There has been an alarming rise in attacks against activists in the war-torn country  An Iraqi pharmacist and her family were killed after an intruder broke into their home late on Tuesday, security officials said. Sheelan Dara, who came from an affluent Kurdish family, took part in anti-government protests during the uprising in last October. "Unidentified gunmen stormed a house in Al Mansour district, west of Baghdad, on Tuesday evening, and slaughtered the pharmacist Sheelan Dara, and her parents,” Baghdad…

BAGHDAD – Iraqi forces arrested the former director general of the General Pension Authority Ahmed Al-Saadi along with six officials on corruption charges Tuesday as part of the government’s anti-corruption campaign led by Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. Iraqi sources indicated, according to local media, that the military forces mobilised to arrest Saadi and the six officials, acting on orders from Kadhimi. The same sources noted that arrests of other senior officials will be carried out soon. Saadi was arrested in central…

Iraq’s top Shiite cleric Ayatollah Ali Al Sistani on Sunday backed the government’s call to hold early elections, a key demand of protesters, after a meeting with the UN envoy to the country. "The parliamentary elections scheduled for next year are of great importance," Mr Al Sistani, 90, said after the meeting. Iraqis should be encouraged to participate, he said, and failing to hold the polls on time or in a free and fair way would "threaten the unity and…

Iraqi insurgents in Babylon have called for the trial of those responsible for killing protesters and the removal of a corrupt governor affiliated with the Iranian regime. Suppressive forces attacked protesters and arrested a number of them, including Dr. Zargham Majid, an insurgent activist. The insurgent youths confronted the repressive forces by burning tires and closing the streets and spreading demonstrations. Insurgent youths in Tahrir Square in Baghdad, Nasiriyah, Karbala and Wasit called for the immediate release of Dr. Zargham…

New York, September 10, 2020 — Iraqi authorities must investigate the threats against employees of Dijlah TV and do their utmost to ensure they can work freely and without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Since August 28, at least six reporters and camera operators working in Iraq for the Jordan-based broadcaster have quit their jobs and gone into hiding amid a campaign of threats for allegedly offending Iraqi Shias, according to a statement issued by the journalists,…

According to Iraqi media reports, the father of the family posted a comment on his Facebook page a few days ago criticizing the actions of Muqtada al-Sadr and the militias affiliated with the Iranian regime.   In response to the criticism, the militants stormed the man's home on Monday, September 7, shot and killed his wife and three children. After the massacre, the militants wrote on the wall of the house  in Arabic: "Penalty for criticism Saraya-Al-Salam".  

Sept. 2 (UPI) -- The United States has seized websites used by an Iran-backed terrorist organization to recruit new members and further destabilize the political situation in Iraq, the Justice Department said Wednesday. In a statement, the Justice Department said it seized two websites on Aug. 31 that function as the media arm of Kataib Hezbollah, an Iraq-based militant group that the U.S. Treasury blacklisted and the State Department designated as a foreign terrorist organization in 2009.  "Once again, we see designated foreign…

The people of Iraq turned the Muharram mourning ceremony into another uprising against the Iranian regime’s meddling and its terrorist proxy groups. These protests held in Iraq’s southern provinces with a Shi’ite majority showed the people of Iraq are seriously concerned about the Iranian regime’s deadly presence in Iraq. These protests also showed how the Iranian regime’s so-called “strategic depth” in Iraq has shattered after years of wasting the Iranian people’s national wealth and using Shi’ite Islam to promote and…

BAGHDAD — French President Emmanuel Macron voiced support on Wednesday for a sovereign Iraq and said its main challenges are Islamic State militants and foreign interference in its affairs. France also backs Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi's efforts to "normalise" all armed forces, Macron said during a visit to Baghdad, referring to mostly Iran-backed Shi'ite militia groups. "We will remain committed because the battle against Islamic State is ongoing but this has to be in the context of an agreement and…

“May God have revenge on every politician!” The anguished cry echoes across the revered Imam Hussein’s shrine in Iraq’s Karbala, as Shiite pilgrims mourn his killing centuries ago and demand justice today. The thousands of black-clad pilgrims are marking Muharram, the first month in the Islamic calendar, during which they commemorate the Prophet Mohammed’s grandson and vow to fight oppression. Hussein was killed at the Battle of Karbala in 680 AD by the forces of the Caliph Yazid. The seminal…