Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq’s Parliamentary Integrity Committee has opened afile into suspected corruption and major irregularities involving five hospitalprojects awarded to an “unregistered” and underperforming company, with theircombined value reaching $1.26 billion, Committee member Salem Al-Issawi toldShafaq News on Saturday.

The case forms part of a broader review of stalledhospital and investment projects awarded in previous years, Al-Issawi clarified,noting that the five hospitals under his review were referred for investment in2011.

Each project was initially valued at $145 millionbefore an additional $107 million was allocated in 2020, raising the cost to$252 million per hospital. “The company has fallen behind on implementation,maintains no branch in Iraq, and does not appear in the country’s officialcompany registry,” he observed.

One of the projects is in Al-Muthanna province, whereAl-Issawi noted that the province’s only hospital, built more than 50 yearsago, is currently out of service.

Read more: Corruption arrests in Iraq pass 210 under PM al-Zaidi

Shafaq News- Kirkuk

Kirkuk’s Sunni Endowment said on Friday that an inspection found no evidence of a cemetery on land earmarked for a housing project in Rajibat village, rejecting residents’ claims that the site contains a burial ground more than 110 years old.

Salim Wali Majeed, head of the Endowment’s Kirkuk office, told Shafaq News that a specialized committee found no graves, markers, or other signs of burial at the site, while official records contained no indication that the disputed plot had ever been registered as a cemetery.

Residents of Rajibat, south of Kirkuk, had objected to the planned residential development because the land contains an old local cemetery. The dispute prompted the Kirkuk Investment Commission to refer the matter to the Sunni Endowment for verification.

Shafaq News-Homs

Threecivilians, including two children, were killed and three others seriouslyinjured on Friday when an Iraqi fuel tanker overturned and caught fire on theHoms-Tartus road in Syria.

According toa Shafaq News correspondent, the fire spread from the tanker to severalcivilian vehicles traveling nearby.

A witnesstraveling on the same road said he had seen tankers moving at high speed andovertaking dangerously before the crash.

Syrianauthorities have begun procedures to determine the cause of the accident.

Shafaq News- Nasiriyah

Dozens of residents took to the streets in centralNasiriyah, the capital of Dhi Qar province, on Friday, protesting electricityshortages.

A Shafaq News correspondent reported that demonstratorsblocked a road and the Al-Mansouriya intersection in central Nasiriyah usingburning tires, demanding improved power supplies to their areas.

The protesters called on the government to provide animmediate solution before, as they put it, “it is too late,” and tensionsescalate further.

Earlier this week, residents of Al-Fuhod district, east of DhiQar, also held protests over poor electricity supplies.

Shafaq News- Basra

Security personnel guarding Iraq's Oil Minister BasimMohammed Khudair during his visit to Basra province confiscated press badgesand barred reporters and photographers from covering the event, the IraqiJournalists Syndicate said Friday.

The syndicate condemned the measures as illegal and said journalists inthe southern oil province would boycott the Oil Ministry's activities inprotest.

According to the syndicate, Fadel Hassan, the Basra correspondent forthe Al-Ahd satellite channel, was subjected to abuses by the minister'ssecurity detail “while carrying out his professional duties.”

The seizure of the press badge from Hassan and from other correspondentsand photographers, and their exclusion from the coverage, amounted to a clearviolation of press freedom and of journalists' right to access information, theSyndicate said, calling the conduct a troubling pattern in the treatment ofjournalists.

The syndicate demanded a formal apology from the Oil Ministry, an urgentinvestigation, and accountability for those responsible. It also urged thePrime Minister's office and the ministry to issue strict instructions to allsecurity and escort details to respect journalists and facilitate their work.

Read more: Iraq's press freedom index falls amid armed factions kidnappings

Shafaq News- Baghdad

A security force affiliated with Iraq’s Federal IntegrityCommission arrested Deputy Minister of Electricity for Transmission andDistribution Affairs Khalid Ghazi Atiyah on Friday, informed sources toldShafaq News.

The force detained Atiyah, according to the sources, who did not provide further detailson the reasons for the arrest or the charges against him.

Last month, the Electricity Ministry dismissed the general manager ofthe Central Electricity Distribution Company, Alaa Samir, and his officedirector on corruption. Eight department heads were alsopenalized on accusations of organizing fictitious and forged transactions.

