An Iranian athlete warms up prior to the start of the women's karate competition, made-up of clubs and teams from around the Tehran province, in Tehran on November 6, 2025. Some 230 participants, including 5-year-old girls, took part in the competition, with team's deriving only from the Tehran province taking part. (Photo by Atta Kenare/AFP Photo)
Iraqi security forces and Shi'ite fighters reload a weapon during clashes with Islamic State militants in Salahuddin province March 2, 2015. Iraq's armed forces, backed by Shi'ite militia, attacked Islamic State strongholds north of Baghdad on Monday as they launched an offensive to retake the city of Tikrit and the surrounding Sunni Muslim province of Salahuddin. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani
An Iraqi Army member launches a rocket during the operation to retake Mosul from Daesh terrorists in Jadid neighborhood as the clashes between Iraqi Army and Daesh terrorists continue in Mosul, Iraq on April 2, 2017. (Photo by Hemn Baban/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
An Iraqi special forces Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) member screams during a battle against Islamic State group jihadists (IS) in Mosul's al-Rifaq neighbourhood on January 8, 2017, as an ongoing military operation against the militants continues. Elite Iraqi forces battling the Islamic State group in eastern Mosul reached the Tigris River that splits the city in two for the first time, a spokesman said. (Photo by Dimitar Dilkoff/AFP Photo)
A demonstrator runs between burning tires during a curfew, two days after the nationwide anti-government protests turned violent, in Baghdad, Iraq on October 3, 2019. (Photo by Wissm al-Okili/Reuters)
An Iraqi medic takes a nasal swab from a woman in Iraq's central shrine city of Najaf on April 20, 2020, during the nationwide lockdown to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus. (Photo by Haidar Hamdani/AFP Photo)
Iraqi Kurds carry fire torches as they celebrate Nowruz Day, a festival marking the first day of spring, Kurdish and Persian New Year in Akre, Iraq on March 20, 2024. Newroz or Nowruz means “new day” in Persian, and is celebrated to mark the arrival of spring and the first day of the Iranian calendar. It is widely celebrated in Persian and neighboring regions and is recognized on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage of Human List. (Photo by Ismael Adnan/SOPA Images/Rex Features/Shutterstock)