At a unspecified location in northern iraq i noticed a light that at a glance you would think is a flare. it was bright enough and close enough to keep my attention after first noticing it. it was slightly brighter then a flare and didn't have the orange associated with a flare. what also made me notice was it was above a populated area where no known activities where happening or would need a flare due to city lights. the object stayed stationary for maybe 10 seconds, emitting a white light. almost like if you put a standard household light bulb in the air. the light went out for a period of 5-8 seconds then came back on. another 5-8 seconds later it dimmed to the brightness of what i can best describe as the smallest star you could see in the sky. when it did that it began to move horizontally almost in a "s" pattern to the south. varying in speed throughout its movement. i lost sight of it due to how fair it was and haven't seen it since. not sure what it was, i have a background in military and unmanned aviation.