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Security

Drone attacks signal elevated risks for Kurdistan

A barrage of drone attacks in the past four days highlights rising security threats stemming from regional conflicts and Baghdad-Erbil political tensions.
Passengers enter the terminal of Erbil International Airport in February 2014. (JEFFERY BEALL/Wikimedia Commons)

Tensions rise over Khurmala

With rival armed forces massed near strategically important oil assets, federal and KRG negotiators are at an impasse.

IS insurgency exploits Baghdad-KRG conflict

Thousands of federal and Kurdish soldiers are pointing their weapons at each other, leaving volatile territory inadequately guarded and vulnerable to an emboldened IS insurgency.

Akkas secure, but dangers remain

Gas field facilities have been ravaged and booby-trapped by IS militants, and tensions are mounting between rival security forces.

Smuggling busts implicate Basra crime rings

Four oil smuggling operations have been uncovered, but the suspected perpetrators are so powerful that security forces cannot safely make public accusations.

Khurmala in the crosshairs

Federal forces scramble to reinforce dramatic gains in Iraq's disputed territories, as the KRG fortifies a key oil asset in anticipation of another potential confrontation.