Read more: Corruption arrests in Iraq pass 210 under PM al-Zaidi

Shafaq News- Al-Anbar

More than eight lawsuits have been filed againstsand-processing plants in Al-Anbar province, western Iraq, over environmentalviolations, the province’s Environment Director Qais Najeh told Shafaq News onFriday.

The Directorate’s legal department and the EnvironmentalProtection and Improvement Police referred the cases to the court for actionagainst the plant owners. Najeh said the judge had summoned the owners named inthe lawsuits to proceed with the required measures.

Last month, Al-Anbar’s Environment Directorate launchedinspections along the Euphrates River to identify sources of pollution,surveying factories, vehicle wash and lubrication stations, and sewage outletssuspected of discharging pollutants. The directorate fined the Al-AnbarSewerage Directorate and filed a lawsuit over the continued release ofuntreated wastewater.

Read more: Al-Anbar: An unfinished chapter in Iraq’s water story

Shafaq News- Baghdad

For a growing number of women in Baghdad, a car has become aworkplace, a source of daily income, and a path toward financial independence,putting women behind the wheel as taxi drivers, couriers, and dedicated driversfor students and employees.

Rising living costs and expanding transport opportunitieshave encouraged some to put their cars to work through ride-hailing apps, whileothers operate regular routes or deliver clothes and cosmetics. Theflexibility, however, comes with long hours on Baghdad’s congested streets,difficult passengers, social skepticism, and occasional harassment in aprofession traditionally dominated by men.

Read more: The new blackmail in Iraq: AI and the exploitation of women

Freedom Behind The Wheel

For Ola Farid, a driver for a Baghdad ride-hailing app,control over her working day is one of the job’s biggest advantages. “Theworking hours are very flexible because I choose when to work and which tripsuits me,” she told Shafaq News.

Farid credited the company with supporting and encouragingher but described passengers as sometimes less accepting. Some hesitate toenter her car because they distrust women’s driving, while others refuse forwhat she characterized as social or psychological reasons.

She has also encountered harassment and unwanted advancesfrom some customers, a concern compounded by the app displaying her name andphone number once she accepts a trip. Persistent questions about the nature ofher work and why she chose it are another source of frustration.

Still, those difficulties have not diminished her enthusiasmfor being behind the wheel. “I love driving because it is an art and a matterof skill and taste, and it is never without adventure and difficulties,” sheremarked.

Her work extends beyond carrying passengers. Farid deliverscosmetics and clothing from shops to customers’ homes, bringing her overallmonthly income to as much as 1.5 million Iraqi dinars (about $1,140). Theearnings, she explained, cover her basic needs while allowing her to avoid“false promises” of government employment and the drain of other private-sectorjobs.

Driven by More Than Money

The reasons drawing women to the profession are equallyvaried. Driver Samar al-Dulaimi cited helping families meet daily expenses,proving themselves, challenging gender discrimination, and simply enjoyingbeing behind the wheel.

“There is no longer anything preventing girls and women fromworking as taxi drivers,” al-Dulaimi told Shafaq News, arguing that some womencan drive better than some male drivers.

While acknowledging the obstacles women encounter acrossdifferent professions, she maintained that accumulated life experience hasdemonstrated Iraqi women’s ability to overcome difficulties and establishthemselves professionally.

For Aseel Fadel, the opportunity fits naturally around herexisting work at a kindergarten. “I chose to transport the children because Iwork at the kindergarten itself, so I can increase my income without itconflicting with my job.”

The arrangement is demanding, particularly in the capital,where driving requires sustained concentration amid heavy traffic, poorbehavior by some motorists, and unwanted attention toward women at the wheel.Transporting children carries an added burden, which Fadel described as “aheavy responsibility.”

Supporting her family financially ultimately drove herdecision to establish the regular transport route, a motivation she noted isshared by many women working in the field.

Read more: $1.2B traffic fix fails: Iraq seeks radical solution

Companies Make Room For Women

Many transport companies in Baghdad have increasinglywelcomed female drivers, viewing their participation as a distinctive additionto their services.

