US troops deployed in oil-rich Iraq following the NATO-led invasion in 2003 were withdrawn in 2011 but were re-deployed in 2014 following the rise of ISIS. Their presence has caused significant popular unrest in the country 

We take a look at the nationwide strike by Amazon workers across Italy, a massive fire at a Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh, recent developments in Yemen, and the presence of armed rebel groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the pretext of foreign military interventions

Recently, the US declared the rebel group Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) as a terrorist organization in connection with their links to ISIS.

US president Joe Biden authorized the airstrikes as a response to the recent attacks on US military bases in Iraq. The move is being criticized by anti-war and progressive sections as a sign of continuation of Trump-era policies in the region  

Protests in capital Baghdad saw thousands mobilize outside the prime minister’s office even as the Iraqi parliament continues to debate the 2021 budget for over a month. Protesters in the oil-rich southern region also forcefully shut down an oil field

Syria’s ambassador to the United Nations and its deputy foreign minister, Bashar al-Jaafari, alleged that occupation forces and terrorist groups act together to loot Syria’s economic resources

Despite harsh weather, thousands from Shia Hazara community continued to protest, refusing to bury the dead while demanding justice for the victims who were killed on Saturday

Thousands of protesters gathered at Tahrir square in Baghdad after marching to the highway leading to the airport where Soleimani and Muhandis were killed last year. They demanded the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq

Militias point to the Iraqi parliament’s resolution which called for the expulsion of foreign troops from Iraq, adding that the US troops are “not welcome in the country”

Vijay Prashad explores the role of multinational companies in the deepening social, economic and political crisis in Mozambique

The US administration of Donald Trump has attempted to portray the move as the fulfilment of one of his central electoral promises before the upcoming presidential elections in the US, scheduled in November

Syrian oil fields in the north-eastern part of the country have been under the control of the Kurdish-led rebel group, Syrian Democratic Forces, since the defeat of ISIS in 2017