‘Caught in a geopolitical struggle’: US-Iran tug of war in Iraq

With ISIL largely defeated, serious questions remain as to why the US needs to keep 2,500 troops in Iraq.

Iraq is increasingly becoming a theatre of conflict between the United States and Iran with deadly air raids on pro-Iranian militias only the latest example. While Iraq’s government condemned the air strikes, a change of course is unlikely as both sides’ presence is pivotal for their respective foreign policy objectives, analysts say. The US Air Force conducted attacks last week on the facilities of pro-Iranian militias in the Syrian-Iraqi border region. From there, the militias launched drone strikes on US targets throughout Iraq.