By Mustafa Habib | (Niqash.org) – (Baghdad) – The offensive to re-take Tikrit from extremists seems to have stalled as troops surround the city but cannot go further. The same thing is happening elsewhere. And there are three main reasons why. While stopped on the edges of the city of Tikrit, Captain Ahmad Mahmoud says […]
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Salafis
Washington’s 2 Air Wars: alongside Iran in Iraq, Saudis in Yemen
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) – The United States is now involved in two air wars in the Middle East, not to mention more widespread drone actions. US fighter jets have, at the request of the Iraqi government of Haydar al-Abadi, begun bombing Daesh (ISIS, ISIL) positions in Tikrit, according to al-Hayat (Life). Initially, […]
Yemen Bombing: It’s not ISIL and it’s not Sunni-Shiite Conflict
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) – The massive twin bombings at mosques in the capital that shook Yemen on Friday, killing over 100 and wounding many more, were immediately claimed by Daesh (ISIS, ISIL). Since the mosques were largely attended by members of the Houthi movement in Zaidi, Shiite Islam and Daesh is ultra-Sunni, […]
Even if they can Defeat ISIL/ Daesh, Can Iraqi Politicians Get together? The Surprising Answer
By Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | (Niqash.org) – Former political enemies are forming new, non-sectarian alliances to prepare for an extremist-free future. Shiites are partnering with Sunnis and Kurds to support progressive decision-making. Can it work? There have been some quiet negotiations going on in Iraq’s Parliament for some time now. Members of the Ahrar […]
Iraq: Shiite Militia atrocities During Fight Against ISIL & Iraq’s Response
Human Rights Watch | (New York) – Militias, volunteer fighters, and Iraqi security forces engaged in deliberate destruction of civilian property after these forces, following US and Iraqi air strikes, forced the retreat of Islamic State fighters (also known as ISIS) from the town of Amerli and surrounding areas in early September 2014, Human Rights […]
Ghosts of Saladin, Saddam & Khomeini: Tikrit Campaign’s Historical Meaning
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) – The Iraqi forces (one-third army, two-thirds Shiite militias) that are surrounding Tikrit 80 miles north of Baghdad are not just Iraqi forces. They are mostly Shiite, though some Sunni irregulars have joined them. More important, the Tikrit campaign is being directed as to its strategy by Qasim Sulaimani, […]
From Iraq’s Next big Front: Kurdish Fighters Closing in on Mosul
VICE News | – “With the timeline unclear for a forthcoming US-led coalition assault on the Islamic State (IS) stronghold of Mosul, Kurdish peshmerga fighters continue to man the trenches at the strategic junction of Keske, just outside the northern Iraqi city. VICE News traveled to Keske to meet with peshmerga fighters and to learn […]
ISIL vs the Graven Idols of History
By Elliott Colla | (Baghdad Central) – ISIS’s destruction of antiquities at the Mosul Museum and the ancient city of Nimrud has generated a lot of discussion and disgust, all of it well deserved. But much of what has been said fails to adequately contextualize these attacks in two ways. First, in the history of […]
US Gen.: Iran’s Role In Iraq’s Fight Against Islamic State Might be Positive
By Frud Bezhan | (RFE/RL) The Iraqi government has launched an offensive against Islamic State militants (IS) in the northern city of Tikrit, but Iran appears to be leading the charge. The Islamic republic has officially downplayed its role in the fight against IS in Iraq, saying its involvement was limited to training Iraqi Shi'ite […]
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