Kurdistan

Rising militia strikes leave Washington with few good choices in Iraq - analysis

The US Embassy in Baghdad has been warning US citizens in Iraq about threats for two weeks, since the US and Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28.

A member of the Iraqi security forces mans a turret while on guard during a funerary procession for a slain member of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi, who was killed in a US-Israeli air strike in Mosul the previous evening, in Baghdad on March 8, 2026.
Iraqi security forces stand guard during a funerary procession for a slain member of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi, or the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) in Baghdad on March 8, 2026.

Iran-backed militias escalate drone attacks on US, Kurdistan targets in Iraq

A gas flare burns at the Lanaz refinery after it was targeted by a drone strike, in Erbil, Iraq, March 14, 2026.

Drone strike hits Erbil refinery halting operations, Riyadh intercepts Iranian missiles, drones

A soldier is stationed at the entrance to the Varces barracks south of Grenoble in the Isere department on Friday 13 March 2026 where was based Chief Warrant Officer Arnaud Frion a soldier with the 7th Alpine Chasseurs Battalion who was killed in an attack in the Erbil region of Iraq.

After French soldier killed in Iraq, will Baghdad stop attacks?


French officer killed, at least five soldiers wounded in drone strike on base in Iraq’s Makhmour

Macron called the attack "unacceptable" and said that the French troops were stationed in the region as part of France's support in fighting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

French soldiers at a military outpost outside the Kurdish city of Erbil, Iraq, January 2, 2017.

Airstrike on Italian base in Iraq was deliberate, defense minister says

The defense ministry initially spoke of a missile attack on the Italian base in Erbil, but ministry sources later said it was a drone that had destroyed a military vehicle, possibly by accident.

A general view shows the Dukan dam in Sulaimaniyah in Iraq's northern Kurdistan region on March 11, 2026.

Are Iranian drone attacks on consulate in Erbil a red line for the UAE? - analysis

It was the latest attempt by the Iranian regime and Iranian-backed militias to target the UAE, which has been attacked with hundreds of drones and missiles since the war with Iran broke out.

Iranian Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) take part in a training session at a base on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq February 12, 2026.

Iranian debris damages UAE petrol facility, drones damage Bahraini residences, injures 32 civilians

Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar also came under attack, as Oman's Muscat airport limited private jet flights into the Gulf State's capital.

Fire and smoke rise in the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone, caused by debris after interception of a drone by air defenses, UAE, March 4, 2026; illustrative.

Trump pragmatically changes course, 'has no interest' in Kurdish offensive in Iran

"I don't want to see the Kurds get hurt and killed. And we've had a good relationship. They're willing to go in. But we really, I've told them I don't want them to go in," the US president said.

US President Donald Trump, with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth at his side, looks on as he speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One on a flight from Dover, Delaware, to Miami, Florida, US, March 7, 2026.

‘Regime fall is inevitable,’ Iranian academic says as war enters second week

Members of the IRGC, the Basij, and other repressive forces still deployed in the streets have become fatigued and desperate, the officer said.

Members of special IRGC forces attend a rally marking the annual Quds Day, or Jerusalem Day, on the last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan in Tehran, Iran April 29, 2022.

Why the Kurds are suddenly in the spotlight during the war with Iran - explainer

As Iranian proxies target Iraq's Kurdistan, the US is reportedly courting Kurdish Iranian militias for a ground front. Groups remain split between seizing the moment and avoiding total war.

Iranian Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) take part in a training session at a base on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq February 12, 2026.

Erbil hotel hit by drone attack, security sources say

The drone attack, which came the same day as two other Erbil drone attacks, occured amid Kurdish concerns of being dragged into the Iran war.

A view of the Erbil Arjaan by Rotana hotel, in Erbil, the capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region on March 6, 2026.

Israel backing Iranian Kurdish push to seize Iran border areas, sources say

An Israeli source cautioned that there was pushback from the Iraqi Kurds, and without their practical support it would be hard for the Iranian Kurds to mobilize.

Iranian Kurdish fighters from the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) take part in a training session at a base on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq February 12, 2026.

Iranian officers reportedly abandon posts amid airstrikes, Trump demands 'unconditional surrender'

IDF begins new wave of strikes on Iranian regime • Russia reportedly providing Iran with intel on US • IDF destroys Khamenei's bunker in Tehran • Smotrich's son injured in Lebanon

Smoke rising from a recent airstrike on March 6, 2026 in Tehran, Iran.