Iraq

Thirty-four Australians released from a camp holding families of suspected ISIS terrorists in Syria

Hukmiya Mohamed, a co-director of Roj camp, told Reuters that the 34 Australians had been released to their families, who had come to Syria for the release.

A woman and child walk in the the al-Hol camp in Syria's northeastern Al-Hasakah Governorate on July 28, 2024, as Syrian families of suspected Islamic State fighters prepare to return to their homes in the countryside of Deir Ezzor.
 Women and children seen inside al-Hol camp, amongst them some 6,200 women and children from around 40 nationalities, and including relatives of suspected Islamic State jihadists in the desert region of Hasakah province on January 25, 2026 in Al Hasakah, Syria.

Moving suspected ISIS prisoners to Iraq shows Washington doesn’t fully trust Damascus, expert says

Nechirvan Barzani, President of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region, gives a joint press conference with France's Foreign Minister in Arbil, the regional capital, on February 5, 2026.

Iraq's Kurds emerge as Middle East's key diplomatic players at Munich Security Council - analysis

 A soldier in an ISIS uniform prepares ammunition.

Iraq nears end of US-led ISIS prisoner relocation as thousands are transfered from Syria


Iraq arrests suspect wanted by Australia over Melbourne synagogue firebombing

"This arrest is a significant disruption to an alleged serious criminal and his alleged criminal enterprise in Australia," said the Australian Federal Police Commissioner.

  Members of the Synagogue recover items from the Adass Israel Synagogue on December 06, 2024 in Melbourne, Australia.

'Mercenaries for foreigners': Khamenei accuses Iranian protesters of acting on behalf of Trump

The demonstrations, which began in Tehran last month, have spread to all of Iran's 31 provinces but have yet to reach the scale of the 2022-3 unrest sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini.

IRANIANS GATHER while blocking a street during a protest in Kermanshah, Iran on January 8, 2026.

Iranians 'have fallen in love with Netanyahu,' Tehran resident tells KAN - report

An Iranian protester told KAN Reshet Bet that many Iranians admire Netanyahu and Israeli strikes, while blaming economic collapse, repression, and inflation for the unrest.

An illustration of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in front of a backdrop of Iranian flags flying amid fire from an Israeli strike on Sharan Oil depot, Tehran.

Candace Owens, influencers claim 'Zionist' plot behind Maduro capture

"The CIA has staged another hostile takeover of a country at the behest of a [sic] globalist psychopaths," wrote Owens. "That’s what is happening, everywhere. Zionists cheer every regime change."

Candace Owens speaks during a right-wing gathering known as America Fest, an event organised by Turning Point USA, in Phoenix, Arizona, December 2022; illustrative.

The American Venezuela operation marks end of era of US military hesitation - opinion

The central framing of the move is explicitly geopolitical, aimed at blocking the China-Russia-Iran axis in the US's backyard.

US President Donald Trump sits near Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Secretary of State Marco Rubio stand in front, as they watch the US military operation in Venezuela from Trump's Mar a Lago resort, in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., January 3, 2026.

Voices from the Arab press: Education across the Middle East

A weekly selection of opinions and analyses from the Arab media around the world.

EGYPTIAN PRIME MINISTER Mostafa Kamal Madbouly speaks to the media during a press conference for the Grand Egyptian Museum opening, in Giza, Nov. 1.

Iraq moves to reclaim Ain al-Assad as US-led coalition ends mission

Assad's base was one of the few places the US remained, until Iran targeted the base with ballistic missiles in 2020 in response to the US killing Soleimani.

A member of the Iraqi security forces stands by a destroyed vehicle that was carrying rockets amdist sacks of flour, in the district of al-Baghdadi in al-Anbar province on July 8, 2021.

Haibat al-Halbousi elected Iraq’s parliament speaker as new legislature convenes

Iraq continues to face challenges as it navigates between the Iranian influence on the country and a push by the US and others to roll back Iranian-backed militias.

Adnan Faihan, nominated by the Coordination Framework for the position of first deputy speaker, speaks to the media on the day of the first session of the newly elected parliament, where members are set to be sworn in and begin the process of electing a speaker and two deputies, in Baghdad, Iraq Dec

After Iraq legalizes child marriage, Baghdad bridal market booms as young girls sold to older men

Iraq’s decision to introduce the Ja’fari law in January means that girls can be married based on perceived “maturity and physical capacity.”

A young Iraqi girl who has reached the age of wearing a hijab, is clothed in the head covering worn by many Muslim women for the first time during a ceremony organised at the Basra International Stadium in Iraq's southern city of Basra on December 11, 2025.

Iraqi Sunnis divided over upcoming vote for parliament speaker

Iraq’s top leadership is divided along sectarian lines, with the president being Kurdish and the prime minister usually a Shi’ite. The lower-level speaker of parliament's role goes to Sunnis.

HUSSEIN MOUNIS, Member of the Iraqi Parliament votes at a polling station inside Al-Rasheed Hotel during the parliamentary election in Baghdad, Iraq, November 11, 2025.