Iraq

Israeli Ben Hassin is free after 11 years in a prison in Iraq's Kurdish region. He is expected in Israel shortly. A death sentence over an accidental killing was lifted after a pardon last year.

Earlier tonight, an explosion was heard in Erbil, Iraq, with the cause still to be clarified.

Interestingly, local sources reported several UAV flights above western Iraq during the day.

Contributed by: @BeamTracker_

Iraq is moving closer to U.S. sanctions over attacks on Saudi oil facilities that were allegedly launched from its territory by IRGC-linked groups. Roughly 7 million barrels of Saudi exports were disrupted.

Al-Mada

Panama, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia will receive $52 million in U.S. military aid pulled from Slovakia, North Macedonia, Tunisia and Iraq under a Trump administration shift.

Counter narcotics work, security for the Panama Canal, and blocking strategic rivals in the Western Hemisphere are the stated purposes, per the State Department.

AP

Iraqi PM al-Zaidi was asked about the strike in Saudi Arabia.

Investigations are still running. A joint commission between Iraq and the Islamic Republic of Iran has been formed, and the results are currently being analyzed.

"We do not want to prejudge anything because we first need reliable findings."

Once those findings are in, he said they will be presented together with the Iranians.

Iraqi PM al-Zaidi: "Until now, Iraq has been dependent on a single strait."

He wants export routes split between Türkiye, Syria and the Mediterranean, with the oil sold to Europe and the U.S.

Germany’s Chancellor Merz on Iran:

Iran must finally end this blockade. Above all, it must end its military nuclear program.

Tehran’s support for proxies throughout the region must stop. We see the consequences every day.

We also call on Iran not to carry the conflict further into Iraq.

Iraqi security forces are guarding the convoys of international coalition troops pulling out of the Kurdistan region, an Iraqi security source told Al Hadath.

Iraqi PM Ali al-Zaidi:

Iraq will not become a "launchpad for attacks" against its neighbors. He said the country can help "de-escalate tensions and open avenues for dialogue."

Iraq's Prime Minister: "We are ready to host direct talks between the parties to the regional conflict, and we welcome any serious diplomatic effort to ease tensions."

Several drones launched from Iraq targeted Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline in the Riyadh and Madinah regions, causing injuries and damage, Saudi Arabia says.

Contributed by @AZ_Intel_.

CNN is reporting that the Saudi East-West oil pipeline was attacked using “drones originating from Iraq”.

Meaning that this attack was likely carried out by Iranian-aligned militias in Iraq, opening a new front in the war.

It’s not yet clear how long it would take to repair the damage, sources said to CNN.

A regional meeting on securing commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is set for Monday in Oman, bringing together Iran, Iraq, and the Persian Gulf coastal states. - Iranian Foreign Ministry

The U.S. Treasury has announced new sanctions targeting entities that support Iran's proxies in the Middle East, including several Iraqi business executives.

The U.S. Treasury has announced new sanctions targeting entities that support Iran's proxies in the Middle East, including several Iraqi business executives. In a separate updated statement, Treasury said its policy now presumes denial and it will reject most outstanding Iran-related licensing requests.

The Panama flagged tanker New Andros was hit by a drone near Basra, Iraq. (Reuters)

The tanker New Andrews, an American tanker, was hit by an Iranian drone near Basra, Iraq, Iraqi channels report.

Iran struck two tankers with drones in the past few hours -- one near Iraq, one off the UAE.

A tanker was struck by an unknown projectile 28NM south-east of Al-Faw, Iraq, UKMTO reports. Crew are safe and no environmental impact has been reported.

A drone struck a Panama-flagged tanker in Iraqi waters. It was carrying 2 million barrels of fuel oil, two port officials say.

The Houthis helped Iraqi pro-Iranian militias plan and execute July's drone attack on Saudi oil facilities, per the AP. Regional sources call it a new level of coordination among Iran's proxies.

Iraq Oil Minister: Committed to OPEC quota, output won't exceed 4.2 million bpd.

The U.S. State Department has approved a possible $800 million arms sale to Iraq, including Bell 412EPX and Bell 407M helicopters, GAU-19 machine guns, rocket systems, sensors, and training.

-Reuters.