All posts tagged: Iraqi

Iraqi man accused of NYC synagogue plot after attacks in Europe and Canada in response to Iran war

Iraqi man accused of NYC synagogue plot after attacks in Europe and Canada in response to Iran war

Published by Sam Flores

NEW YORK (AP) — An Iraqi national accused of plotting at least 18 terror attacks in Europe in retaliation for the U.S. and Israel’s war with Iran, including firebombing a bank in Amsterdam and stabbing Jewish men in London, has been arrested and charged with supporting Iran-backed terrorist organizations. According to a complaint unsealed Friday in federal court in Manhattan, Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi sought to attack a New York City synagogue last month and provided an undercover law enforcement officer with photos and maps of Jewish centers in Los Angeles and Scottsdale, Arizona, that he planned to target. Al-Saadi is also accused of involvement in two recent attacks in Canada: an attack on a synagogue and a shooting at the U.S. consulate in Toronto in March. U.S. prosecutors said he directed and urged other people to attack U.S. and Israeli interests, including by killing Americans and Jews. Al-Saadi posted about the attacks on Snapchat and Telegram and spoke about them in phone calls recorded by an FBI informant whose help he solicited in …

Iraqi shepherd stumbled across secret Israeli military base

Iraqi shepherd stumbled across secret Israeli military base

Published by Sam Flores

A shepherd nearly uncovered a secret Israeli military base in the Iraqi desert in March. The base was built for the Israeli-US attack on Iran in late February, and served as a “logistical hub” for its air force, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ). Special forces were stationed at the base, from which Israel would have launched search and rescue missions in case of downed fighter jets. However, no Israeli aircraft was shot down during the war. The WSJ, citing US officials, said Washington was aware of the secret base, located in the vast Iraqi desert. It was nearly uncovered in March, when a shepherd reported “unusual military” activity, including helicopter flights, to the Iraqi authorities. The Iraqi military sent troops in Humvees to investigate, but Israel launched air strikes to prevent them from discovering the base, killing one soldier and wounding two others. ‘Reckless operation’ Lt Gen Qais al-Muhammadawi, deputy commander of Iraq’s Joint Operations Command, told Iraqi media in March: “It appears there was a certain force on the …

Trump Congratulates Incoming Iraqi Leader, Who Moves To Disarm Pro-Iran Militias

Trump Congratulates Incoming Iraqi Leader, Who Moves To Disarm Pro-Iran Militias

Published by Jenni Sidey

Via The Cradle A committee comprising three senior Iraqi figures is close to finalizing an “executive plan” to disarm factions within the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) that enjoy support from Iran, Asharq Al-Awsat reported on 8 May. Development of the plan, which will be presented to US officials in the next few days, comes amid expected changes to the leadership of key security agencies under the incoming government of Ali al-Zaidi. Trump congratulates Iraq PM nominee Ali al-Zaidi, eyes stronger ties Zaidi was nominated by the Shia-majority Coordination Framework (CF) political bloc on April 27 as the consensus candidate to succeed Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. According to sources speaking to the Saudi newspaper, the three-member committee includes Zaidi, Sudani, and the leader of the Badr Organization, Hadi al-Amiri. Washington has intensified pressure on Iraq’s ruling Shia political parties to disarm the anti-terrorist militias and prevent their representatives from participating in the new government. The sources revealed that the committee has held secret negotiations with leaders of the factions, providing their leaders with “ideas on how to disarm and integrate fighters.” …

Iraqi president names Shia bloc candidate Ali al-Zaidi as PM-designate | Elections News

Iraqi president names Shia bloc candidate Ali al-Zaidi as PM-designate | Elections News

Published by Sam Flores

DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY, Choice of al-Zaidi breaks a months-long deadlock after US President Trump opposed appointment of pro-Iran former PM al-Maliki. Published On 27 Apr 202627 Apr 2026 Iraq’s President Nizar Amedi has named Ali al-Zaidi as prime minister-designate and tasked him with forming a government, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Iraq has reported. Al-Zaidi was named earlier on Monday as the candidate of the Coordination Framework, a coalition of Shia parties that has a majority in parliament. His nomination sees him promoted over a pro-Iranian rival. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list “After considering the names of the candidates, Ali al-Zaidi was chosen to be the candidate of the Coordination Framework bloc, as the largest bloc in the House of Representatives, to occupy the position of prime minister and form the next government,” a Coordination Framework statement read after a meeting in Baghdad. The selection of al-Zaidi breaks a months-long deadlock in which United States President Donald Trump had intervened, after former two-time Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had emerged as the coalition’s initial …

Saudi Arabia Summons Iraq Envoy Over Drone Threats From Iraqi Territory

Saudi Arabia Summons Iraq Envoy Over Drone Threats From Iraqi Territory

Published by Sam Flores

April 12 (Reuters) – ⁠Saudi ⁠Arabia ⁠said on Sunday ​it had ‌summoned Iraq’s ‌ambassador ⁠over ⁠what it described as threats ​targeting the ​kingdom and other ⁠Gulf states ⁠from ⁠drones launched from ​Iraqi territory. The Saudi ​foreign ⁠ministry said ⁠in a statement that it had “emphasised ⁠the importance of Iraq dealing responsibly with these threats and attacks”. (Reporting ⁠by Hatem Maher and Ahmed Tolba; ​Editing by Alexander ​Smith) Copyright 2026 Thomson Reuters. Photos You Should See – April 2026 Source link

