Car bomb rocks Kirkuk as electoral campaigning begins for Iraq

A bodyguard was killed in Kirkuk today when a car bomb exploded that was presumably intended for a passing politician’s convoy. Other members of the group were reported to be wounded with varying levels severity. At last count there were 12 injured and 1 killed. The attack happened in the Khazrayi district that is situated in the […]

SDF and Iraq may fight ISIS side by side

The Kurdish comprised Syrian Democratic Forces are considering conducting joint anti-terror operations with Iraqi military forces in Syria. The Islamic State is supposedly reemerging around the Euphrates River valley that runs the two countries shared border. The Islamic State is also beginning to use sleeper cell based insurgency tactics to strike at security forces with increasing […]

Peshmerga deny they are being sent back to Kirkuk

The Secretary-General for the Ministry of Peshmerga, Jabar Yawar, has refuted the claims that the Kurdish Peshmerga will be deployed to the disputed area of Kirkuk to assist Iraqi Security forces. Yawar stated during a press confrence that, “So far there has been no official meeting between KRG’s Ministry of Peshmerga and Iraq’s Ministry of Defense or between […]

Russian alliance accuses the U.S. of failing in Syria

Officials from Iran and Russia have heavily critiqued United States foreign policy in regards to Syria, making accusations that the U.S. cares not for defeating the Islamic State but are instead pursue ulterior motives in the form of economic gain. Russia’s Minister of Defense, Sergei Shoigu, implied that the United States had failed in the war […]

Iraq plans to enter Syria to “fight terrorism”

Haider al-Abadi, Iraq’s Prime Minister, has confirmed that the Iraqi military is forming plans to cross it’s border with Syria in an effort to combat terrorism. The move comes in the wake of Turkish military aggression on Iraq’s northern border while Turkey simultaneously has conquered the formerly Kurdish controlled Canton of Afrin in northern Syria. […]

The private sector and the rebuilding of the Middle East after ISIS

The U.S. Department of State is advocating the use of the private sector in the rebuilding and reconstruction of Syrian and Iraqi infrastructure in the wake of the war with the Islamic State. Rather than nation building as a government, they believe that privatizing the reformation process will be a far more feasible solution to […]

Hashdt al-Shaabi to become official Iraqi military branch

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is Commander in Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces, issued a decree on March 8th that would grant all Hashdt al-Shaabi or PMF (Popular Mobilization Forces) militia members the same benefits as members of the Iraqi armed forces. Also, they would receive the same pay as military members under the Ministry […]

Hasdt al-Shaabi combats remnants of ISIS

On Sunday Hasdt al-Shaabi forces began anti-terror operations in southwest Kirkuk, where they engaged a substantial force of Islamic State fighters. In the course of the battle, 27 Hasdt al-Shaabi were killed or captured in the province of Hawija over the span of several days. The operation was in an effort to combat known ISIS […]

Kurdish PM refuses to send Peshmerga to defend Afrin

In a recent interview, Kurdish prime minister of the KDP (Kurdish Diplomatic Party) and former president Masoud Barzani said, “The deployment of the Peshmerga to help their fellow Kurds in Afrin against Turkey’s military operation will not help solve the problem.” The conflict in Afrin has stirred up a lot of sympathy and support for […]

Turkey deploys military forces to Syrian border

Reports are coming through that a convoy of five tanks and multiple military vehicles have been dispatched to Turkey’s southern border with Rojava, northern Syria. This move by Turkey’s President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is presumably in response to the Kurds neglecting to heed his earlier threats of military response if they did not withdraw from the […]

Iraq declares it has no knowledge of missing Peshmerga

A member of the Iraqi parliament has stated that it does not known the whereabouts of the many Peshmerga soldiers who have disappeared during the Islamic State conflict and that they are not being held in Iraqi prisons. Shakhawan Abdullah, a member of the Iraqi parliament’s council for security and defense, has denied accusations that […]