IRAQ

Oil firms operating in Kurdistan have asked the United States to help defuse an upsurge in tension between Iraq's central government and the semi-autonomous region, according to a letter seen by Reuters and three sources.

Iraq political gridlock persists after bloody unrest

Iraq's powerful cleric Moqtada al-Sadr ordered his followers to end their protests in central Baghdad on Tuesday and apologised to Iraqis after 22 people were killed in clashes between rival Shi'ite Muslim groups.

Two more bodies pulled from Iraq shrine landslide

Iraq marked its longest post-election deadlock on Wednesday as infighting among Shi'ite and Kurdish groups in particular prevents the formation of a government.

From Saddam to IS: Iraq still exhuming mass graves

British geologist, Jim Fitton, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison by a court in Iraq for trying to smuggle artefacts out of the country.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani voiced guarded hopes for negotiations that his government has opened with the Taliban to end two decades of war.

A Yazidi girl was held as a slave and allowed to die of thirst in the Iraqi city of Fallujah in 2015.

None of the attacks has been claimed but Washington has repeatedly blamed Iran-backed military factions in Iraq.

The main US contract rocketed by more than 4.5 percent as fears over supplies in the tinderbox Middle East sent prices soaring.

The premium smartphone market has also grown fiercely competitive with buyers waiting longer before upgrading to new models.

There were no immediate casualties but the Pentagon said it had been ready, after days of steadily mounting tension and exchanges of threats of war.

The strike on the outskirts of Baghdad's airport killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani and top Iraqi commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.

The Hashed's deputy chief was also killed in the attack, the force added, which comes after a pro-Iran mob this week laid siege to the US embassy.

Baghdad said it would summon the US ambassador while Washington responded by accusing Iraqi authorities of having failed to "protect" US interests.

Four US service members and Iraqi security forces were wounded in Friday's attack at the K1 Iraqi military base in Kirkuk, an oil-rich region north of Baghdad.

Anti-government demonstrators burned tyres in major cities across the south, forcing the closure of schools and government buildings.

Entering an election year, Trump is unlikely to slow down as he seeks what has largely eluded him -- a headline-grabbing victory.

The US effectively dismantled and rebuilt the Iraqi state, ushering in a new class of political elites with whom it crafted close personal links.

Mass rallies calling for an overhaul of the ruling system have rocked the capital Baghdad.