Iraq

List of Iraq articles

A supporter of Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr waves the Iraqi flag in Baghdad, on August 29, 2022.
A supporter of Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr waves the Iraqi flag in Baghdad, on August 29, 2022.

20 Years After Liberation, Iraq Needs Root-and-Branch Reform

The system of government set up after 2003 has run its course.

A protester waves the Iraqi national flag as police with riot shields stand nearby.
A protester waves the Iraqi national flag as police with riot shields stand nearby.

Iraq’s Story Isn’t Over

The ideal vision for Iraq post-2003 did not materialize as foreseen, but this should not be the sole prism through which we judge the country now.

A large banner is displayed on the outer wall of the Russian Embassy in Cyprus.
A large banner is displayed on the outer wall of the Russian Embassy in Cyprus.

Adam Tooze: Why Iraq’s Economy Never Recovered From the U.S. Invasion

In the 1980s, it had one of the most advanced economies in the Arab world.

Ones-And-Tooze-podcast-series-1500x1000-site (1)
Ones-And-Tooze-podcast-series-1500x1000-site (1)

Why Iraq’s Economy Never Recovered From the U.S. Invasion

What did the war cost, and how do we go about calculating the cost in the first place?

Kurdish military officers take part in a graduation ceremony in Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s Kurdistan Region, on Jan. 15.
Kurdish military officers take part in a graduation ceremony in Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s Kurdistan Region, on Jan. 15.

Iraqi Kurdistan’s House of Cards Is Collapsing

The region once seemed a bright spot in the disorder unleashed by U.S. regime change. Today, things look bleak.

Iraqi children walk along a damaged road on their way back from school in Mosul, Iraq
Iraqi children walk along a damaged road on their way back from school in Mosul, Iraq

Iraq Must Not Squander Another Opportunity to Rebuild

The war’s legacy is 20 years of broken hopes and dreams. This government must do better.

U.S. Marines walk past a toppled statue of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in Baghdad.
U.S. Marines walk past a toppled statue of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in Baghdad.
Kosovo Albanians sit next to a U.S. flag in Pristina.
Kosovo Albanians sit next to a U.S. flag in Pristina.

Iraq’s Damage Created a Strain of Permanent American Defeatism

Accepting U.S. failures doesn't mean giving dictators a free hand.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani at a press conference in Berlin.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani at a press conference in Berlin.

‘They Have to Balance’: New Iraqi Leader Tilts the Scales Toward U.S.

Mohammed al-Sudani’s public support of U.S. troops reflects a behind-the-scenes shift—and the continued threat from the Islamic State.

Iraqi Shiite women carry portraits of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, his predecessor and Islamic Revolution founder Ayatollah Khomeini and late Iraqi Shiite cleric Mohammed Baqer al-Sadr during a military parade in Baghdad, on May 31, 2019.
Iraqi Shiite women carry portraits of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, his predecessor and Islamic Revolution founder Ayatollah Khomeini and late Iraqi Shiite cleric Mohammed Baqer al-Sadr during a military parade in Baghdad, on May 31, 2019.

Iraq Is Nearing the Brink of a Shiite Civil War

The increasingly violent rivalry between Moqtada al-Sadr and Iran will decide Iraq’s future.

Protesters supporting Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr occupy the Iraqi parliament in Baghdad, on Aug. 3.
Protesters supporting Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr occupy the Iraqi parliament in Baghdad, on Aug. 3.

Biden’s Indifference Has Given Iran the Upper Hand in Iraq

The country’s fragile postwar democracy is threatened like never before.

Supporters of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr gather outside the Iraqi parliament in the Green Zone in Baghdad, on the seventh day of protests against the nomination of a rival Shiite faction for the position of prime minister on Aug. 5, 2022.
Supporters of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr gather outside the Iraqi parliament in the Green Zone in Baghdad, on the seventh day of protests against the nomination of a rival Shiite faction for the position of prime minister on Aug. 5, 2022.

Is Moqtada al-Sadr Trying to Stage a Jan. 6 Insurrection in Iraq?

The cleric’s “spontaneous peaceful revolution” is more of a bid to maintain his own influence—and the political status quo.

A crowd of men protesting hold flags and a large portrait of Sadr.
A crowd of men protesting hold flags and a large portrait of Sadr.

Moqtada al-Sadr Wants to Be Iraq’s Ayatollah Khomeini

Despite the Shiite cleric’s apparent efforts against Iranian influence in Iraq, his chief inspiration is Iran’s founder and most famous supreme leader.

Supporters of Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr flash the victory sign during protests inside the parliament building in Baghdad on July 30.
Supporters of Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr flash the victory sign during protests inside the parliament building in Baghdad on July 30.

Iraqi Politics Needs a Root-and-Branch Overhaul

New elections won’t fix what increasingly looks like a systemic problem.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi meets with U.S. President Joe Biden in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington on July 27, 2021.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi meets with U.S. President Joe Biden in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington on July 27, 2021.

On Biden’s Middle East Visit, He Will See a New Iraq at the Table

After leaning heavily on the United States, Iraq is finding its own footing.

reconstruction builders work to revive Mosul's Old City
reconstruction builders work to revive Mosul's Old City

Five Years After Liberation, There Is New Hope Among Mosul’s Ruins

On the anniversary of its liberation from the Islamic State, Iraq’s second city heals its scars.

Iraqi demonstrators lift banners against Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a protest rejecting election results, near an entrance to the Green Zone in Baghdad on Nov. 5, 2021.
Iraqi demonstrators lift banners against Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a protest rejecting election results, near an entrance to the Green Zone in Baghdad on Nov. 5, 2021.

Iraq’s Prime Minister Is Silencing Human Rights Advocates

Mustafa al-Kadhimi promised reform and freedom of expression. Now he’s using archaic laws to stifle free speech.

A long line of cars stretches down a city street from a gas station.
A long line of cars stretches down a city street from a gas station.

Iraq’s Oil Dysfunction

The world’s sixth-largest oil producer still suffers from fuel shortages and power outages.

Moqtada al-Sadr, Iraqi militia leader and Shiite Muslim cleric, gives a news conference in the central holy shrine city of Najaf, on November 18, 2021.
Moqtada al-Sadr, Iraqi militia leader and Shiite Muslim cleric, gives a news conference in the central holy shrine city of Najaf, on November 18, 2021.

Why Muqtada al-Sadr Failed to Reform Iraq

Iraq’s most recent election promised change but ended up entrenching the establishment.

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