Iraq

app

Crowdsourcing morality: How an app allows the Iraqi government to arrest ‘indecent’ influencers

Digital and human rights activists say Ballegh’s very existence flies in the face of free speech provisions enshrined in Iraq’s post-Saddam Hussein constitution 20 years ago.

Crowdsourcing morality: How an app allows the Iraqi government to arrest ‘indecent’ influencers
man at home

This Iraqi lost an eye in a protest. He's still fighting for 'real democracy.'

This Iraqi lost an eye in a protest. He's still fighting for 'real democracy.'
people walking down the street in a devastated area of the city

4 years later, the legacy of ISIS prevents these Iraqi children from going to school

4 years later, the legacy of ISIS prevents these Iraqi children from going to school
Smoke rises from the Trade Ministry in Baghdad after it was hit by a missile during US-led attacks, March 20, 2003.

An Iraq vet grapples with lingering toll of war

An Iraq vet grapples with lingering toll of war
Young men chat near Al-Mutanabbi street in Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, Feb. 24, 2023.

Young Iraqis reflect on the US-led invasion, its aftermath and their hopes for the future

Young Iraqis reflect on the US-led invasion, its aftermath and their hopes for the future
Iraqi cellist and conductor Karim Wasfi leads a performance at the National Theatre in Iraq, Baghdad, March 11, 2023.

Iraq’s revived art scene is helping to heal the country’s wounds

Years of war and violence have interrupted and undermined Iraq’s music scene, with many musicians fleeing the country. But the current relative stability has created a space for its revival.

Iraq’s revived art scene is helping to heal the country’s wounds
Ghaith Abdul-Ahad, author of the book, "A Stranger in Your Own City: Travels in the Middle East's Long War," in Istanbul, Turkey.

Iraqi author Ghaith Abdul-Ahad on the 'unbuilding' of Baghdad

Iraqi author Ghaith Abdul-Ahad has a new book called, "A Stranger in Your Own City: Travels in the Middle East’s Long War." It's an ode to a city shattered by war. Abdul-Ahad speaks with The World’s Marco Werman about his childhood home, the cycle of sectarian violence set in motion by the US-led invasion in 2003 and what might lie ahead for the centuries-old, cosmopolitan city.

Iraqi author Ghaith Abdul-Ahad on the 'unbuilding' of Baghdad
headshot of man outside

Iraqi reporter who threw his shoes at George W. Bush says his country is still paying the price for the US-led invasion

Iraqi journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi was thrust into the global spotlight in 2008 after he threw his shoes at then-US President George W. Bush. Two decades after the US-led invasion of Iraq, he says his country is still paying the price.

Iraqi reporter who threw his shoes at George W. Bush says his country is still paying the price for the US-led invasion
President George W. Bush declares the end of major combat in Iraq as he speaks aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln off the California coast. But the war dragged on for many years after that.

Citizen pain: Part II

Critical State, a foreign policy newsletter by Inkstick Media, takes a deep dive this week into how the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003 not only dismantled the government but destroyed an entire nation, forcing a mass exodus of certain ethnic and religious minorities.

Citizen pain: Part II
Fighters from the Saraya Salam (Peace Brigades) loyal to influential Shia Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr deploy in Baghdad, Iraq, Aug. 30, 2022.

Instability in Iraq has created a ‘culture of fear,’ experts say

This week, the announcement of the resignation of a powerful cleric in Iraq sparked deadly clashes in the capital, Baghdad. On Monday, Moqtada al-Sadr said he is stepping away from politics. In response, his supporters stormed the Green Zone. 

Instability in Iraq has created a ‘culture of fear,’ experts say
man in a helicopter

How wars end: Revisiting our series about one of the most difficult aspects of war

As the US finds itself embroiled in another war, though not with troops, we are reairing our series, "How Wars End," which first ran in 2008.

How wars end: Revisiting our series about one of the most difficult aspects of war
Iraqi protesters breach Baghdad's parliament in Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, July 27, 2022. 

Iraqi protesters loyal to Sadr storm Parliament building to send message to political rivals, analyst says

Iraqi protesters aligned with Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's political movement stormed the heavily militarized Green Zone and Iraqi Parliament building on Wednesday. The World's Marco Werman spoke with Hamzeh Hadad, a visiting fellow with the European Council on Foreign Relations, about the protesters' demands and the political gridlock plaguing Iraq.

Iraqi protesters loyal to Sadr storm Parliament building to send message to political rivals, analyst says
Fishermen navigate on the Shatt al-Arab waterway during a sandstorm in Basra, Iraq, Monday, May 23, 2022.

'It's a mass ecological crisis': Extreme weather in Iraq hits those already struggling the hardest

About a dozen dust storms have blown across Iraq this year with increased frequency and intensity. Experts say that it's due to climate change, drought and desertification.

'It's a mass ecological crisis': Extreme weather in Iraq hits those already struggling the hardest
Iraqi army helicopter takes off at a base in Sinjar, Iraq, Tuesday, May 3, 2022. 

Iraq's Yazidis stuck in 'tug-of-war' between regional armed groups

Recent fighting between the Iraqi army and a local militia in heavily populated civilian areas has led to the displacement of an estimated 10,000 people. 

Iraq's Yazidis stuck in 'tug-of-war' between regional armed groups
A Kurdish security officer escorts Alexanda Kotey, left, and El Shafee Elsheikh

Former ISIS member is found guilty in US federal court

El Shafee Elsheikh, a former British citizen accused of taking part in a brutal ISIS hostage-taking scheme, has been convicted in a federal court in Virginia of assisting in the kidnapping and deaths of four Americans between 2012 and 2015.

Former ISIS member is found guilty in US federal court