ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraq’s new interior minister on Monday signalled a “new era” for the country’s intelligence agency, marked by directives toward future modernization of the body and elevating training standards.

In a statement, Minister Yasser al-Maliki said that the “new era” will mark a shift toward a phase of “development and modernization—one focused on increasing efficiency, strengthening intelligence capabilities, and staying abreast of evolving security operational methods.”

His remarks came during a visit to the Iraqi Federal Intelligence and Investigations Agency, where he directed that a “specialized study” be conducted to examine “the latest global curricula and practices in intelligence training,” intending to incorporate them into the agency’s drills.

Iraq’s intelligence apparatus investigates threats facing the country’s national security, making it one of Iraq’s most sensitive and vital bodies, given the country’s geopolitical positioning as a transit route and consumption market for drug traffickers, as well as the presence of dormant extremist cells and Islamic State (ISIS) remnants that operate through hit-and-run tactics.

From the State of Law Coalition, Maliki was one of ten ministers appointed to Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s government earlier in the week, completing a cabinet where several high-level positions were left vacant in the first round of voting in May.

Iraq arrested over 3,500 suspects on drug-related charges in the first half of 2026, according to data provided by the interior ministry in July. The ministry said later in August that at least 446 terrorism suspects were arrested in the same year.