Baghdad is shifting toward political stabilization and economic challenges during the fragile post-conflict phase that follows more than a month of US-Israeli strikes on Iran and Iranian-backed militia attacks in Iraq. After hundreds of militia attacks, including strikes on US and Kurdish targets, Iraq is moving forward with long-delayed political appointments, including choosing a new president.
Syria has sought to position itself as a diplomatic actor amid the regional conflict with Iran, maintaining relative stability while several neighboring states faced significant missile and drone attacks. Damascus has intensified high-level engagements with Turkey, the United States, and Ukraine, highlighting efforts to rebuild international ties following the fall of the Bashar al Assad regime.
Iran’s increasing use of cluster munitions in ballistic missile attacks since late February has intensified damage across Israel, with dozens of impact sites reported in major cities in the first week of April. Four people were killed in Haifa in a missile attack on April 6. Meanwhile, Israel is escalating strikes on Iranian infrastructure targets and boosting production of Arrow interceptors as part of its multi-layered air defense.
A drone attack targeted the residence of Kurdistan Region of Iraq President Nechirvan Barzani amid escalating strikes in Iraq on March 28, followed by a drone interception near the home of Masoud Barzani, leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the following day. Iranian-backed militias and Iran have been blamed for attacks across Iraq, including more than 500 drone and missile strikes against the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region since February 28.
While attention has shifted to the conflicts in Iran and Lebanon, Gaza remains under a fragile ceasefire, with ongoing low-level clashes. High Representative for Gaza Nickolay Mladenov highlighted progress toward a disarmament framework tied to UN-backed plans. Despite this, Hamas continues to consolidate control in parts of the territory as Israel targets militants and terrorist infrastructure.
Six Peshmerga fighters were killed, and more than 20 were wounded in a missile strike north of Erbil on March 24, marking the deadliest attack on the Kurdistan Region since late February. The strike is part of a broader wave of drone and missile attacks by Iran and Iranian-backed militias targeting northern Iraq, US facilities, and Kurdish forces. In addition, rockets were fired toward Syria on March 23, and at least 15 members of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces were killed in a likely US airstrike in Iraq’s Anbar province.
Iranian-backed militias have continued conducting attacks across Iraq, recently targeting US and foreign diplomatic sites in Baghdad and Erbil. Hundreds of strikes have hit the Kurdistan Region since late February, wounding Peshmerga forces and damaging key locations. While Kataib Hezbollah signaled a possible temporary pause in attacks tied to specific demands on March 18, other groups, such as Kataib Sayyid al Shuhada, vowed to continue.
Israel executed more than 7,600 strikes on Iran by March 13, targeting nuclear-linked facilities, missile launchers, drone infrastructure, and military sites, according to the Israel Defense Forces. Israel continues conducting roughly 150–200 strikes per day as Iran continues launching ballistic missiles and drones toward Israel and the Gulf countries.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned Iranian and Iranian-backed militia attacks in Iraq during a March 9 call with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al Sudani, as drone and missile strikes continued across the country. Many attacks have targeted the Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq, where US forces are based, as well as other US facilities and diplomatic sites. Unclaimed airstrikes have also targeted Iranian-backed militias across Iraq.
Iran and Iranian-backed militias have escalated drone and missile attacks on the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, striking sites in Erbil and Sulaimani Governorates and killing at least three people. Many of the attacks are targeting Kurdish Iranian opposition groups.
Israel has carried out more than 1,600 strike sorties against Iran in the first four days of the war, targeting Iranian leaders, nuclear facilities, missile launchers, and other military infrastructure, according to the IDF. Iran has responded with repeated ballistic missile and drone salvos that have killed at least 10 people in Israel and wounded dozens. The Israeli Air Force said that one of its F-35s downed an Iranian Yak-130 aircraft. The fighting has closed Israeli airports and forced widespread civilian alerts as missile barrages continue across the country.
Kurdish Iranian opposition groups say that Iran targeted their bases in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq with drones and missiles following US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. The Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) and other groups, including PDKI and Komala, reported attacks near Erbil, Duhok, and Sulaymaniyah, with footage suggesting the use of Shahed-type drones. The US State Department condemned the strikes, while Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government said its Peshmerga forces were also targeted. Kurdish opposition groups have also claimed that they are conducting anti-regime operations in Iran.
Five Iranian Kurdish opposition groups have announced a coalition aimed at opposing Iran’s regime. The alliance, unveiled at a joint press conference on February 22, includes the PDKI, PJAK, PAK, Komala, and the Khabat Organization. The move comes amid heightened US-Iran tensions and renewed threats from the Iranian-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah, which warned the Kurdistan Region against cooperating with “foreign forces.”
Former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki has vowed to continue pursuing a return to office regardless of US pressure opposing his candidacy, intensifying political uncertainty following Iraq’s November 2025 elections. Maliki’s bid comes as Shiite factions within the Coordination Framework weigh their options amid ongoing efforts to select a new president and prime minister.
At a February 19 meeting of the US-backed Board of Peace in Washington, DC, five countries pledged troops to an International Stabilization Force for Gaza, and representatives of 40 nations committed approximately $7 billion in funding. The initiative is part of the second phase of a ceasefire plan launched in October 2025. Clashes between the Israel Defense Forces and militants continue in Gaza, where Israeli forces report ongoing ceasefire violations and operations against Hamas infrastructure.
The Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have continued implementing a January transition agreement. US Central Command has maintained pressure on the Islamic State with airstrikes and withdrew from the Tanf garrison in southern Syria. Damascus is assuming control of Islamic State detention sites in the eastern part of the country. Senior US, Syrian, and SDF officials met in Munich to discuss integration, the ceasefire implementation, and safeguarding rights amid Syria’s changing security landscape.
Around 5,000 Islamic State detainees have been transferred from Syria to Iraq under a US-facilitated mission that began in late January, following security shifts in eastern Syria. The number of detainees transferred is expected to reach up to 7,000. Iraqi officials say the transfers may conclude by February 12 and that the detainees will face investigation and prosecution. Iraq has stressed it will not become a permanent repository for foreign fighters and has urged countries to repatriate their citizens now in Iraqi custody.
Syria’s foreign minister joined a US-led anti-Islamic State coalition meeting in Riyadh on February 9, signaling deeper coordination after Damascus joined the coalition in November. The meeting followed a January 29 agreement between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces enabling government deployments into northeastern Syria. Coalition members praised the deal and discussed transfers of Islamic State detainees to Iraq. As Syrian forces move into SDF-held areas, the transition faces challenges, particularly in Kobani, where humanitarian conditions remain dire despite reduced violence.
Syrian government forces deployed into Al Hasakah and Qamishli in eastern Syria in early February under a January 30 agreement with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The deal is aimed at ending clashes and restoring central authority in mainly Kurdish areas that the SDF still controls. The government deployment coincided with reports of continued US transfers of Islamic State detainees from Syria to Iraq and US strikes on Islamic State targets.
The Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt reopened on February 2 for limited pedestrian traffic, marking a key step in the US-backed ceasefire plan that began in October. The move followed significant Israeli airstrikes after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that terrorists had emerged from a tunnel in Rafah, violating the ceasefire. The IDF continued operations in Gaza, reporting additional clashes with suspected terrorists and the discovery of weapons and tunnels near Khan Younis along the Yellow Line.
On January 28, former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki stated that he rejected “blatant American interference in Iraq’s internal affairs,” a day after US President Donald Trump said Maliki, who is a leading contender for the country’s next prime minister, should not retake the office. US envoy to Iraq Mark Savaya also said that Iranian-backed militias should be prevented from having power in the next government. Separately, several Iranian-backed militias threatened to support Iran in any conflict with the US or Israel and sent forces to the border with Syria amid fighting between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces.
The body of the last Israeli hostage held in Gaza was returned to Israel by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on January 26. Ran Gvili, an Israeli police sergeant who was killed in the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, had been held in Gaza since the day of the attack. The second phase of the US-backed Gaza peace plan is expected to proceed with the limited opening of the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt. On January 24, US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff arrived in Israel to discuss the next phase of the ceasefire and Kushner’s Gaza reconstruction plan.
US forces completed their withdrawal from Ain al Assad Airbase, the Iraqi government said on January 18, fulfilling a US agreement with Iraqi authorities going back to 2024. The withdrawal took place as Syrian government forces pushed back the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in Syria. On January 21, US Central Command said it would transfer up to 7,000 Islamic State detainees from Syria to Iraq.
Syrian government forces advancing into eastern Syria are increasingly taking over areas where Islamic State members have been held in prisons and detention facilities by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The SDF said it lost control of Al Shaddadi prison, and the Syrian government asserted that it would secure the facility and round up prisoners who may have fled. Clashes also occurred near Aqtan prison north of Raqqa.
On January 16, the White House announced a number of appointments to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG) and the Board of Peace, which will support the stabilization and demilitarization of Gaza, after the Gaza ceasefire, which began in October, moved into its second phase on January 14. The Israel Defense Forces clashed with gunmen in the territory on January 14 and responded with airstrikes.
Kurdish opposition groups in northwestern Iran have actively supported protests against the Iranian regime during the first two weeks of January. Amid the Iranian government’s crackdown, seven Kurdish parties have called for unity and supported a general strike. One group, the Kurdistan Freedom Party, has claimed several attacks on the regime’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The Kingdom of Jordan conducted airstrikes targeting drug smuggling networks in southern Syria between December 23 and 25. The Jordanians coordinated with regional partners, although reports did not specify whom. The strikes targeted rural areas near the Jordanian border in Syria’s southern Suwayda Governorate, which is currently controlled by Druze forces.
In late December, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) replaced the 2nd Reserve Infantry Brigade and Kfir Brigade in Gaza with the 16th Reserve Infantry Brigade and 188th Armored Brigade, respectively. The IDF continues to deal with threats from terrorists along the Yellow Line in the territory, and an Israeli soldier was wounded on December 24 by an explosive device. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepared for a trip to Miami to meet US President Donald Trump.
Iranian-backed militias in Iraq are reportedly considering an initiative to disarm and place their weapons under government control. The militias, part of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), have been incorporated as independent units within Iraq’s security forces since 2016. Kataib Hezbollah, one of the most powerful of militias, has rejected disarmament, while the US lauded the potential development.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) published new data in the wake of the killing of two American soldiers and an interpreter in Syria on December 13, showing that US and partner forces have carried out 80 operations in the country since July 2025. “We will continue to work closely with our Syrian partners to hunt down ISIS networks and prevent their resurgence,” Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of CENTCOM, said. There have also been several security operations in Syria and Iraq conducted by Syrian and Iraqi security forces in the wake of the attack.