One highlight of Pope Francis' historic visit to Iraq is his meeting Saturday with a revered religious leader for Shiite Muslims, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.

PLAINS OF UR, Iraq (AP) — Pope Francis walked through a narrow alley in Iraq’s holy city of Najaf for a historic meeting with the country’s top Shiite cleric Saturday, and together they delivered...

BAGHDAD (AP) — In Iraq’s holiest city, a pontiff will meet a revered ayatollah and make history with a message of coexistence in a place plagued by bitter divisions.

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis will meet with Iraq's top Shiite Muslim cleric, Ali al-Sistani, during a trip next month that will also include a pilgrimage to ancient Christian communities that were...

ROME (AP) — Iraq’s top Catholic official said Thursday that a deadly suicide bombing in Baghdad hasn’t thwarted Pope Francis’ plans to visit, and he confirmed the pontiff would meet with the...

BAGHDAD (AP) — The U.S. Treasury on Friday imposed sanctions on a prominent Iraqi politician and security official, accusing him of serious human rights abuses.

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s top Shiite cleric on Sunday threw his support behind the prime minister's announcement that parliamentary elections will be held ahead of schedule next year, saying the...

NAJAF, Iraq (AP) — When Iraq’s top Shiite cleric underwent surgery for a fractured bone last month, it sent shivers around the country and beyond. “May God heal Iraq,” read a photo of Grand...

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's most powerful Shiite cleric called for security forces to protect anti-government protesters in a Friday sermon, after weeks of violence in Baghdad and southern Iraq, and...

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's most powerful religious figure, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, reiterated Friday his condemnation of the use of force against anti-government protesters as the mass movement...

KARBALA, Iraq (AP) — Iraq's most powerful cleric was discharged Friday from a hospital following a risky surgery for a fractured bone and returned to his home in southern Iraq, medical officials...

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's most revered Shiite cleric was recovering Thursday from surgery for a fractured bone following an accident in his home, officials said.

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's top Shiite cleric on Friday denounced the killing of a teenager whose body was strung up by his feet from a traffic pole in a Baghdad square, as conflicting versions emerged...

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s prime minister announced Friday that he would submit his resignation to parliament, a day after more than 40 people were killed by security forces in protests and following...

BAGHDAD (AP) — The Latest on anti-government protests in Iraq (all times local):

3:40 p.m.

Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi says he will submit his resignation to Parliament in...

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi security forces clashed with anti-government protesters on a historic Baghdad street near a key bridge for the second day on Friday, killing four and bringing the death toll...

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran's official IRNA news agency says President Hassan Rouhani has met with Iraq's most senior Shiite cleric — the first such meeting for an Iranian leader.

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's most senior Shiite cleric on Wednesday joined a chorus of Iraqi politicians and clerics criticizing recent statements by President Donald Trump in which he said U.S. troops should stay in Iraq to keep an eye on neighboring Iran.

Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani said Iraq aspires to have "good and balanced relations" with all of its neighbors "based on mutual interests and without intervention in internal affairs."

BAGHDAD (AP) — The official website of Iraq's most senior Shiite cleric has published a rare photo of the aging leader, the first in several years.

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's top Shiite cleric says more than 13 million have gathered in the holy city of Karbala to mark Arbaeen, the annual commemoration marking the end of the mourning period for the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the Prophet Muhammad's grandson and a central figure in Shiite Islam.

Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani praised Iraqi security forces Friday for securing the routes in and out of Karbala for visitors traveling from across Iraq and beyond.