Security

Basra tanker attack marks deepening crisis for Iraq oil sector

Iraq is facing a widening array of security threats and economic consequences from the Iran war.

Iraqi ports director Farhan al-Fartousi (right) conducts an inspection on March 12, 2026, of the site of an Iranian attack on oil tankers the previous night. (Photo credit: General Company for Ports of Iraq)

Jun 9, 2016

Attackers blow up dormant Kirkuk pipeline

Latest attack on oil infrastructure doesn’t affect oil operations, but demonstrates persistent security holes in critical crude-producing province.

Jun 6, 2016

Q&A: Sheikh Sudad Sakhar Salman al-Luhebi

The commander of a Sunni tribal fighting force discusses the grinding campaign to drive IS out of villages between Makhmour and Mosul.

May 30, 2016

Kurdish forces liberate nine villages and re-secure an oil rig

An oil rig, abandoned in fall 2014 as IS militants neared, has been fully secured as Kurdish and coalition forces gain ground between Erbil and Mosul.

May 26, 2016

Basra security reinforced amidst unrest near oil sites

New security leadership and armored reinforcements come to Iraq's oil capital, as protests over jobs and conflicts among tribes cause instability near major oil sites.

May 16, 2016

IS attacks gas plant near Baghdad

The latest in a string of asymmetric attacks around the capital, IS militants partially destroyed a propane filling station in Taji before Energy Police regained control.

May 4, 2016

Saboteurs bomb Khabbaz oil field again

At least two wells are burning and production has stopped at an oil field in Kirkuk after saboteurs exploited security gaps for the second time in a month.

May 1, 2016

‫Protesters demanding reform storm Green Zone

Political dysfunction reaches a breaking point, as protesters answering to Moqtada al-Sadr ransack Parliament after several parties again stonewalled Abadi's Cabinet reforms.

Apr 29, 2016

South oil workers moonlighting as weapon designers

To help militias fighting against IS, South Oil Company engineers have designed smartphone-activated rocket launchers and remote-control robots for defusing explosives.

Apr 24, 2016

Kurd-Hashid rivalries again explode into violence

In the multi-ethnic town of Tuz Khurmatu, nominal allies against IS are turning their guns on each other in another spate of deadly battles.

Apr 22, 2016

Q&A: Iraqi Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasool

Iraq’s spokesman for the Joint Military Command taking on IS discusses the grueling siege of Fallujah, and the progress of operations in Anbar province.