Syria: The True Chaos Will Begin After the Fall of the Regime
Syria is already in crisis but the death or departure of President Bashar al-Asad is likely to intensify violence and destruction in the country, not quell it.
sectarianism
The Ansar of Yemen: The Huthis and al-Qaeda
The pressures on Yemen are centrifugal rather than centripetal, by which the power of the center is weakened to the benefit of poles of regional power. These centrifugal forces could make it difficult to recreate a central state that can reach across the country
About the Author(s)
Book Review: Saddam Hussein’s Ba’th Party: Inside an Authoritarian Regime
As someone who was born and lived in Iraq, I witnessed much of what Dr. Sassoon describes and believe that his analysis is profound and accurate.
About the Author(s)
Why Did Violence Decline During the US “Surge” in Iraq?
The Surge was only one piece of a broader confluence of events, critically the Shiite victory in the civil war, the formation of “Sons of Iraq” groups, the cease-fire of the Mahdi Army, and the role of regional actors.
About the Author(s)
To Thine Own Military Be True: A Five-Year Model for the New Iraqi Army
A model for the Iraqi military that seeks to minimize the threats of sectarianism, insurgency, and rampant unemployment over the next five years through mandatory conscription—a strategy designed to forge a national consensus.
About the Author(s)
Beirut, Oh Mistress of the World
Regional proxy wars between Iran and the Arab Gulf are using Lebanon as their figurative prostitute.
About the Author(s)
The Syrian Army's Switch to Murder
The Syrian regime’s use of shelling and aircraft are now being complimented with wholesale executions in rebel-controlled neighborhoods.
About the Author(s)
Iraq, Syria, and the Twelfth Imam
Without international intervention, Syria will continue to slip into deeper sectarianism, which is the worst case scenario for Iraq.
About the Author(s)
Why Lebanon Will Not Fall
Lebanon has a political system, security force, and national memory to weather the current storm.
About the Author(s)
Deconstructing Civil War: An Interview with Iraq Writer Fanar Haddad
Frequent contributor Bob Tollast has posted a valuable interview at Global Politics.
What factors push humans to the path of war? Is it our thirst for resources, or do political, religious or ethnic differences play a bigger role?
Often overlooked in such analysis is human nature and identity formation, which Fanar Haddad examines in detail, gaining deep insights into the Iraq conflict in his excellent study Sectarianism In Iraq.
Haddad is a London based academic and analyst of Middle Eastern affairs. His research interests are Middle Eastern social history, identity, minority politics, nationalism and popular memory. He previously lectured at the University of Exeter and worked in the Middle East and North Africa Research Group at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. He has published widely on Iraq and the broader Middle East and is author of Sectarianism in Iraq: Antagonistic Visions of Unity. Currently he lectures at the School of Politics and International Relations at Queen Mary, University of London.
Looking at the Iraq war through the prism of identity politics, Haddad’s book also stands out for its analysis of social media such as YouTube to understand the propaganda of civil conflict. As much as being a book about Iraq, Haddad’s work is full of insights for anyone interested in conflict studies, and provides some answers to the question Rodney King once posed: “can’t we just get along?”