In Iraq, the war between neighboring Iran and Israel is causing anxiety. People fear an expansion of the conflict into their country—and an end to the relative security they have just regained.

Countless Israeli and Iranian missiles and drones have crossed the airspace over Iraq since last week. Israel and Iran are continuously shelling each other, and debris from missiles is falling on Iraqi territory.

Meanwhile, there are protests across the country."No to Israel, no to America," chanted tens of thousands after Friday prayers in Baghdad. They are supporters of the radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr."Our leader had already condemned Israel's aggression against Lebanon and Yemen, and now it is also directed against the defenseless Iranian people," said al-Sadr's spokesman, Ibrahim al-Jabri.

Solidarity with former wartime enemy

Iraq shares a turbulent history with its Iranian neighbor. Despite the war between the two countries in the 1980s, the relationship remains historically close. Many Iraqis feel a strong connection to their neighboring country, simply because more than half of Iraqis are Shiites, like most people in Iran.

However, not all Iraqi Shiites support the radical al-Sadr."I am against war and destruction, especially when it hits an Islamic country," says Nadia, who sells costume jewelry in the old center of Baghdad."But Iran has caused a lot of damage to Iraq. I would be happy if it were to lose influence here now."

Iraqis fear attack on US military bases in the country

Iraqi politics is determined by parties loyal to Tehran. Only with their help can the non-partisan Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani govern. Furthermore, Iran finances and arms Shiite militias in Iraq as part of its"Axis of Resistance"—as well as Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Recently, the head of such a militia threatened the US with attacks on US citizens if Israel sought to kill Iran's leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Nadia fears Iran more than US intervention in the war on Israel's behalf. Nadia's neighbor, bookseller Ali Abbas, hopes America stays out of it—but not for ideological reasons:"There are American military bases in Iraq," says Abbas."If the US were to enter the war, Iran would attack those bases, and we Iraqis would be in the middle of it. We would be the victims."

"There had been peace (...) and now this!"

Especially now, when Iraq finally seems to be recovering. After the Americans and their allies invaded in 2003, citing alleged weapons of mass destruction, and overthrew dictator Saddam Hussein, years of fighting, occupation, attacks, and civil war followed.

Today, new high-rises are being built in Baghdad, and highways are being built everywhere."We had only just begun to feel safe again," says painter Dia Alwan, who exhibits his paintings in Ali Abbas' bookstore."Calm had returned to Iraq; people finally felt freer, despite all the problems. And now this!"

Iraq needs peace and stability. But that's exactly what could now be at stake again.