experiencing a drastic case of water contamination as of late and the majority of […]

Mortar attack near Kirkuk pits residents against each other as blame shifts to PMU

Several people were seriously wounded in Tuz Khurmatu, a small town near Kirkuk, Iraq this week when mortars were dropped on a neighborhood there. Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) office head in Tuz Khurmatu, Mala Karim Shkur, told local media that, “Earlier this morning, some mortar shells were fired at the Askari neighborhood from an unknown location.” Shkur […]

Residents fight back against Iraq’s efforts to re-Arabize Kirkuk

An Iraqi governmental decree permitting Arab families to move onto Kirkuk provincial lands owned by Turkmen and Kurdish citizens has been delayed by the Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture after an official inquiry was made. The order came down after a delegation of Kurdish and Turkmen officials from Kirkuk visited Baghdad to discuss the situation with Falah Hassan […]

Iraq condemns Turkish airstrike on PKK commander

The Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has openly condemned the recent Turkish orchestrated airstrike against a PKK commander based in Sinjar. Iraq has denied that there was any cooperation in the execution of the operation and that the strike violated Iraq’s sovereignty. Ministry spokesman Ahmed Mahjoub told local media that, “The ministry also rejects these attacks and […]

Turkey and Iraq discuss water, security, and economic issues

Last week Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met to discuss the exportation of Iraq’s oil from Kirkuk to Turkey as well as establishing future trade routes. In addition to the talk of trade, the two leaders spoke about Turkey’s currency crisis, and it’s border security situation. Iraq and Turkey have […]

The crumbling skeleton of the Islamic State rattles on for now

It has been estimated that there are 20,000 to 30,000 Islamic State militants still in Syria and Iraq, according to the U.N.’s latest report. The group is standing on the brink of collapse as their strongholds have been lost and the influx of recruits has almost dwindled to nothing. The U.N. report estimated that in […]

Kurdistan and Iraq working together to solve the region’s water crisis

The water crisis in the country has pushed the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and Iraqi central government to unite on the issue. Both entities are cooperating in an effort to find a scientific solution to the problem. The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) director in Iraq, Louise Haxthausen stated that, “This project in […]

Prime Minister of Iraq’s visit to Iran abruptly canceled

Prime Minister of Iraq Haider al-Abadi’s press office canceled a planned trip to Iran this week. Oddly enough, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs denied that a visit by Abadi was even scheduled to begin with. Prime Minister Abadi’s office claimed the trip was canceled “because of his busy schedule,” but Abadi is still intending to […]