The chaos in Iraq
The ISIL last captured the oil refinery at Baiji, the country’s largest, accounting for a third of its output. ISIL, also known as Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has seized control of a number of cities in the north and west of Iraq, including Mosul the second largest, and Tikrit, the hometown of […]
The ISIL last captured the oil refinery at Baiji, the country’s largest, accounting for a third of its output. ISIL, also known as Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has seized control of a number of cities in the north and west of Iraq, including Mosul the second largest, and Tikrit, the hometown of Saddam Hussein, prompting fears that it might take over the entire country. Its stated goal is to establish an Islamic state in parts of Syria and Iraq.
The fighting is getting close to Baghdad, putting a strain on the government of Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki whose policies are widely denounced as divisive and discriminatory against the Sunni population and are thought to provide the impetus for the current insurgency. U.S. policy in Iraq, in place since the war that toppled Saddam Hussein, is evidently in disarray although administration officials angrily reject claims it was responsible. U.S. President Barack Obama pledged to deploy 300 military experts to Baghdad to advise and train Iraqi troops in a bid to halt the advance of ISIL, protect its embassy there and mark out ISIL targets for possible airstrikes. Shiite leaders have issued calls to arms to defend the country against ISIL; reports say there had been appreciable response.
Amid the chaos, the Kurds, who have long been fighting for autonomy and have been enjoying a large measure of it, have strengthened their grip on Kurdistan.
As in the previous conflicts, this one has drawn in regional powers with Saudi Arabia, which is accused of providing funding and arms to ISIL, warning the U.S. to stay out of the fray. Talks that Iran and the U.S. may team up to find common ground to fight the ISIL have apparently been abandoned. The fractious Iraqi army, deeply weakened by sectarian divisions has been melting away as the ISIL gained more territory. The crisis has revived fears that Iraq may be headed towards partition into three parts controlled by Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds respectively.
In keeping with the complex Byzantine politics of the Middle East and its shifting alliances, one major consequence of the latest crisis could be the creation of strange bedfellows. Although the U.S. has considered making common cause with Iran, a Shiite power and until recently Washington’s main adversary in the Middle East to combat the threat of ISIL, the possibility of keeping al-Maliki in his job, a prospect that the Iranians want and which Washington does not, has torpedoed the alliance. In recent months, there had been a thaw in U.S.-Iran relations following ongoing talks to find a solution to dispute on Iran’s nuclear program. The U.S. has been backing the anti-Assad regime’s forces in Syria while Iran has been supporting the government. They both now have a convergence of interests in facing down ISIS insurgents in Iraq. But it is unlikely that they would be in the same boat after the strong disapproval by the Saudis.
The U.S. has lately been critical of Prime Minister al-Maliki for his failure to heed calls to run an inclusive government, thereby alienating the Sunni and the Kurds. Although US President Obama has said that it was not Washington’s business to choose a leader for Iraq, it is clear that the U.S. would like to see not only a regime change in Baghdad, but a transition that would preserve the present Status of Powers protocol signed by both countries. Maliki had been Washington’s ally until recently. The criticisms against Maliki are valid, but the foundation for the ongoing carnage in Iraq is the 2003 U.S. invasion of the country. Iraq that once had one of the highest standards of living in the Middle East is now a country in ruins. Another regime change might well be all that the U.S. can impose but whether it would be enough to halt the current advance of the ISIL remains to be seen.
(Note: The title of our Editorial of yesterday should have read 0.063 million Nigerians: 1 physician. The error is regretted.)
A Sunni-based uprising in Iraq gained considerable momen-tum recently as insurgents of Al-Qaeda offshoot Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) battling the Shiite-dominated government in Baghdad made surprising gains in the north of the country, routing government troops in their advance.
The ISIL last captured the oil refinery at Baiji, the country’s largest, accounting for a third of its output. ISIL, also known as Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has seized control of a number of cities in the north and west of Iraq, including Mosul the second largest, and Tikrit, the hometown of Saddam Hussein, prompting fears that it might take over the entire country. Its stated goal is to establish an Islamic state in parts of Syria and Iraq.
The fighting is getting close to Baghdad, putting a strain on the government of Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki whose policies are widely denounced as divisive and discriminatory against the Sunni population and are thought to provide the impetus for the current insurgency. U.S. policy in Iraq, in place since the war that toppled Saddam Hussein, is evidently in disarray although administration officials angrily reject claims it was responsible. U.S. President Barack Obama pledged to deploy 300 military experts to Baghdad to advise and train Iraqi troops in a bid to halt the advance of ISIL, protect its embassy there and mark out ISIL targets for possible airstrikes. Shiite leaders have issued calls to arms to defend the country against ISIL; reports say there had been appreciable response.
Amid the chaos, the Kurds, who have long been fighting for autonomy and have been enjoying a large measure of it, have strengthened their grip on Kurdistan.
As in the previous conflicts, this one has drawn in regional powers with Saudi Arabia, which is accused of providing funding and arms to ISIL, warning the U.S. to stay out of the fray. Talks that Iran and the U.S. may team up to find common ground to fight the ISIL have apparently been abandoned. The fractious Iraqi army, deeply weakened by sectarian divisions has been melting away as the ISIL gained more territory. The crisis has revived fears that Iraq may be headed towards partition into three parts controlled by Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds respectively.
In keeping with the complex Byzantine politics of the Middle East and its shifting alliances, one major consequence of the latest crisis could be the creation of strange bedfellows. Although the U.S. has considered making common cause with Iran, a Shiite power and until recently Washington’s main adversary in the Middle East to combat the threat of ISIL, the possibility of keeping al-Maliki in his job, a prospect that the Iranians want and which Washington does not, has torpedoed the alliance. In recent months, there had been a thaw in U.S.-Iran relations following ongoing talks to find a solution to dispute on Iran’s nuclear program. The U.S. has been backing the anti-Assad regime’s forces in Syria while Iran has been supporting the government. They both now have a convergence of interests in facing down ISIS insurgents in Iraq. But it is unlikely that they would be in the same boat after the strong disapproval by the Saudis.
The U.S. has lately been critical of Prime Minister al-Maliki for his failure to heed calls to run an inclusive government, thereby alienating the Sunni and the Kurds. Although US President Obama has said that it was not Washington’s business to choose a leader for Iraq, it is clear that the U.S. would like to see not only a regime change in Baghdad, but a transition that would preserve the present Status of Powers protocol signed by both countries. Maliki had been Washington’s ally until recently. The criticisms against Maliki are valid, but the foundation for the ongoing carnage in Iraq is the 2003 U.S. invasion of the country. Iraq that once had one of the highest standards of living in the Middle East is now a country in ruins. Another regime change might well be all that the U.S. can impose but whether it would be enough to halt the current advance of the ISIL remains to be seen.
(Note: The title of our Editorial of yesterday should have read 0.063 million Nigerians: 1 physician. The error is regretted.)