Baghdad

Former Iraqi prime minister returns to Baghdad despite security threats

Former Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, known for promoting the rule of law, returned to Baghdad Tuesday for the first time in more than two years despite ongoing security threats. In 2021, he survived an assassination attempt in which two armed drones targeted his residence in Baghdad's Green Zone area. The attack came at a time of tensions sparked by the refusal of Iran-backed militias to accept parliamentary election results. Al-Kadhimi left Iraq after his term as prime minister ended in 2022 and has been living in London and the United Arab Emirates. The former prime minister did not immediately make any public statements upon his return. Three officials with his office who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly said security threats against the former prime minister were still present. They said he had returned at the invitation of current Iraqi political leaders who hoped he could use his connections to help them confront a

Explosion at US military facility in Iraq ahead of Iranian prez visit

Iraqi security officials said an explosion targeted a site used by the U.S. military next to Baghdad airport late Tuesday, one day before an expected visit by Iran's president. The expected visit by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to Baghdad Wednesday would be his first official trip abroad since taking office. Iraq's security media cell said in a statement that an explosion was heard at 11 p.m. at the airport, in an area used by advisers to the U.S.-led international coalition. The statement said Iraqi security forces were unable to determine the type or causes of the explosion, and no party has claimed responsibility for it. It added that the incident was under investigation and civilian air traffic continued as normal. There was no immediate information on damages or casualties. U.S. officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. An Iraqi security official at the airport, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly ab

Drone strike in Baghdad kills high-ranking militia commander: Officials

A US drone strike hit a car in the Iraqi capital Wednesday night, killing three members of the powerful Kataib Hezbollah militia, including a high-ranking commander, officials said. The strike came on a main thoroughfare in the Mashtal neighborhood in eastern Baghdad. A crowd gathered as emergency response teams picked through the wreckage. A U.S. official familiar with the matter said that a senior Kataib Hezbollah commander was targeted in a U.S. strike on Wednesday in Iraq. The official was not authorized to comment publicly and requested anonymity. Two officials with Iran-backed militias in Iraq said that one of the three killed was Wissam Mohammed Abu Bakr al-Saadi, the commander in charge of Kataib Hezbollah's operations in Syria. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak to journalists. The strike came amid roiling tensions in the region and days after the U.S. military launched an air assault on dozens of sites in Iraq and Syria

Airstrike in Baghdad kills Iran-backed militia leader, tensions escalate

An airstrike on the logistical support headquarters of an Iran-backed militia in central Baghdad on Thursday killed a high-ranking militia commander, militia officials said. Thursday's strike comes amid mounting regional tensions fuelled by Israel-Hamas war and fears that it could spill over into surrounding countries. The Popular Mobilization Force - a coalition of militias that is nominally under the control of the Iraqi military - announced in a statement that its deputy head of operations in Baghdad, Mushtaq Taleb al-Saidi, or Abu Taqwa, had been killed as a result of brutal American aggression. It was not immediately clear who had carried out the strike. Officials with the US military and embassy in Baghdad did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The strike killed two people and wounded five, according to two militia officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly. One of the officials said al-Saidi was driving in

Protesters storm Swedish Embassy in Baghdad ahead of planned Quran burning

Protesters angered by the planned burning of a copy of the Quran stormed the Swedish Embassy in Baghdad early Thursday, breaking into the compound and lighting a small fire. Online videos showed demonstrators at the diplomatic post waving flags and signs showing the influential Iraqi Shiite cleric and political leader Muqtada al-Sadr ahead of a planned burning of the Islamic holy book Thursday in Stockholm. The videos showed dozens of men climbing over the fence at the complex, with the sound of them trying to break down a front door. Another showed what appeared to be a small fire being set. Other footage showed men, some shirtless in the summer heat, inside what appeared to be a room at the embassy, an alarm audible in the background. Others later performed predawn prayers outside of the embassy. As dawn broke, police and other security officials gathered at the embassy as small plumes of smoke still rose. Firefighters tried to douse the flames from the ladder of a fire truck. So