Jamil Karim, a technical support official at one company,confirmed that women are encouraged to join its app to carry passengers anddeliver orders as long as they meet the required conditions: applicants must beover 18, hold a valid driving license, own a modern vehicle registered in theirname, and provide heating and air conditioning.

The company sometimes directs requests from femalepassengers to women drivers, an arrangement Karim indicated can ease pressureon them because women and girls generally feel comfortable riding with otherwomen. Customer feedback has also been largely positive, with female driversfrequently receiving full ratings, while technical support teams handlecomplaints from those who encounter problems during trips and work to resolvethem quickly.

Around 1,500 women have joined the company over roughly thepast two years, he estimated, with the number continuing to rise.

Read more: Classroom to street corner: Degree holders stranded in Iraq's job drought

A Profession That Divides Opinion

As women become more visible behind the wheelprofessionally, their presence continues to draw contrasting reactions.

Mustafa Jamal, 45, described female taxi driving asrelatively new to Iraqi society and questioned its benefits for women given thepressures they encounter on Baghdad’s roads. He warned that women can sometimesface abusive behavior or harm, and recounted witnessing a male motoristdeliberately collide with a vehicle driven by a woman.

Read more: Constitutional quotas offer Iraqi women no shield against domestic abuse

For some female passengers, by contrast, a woman behind thewheel offers precisely the sense of comfort they seek.

Wasan al-Khafaji, a resident of Baghdad Al-Jadida, prefersfemale taxi drivers because, in her experience, they spare her the curiosity,intrusive behavior, and personal questions she has encountered with some maledrivers.

One app-booked journey eventually developed into a lastingconnection. After riding with a woman she found calm and learning that sheworked through a ride-hailing platform, al-Khafaji asked whether she couldcontact her directly whenever she needed transportation. The driver welcomedthe arrangement and went on to take her on numerous trips.

“Eventually, we became friends,” al-Khafaji recalled.

Shafaq News- Nasiriyah

Security forces arrested three people wanted by the judiciary who work for the Nasiriyah Municipality in Dhi Qar province on charges related to "serious damage to public funds," a source at the provincial governor’s office said Thursday.

The source told Shafaq News that one of those arrested is a senior Nasiriyah Municipality official who was detained while attempting to flee to Iran through the Shalamcheh border crossing. The other two were arrested at a cafe on the outskirts of Nasiriyah, the provincial capital, where they had allegedly been hiding from security forces for several weeks.

On Tuesday, another source at the Dhi Qar governor’s office reported the arrest of four people wanted by Iraq’s Integrity Commission who work for the municipality over cases involving damage to public funds.

The Nasiriyah Integrity Court had earlier issued arrest warrants for eight municipal employees. The investigation later expanded to include land-registration employees, transaction agents and others linked to the same cases.

The measures coincided with Dhi Qar Governor Haitham Al-Hamdani taking over the administration of the Nasiriyah Municipality and introducing administrative changes and dismissals. The local government has said it supports judicial and Integrity Commission efforts to pursue corruption cases.

Read more: Corruption arrests in Iraq pass 210 under PM al-Zaidi

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq is bracing for another day of intense summer heat onThursday, with temperatures forecast to reach 50°C in three provinces and highsof up to 49°C in several others.

Maysan, Dhi Qar and Basra are expected to record thecountry's highest temperatures, according to the Iraqi MeteorologicalOrganization and Seismology Monitoring Authority.

Baghdad, Diyala, Saladin, Karbala, Babil and Al-Anbar areforecast to see highs of 46°C to 48°C. Najaf, Wasit, Al-Diwaniyah andAl-Muthanna could reach 49°C.

Shafaq News- Baghdad (Updated at 3:32)

Wounded members of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and familiesof personnel killed in service staged a sit-in outside the National PensionAuthority in Baghdad on Thursday, demanding overdue benefits and the samepension rights granted to personnel in other security institutions.

The protesters are seeking implementation of Iraq's Military Service andRetirement Law of 2010, which provides additional financial benefits, pensionadjustments and end-of-service bonuses.

Maintaining that the provisions apply to personnel in other securityinstitutions, including the Defense and Interior Ministries and theCounter-Terrorism Service, but have not been extended to PMF members, they alsocalled for payment of outstanding differences in end-of-service bonuses.

