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Iraq at a crossroads
7
In this shifting context, publishing this collection of articles became a question of
urgency. Some chapters tackle the Iraqi conundrum by delving deep into current affairs,
while others take a few steps back to bring in some historical perspective. In our view, they
complement one another to give us a better insight, although the final picture might still
come across as blurry, due to the evolving nature of the conflict.
With its blunt protagonist role, it is not hard to understand why most of these articles
gravitate around Islamic State, despite the fact that finding reliable sources to explain what
goes on inside Daesh is a very difficult task. Its brutal leader and self-proclaimed caliph,
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, remains shrouded in darkness like a villain from Star Wars, except
that instead of special effects we are fed harrowing images of real inhumane actions widely
distributed on the Internet.
Terror 2.0
. The Pandora Box has been opened.
What is certain is that domestic, regional and international dynamics have all contributed
to bringing about such a disastrous outcome. Another conclusion is that regional states,
encouraged by international patrons, implemented dysfunctional development models,
forced identity politics on their diverse populations, promoted corruption and endemic
repression and ended up creating marginalized minorities and disenfranchised peoples
that have given rise to powerful non-state actors. These mutating organizations have
jumped at the opportunity that others neglected.
Fighting ISIS will require time, resources, boots on the ground, creative options and
narratives to lure would-be recruits, and probably the ironic twist of fate of encouraging
continuity in Damascus. Mostly, it will require addressing the root causes behind the
emergence of this phenomenon, rather than solely focusing on the symptoms.
The chapters in this volume follow this order: the internal (Sunni, Shia, Kurds)
followed by the regional (Iran, Syria, Turkey) and international (US, EU) dimensions and
a final reflection on the humanitarian aspects. We have deliberately left the authors use
the different terminologies to refer to this terror organization, as we believe the least of
problems in dealing with IS is deciding how to call it.
The Spanish version of this publication will hopefully include a chapter on the Gulf’s
role in this conundrum and will be published in
Awraq
, during 2016. Many thanks to our
original contributors and to those who joined at a later stage, as well as to María Pallares
from Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung and Barah Mikaïl from FRIDE who helped organize the
seminar.
Karim Hauser
Head of Governance, Casa Árabe
Madrid, September 2015