The Jurf al-Naddaf incident exposed the Iraqi government’s struggle to bring Iran-backed militias under state control despite reported Iranian support for disarmament, raising concerns over state authority and possible foreign intervention.

Just days after Iraqi PM Ali al-Zaidi returned from a 5-day official visit to the U.S. where he met Trump and signed dozens of economic agreements, Ali Akbar Velayati, the Iranian supreme leader's senior adviser on international affairs, denounced the trip as "a badge of shame."

Trump has thrust one of Iran's most secretive nuclear sites into the center of his war on the country after warning on July 14, 2026, that the U.S. could destroy Pickaxe Mountain, saying U.S. forces were closely monitoring the site and warning that it could soon become a military target.

As a new wave of U.S. strikes on Iran intensifies, Donald Trump has once again hinted at what could be described as the “Kurdish card,” without naming it directly.

The Trump administration has been considering ending its relationship with the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), prompting diplomatic efforts to preserve US support.