Tensions emerged during the sit-in, with video footage showing aconfrontation between some protesters and security forces. Injuries werereported following the incident.

The PMF Commission said Thursday that the sit-in outside the GeneralRetirement Directorate in Baghdad concerns legal entitlements separate from thewounded-veteran benefits the commission administers.

It explained that its wounded members have received theirdue entitlements within its authority "almost in full," and thesecover salaries and medical treatment inside and outside Iraq, provided throughthe commission's relevant departments.

"The sit-in relates to demands for the implementation of the Martyrs FoundationLaw No. 57, as amended in 2020, and in particular its second clause, whichpermits combining a retirement pension with an injury salary, on par withcounterparts in some security institutions," the Commission added, pointing outthat the matter falls outside its legal and administrative authority and withinthe remit of the Ministry of Finance and the National Retirement Authority.

The dispute comes as the PMF —a state security organization comprisingmostly Shiite armed factions— faces a government effort to consolidate weaponsunder state authority, with September 30 set as a deadline.

The PMF was established in 2014 following a fatwa by Iraq's top Shiitecleric, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, to combat ISIS. Its forces fought alongsidethe Iraqi military and the Global Coalition and have since become a majorcomponent of Iraq's security landscape, although the role and autonomy of its factionsremain politically contentious.

That broader debate has also brought renewed attention to the group'sfuture structure, including how its members will be financed and managed.Earlier this year, an informed source indicated to Shafaq News that theIraqi government was seeking access to frozen state funds held abroad to helpfinance the integration of more than 800,000 armed faction members into the PMFand other security institutions.

Read more: Days to disarm Iraq's factions: deadline or negotiable ceiling?

Shafaq News- Diyala

Employees hired under Diyala’s 7,000-job contract programprotested on Thursday outside the Provincial Council headquarters in centralBaquba, demanding payment of salaries that have been delayed for eight months.

Protester Ali al-Shammari told Shafaq News that the workerswere approaching their ninth month without pay, despite assurances fromrelevant authorities that funding for the contracts had been secured. “Most ofus left our previous jobs and began working in government departments. We havemaintained our attendance and carried out our assigned duties, but we have notreceived our financial entitlements,” al-Shammari said, adding that the delays had pushed many workers into debt and made it difficult to cover householdexpenses and daily transportation costs.

The protesters urged the Iraqi government and Diyala’sProvincial Council to intervene urgently, resolve the procedures holding up thepayments, and set a clear date for disbursing the accumulated salaries.

Mudher Mohammed Saleh, Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi’sfinancial and economic adviser, told Shafaq News that the government assuresthe public employees that their salaries remain secure despite the ongoingStrait of Hormuz closure and a halt in Iraqi oil exports.

He attributed the available liquidity to non-oil revenuesand financial tools, as well as Baghdad’s ability to reprioritize spending,with salaries remaining a top spending priority.

Turning to alternative oil export routes, including theKirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline and planned expansions to the north and west, he arguedthat expanding these routes could help recover part of the revenue lost fromdisruptions to southern exports and reduce Iraq’s reliance on the Strait ofHormuz.

Read more: No exit but Hormuz: Iraq's economic vulnerability exposed

Shafaq News- Najaf

Nearly five million visitors from inside and outside Iraq have arrived in Najaf to commemorate the anniversary of the death of the Prophet Muhammad, the Imam Ali Holy Shrine reported on Wednesday.

The gathering is one of many mass Shia pilgrimages Iraq hosts each year, drawing crowds that walk for days along volunteer-run routes. The largest, the Arbaeen commemoration in Karbala, drew more than 22 million people in 2026, including more than 4 million from abroad, according to the city's shrine authorities, ranking it among the world's biggest annual religious gatherings.

The martyrdom anniversary of Imam Musa al-Kadhim, marked at his shrine in Baghdad's Kadhimiya district, drew around 15 million visitors this year, according to the shrine's administration.

Read more: Record Arbaeen crowds, thin returns: Iran's collapse drains Iraq's religious tourism

Shafaq News- Baghdad

AnIraqi cultural forum on Wednesday brought researchers together to examineYazidi history and heritage, as the community continues efforts to rebuild andreturn home more than a decade after the ISIS attacks, with security, basicservices, reconstruction and political commitment remaining key to thatprocess.

