Shi’ite Muslims gather in Najaf, Iraq, on July 3, 2025, ahead of Ashura, the holiest day of their faith. As part of traditional mourning rituals during the first ten days of Muharram, large torches known as masha’al are lit each night.(Photo by Alaa al-Marjani/Reuters)
Shi’ite pilgrims gather to pray between the shrines of Imam Hussein and Imam Abbas in the holy city of Karbala, Iraq, on July 5, 2025, in observance of Ashura.(Photo by Alaa al-Marjani/Reuters)
Shi’ite Muslim volunteers, dressed as ancient warriors, reenact a scene from the 7th-century Battle of Karbala in Baghdad, Iraq, on July 6, 2025. The performance is a religious ritual commemorating Ashura.(Photo by Ahmed Saad/Reuters)
Shi’ite worshippers visit the holy shrine of Imam Hussein in Karbala, Iraq, on July 25, 2025, during Muharram, an annual period of mourning.(Phoot by Hadi Mizban/AP Photo)
A man cools his face with water mist from sprinklers during a heatwave in Baghdad, Iraq, on July 28, 2025.(Photo by Ahmed Saad/Reuters)
A drone view shows oil tankers loading crude oil at the Basra Oil Terminal in Iraqi territorial waters, off the coast of Basra, Iraq, on August 5, 2025.(Photo by Mohammed Aty/Reuters)
An Iraqi navy marine stands guard on duty aboard a vessel in the Gulf, south of the Faw peninsula, on August 5, 2025.(Photo by Hussein Faleh/AFP Photo)
Shi’ite Muslim devotees reach out to receive a blessing from the tomb of Imam Hussein at his shrine in Karbala, Iraq, on August 14, 2025, on the eve of the Arbaeen festival, which commemorates his 7th-century martyrdom.(Photo by Hussein Faleh/AFP Photo)
An aerial view shows a traditional boat stranded in a dried-up marsh in the drought-stricken Chibayish marshes in Iraq’s southern Dhi Qar province on August 19, 2025.(Photo by Asaad Niazi/AFP Photo)
A woman looks on as Iraqi nationals prepare to leave the Kurdish-run al-Hol camp in Syria’s northeastern al-Hasakah governorate to return to Iraq on August 28, 2025. Over 800 Iraqis departed the camp, which also houses suspected relatives of Islamic State group jihadists.(Photo by Delil Souleiman/AFP Photo)
Students of the Baghdad Ballet Academy prepare to perform “Alice in Wonderland” at the Al-Rashid Theater in Baghdad, Iraq, on August 29, 2025.(Photo by Hadi Mizban/AP Photo)
Young dancers perform in a ballet adaptation of “Alice in Wonderland” during the Baghdad Ballet Academy’s annual gala at the Rasheed Theatre in Baghdad on August 29, 2025.(Photo by Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP Photo)
A fisherman sits in his boat near swathes of water hyacinth, a water-consuming invasive bloom, in Nasiriyah, Iraq, on September 9, 2025. The Euphrates River is running at historically low levels as Iraq faces its worst water scarcity in living memory.(Photo by Asaad Niazi/AFP Photo)
Mahmoud Shaker, a beekeeper and professor at the University of Basra, tends to his apiary in Basra, Iraq, on September 13, 2025. Worsening water shortages and rising salinity in the Shatt al-Arab river threaten bees and have reduced honey production.(Photo by Mohammed Aty/Reuters)
People visit the ancient city of Babylon, Iraq, on October 24, 2025. The photo was issued on October 25 to mark the visit of Swiss Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, who was on an official tour of Jordan, Iraq, and Kuwait.(Photo by Anthony Anex/EPA)
A man walks past banners featuring political candidates from rival blocs, placed in front of a war-damaged building in Old Mosul, Iraq, on October 28, 2025. The banners are part of the campaign for the parliamentary elections scheduled for November 11.(Photo by Zaid Al-Obeidi/AFP Photo)
A firefighter looks on as smoke and flames billow from the Zubair oil field in southern Iraq on October 26, 2025. A gas leak caused a fire that killed one person and injured at least nine others, according to authorities.(Photo by Hussein Faleh/AFP Photo)
A drone view shows the aftermath of an oil pipeline fire at the Zubair oilfield in Basra, Iraq, on October 28, 2025.(Photo by Essam Al-Sudani/Reuters)
Iraqi Kurds wave flags as they attend an electoral campaign rally for the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in Arbil on November 7, 2025, ahead of the country’s parliamentary elections. Over 7,700 candidates are running for the 329-seat Council of Representatives.(Photo by Safin Hamid/AFP Photo)
