Kurdistan

Iraq's PM arrives in Washington as US presses Baghdad on Iran-backed militias - analysis

Iraq is already a kind of frontline between the US and Iran. After the US and Israel began strikes on Iran on February 28, the Iranians operationalized militias in Iraq.

Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi speaks during a parliamentary session to vote in a new government headed by Ali al-Zaidi as prime minister, at the parliament headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, May 14, 2026.
Image Reboot: A female fighter from from the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK)  trains at a base near Erbil, Iraq, in Feb.

Can Kurdistan follow Israel's lead to become the Middle East's next Start-Up Nation? - analysis

US Airforce (USAF) personnel work by a USAF B-1B bomber, at RAF Fairford airbase, which is used by USAF personnel, amid the US–Israeli conflict with Iran.

Iran retaliates against US strikes with attacks on Gulf assets

People gather at the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla for a farewell ceremony for Iran's late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on July 4, 2026 in Tehran, Iran. Khamenei and members of his family were killed on February 28 during U.S.-Israeli strikes at the beginning of the war, bringing an end to his 36-year rule.

Tehran's theater of mourning: What Khamenei's funeral tells us about Iran's next move - analysis


Condemnations grow after attack on Kurdistan Regional President

Meanwhile, Iraq’s Defense Ministry claimed it had unearthed rockets appearing to be Iranian-made 107 mm types that were ready to be fired at the Kurdistan Region.

Supporters of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s Reconstruction and Development Coalition Party celebrate, after election results were announced in Baghdad in November 2025.

Iran at a crossroads: No stability without the minorities - opinion

As Iran faces a historic turning point, its future stability depends on whether marginalized groups like the Kurds are finally included in government.

Fighters from the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK), an Iranian Kurdish opposition group, are pictured near the border with Iran in Iraq's Kurdistan Region, in the outskirts of Sulaimaniya, Iraq, June 21, 2025.

Iranian-backed militias escalate in Iraq, targeting Kurdistan Region president Nechirvan Barzani

The attack has been condemned by France and Iraq, but Iran has distanced itself from the incident.

Nechirvan Barzani, President of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region, gives a joint press conference with France's Foreign Minister in Arbil, the regional capital, on February 5, 2026.

Rubio holds call with Iraqi Kurdish leader, State Department says

The war in Iran has raised oil prices and shaken global markets.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio walks on the day of classified briefings for the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives on the situation in Iran, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, US, March 3, 2026.

Iran-backed Iraqi militias attack Kurdistan over 450 times since beginning of war

“The attacks, carried out by Iran and its aligned Iraqi militia groups, have killed at least 14 people and wounded 85 others," Erbil-based Rudaw Media Network noted.

SMOKE RISES from the site of a drone crash on the outskirts of Erbil, Iraq, March 12, 2026.

Iran struggles to assert control in Iraq amid strikes, militia attacks, tensions - analysis

The Kurdish leadership of the autonomous region is outraged, and Iran has appeared to walk back the attack. However, in other areas, it continues to try to assert itself.

AN IRANIAN ballistic missile on display in Tehran.

Iran-backed militias strike Kurdistan, killing Peshmerga in northern Iraq

Iran and its militias struck northern Iraq, killing six Peshmerga and wounding 19, as attacks on the Kurdistan Region escalate amid the wider Middle East conflict.

Kurdistan Regional Government Peshmerga at a mountain outpost. September 19, 2019.

Why did Iranian-backed militia in Iraq extend ‘ceasefire’?

Kataib Hezbollah has extended its ceasefire on US targets in Iraq for five days, warning foreign forces to leave while US Iran talks continue.

A flag of Iraq's pro-Iran paramilitary group Hezbollah Brigades (Kataib Hezbollah), flutters against the backdrop of people taking a swing ride at an amusement park during Eid al-Fitr celebrations, marking the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in Baghdad on March 21, 2026.

Kurds celebrate Nowruz amid Iran tensions, Ramadan overlap and regional unrest

While widely celebrated, the holiday holds particular cultural and political significance for Kurds throughout the Middle East and diaspora communities worldwide.

People gesture near a bonfire during Nowruz celebrations in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, March 21, 2026.

In Iraq, Iran’s proxy militias open a third front in war against the US and Israel

BEHIND THE LINES: Statistics indicate that a determined Iranian and allied campaign is indeed underway in Iraq, making the country a third front in the current war.

FIRE RAGES outside the grounds of the US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad’s fortified ‘Green Zone’ earlier this week, following a drone and rocket attack according to security officials. Iraq was drawn into the Middle East war after having long been a proxy battleground between the US and Iran.