The session, organized by the General Department ofCultural Relations at Iraq's Ministry of Culture at the Abdul Sahib al-Mukhtar CulturalCenter, coincided with the annual commemoration of the Yazidi genocide inAugust.

Political researcher Shireen al-Jaf told Shafaq News thatthe discussion focused on policies the state could adopt to protect Yazidiheritage and facilitate the return of community members.

“The real Iraq is one in which a person can have more thanone circle of belonging without one threatening another,” she added, notingthat Yazidi or Kurdish identity did not conflict with Iraqi citizenship andthat different forms of identity could exist within a common framework ofcitizenship.

Al-Jaf also addressed the Yazidi community's politicalrepresentation, stressing that representation alone was not enough without thepolitical will to produce tangible change.

“Sinjar is waiting for someone to revive it, and Nineveh iswaiting for someone to revive it,” she maintained.

Yazidi affairs researcher Khaldoun Salem Elias describedthe session as an examination of the community's social, political and culturalheritage, as well as the impact of the genocide on Yazidi society.

Such events could help Iraqis learn more about thecountry's diverse communities, Elias told Shafaq News. Some participants wereintroduced to aspects of Yazidi heritage that had previously been unfamiliar tothem, including the design and construction of Yazidi temples and the number ofvictims of crimes committed by ISIS.

Calling for continued cultural events showcasing Iraq'sdifferent communities and their heritage, he argued that they could broadenpublic understanding of the country's diversity and foster greater awarenessamong its various groups.

Hassoun Abboud, a lecturer at the University of Iraq'sCollege of Arts, explained that the session sought to introduce the Yazidicommunity, its heritage, customs and traditions while commemorating thegenocide that began on Aug. 3, 2014.

“There is ignorance, or a lack of awareness, among themajority of Iraqis about the Yazidi community,” Abboud observed, pointing toconfusion among some Iraqis between Yazidis and the Mandaean community.

ISIS swept into Sinjar in August 2014, killing andabducting an estimated 12,000 Yazidis —atrocities that have since beenrecognized internationally as genocide.

Kurdish Peshmerga forces retook the city in 2015. Two yearslater, the Iraqi army, backed by the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), tookcontrol of the area. By early August 2025, Iraq's Mass Graves Directorate hadexhumed 68 of the 162 known burial sites in the district, confirming 293identities, while more than 450 sets of remains remained unidentified. Nearly2,900 Yazidis were still listed as missing.

Read more: The long shadow of Sinjar: Twelve years afterthe ISIS genocide

Shafaq News- Dhi Qar

Residents of Al-Tar subdistrict in southern Iraq’s Dhi Qarprovince staged a large protest and blocked roads with burning tires, demandingthe restoration of electricity they said had been diverted to Al-Fuhud district,Shafaq News correspondent reported on Wednesday.

Protesters accused provincial officials of divertingAl-Tar’s electricity to other areas to containdemonstrators, Shafaq News correspondent reported.

Al-Fuhud witnessed demonstrations on August 9 and 10 overpoor electricity supply, with activists blocking several roads with burningtires and demanding the dismissal of Dhi Qar Electricity Director MohammedRuwaiydi. Two demonstrators were injured when security forces dispersed therally.

Earlier today, Basra Governor Asaad Al-Eidani denied thatany part of the province’s electricity allocation would be diverted toneighboring Dhi Qar, pointing out that the two provinces had discussedelectricity and grid problems.

Iraq’s parliament approved measures on July 27 to addressthe electricity crisis, including reopening corruption cases involving theElectricity Ministry dating back to 2005 and reviewing contracts and projectssuspected of wasting public funds. The recommendations also called forexpanding solar power and providing subsidized or interest-free loans tohouseholds and businesses installing renewable energy systems.

Read more: Electricity output covers only one-third of Iraq's demand

Shafaq News- Basra

Basra's electricity allocation will not be reduced ordiverted to neighboring Dhi Qar, Governor Asaad Al-Eidani stated on Wednesday,noting that power plants in the Iraqi province generate more than 6,000megawatts while local peak demand reaches about 4,700 MW.

