As the languishing mid-summer heat approaches its peak, the Iraqi Parliament is scheduled to host the Minister of Finance to evaluate Iraq’s economic situation. Monthly oil export revenues have dropped from 9 trillion Iraqi dinars ($6.8 billion) to 1.5 trillion Iraqi dinars ($1.14 billion) while monthly expenditures remain above 9…

The US redeployment of MIM-104 Patriot missile defense systems weeks ahead of the scheduled September 30 troop withdrawal deadline has substantial ramifications for the Kurdistan Region’s air defense. The autonomous enclave has relied entirely on US and coalition air defenses for protection against more than 900 Iranian and Iraqi…

On the night of August 3, 2014, my phone began to ring, and it would not stop. Twenty calls, then fifty, perhaps a hundred. All of them from Shingal (Sinjar), a town in northern Iraq. Friends were weeping and screaming into the phone: “Something unspeakable is happening here. They are killing people. Can no one help us?” I called…

Across the global landscape, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transitioning from a technical novelty into the foundational infrastructure of the modern economy. In the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), this transformation is already taking root. From optimizing urban grid management and public sector operations to improving water distribution,…

On Monday, July 13, the Munich Higher Regional Court convicted an Iraqi couple of genocide against the Yazidis. For survivors, the judgment represents far more than punishment - it is recognition of their suffering, a warning to perpetrators around the world and a challenge to Iraq. More than eight years have passed since the fateful day when…

A seven-year audit (2019 - 2025) of Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) finance data reflects a stark structural imbalance in how wealth is generated and spent across its provinces. While Duhok province drives the Region's non-oil economy - generating an average of 41 percent of domestic revenue via vital trade corridors - it receives a mere…

Some catastrophes announce themselves. They come with explosions, with tanks, and with the thunder of history. The Kurdistan Region has known this kind of violence for decades, better than most countries in the world. Few societies have endured so many wars, forced displacement, and political collapse. Yet anyone who walks today through the…