Adil Abdul-Mahdi
Pope Francis, center, leads a mass at Mar Youssef Church in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, March 6, 2021. Pope Francis and Iraq's top Shiite cleric delivered a powerful message of peaceful coexistence Saturday, urging Muslims in the war-weary Arab nation to embrace Iraq's long-beleaguered Christian minority during an historic meeting in the holy city of Najaf. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)
Pope, top Iraq Shiite cleric deliver message of coexistence

By Nicole Winfield And Qassim Abdul-Zahra Mar. 06, 2021 02:21 AM EST

FILE - In this Jan. 15, 2004 file photo, Iraqis protest in the streets of the southern city of Basra carrying posters of Shiite leaders including Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani, right, the top cleric of Iraq's Shiite majority. On Saturday, March 6, 2021, Pope Francis will visit the 90-year-old Grand Ayatollah who is revered by many Shiites worldwide and whose words hold powerful influence in Iraq and beyond. The pontiff and ayatollah will meet in al-Sistani’s modest home in the Iraqi city of Najaf. (AP Photo/Nabeel al-Jurani, File)
Intense preparations before pontiff meets Iraqi ayatollah

By Qassim Abdul-Zahra And Samya Kullab Mar. 03, 2021 01:20 AM EST

FILE - in this Sunday, April 14, 2019 file photo, Cardinal Louis Raphael I Sako addresses the faithful during the Palm Sunday service at Mar Youssif Church in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq’s top Catholic official said Thursday, Jan. 28, 2021 that a deadly suicide bombing in Baghdad hasn’t thwarted Pope Francis’ plans to visit, and he confirmed the pontiff would meet with the country’s top Shiite cleric, Ali al-Sistani, in a significant highlight of the first-ever papal trip to Iraq. The Chaldean patriarch, Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako, provided the first details of Francis’ March 5-8 itinerary during a virtual press conference hosted by the French bishops' conference. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban, File)
Patriarch: Pope to meet Iraqi Shiite leader Sistani in Iraq

By Nicole Winfield And Samya Kullab Jan. 28, 2021 06:41 AM EST

Anti-government protesters run for cover while security forces use tear gas to disperse them on the closed Joumhouriya Bridge that leads to the Green Zone government areas in Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2020. Thousands of Iraqi protesters have taken to the streets to mark one year since mass anti-government demonstrations swept Baghdad and Iraq's south. Protesters marched Sunday in the capital and several southern cities to renew demands to bring an end to corruption perpetuated by Iraq's politicians. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)
Tear gas fired as thousands mark one year of Iraq protests

By Qassim Abdul-Zahra Oct. 25, 2020 08:46 AM EDT

Iraqis hold photos of missing protesters during anti-government protest in Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2020. There are 25 activists still missing since the protests erupted on Oct. 1, 2019, according to the semi-official Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights. No group has claimed responsibility but activists have blamed the militias. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)
In Iraq a father faces militia power as he seeks missing son

By Samya Kullab Oct. 02, 2020 02:13 AM EDT

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo walks off of the stage following a news conference at the State Department in Washington, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2020, with Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Pompeo pledges support for Iraq, targets pro-Iran militias

By Matthew Lee Aug. 20, 2020 12:50 AM EDT

Anti-government protesters gather by barriers near Tahrir Square, Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, July, 27, 2020. Fresh violence erupted between demonstrators and Iraqi security forces in central Baghdad, human rights monitors and Iraqi security and health officials said on Monday, following months of quiet in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)
Iraq PM orders probe after 2 protesters killed in clashes

By Samya Kullab Jul. 27, 2020 05:45 AM EDT

FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016 file photo, Iraqi soldiers participate in a training exercise with American and Spanish trainers, which includes live ammunition, at Basmaya base, 40 kilometers southeast of Baghdad, Iraq. The U.S. and Iraq launched much-anticipated strategic talks on Thursday, June 11, 2020, spanning the gamut of bilateral relations with Washington prioritizing the future of its forces in the country, and Baghdad, a dire economic crisis. But the outcome of discussions will be months away, U.S. and Iraqi officials said. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim, File)
US, Iraq launch strategic talks on economy, American troops

By Samya Kullab Jun. 11, 2020 11:55 AM EDT

FILE- In this Sept. 25, 2000 file photo, two workers climb down from one of the tanks in an oil tank-farm in Jebel Ali, 25 miles (40 km) south of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. The historic crash in oil prices in the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic is reverberating across the Middle East as crude-dependent countries scramble to offset losses from a key source of state revenue. The economies of all the Arab Gulf oil exporters are expected to contract this year. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili, File)
Mideast economies take massive hit with oil price crash

By Samya Kullab And Qassim Abdul-Zahra Apr. 27, 2020 02:04 AM EDT

FILE - In this Wednesday, March 18, 2020 file photo, an anti-government protester passes a defaced picture of Iraq's then Prime Minister-designate Adnan Al-Zurfi, in Tahrir Square, Baghdad, Iraq. On Thursday, April 9, 2020, Mustafa al-Kadhimi, Iraq’s intelligence chief, has been appointed the country’s third prime minister-designate in just over a month. The appointment comes after the resignation of Al-Zurfi, Thursday amid political infighting. The upheaval threatened a leadership vacuum at the helm of the government amid a severe economic crisis and viral pandemic. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban, File)
Iraq appoints third PM-designate, after second withdraws

By Qassim Abdul-Zahra And Samya Kullab Apr. 09, 2020 06:49 AM EDT