In a statement, Al-Eidani said he had previously met the DhiQar governor to discuss electricity supply and grid problems, but somelawmakers later claimed that several districts would be connected to Basra'spower network. He accused "some parties" of using the issue to stir publicconcern.

Earlier this week, security forces dispersed demonstratorsin Al-Fuhud district of Dhi Qar after they blocked roads with burning tiresover poor power supply, leaving two people injured.

The Electricity Ministry said in June that Basra's powerallocation was based on quotas approved by the Higher Committee forCoordination between Provinces to ensure equitable supply and grid stability.

Basra recently began experiencing scheduled power cuts forthe first time in years, receiving four hours of electricity followed by twohours without supply due to lower generation and reduced gas supplies.

Iraq’s electricity system has been operating far belowdemand, with generation falling to about 20,000 megawatts against a need of60,000 MW after the country lost roughly 7,000 MW of capacity in recent months.Electricity Minister Ali Saadi Wahib has attributed part of the shortfall tonatural gas shortages.

Read more: Electricity output covers only one-third of Iraq's demand

Shafaq News- Dhi Qar

Dhi Qar authoritiesrecovered six billion dinars ($4.6M) and held employees financially liable formore than 20 billion dinars ($15.3M) under anti-corruption measures, GovernorHaitham Al-Hamdani said on Wednesday.

More than 200investigative committees had been formed to examine violations by employees,Al-Hamdani noted, pointing out that authorities also imposed 100 disciplinarypenalties and referred more than 50 employees to the judiciary.

“The province hasintroduced an electronic platform and barcode system to process applicationsrelated to land plots, aiming to curb extortion and speed up procedures.”

Al-Hamdani took overthe administration of Nasiriyah Municipality on August 10 and ordered a seriesof dismissals and administrative changes. Judicial and security measures havealso targeted several municipal employees over cases involving land and publicfunds.

Read more: Corruption arrests in Iraq pass 210 under PM al-Zaidi

Shafaq News- Basra

More than a million people walked to one ofIslam's oldest mosques in southern Iraq to mark the anniversary of the ProphetMohammad's death, the mosque's management said.

Pilgrims set out on foot from the center ofBasra and its outlying districts, according to the mosque's director, Alial-Baghdadi, who said the crowd exceeded a million and included arrivals fromseveral Iraqi provinces.

The mosque is one of the earliest built inIslam, dating to the seventh century, and sits about 12 kilometers west ofmodern Basra. Shia Muslims revere it as marking a spot where Imam Ali bin AbiTalib, the fourth caliph and the first Shia imam, is believed to have stepped;"khutwa" means footstep in Arabic.

About 800 volunteers helped organize thepilgrimage and guide arrivals along the roads to the mosque, al-Baghdadi said,coordinating with security, service, and health authorities to manage entry andexit. Some 250 service stations, known as mawakib, lined the routes to hand outfood and water, a fixture of Iraqi religious pilgrimages such as the far largerArbaeen.

Discover Iraq: Basra, a city between wealth and withering

The gathering is one of many mass Shiapilgrimages Iraq hosts each year, drawing crowds that walk for days alongvolunteer-run routes. The largest, the Arbaeen commemoration in Karbala, drewmore than 22 million people in 2026, over 4 million of them from abroad,according to the city's shrine authorities, ranking it among the world'sbiggest annual religious gatherings. The martyrdom anniversary of Imam Musaal-Kadhim, marked at his shrine in Baghdad's Kadhimiya district, gatheredaround 15 million visitors this year, according to the shrine's administration.

Record Arbaeen crowds, thin returns: Iran's collapse drains Iraq's religious tourism

Shafaq News- Baghdad

More than 200,000 medical and health graduateshave remained without government appointments since 2023, Parliament's HealthCommittee member Miqdad Al-Khafaji told Shafaq News on Wednesday.

The committee submitted a proposal during ameeting with Health Minister Abdul Hussein Al-Mousawi to secure the necessaryfunding through the federal budget law and hire graduates in batches across theministry's departments and institutions.

Read more: Iraq: 250K graduates annually amid 20% youth unemployment

Al-Khafaji said Law No. 6 of 2000 guaranteesmedical and health graduates appointments within the Health Ministry, callingfor the backlog to be addressed in line with legal entitlements and the numberof graduates awaiting jobs.

