US launches fresh strikes on Iran after days-long pause, amid fears the war is widening

The US military has launched strikes on Iranian targets in response to Tehran’s attack on American forces in Jordan on Wednesday, raising the risk of a return to all-out-war in the region...

 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/30/us-strikes-iran-war-widening-iraq

 

US joins forces with Saudis to strike Tehran-backed militias in Iraq

The US military said it knocked down an Iranian missile barrage and worked with Saudi Arabia forces to strike sites in Iraq that Tehran-backed militias have used to launch attacks in recent days. The strikes on Wednesday killed at least 20 members of a former paramilitary alliance that includes pro-Iran groups...

 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/29/iran-missile-attack-us-base-forces

 

US-Saudi strikes in Iraq push region into ‘uncharted territory’, analysts warn

In Baghdad, the Iraqi presidency called the air raids on the PMF, also known as al-Hashd al-Shaabi – an armed alliance that includes powerful pro-Iran factions – “a blatant violation of Iraq’s sovereignty, targeting its official institutions”….

 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/29/us-saudi-strikes-in-iraq-have-pushed-the-region-into-uncharted-territory-analysts-warn 

Is the Iran War Like the Iraq War?

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/3k9HHGKZnSw

 

Four crew confirmed dead after US military plane crash in Iraq

Rescue efforts continue for remaining two crew members from refuelling plane that crashed in western desert…

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/12/us-military-aircraft-iraq-crash

 

‘No water, no life’: Iraq’s Tigris River in danger of disappearing

… the health of the river has been in decline for decades. Iraq had state-of-the-art water infrastructure until the US made it a target in 1991's Operation Desert Storm. With treatment plants destroyed, sewage flowed into the waterways. Years of sanctions and conflict mean the infrastructure has never fully recovered. Today, across southern and central Iraq, just 30% of urban households are connected to a sewage treatment facility. That number drops to 1.7% in rural areas… 

The climate crisis is taking a toll. Iraq has recorded a 30%decline in precipitation and is in the grip of its worst drought in nearly a century. Demand for fresh water is expected to exceed supply by 2035. This summer, the Tigris was so low people could easily walk across it…

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/dec/16/no-water-no-life-iraqs-tigris-river-in-danger-of-disappearing

 

US announces fresh strikes on Iran-linked sites in Syria

Defence secretary says US will defend its personnel and interests in the region amid surge in attacks on US troops in Iraq and Syria…

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/13/us-announces-fresh-strikes-on-iran-linked-sites-in-syria

DeSantis claims agents can tell traffickers from migrants in call for deadly force

"That 'same way in Iraq' line is terrifying," Pfaff wrote. "It's an open embrace of any sort of false positive rate and the large-scale murder of innocent people. DeSantis really is really being quite openly murderous. (And imputing that same murderous indifference to police, as a compliment.)"…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/aug/08/desantis-claims-agents-can-tell-traffickers-from-migrants-in-call-for-deadly-force

Iraq War Costs Could Hit Nearly $3 Trillion by 2050: Report

The Costs of War Project said the U.S.-led invasion and occupation "caused massive death, destruction, and political instability," killing hundreds of thousands of people while displacing millions more.

https://www.commondreams.org/news/iraq-war-cost

Ted Lasso with a bone saw (Tommy Vietor; Pod Save the World podcast)

Tommy and Ben talk about why US special forces were on a training mission in Taiwan, the Saudi government buys a soccer team, Biden’s Syria policy, stealing US Navy secrets, a breakthrough in the fight against Malaria, what a $20 million home in Beverly Hills tells us about Afghanistan, Iraq’s election results, Ted Cruz and the far-right in Spain, an Ethiopia update and gift giving in the Trump era.

Interview: 

https://www.podbean.com/ew/dir-a5qx6-1088809c

Trump White House tried to play down US injuries in attack by Iran, says ex-official

Alyssa Farah says she was pressured to delay reporting of injuries to more than 100 US troops in Iraq from attack avenging Qassem Suleimani…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/sep/09/trump-white-house-tried-to-play-down-us-injuries-in-iran-attack-suleimani-former-official

‘They will never let go’: Isis fighters regroup in the heart of Iraq | Iraq | The Guardian

Iraqi special forces hunt Isis in lowlands south of Kirkuk, where the militants keep on the move, seeking to regain territorial control…

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/11/isis-fighters-regroup-in-the-heart-of-iraq

Iraq issues arrest warrant for Trump over Soleimani killing - ABC News

Iraq's judiciary says it has issued an arrest warrant for outgoing President Donald Trump in connection with the killing of an Iranian general and a powerful Iraqi militia leader last year...

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/iraq-court-issues-arrest-warrant-trump-murder-75106778

'Our blood is cheaper than water': anger in Iraq over Trump pardons

...The four guards – Paul Slough, Evan Liberty, Dustin Heard and Nicholas Slatten – opened fire indiscriminately with machine guns, grenade launchers and a sniper on a crowd of unarmed people at a roundabout, known as Nisour Square..

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/dec/23/our-blood-is-cheaper-than-water-iraqis-anger-over-trump-pardons

UN: Over 10,000 Islamic State fighters active in Iraq, Syria - ABC News

More than 10,000 Islamic State fighters are estimated to remain active in Iraq and Syria two years after the militant group’s defeat, and their attacks have significantly increased this year, the U.N. counter-terrorism chief said Monday. Vladimir Voronkov told the U.N. Security Council that Islamic State fighters move freely “in small cells between the two countries.” https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/10000-islamic-state-fighters-active-iraq-syria-72579975

'All lies': how the US military covered up gunning down two journalists in Iraq

Former Reuters journalist Dean Yates was in charge of the bureau in Baghdad when his Iraqi colleagues Namir Noor-Eldeen and Saeed Chmagh were killed. A WikiLeaks video called Collateral Murder later revealed details of their death
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jun/15/all-lies-how-the-us-military-covered-up-gunning-down-two-journalists-in-iraq

Militia attacks on Americans in Iraq are becoming more audacious. The U.S. is wrestling with how to respond - The Washington Post

U.S. officials say they get reports almost every day about 'imminent' attacks on military and diplomatic targets.....
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/militia-attacks-on-americans-in-iraq-becoming-more-audacious-us-wrestling-with-how-to-respond/2020/03/27/7b31d76c-6d38-11ea-a156-0048b62cdb51_story.html

The Iraq War has cost the US nearly $2 trillion

The Costs of Wars project was started in 2011 to assess the long-term consequences of the post-9/11 wars. Project co-director Neta C. Crawford, professor and chair of political science at Boston University, explains the major implications of the Iraq War for the federal budget. ....
http://theconversation.com/the-iraq-war-has-cost-the-us-nearly-2-trillion-129617

Iraq says U.S.-led coalition has resumed operations against ISIS - The Washington Post

Joint operations were suspended after President Trump ordered the killing of a top Iranian military commander in Baghdad.....
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/iraq-says-us-led-coalition-has-resumed-operations-against-isis/2020/01/30/10fa2d62-437c-11ea-99c7-1dfd4241a2fe_story.html

U.S. Troops Restart Joint Anti-ISIS Operations With Iraqis

The U.S. military resumed its joint operations with Iraq on Wednesday—less than two weeks after Iraq’s parliament voted to expel all American forces from the country. There was a 10-day pause in operations following President Trump’s decision to assassinate Iran Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/us-troops-restart-joint-anti-isis-operations-with-iraqis