Iraq

While the government insists it has no need for external borrowing, a record-setting draft budget still projects a significant deficit for the coming year.

Baghdad is making strides in capturing flared gas and courting international partners, including Russia, to power its economy and reduce reliance on imports.

Iraq is offering substantial price cuts on its crude oil, with some sales to India seeing discounts approaching $28 per barrel. This aggressive strategy aims to secure vital export volumes amidst regional tensions and financial strain.

A new agreement with ExxonMobil aims to boost Iraq's crucial southern oilfields, bringing vital water to maintain production. This move signals a renewed push for international energy partnerships.

Baghdad's crude production reached its highest point this year, signalling a recovery from war-related disruptions. This rebound is crucial for the nation's finances.

In 2004 and 2006, two surveys in The Lancet estimated that the Iraq war had killed far more civilians than officials acknowledged. The fierce reaction to them became a case study in how wars are counted.

A former Iraqi air force general wrote that Saddam Hussein had flown his weapons of mass destruction to Syria before the 2003 invasion. The claim sold books; the evidence never materialised.

In 2011 an Iraqi court sentenced fifteen men to death for the massacre of dozens of people at a wedding during the sectarian war. The case illustrated both the scale of the violence and the shortcomings of Iraqi justice.

Iraq's state cement makers profited from the post-war construction boom. Their story shows both the potential and the problems of Iraq's state-owned industry.