Read more: Medics press Baghdad and Erbil for urgent action

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Baghdad Operations Command shut down two unlicensedfactories, dismantled eight metal-smelting sites, and arrested six operators ineastern Baghdad on Wednesday.

The facilities in Sabaa Qusour were targeted forregulatory and environmental violations involving harmful emissions and odors.

Residents, who spoke to Shafaq News, have reportedsulfur-like odors in recent days, with some in southern Baghdad linking them towaste burning in Al-Nahrawan and near Al-Rashid Camp. The Green IraqObservatory warned that the foul smells could persist across the capital,pointing to sources that remain inadequately addressed.

Switzerland-based air quality monitoring platformIQAir ranked Iraq as the world’s second most polluted country by the end of2025, citing poor air quality and waste management among the country'senvironmental problems.

Read more: The cost of filth: Iraq among the world’s most polluted nations

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Each time the price of gold slips, Umm Adam decides to buy. Then shehesitates, afraid it will fall further, and she will regret paying too soon. Arecent dip had felt like her chance, but prices have climbed again, and she isno closer to a decision.

Across Baghdad's gold market, buyers and sellers are caught in the samehesitation after a recent drop gave way to a renewed climb, leaving peopleunsure whether to buy now or wait, particularly those seeking jewelry forfamily occasions or buying to save.

Umm Adam, who had planned to buy jewelry for a family occasion, said shetracked prices for days waiting for a suitable level, but the renewed rise lefther more hesitant. “I want to buy for the occasion rather than to profit, and shopowners gave me conflicting advice on whether to buy now or hold off,” she toldShafaq News.

For others, the same uncertainty argues for doing nothing. Umm Anas, whobought gold earlier as a form of saving, said she had not sold despite watchingprices rise. “The increases reinforced my decision to hold, because I wassaving for the long term.”

The swing that unsettled them was real. Gold rose in Baghdad on Tuesday,with 21-carat foreign gold reaching 948,000 Iraqi dinars ($724.16) per mithqal(5 grams) on Al-Nahr Street, up 8,000 dinars from Monday, according to a ShafaqNews market survey. At jewelry shops, retail prices for 21-carat Gulf gold ranbetween 950,000 and 960,000 dinars. In Erbil, prices held steady, with 22-caratgold selling at 978,000 dinars per mithqal.

Zaid al-Ta'i, a gold shop owner, said the recent decline encouraged someresidents to buy, while the renewed rise pushed others to wait and watch. Hesaid customers had grown more cautious given how quickly prices change,describing gold as both an ornament and a store of value. “Buyers saving forthe long term calculate differently from those tracking prices for a quickprofit.”

Economic expert Muhammad al-Hasani explained that gold's volatile pricescome amid continued uncertainty from economic and geopolitical developments inglobal markets. But gold “remains a leading haven during crises,” due to globaldemand, particularly from China and India.

Mudhhir Muhammad Salih, financial adviser to the prime minister, pointedout that gold prices are influenced mainly by movements in the US dollar andinterest-rate levels, noting that prices in the Iraqi market are tied to globalprices and the dollar exchange rate, given Iraq's reliance on imported gold.

ShafaqNews- Al-Anbar (Updated on Aug. 12, at 11:34)

Blindfish found in a cave in Iraq’s Al-Anbar province are not a discovery, anenvironmental official told Shafaq News on Tuesday, noting that their presencewas first documented in 2010.

Accordingto Qais Najeh, director of the Al-Anbar Environmental Directorate, the cave islocated in Al-Khasfa, a low-lying area known for its cracks and groundwatersites. He described the fish as living in the darker sections of the cave, addingthat the same type has been found in a well behind the Sheikh Hadid shrine inthe Haditha district.

“Thepresence of eyeless fish in a cave environment is an unusual natural phenomenon,”he argued, stressing that further examination will seek to learn more about thecave, its water channel, and the species living there.

Adel al-Ahmadi, an expert specializing in the nomenclature of Iraqifish, told Shafaq News that the species is a distinctive case of adaptation todark cave environments. It loses its eyes entirely at maturity, and its bodytakes on a white-to-pink color due to the absence of pigmentation. The fishalso lacks barbels and a mental disc, features that set it apart from othercave fish in Iraq.