Baghdad mediated talks with Iran reported stalled over protests in Iran

Baghdad-mediated diplomatic talks between regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia have come to a halt, largely because of Tehran claims the Sunni kingdom has played a role in alleged foreign incitement of the mass anti-government protests underway in Iran, multiple Iraqi officials said. The talks had been lauded as a breakthrough that would ease regional tensions. Iraq's new Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said last month after taking office that Iraq had been asked to continue facilitating the dialogue. However, an anticipated sixth round of talks, to be hosted by Baghdad, has not been scheduled because Tehran refuses to meet with Saudi officials as protests in Iran enter a fourth month, according to the Iraqi officials. The Iranian-Saudi negotiations have stalled, and this will have a negative impact on the region, said Amer al-Fayez, an Iraqi lawmaker and member of the parliamentary Foreign Relations Committee. On his first official visit to Tehran in November, al-Sudani ..

Fire and building collapse injures more than 20 people in Baghdad

More than two dozen people were injured, including the head of Iraq's civil defence directorate, when a commercial building in the capital caught fire and then collapsed Sunday, authorities and the state news agency reported. The official Iraqi News Agency said the civil defence director, Maj. Gen. Kadhim Bohan, and some firefighters were were among those injured when the burning building collapsed. No deaths were reported. No information was immediately available on the cause of the blaze. Brig. Gen. Qusai Younis, director of civil defense for the Al-Rusafa district of Baghdad, told The Associated Press that at least 28 people had been injured. He said two of the three stories in the building, which contained warehouses storing flammable materials such as perfume, collapsed due to the fire. The civil defense announced late Sunday evening that the fire had been fully extinguished and first responders were searching for missing people at the scene. On Oct. 29, a gas tanker explode

Iraqi soldier, 2 Islamic State militants killed in clashes near Baghdad

A soldier and two Islamic State (IS) militants were killed in clashes north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, the Iraqi military said

6 IS militants killed in separate operations in Iraq, says military

Iraqi forces killed six Islamic State (IS) militants in separate military operations in the north and west of the country, the military said

Hundreds of Iraqi protesters storm Baghdad's parliament: Report

The majority of the protesters were followers of influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr

Four rockets target US Embassy in Baghdad, say Iraqi officials

The area is home to diplomatic missions and the seat of Iraq's government

Armed drones target Irbil international airport in Iraq near US consulate

Kurdistan's Counter-Terrorism Service said at least two drones carrying explosives targeted the airport. It said the attack did not lead to any casualties

Baghdad security breach won't be repeated: Iraqi PM Mustafa al-Kadhimi

A statement by his office said that al-Kadhimi's comments came during the extraordinary session of the Ministerial Council for National Security a day after the deadly twin suicide bombings

Islamic State claims deadly and rare twin blasts that rocked Baghdad

The blasts killed over 30 and wounded dozens

With coronavirus outbreak, cherished Mideast traditions come to abrupt halt

Once inside, however, thick white plumes of fragrant smoke choked the air as over a dozen young men whiled away the hours in defiance of the directives.

3 rockets hit near US embassy in Baghdad's high-security Green Zone: Report

The US has blamed Iran-backed paramilitary groups for a spate of similar attacks in recent months on the Green Zone, but there has never been a claim of responsibility.

Thousands mourn Soleimani, others killed in US air-strike in Baghdad

Friday's attack on Baghdad airport, authorised by US President Donald Trump, was a major escalation in a "shadow war" in the Middle East between Iran and the US and its allies

Qassem Soleimani, Iraq's militia chief killed in Baghdad air strike: Report

Qassem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis were killed late on Thursday

Iran will pay very big price, says Trump after attack on US embassy

President Trump, in his brief interaction with reporters, said that the situation in Iran has been handled very well.

After attack on its embassy in Iraq, US to send more troops to Middle East

Trump blamed Tehran for the embassy attack and warned that it would face punishment if Americans are killed