Ali Saray

Ali Saray
Arab World From right to left: Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi, Coordination Framework member Hadi al-Amiri, and caretaker Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. (Coordination Framework)

Sudden ‘Veto’ from Iran Thwarts Govt Formation Efforts in Iraq

Two Iraqi officials revealed on Sunday that a sudden “veto” from Iran has thwarted efforts to form a new Iraqi government. Iran has expressed its objection to…

Ali Saray (London)
Arab World Popular Mobilization Forces brigades patrol. (PMF media office)

Three-Member Committee Negotiates With Washington on Disarming Iraqi Factions

Asharq Al-Awsat has learned that an Iraqi committee comprising three senior figures is close to finalizing an “executive plan” to disarm armed factions, ahead…

Ali Saray (London)
Features A Popular Mobilization Forces member rides a motorcycle during a patrol in western Iraq.

Iran’s War in Iraq Reveals Militias’ Expanding Grip

“If you must fall, be a meteor.” The phrase was written on a mural inside Baghdad’s Green Zone. Beside it was a drawing of faceless fighters in helmets,…

Ali Saray (Baghdad, London)
Arab World New Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi, uses a phone at his office in Baghdad, Iraq, April 28, 2026. (Iraqi Prime Minister’s Media Office/Handout via Reuters).

Why Does Trump Favor Iraq’s Al-Zaidi?

Iraq’s ruling Coordination Framework has been on an intriguingjourney that started with the United States’ adamant rejection of former Prime Minister Nouri al…

Ali Saray (London)
Arab World Iraq’s prime minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi attends a Coordination Framework meeting in Baghdad on April 27 (AP)

US Auditors Find No Evidence Linking Iraq PM-Designate to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards

A US law firm said an independent investigation it recently conducted found no evidence linking Iraq’s prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, to financial…

Ali Saray (London)
Features A man gestures with picture of Iran's slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei next to Iranian and Iraqi flags from a atop a truck during celebrations welcoming the two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran in Baghdad's central Tahrir Square on April 8, 2026.(AFP)

Iran Revolutionary Guards Officers Reject Iraqi Calls to Halt Attacks

Iraqi sources said officers from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, who oversee armed factions in Iraq, have rebuffed attempts by Shiite politicians to halt attacks…

Ali Saray (London)
Features A US military handout image shows the Balad Air Base in Iraq in 2011.

Siege of Balad Base May Prelude ‘Doomsday’ Scenario in Iraq

An American contractor responsible for operating Iraq’s F-16 fighter jets has withdrawn its staff from an Iraqi air base after attacks by Iran-aligned factions…

Ali Saray (London)
Arab World A flag of Iraq's pro-Iran paramilitary group Hezbollah Brigades (Kataib Hezbollah), flutters against the backdrop of people taking a swing ride at an amusement park during Eid al-Fitr celebrations, marking the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in Baghdad on March 21, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP)

Baghdad: An Intelligence Battleground in Iran’s Latest War

Within days of the outbreak of the US-Israeli war on Iran, Quds Force officers began arriving in Iraq to oversee “attrition operations” and establish a support…

Ali Saray (London)