Three Supertankers Carrying Iraqi And Saudi Crude Sail Through The Strait Of Hormuz

Three Supertankers Carrying Iraqi And Saudi Crude Sail Through The Strait Of Hormuz

Published by Jenni Sidey

The wait is over: after the Persian Gulf side of the Hormuz Strait had turned into a bit of a parking lot late last week as tankers piled up hoping to use the ceasefire and make the crossing, two Chinese supertankers loaded with crude sailed through the Strait of Hormuz hours after a Greek vessel moved through the waterway, marking a significant uptick in oil shipping traffic. It represents the biggest day of oil exits through Hormuz since the war caused traffic through the waterway to all but halt six weeks ago. More importantly, none of the ships are carrying Iranian oil or have obvious, direct links to the country. The two Chinese supertankers are the Cospearl Lake and the He Rong Hai.  The Greek one is the Serifos. The Serifos and the He Rong Hai loaded their cargoes in Saudi Arabia, while the Cospearl Lake did so in Iraq, the tracking data show.  All three tankers sailed eastward via south of Iran’s Larak Island, a new route outlined by Iran’s navy last week. The duo were …

Iraqi Protesters Overrun Kuwait Consulate, Angry Over Role In US Actions

Iraqi Protesters Overrun Kuwait Consulate, Angry Over Role In US Actions

Published by Jenni Sidey

Close US ally Kuwait finds itself under growing political pressure from its neighbor Iraq, related to the ongoing Iran war. Angry crowds stormed the Kuwaiti consulate in Iraq’s southern Basra governorate on Tuesday after rockets which came from the direction of Kuwait killed three people, according to police sources cited by Reuters and Al Arabiya. BREAKING: Supporters of Iraq’s pro-Iranian Popular Mobilization Militias storm the Kuwaiti Consulate in Basra Province, Iraq, in protest against Kuwait’s role with the U.S. in the war with Iran. pic.twitter.com/pyxtxjlzeU — Ariel Oseran أريئل أوسيران (@ariel_oseran) April 7, 2026 Neither Kuwaiti nor Iraqi officials issued immediate public statements, and the rocket incident remains a mystery in terms of its origin or the motives behind the attack. It may have been a missile fired on Kuwait from Iran, which errantly crossed the border and landed on Iraqi homes: At least three ​people were killed ​and five others wounded when ‌rockets ⁠fired from the direction of Kuwait hit a house in ​Khor ​al-Zubair ⁠near Basra, security and health officials ​told Reuters. Protesters …

Iran-backed Iraqi armed group releases kidnapped US journalist

Iran-backed Iraqi armed group releases kidnapped US journalist

Published by Sam Flores

American journalist Shelly Kittleson, was kidnapped from a Baghdad street corner last week, has been released, an Iraqi official with direct knowledge of the situation said on Tuesday. Kittleson was freed in the afternoon, said the official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to comment publicly. He did not share her current whereabouts but said that prior to her release, she had been held in Baghdad. The powerful Iran-backed Iraqi armed group Kataib Hezbollah said in a statement earlier on Tuesday that it would release Kittleson. The group said its decision came “in appreciation of the patriotic stances of the outgoing prime minister”, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, without giving more details. It added that “this initiative will not be repeated in the future”. The statement added a condition — that Kittleson must “leave the country immediately” upon her release. The US State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kataib Hezbollah had not previously acknowledged that it was the one responsible for Kittleson’s abduction, …

Downed U.S. Drone Appears On TikTok Live As Iraqi Children Try To Sell It

Downed U.S. Drone Appears On TikTok Live As Iraqi Children Try To Sell It

Published by Jenni Sidey

As the U.S.-Iran conflict enters its second month, America’s Low-Cost Unmanned Combat Attack System, or LUCAS, is becoming increasingly visible across the Middle East theater, a sign that the Department of War has learned one critical lesson from both the Iranian drone playbook and the Ukraine-Russia war: cheap drones are the future of warfare. The latest news on LUCAS comes from an unverifiable TikTok video, amplified on X, which appears to show a downed drone seized by Iraqi children who are reportedly trying to sell it. If authentic, the footage is another reminder that low-cost drones are proliferating so widely across the region that they will likely spread to other parts of the world. Iraqi boys trying to sell crashed drone on TikTokThat’s a U.S. LUCAS kamikaze drone (Low-Cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System), reverse-engineered from Iran’s Shahed-136. Dimensions: ~3 meters long, ~2.4 meters wingspan. pic.twitter.com/DPJ9nKFp03 — Eye on Palestine (@EyeonPalestine) April 4, 2026 In a separate video reposted on X, Iranian forces appear to have recovered a LUCAS drone in the Persian Gulf area. 🚨 …