The species was discovered by Iraqi researcher Basim Mohammed al-Azzawiof the Natural History Research Center in Baghdad, who collected the firstspecimens from caves near the shrine of Sheikh Hadid, according to al-Ahmadi.He said the significant anatomical differences led researchers to establish aseparate scientific genus for the fish, as no closely related genus existed toplace it in.

The fish grows to no more than about 49 millimeters and lives in stablegroundwater with temperatures between 20 and 22 degrees Celsius, al-Ahmadisaid. It favors dark environments, becoming active at night and hiding amongrocks when disturbed, and is believed to feed on aquatic insects, diatoms, andgreen algae.

Al-Ahmadi said the species has no direct economic value but holdsconsiderable scientific value, and could draw interest from ornamental-fishenthusiasts if bred through scientific programs that preserve its geneticdiversity. He cautioned that its limited range makes it highly sensitive to anyenvironmental change.

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Three people died by suicide in Baghdad within 24 hours,including a 20-year-old woman found hanging inside her home in the Al-Ghazaliyadistrict, a security source told Shafaq News on Tuesday.

The woman had used a shawl tied to a ceiling fan in one ofthe rooms. Security forces opened an investigation into the circumstancessurrounding her death and possible motives.

The case followed the death of a 15-year-old girl, who wasfound inside her home in the Al-Bayaa area of southern Baghdad. The capitalalso documented the passing of a female dentist in a separate case.

Iraq recorded 617 suicides nationwide in the first half of2026, according to Interior Ministry figures. A 2025 report by the Ministry ofLabour and Social Affairs put the monthly average at 55 to 70 cases, with theannual number rising from about 1,100 in 2022 to 1,300 in 2023 and nearly 1,500in 2024.

Read more: When life feels closed from all sides: Iraq’s rising suicide cases

Shafaq News- Baghdad (Updated on Aug. 12, at 11:37)

Foul, sulfur-like odors persisted across parts ofBaghdad for a second consecutive day on Tuesday, with residents, who spoke toShafaq News, linking them to waste burning in Al-Nahrawan and near Al-RashidCamp.

In Bismayah, southeast of the Iraqi capital, localsappealed to Environment Minister Sarwa Abd Al-Wahid and other authorities tointervene.

Iraq ranked as the world’s second most pollutedcountry by the end of 2025 amid deteriorating air quality, poor wastemanagement, and wider environmental pressures, according to data released in September by Switzerland-based air quality monitoring platform IQAir. Baghdad’s average Air QualityIndex (AQI) stood at 113 two years earlier, while Karbala, Al-Anbar, and Diyalaalso appeared in international rankings of highly polluted cities.

Read more: The cost of filth: Iraq among the world’s most polluted nations

Lawmaker Bassem Al-Gharabi of the Ishraqat Kanoon bloc,in February, warned of growing environmental risks to public health, citing anannual mortality rate of 15 per 100,000 people and estimating the nationwidetoll at roughly 69,000 deaths.

The Federal Integrity Commission previously outlinedeight measures to improve air quality in the capital, including action againstunauthorized burning sites and requirements for facilities to install andmaintain filtration systems.

The Green Iraq Observatory warned that foul odors could spread acrossBaghdad again in the coming days, attributing the problem to continuing sourcesof pollution that have not been addressed at the root.

The observatory said the phenomenon recurs annually in the capital andhas begun to reach nearby provinces, attributing the odors to sulfur emissionsfrom oil facilities, industrial plants, and unregulated workshops on theoutskirts of Baghdad, along with the random burning of waste and weatherconditions.

Read more: Death in the current: Pollution decimates Iraq’s river ecosystems

Shafaq News- Maysan

Al-Amarah Investigative Court, which specializes inintegrity-related cases, issued an arrest warrant on Tuesday against formerMaysan MP Osama al-Budairi on charges of causing serious damage to publicfunds, a judicial source told Shafaq News.

Al-Budairi previously served as a member of the Iraqiparliament for Maysan province during the fifth electoral term and headed theSabian-Mandaean parliamentary bloc. 

Read more: Corruption arrests in Iraq pass 210 under PM al-Zaidi