Iraq

U.S. Says It Will Cut Number Of Troops In Iraq By Nearly Half This Month

11:49am September 09, 2020

by Merrit Kennedy

Gen. Frank McKenzie, who is responsible for U.S. forces in the Middle East, says the U.S. presence will drop from 5,200 to 3,000 troops in a move he says shows confidence in Iraqi army.

Iraqi National Museum Deputy Director Musin Hassan holds his head in his hands as he sits amid destroyed artifacts in the Baghdad museum in 2003.

World News

In Iraq, Authorities Continue To Fight Uphill Battle Against Antiquities Plunder

1:49pm August 20, 2020

by Jane Arraf

Heritage experts say hundreds of thousands of pieces have been looted at archaeological sites and museums. As the illegal trade in antiquities continues, Iraq is trying to get objects returned.

About 200,000 displaced Yazidis are in camps in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Many are waiting for help to rebuild homes damaged or destroyed by ISIS in 2014.

A Yazidi Survivor's Struggle Shows The Pain That Endures After ISIS Attack

12:22pm August 08, 2020

by Jane Arraf

Six years after ISIS committed genocide against Iraq's ancient religious minority group, the Yazidis are not getting the help they need to recover.

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People wait for COVID-19 tests at a hospital in Baghdad on June 4.

In Iraq, Rising Virus Cases And Oxygen Shortages Stoke Outrage, Fears Of 'Chaos'

10:50am July 01, 2020

by Jane Arraf

Crowds have seized supplies for ill relatives, and officials warn the health system could collapse. "This is a war against the coronavirus and we have lost the war," says an Iraqi official.

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An Iraqi soldier stands guard near a U.S. military air carrier at the Qayyarah Airfield West, before the U.S. transferred the base to Iraqi forces in March.

Laid Off By U.S. Contractor, Iraqi Interpreters Fear ISIS Retaliation

1:57pm June 12, 2020

by Jane Arraf

A U.S. military contractor abruptly laid off most of the U.S.-led coalition's Iraqi interpreters. Some have gone into hiding. "We ... will be easily hunted down," a group wrote to the U.S. military.

Hobby Lobby bought the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet for more than $1.6 million in 2014. "This rare tablet was pillaged from Iraq and years later sold at a major auction house, with a questionable and unsupported provenance," Peter C. Fitzhugh, special agent in

World News

U.S. Authorities Say Hobby Lobby's Gilgamesh Tablet Is 'Stolen,' Must Go Back To Iraq

3:56pm May 19, 2020

by Jane Arraf

U.S. federal prosecutors are seeking the return of the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet, purchased by Hobby Lobby for display in the Museum of the Bible, which authorities say cooperated with the investigation.

Mustafa al-Kadhimi speaks to Parliament in Baghdad on Thursday. Iraq's former spy chief was sworn in early Thursday as prime minister after weeks of tense political negotiations as the country faces a severe economic crisis spurred by the coronavirus pand

World News

Iraq's Former Spy Chief Voted Prime Minister After 6 Months Of Caretaker Government

12:05pm May 07, 2020

by Jane Arraf

Mustafa al-Kadhimi was the third candidate whom Iraq's president had asked to try to form a government. Parliament approved the majority of Kadhimi's Cabinet early Thursday morning.

Mourners pray over the flag-draped coffins of two Popular Mobilization Forces fighters killed in the Thursday U.S. airstrike in Iraq, during their funeral procession at the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, Iraq, Saturday.

Rocket Attack Wounds U.S.-Led Coalition Troops, Iraqi Soldiers In Base Near Baghdad

4:42pm March 14, 2020

by Huo Jingnan

Three U.S.-led coalition members and two Iraqi solders were injured Saturday, continuing a string of tit-for-tat attacks between the U.S. and Iran-backed militia largely playing out on Iraqi soil.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper, pictured on Monday, said the U.S. airstrike in Iraq on Thursday targeted Kata-ib Hizbollah weapon storage facilities.

U.S. Launches Retaliatory Airstrikes In Iraq After Missile Attack

9:11pm March 12, 2020

The strikes were "defensive, proportional and in direct response to the threat posed by Iranian-backed Shia militia groups," Pentagon officials said on Thursday.

A U.S. soldier (standing) helps Iraqi security forces improve shooting skills at Camp Taji, north of Baghdad, in 2015.

World News

2 Americans Among 3 People Killed In Latest Rocket Attack In Iraq

6:40pm March 11, 2020

by Vanessa Romo

A barrage of "more than 15 small rockets impacted Iraq's Camp Taji base hosting Coalition troops," on Wednesday evening, a military official confirmed.