US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Iraq’s Speaker of Parliament Mohammed al-Halbousi in Baghdad on Wednesday, state television reported. Meanwhile AFP reported that Pompeo’s visit to Baghdad was unannounced. Pompeo’s talks, on the second leg of a key Middle East tour, come less than two weeks after President Donald Trump drew criticism for failing to meet a single Iraqi official during a surprise Christmas visit to US troops. The US top diplomat was in the Middle East to…

A fire at a women's shelter in Baghdad killed several lodgers on Friday, according to police, who gave conflicting accounts of the tragedy. Baghdad Police Lt. Col. Mohammed Jihad, briefing reporters outside the shelter, called it a "group suicide" caused by women rioting in the shelter. He said several women were suffering from a "deteriorating mental state" and rioted, resulting in the fire that killed six women. But another officer at the Rusafa police district, where the shelter is located,…

RBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraq’s Prime Minister, Adil Abdul-Mahdi, affirmed on Monday that widespread corruption in the country must be brought to an end as it “distorts the image of the state” and its reputation, both locally and on the world stage. Iraq has one of the world’s largest oil reserves, and it is the second-largest oil producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The country, however, continues to rank high on Transparency International’s list for corruption,…

BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi security forces used live bullets and teargas on Friday to disperse protesters who were trying to storm a local government building in the southern city of Basra. It was the second week in a row that riot police used force to quell the demonstrators. About 250 people gathered outside the temporary headquarters of the provincial council throughout the afternoon to protest against corruption and demand jobs and better public services. Protesters threw rocks and empty…

BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) - Security forces used live bullets and teargas on Friday to disperse protesters gathered in Iraq’s southern city of Basra, but no injuries were reported. Around 250 people had surrounded a building used as temporary headquarters for the provincial council to protest against corruption and demand jobs and better public services.  Protesters threw rocks at riot police vehicles. Iraq’s second city has been rocked by demonstrations in which government offices, including the main provincial council building, have…

Many families in the region have been left with next to nothing after being on the move for years due to conflict and resulting economic hardship. It is “impossible” for them afford fuel for heating and winter clothes to keep their children warm, the UN agency warned. Flash floods last month worsened the situation, said Peter Hawkins, the head of UNICEF operations in Iraq. “The devastating floods have made this winter even more difficult for displaced children who are extremely vulnerable…

While Iranian assassins have targeted opponents across Iraq’s political and sectarian spectrum, many have been Shiites Iran has reportedly being using hit squads to silence its opponents in Iraq, according to British security officials that provide military training to Iraqi soldiers. Ever since Iran-backed candidates failed to secure victories in Iraq’s May election, Tehran has been deploying the squads to intimidate—and eliminate—those criticizing the Islamic Republic’s influence in the country. The security officials also revealed that Qasem Soleimani, commander of…

A large military delegation, headed by Iraqi Chief of Staff Othman al-Ghanmi, arrived in the Nineveh province to address the latest security developments after a spike in ISIS activity in the region.The visit reflects the importance the military command places on Nineveh, the province through which ISIS entered Iraq in 2014. The visit was also made after Sadrist movement leader Moqtada al-Sadr tweeted that “Mosul was in danger” and that it was falling prey to terrorism and corrupt figures.The Qarar…

The killing of a Muslim cleric who demonstrated over poor public services in Basra undermines the pillars of democracy in Iraq, a member of the parliament-elected Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights (IHCHR) told The National. Sheikh Wissam Al Ghrawi was shot and killed by unknown assailants outside his home after he encouraged protesters to take up arms over Basra's poor public services, police said. He was filmed at a protest on Friday saying clerics would issue a fatwa within days…

Saddat Al Hindiyah, Iraq: Iraqi fish farmers south of Baghdad have been left reeling after finding thousands of dead carp mysteriously floating in their cages or washed up on the banks of the Euphrates. Piles of the dead silvery fish, along with a few car tyres and plastic bags, could be seen on Friday lying under a massive concrete bridge. They covered the surface of deeper water nearby, providing rich pickings for birds circling above. And in the fish farms…