Subscribe for as low as $2/week to access this story and all reporting.
By entering your email, you agree to receive AL-MONITOR's daily newsletter and occasional marketing messages.Why AL-MONITOR?
AL-MONITOR is an award-winning media outlet covering the Middle East, valued for its independence, diversity and analysis. It is read widely by US, international and Middle East decision makers at the highest levels, as well as by media, thought and business leaders and academia.
Read by
Live news & notifications
Follow over 100 expert journalists based across the region and get notified in real time of breaking stories and exclusives. *Expanded coverage on Energy & Defense sectors.Premier analysis of the Middle East
Access the sharpest and most diverse regional minds giving you all the angles on regional trends.Live events & video
Priority access to roundtables, summits and other events alongside AL-MONITOR's global community of regional influencers.Specialized Newsletters
Get timely reporting on key countries and sectors with up to 10 daily and weekly newsletters straight to your inbox.Big, exclusive interviews
Follow conversations with the region's biggest names in politics and business.AL-MONITOR archives since 2012
Access a repository of over a decade's worth of regional coverage, insights and trends.
Subscribe for unlimited access
By becoming an AL-MONITOR subscriber, you drive our team’s rigorous and independent journalism spanning the Middle East.
ContinueRelated Articles
Analysis Zaidi’s test in Tehran
Week in Review
Analysis Renewed Iraq attacks test Zaidi’s push to disarm Iran-backed militias
Mustafa Salim Exclusive-Iran's Revolutionary Guards set up covert Iraqi cells to attack Gulf neighbors, sources say
Analysis On first foreign trip, Iraqi PM Zaidi woos Trump but Iran casts long shadow
Amberin Zaman Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture Related Newsletters
Newsletter: Daily Briefing Iraq's Zaidi cancels Riyadh visit after US-Saudi strikes
Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO Iran pushes war to new fronts, offering dilemma for Trump
Jared Szuba In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military Why Iran, US are drifting back to conflict
Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO Iran strikes tankers, US bases as Gulf conflict escalates
Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO Analysis Iran-linked militias seek to draw Iraq into regional war “Iran’s logic is the logic of war,” a Gulf regional official tells Al-Monitor.
Week in Review Jul 31, 2026
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi wants Iraq to serve as a bridge rather than a battleground between the United States and Iran.
Tehran has other ideas.
This week, Iraq again found itself on the front lines of regional tensions, thanks to its eastern neighbor.
Iran-linked militias launched a series of drone attacks on Saudi Arabia while Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fired ballistic missiles at the US Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.
You're reading a free AL-MONITOR Original
Want more like this?
AL-MONITOR All-Access gives you unlimited access to all our journalism, the full Daily Briefing, exclusive interviews, premium newsletters, and live events — for less than $2/week.
Terms and PrivacySUBSCRIBER EXCLUSIVE
Continue reading this exclusive analysis
Original reporting and analysis unavailable elsewhere. Suscribe to AL-MONITOR to read this story and access everything we publish
See OffersRead By
Related Articles
Analysis Zaidi’s test in Tehran
Week in Review
Analysis Renewed Iraq attacks test Zaidi’s push to disarm Iran-backed militias
Mustafa Salim Exclusive-Iran's Revolutionary Guards set up covert Iraqi cells to attack Gulf neighbors, sources say
Analysis On first foreign trip, Iraqi PM Zaidi woos Trump but Iran casts long shadow
Amberin Zaman Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture Related Newsletters
Newsletter: Daily Briefing Iraq's Zaidi cancels Riyadh visit after US-Saudi strikes
Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO Iran pushes war to new fronts, offering dilemma for Trump
Jared Szuba In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military Why Iran, US are drifting back to conflict
Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO Iran strikes tankers, US bases as Gulf conflict escalates
Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO