Iraq Sees Surge In Voting Across Most Of The Country (REVISED)

 

Iraq’s Election Commission released partial early results for voter turnout in the provinces. It showed a surge of voting across the country compared to the last parliamentary elections in 2021.

Pro-Iran Groups Escalate Attacks Upon Kurds In July 2025

 

Iraq’s pro-Iran Resistance escalated its campaign against the Kurds in July with two dozen incidents. The Islamic State also made a rare appearance during the month.

Security In Iraq Jul 15-21, 2025

 

Pro-Iranian groups continued attacks upon Kurdish targets during the third week of July. There were three straight days of drone strikes in the country.

Iraq's Pro-Iran Factions Making Show Of Force At Start Of July

After not participating in the Iran-Israel War pro-Tehran factions in Iraq have started targeting the Kurds in July. At the start of the month there was also a rare incident by the Islamic State.

Violence Remains At Very Low Level In Iraq In July 2022

Security remained relatively the same in Iraq in July 2022. The number of incidents by the Islamic State went slightly up from June, but they were still at a very low level. Attacks by pro-Iran groups went down. The main difference was that casualties were significantly higher in July versus June.

Islamic State Returns In Iraq With Ramadan Offensive

Violence surged in Iraq in April as the Islamic State launched its annual Ramadan offensive. Pro-Iran groups also picked up their operations. That led to the most incidents in 8 months.

Security In Iraq Apr 22-28, 2022

Violence took a large jump in Iraq during the 4^th week of April. The Islamic State was in the middle of its annual Ramadan offensive while pro-Iran groups also stepped up their attacks a bit. That resulted in the most incidents since August 2021.

Security In Iraq April 8-14, 2022

Operations by both the Islamic State and pro-Iran groups increased during the second week of April. IS began its annual Ramadan offensive. It hasn’t amounted to much yet however largely due to the general decline of the group.

Islamic State Ramadan Offensive Begins, Pro-Iran Groups Increase Attacks In April 2021

April ended five months of relative quiet in Iraq. Starting in November 2020 the Islamic State went into hibernation during the winter with most weeks only have single digit attacks. In April Ramadan occurred and that began the annual insurgent offensive. At the same time pro-Iran groups have been picking up their operations against American targets.

Security In Iraq Apr 15-21, 2021

The Islamic State’s annual Ramadan/Spring offensive took off the third week of April. That was topped off by a car bomb in Baghdad a very rare event these days. Pro-Iran groups also continued their steady pace of attacks upon American targets. They also hit the Turks for the first time.

Returns of Displaced In Iraq Continue To Decline Despite Govt Efforts

The rate of return for Iraq’s displaced (IDPs) has taken another major drop in the spring of 2020. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) the pre-eminent group working with IDPs blamed the COVID-19 lockdown which has limited movement in the country. Even before that however fewer and fewer people were attempting to go home because of the lack of reconstruction, security, reconciliation, and jobs. In fact, some new displacement in small numbers continues as well because of those issues.

Poverty Rate In Iraq Down But Still Higher Than Pre-War Level

Iraq’s Planning Ministry announced that poverty had declined over the last two years, but it was still above the level seen before the 2014 war against the Islamic State. There were also huge variances in the percentage of people below the poverty line depending upon the province they lived in.

Number Of Displaced Returning In Iraq Takes Another Large Drop

The latest report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Iraq’s displaced noted two worrying trends. First, the number of returns has dramatically dropped during the third quarter of 2019. Second, for the first time since the war ended there was an increase in displacement in a few provinces. Initially, NGOs and the Iraqi government hoped that when the conflict with the Islamic State was over there would be a dramatic increase in the flow of people going home. That seemed like it might come true, but by 2019 it appears that around one million people might be permanently displaced.

2019 Returns Of Displaced In Iraq Continue At Higher Pace Then End Of 2018

Iraq still has over one million displaced (IDPs) caused by the war against the Islamic State. At the end of 2018 the number of returns dramatically slowed, but now it has slightly picked up in the near year.

Rate of Return For Iraq’s Displaced Increased At End of 2018

For the last year and a half the rate of return for Iraq’s displaced (IDPs) has been steadily decreasing. With homes destroyed, the lack of jobs and services, people being banned from their home areas due to their affiliation with the Islamic State, and others starting a new life fewer people were making the decision to go back. At the end of 2018 that pattern changed with more people going home than the previous period.

Displaced Returns Turning Into A Trickle In Iraq

(IOM)

The International Organization for Migration’s (IOM) latest report on the displaced (IDPs) showed that the number of returns has declined again. That follows continued polls of IDPs that have found fewer and fewer people have any interest in going back to their home areas.

Large Drop In Violence In Iraq November 2018

(Shafaaq News)

There was a large drop in reported incidents from October to November 2018. The number of incidents dropped roughly 30% between the two months. The number of casualties likewise went down as well. The bad weather which has caused flash flooding through much of northern and central Iraq might have played a role.

Security In Iraq Nov 15-21, 2018

(Baghdad Post)

Security continues to fluctuate in Iraq. In October incidents went up, but in November they have been the lowest weekly totals of the year. Despite those low numbers the Islamic State continued its recent activities of kidnappings, attacking villages, and most importantly car bombings.

October 2018: Islamic State Expanding Operations In Iraq

(Iraqi News)

The Islamic State appeared to enter into a new phase of its rebuilding in October 2018. First, during the winter of 2017 the group’s leadership told its followers to revert to an insurgency because it could no longer take the losses from conventional confrontations with the Iraqi forces and Coalition air strikes. There was then a period of residual violence during this transition until violence finally dipped. In the spring of 2018 incidents levelled off. Since then IS has reconstituted itself in central Iraq, controlling rural areas of Diyala, Kirkuk and Salahaddin. Now in the fall two new trends have begun. First, there has been renewed efforts at mass casualty bombings. Second, there are more sophisticated attacks in Anbar and Ninewa, and increased activity in Baghdad.

Security In Iraq Oct 15-21, 2018

(Iraqi News)

Incidents have been higher in October than previous months. This has been due to continued Islamic State rebuilding in central Iraq, and the group returning to Anbar and Baghdad. Turkey continues to hit the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Kurdistan as well every week.