diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 60264a87..455dfaf1 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -2,6 +2,53 @@
 
 All notable changes to this project are documented in this file.
 
+## 1.44.0
+
+**Release date:** 2026-07-14
+
+This release comes with Gateway API and Istio traffic policy enhancements,
+Kubernetes 1.36 support, and fixes for rollout promotion and finalization.
+
+Flagger now supports configuring the Gateway API `backendRequest` timeout with
+the new `.spec.service.backendTimeout` field. This complements the existing
+`.spec.service.timeout` field, which configures the overall HTTPRoute request
+timeout.
+
+Istio outlier detection support has been extended with
+`splitExternalLocalOriginErrors` and `consecutiveLocalOriginFailures`, allowing
+users to configure ejection behavior for locally-originated failures separately
+from upstream 5xx responses.
+
+This release is built with Go 1.26. The Kubernetes dependencies have been updated
+to 1.36, and the deprecated `autoscaling/v2beta2` HorizontalPodAutoscaler
+fallback has been removed.
+
+#### Improvements
+- Add support for Istio splitExternalLocalOriginErrors and consecutiveLocalOriginFailures
+  [#1907](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1907)
+- Add backendRequest timeout support for Gateway API HTTPRoutes
+  [#1920](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1920)
+- Remove autoscaling/v2beta2 HorizontalPodAutoscaler fallback
+  [#1921](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1921)
+- Update Kubernetes packages to 1.36
+  [#1922](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1922)
+- Build with Go 1.26
+  [#1922](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1922)
+- Upgrade SignalFlow client dependency to v2
+  [#1936](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1936)
+- Update Go dependencies
+  [#1941](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1941)
+
+#### Fixes
+- Run post-rollout hooks when skipAnalysis is true
+  [#1918](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1918)
+- Update init container ConfigMap and Secret refs in primary workloads
+  [#1925](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1925)
+- Keep the canary serving traffic when primary promotion fails
+  [#1931](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1931)
+- Return finalizer readiness errors and retry finalization later
+  [#1939](https://github.com/fluxcd/flagger/pull/1939)
+
 ## 1.43.0
 
 **Release date:** 2026-04-21
diff --git a/artifacts/flagger/deployment.yaml b/artifacts/flagger/deployment.yaml
index d2e1afc9..0fdb3b19 100644
--- a/artifacts/flagger/deployment.yaml
+++ b/artifacts/flagger/deployment.yaml
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ spec:
       serviceAccountName: flagger
       containers:
       - name: flagger
-        image: ghcr.io/fluxcd/flagger:1.43.0
+        image: ghcr.io/fluxcd/flagger:1.44.0
         imagePullPolicy: IfNotPresent
         ports:
         - name: http
diff --git a/charts/flagger/Chart.yaml b/charts/flagger/Chart.yaml
index e1fd8b2c..abeed1b2 100644
--- a/charts/flagger/Chart.yaml
+++ b/charts/flagger/Chart.yaml
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 apiVersion: v1
 name: flagger
-version: 1.43.0
-appVersion: 1.43.0
+version: 1.44.0
+appVersion: 1.44.0
 kubeVersion: ">=1.19.0-0"
 engine: gotpl
 description: Flagger is a progressive delivery operator for Kubernetes
diff --git a/charts/flagger/values.yaml b/charts/flagger/values.yaml
index dd264017..3e8e0416 100644
--- a/charts/flagger/values.yaml
+++ b/charts/flagger/values.yaml
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
 
 image:
   repository: ghcr.io/fluxcd/flagger
-  tag: 1.43.0
+  tag: 1.44.0
   pullPolicy: IfNotPresent
   pullSecret:
 
diff --git a/kustomize/base/flagger/kustomization.yaml b/kustomize/base/flagger/kustomization.yaml
index 112094c9..8a948810 100644
--- a/kustomize/base/flagger/kustomization.yaml
+++ b/kustomize/base/flagger/kustomization.yaml
@@ -9,4 +9,4 @@ resources:
 images:
   - name: ghcr.io/fluxcd/flagger
     newName: ghcr.io/fluxcd/flagger
-    newTag: 1.43.0
+    newTag: 1.44.0
diff --git a/pkg/version/version.go b/pkg/version/version.go
index 3006990b..6a31e689 100644
--- a/pkg/version/version.go
+++ b/pkg/version/version.go
@@ -16,5 +16,5 @@ limitations under the License.
 
 package version
 
-var VERSION = "1.43.0"
+var VERSION = "1.44.0"
 var REVISION = "unknown"