[Published here on September 11, 2020]
A trove of Saddam-era files secretly returned to Iraq has pried open the country’s painful past, prompting hopes some may learn the fate of long-lost relatives along with fears of new bloodshed.
Continue reading[Published here August 7, 2020]
Precious wheat spilled out of disembowelled silos, mixing with soot, debris and cement: Beirut’s port blast has gutted Lebanon’s largest grain storage and sparked public panic over bread shortages.
[Produced with my colleague Dylan Collins in Tripoli, Lebanon, and published here on July 21, 2020]
Browse through Arabic-language social media pages and you could walk away thinking COVID-19 is an American hoax, isn’t deadly and can be swiftly cured with a garlic clove.
[Co-written with AFP Baghdad bureau chief Sarah Benhaida and published here July 8, 2020]
Baghdad (AFP) – The killing of jihadism expert Hisham al-Hashemi has stirred fears Iraq is entering a dark and violent phase, as boiling tensions between pro-Iran factions and the government reach new heights.
[Published here June 30, 2020]
Unpaid salaries, mask shortages, threats from patients’ families — doctors across Iraq are cracking under such conditions, just as they face a long-feared spike in coronavirus cases.
“We’re collapsing,” said Mohammed, a doctor at a COVID-19 ward in Baghdad who declined to use his full name so he could speak freely.
[Published here on June 22, 2020]
Baghdad (AFP) – Iraq’s economy could reach irreversible lows within the next year unless urgent reform measures are adopted, its finance minister warned in an exclusive interview with AFP on Monday.
[Published here June 11, 2020]
After months of tensions, Baghdad and Washington are poised to launch strategic talks Thursday to reset ties — but even with a new US-friendly Iraqi premier, a major breakthrough is unlikely.
[Published here May 24, 2020]
It was supposed to be Basma’s big year: a degree, language certification and maybe a master’s abroad. But local protests and a global pandemic threw the Iraqi student’s plans off-course.
[Published here on May 7, 2020]
Baghdad (AFP) – With its financial outlook darkening by the day, Iraq is considering slashing its massive public payroll — an unpopular move likely to renew protests as a new government takes the helm.
[Published here on May 6, 2020]
Baghdad (AFP) – Mustafa Kadhemi took office as Iraq’s premier early Thursday after breaking months of political deadlock, taking the reins amid a staggering economic crisis, a health pandemic and the spectre of renewed protests.
