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Iraq

Policy Analysis on Iraq

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DEHS wall poster - Our martyrs are our pride
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Directorate of Education, al-Hashd al-Shabi (DEHS)
An Iraqi militia directorate that has grown into a major state-funded educational foundation, arranging university education for students tied to the PMF and sending some to Iran on scholarships paid by Tehran.
Nov 18, 2024
◆
  • Sary Mumayiz
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
KH drones
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Iraqi Militias Try to Obfuscate Their Role in Anti-U.S. Attacks
Members of the "Islamic Resistance in Iraq" are using facades and unclaimed attacks to distance themselves from the recent uptick in operations against American targets.
Oct 29, 2024
◆
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Protestors carrying Iraqi, Lebanon, and KH flags
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Militia Mob Attacks Saudi MBC Channel in Baghdad
Provocative Gulf coverage of terrorist leader deaths spurred Kataib Hezbollah to unleash mob violence against the network's Baghdad offices.
Oct 28, 2024
◆
  • Amir al-Kaabi
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Parliament of Kurdistan
Articles & Testimony
Kurdistan’s Pivotal Elections:
A Defining Moment for the Region’s Future
Disenfranchisement, party fragmentation, and external pressures are pushing Iraqi Kurdistan to a breaking point.
Oct 21, 2024
◆
  • Nickolay Mladenov
SaD Shahed-101 with serials Oct 12, 2024
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Tripling of Iraqi Militia Claimed Attacks on Israel in October
The self-styled Islamic Resistance in Iraq has greatly increased its attack claims and is starting to cause fatalities in Israel, inviting a military response.
Oct 15, 2024
◆
  • Michael Knights
  • Ameer al-Kaabi
  • Crispin Smith
◆ Militia Spotlight
Armed members of the Iraqi Shiite militia Asaib Ahl al-Haq demonstrate at a funeral in Iraq - source: Reuters
Articles & Testimony
Embracing Asaib Ahl al-Haq: Pragmatism or Naivete?
Some observers argue that the group's plans for Iraq will eventually cohere with U.S. interests, but this view ignores how its leaders are already pursuing the Hezbollah model of terrorist state capture.
Oct 15, 2024
◆
  • Michael Knights
Energy war
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Deciphering Iraqi Militia Threats of an Energy War
Nujaba and Kataib Hezbollah have warned they will attack energy facilities in the Gulf and elsewhere, but how serious are these threats?
Oct 15, 2024
◆
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Qasef-2k drone in Iraq, photograph made public on August 23, 2022
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Tracking Anti-U.S. and Anti-Israel Strikes From Iraq and Syria During the Gaza Crisis
Militia Spotlight presents a regularly updated tracker with the best-known information about drone, rocket, and missile attacks against U.S. and allied targets, which have intensified since the Gaza war broke out.
Oct 14, 2024
◆
  • Michael Knights
  • Amir al-Kaabi
  • Hamdi Malik
◆ Militia Spotlight
Iraqi flag
Brief Analysis
Turkey Wants to Stitch Iraq and Syria Back Together (Part 2)
Ankara’s push for “soft recentralization” in Iraq will likely include more intensive efforts to establish the Development Road and prioritize Baghdad’s interests, though without abandoning the Kurdistan Region.
Oct 8, 2024
◆
  • Soner Cagaptay
Friday Prayers
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Qais in Tehran, Prominently Seated Behind Khamenei
At a recent event in Iran, the leader of the key Iraqi militia Asaib Ahl al-Haq was strategically positioned in a place of honor directly behind the Supreme Leader.
Oct 7, 2024
◆
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
KM
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
What Basrawi Politican Is Behind Kataib al-Mustafa?
The strange little militia Kataib al-Mustafa announced itself to great fanfare in Basra, and judging by its media reception, it has an important mystery backer.
Oct 1, 2024
◆
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and Qais al-Khazali
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
New Exposé on Sudani PMO Eavesdropping Is Suppressed, But Archived Online
A second major report on the political surveillance scandal was quickly muted, in part because it was highly critical of Iranian Qods Force commander Esmail Qaani.
Sep 25, 2024
◆
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
KH
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Kataib Hezbollah in the Caucasus: One to Watch
Unconfirmed but detailed reporting on potential Iraqi terrorist cells in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan should be a wake-up call to monitor Kataib Hezbollah's external operations more closely.
Sep 24, 2024
◆
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Saraya al-Jihad Improved Rocket-Assisted Mortars (IRAMs).
Maps & Graphics
Articles & Testimony
Profile: Saraya al-Jihad
A low-profile Iraqi militia that is deeply linked with Iran's Qods Force and plays important roles in storing advanced conventional weapons provided by Tehran and suppressing Iraqi moderates.
Sep 18, 2024
◆
  • Sary Mumayiz
  • Abdullah Hayek
  • Ameer al-Kaabi
  • Michael Knights
  • Hamdi Malik
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Parliament of Kurdistan
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Free and Fair? Setting Expectations for the KRI’s October Elections
Elections in which Kurdish voters can authentically choose their leaders are not only what Kurdish citizens deserve; they increase the likelihood that the KRG will address the myriad concerns about its governance.
Sep 18, 2024
◆
  • Winthrop Rodgers
PMF Human Rights
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Human Rights Abusers Set Up PMF Department of Human Rights
UN officials should not be holding events hosted by Iraqi militia figures responsible for the deaths of protesters and other gruesome offenses, yet that is precisely what is happening under a new militia "human rights" bureau.
Sep 17, 2024
◆
  • Ameer al-Kaabi
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Coffins with the remains of people from the Yazidi minority, who were killed by Islamic State militants, after they were exhumed from a mass grave, before their burial in Kojo, Iraq February 6, 2021 - source: Reuters
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
As UNITAD’s Mandate Ends, ISIL Survivors Still Lack Justice
As UNITAD's mandate ends, all involved parties should examine the limitations of what the organization was able to accomplish for the victims of ISIL's crimes after seven years.
Sep 11, 2024
◆
  • Alannah Travers
Saraya Talia al-Khurasani (STK) fighters
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Saraya Talia al-Khurasani
A longstanding partner to Iran's Qods Force and Lebanese Hezbollah, this militia is one of Iraq's most notorious in terms of human rights abuses and rampant criminality.
Sep 6, 2024
◆
  • Abdullah Hayek
  • Sary Mumayiz
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
New Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani attends the first regular session of the Council of Ministers in Baghdad in November 2022 - source: Reuters
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Iraq’s Watergate and the Fallout for U.S. Relations
The politicized corruption of the country’s best intelligence agency has exploded into a major eavesdropping scandal directed from the prime minister’s office, and Washington should adjust bilateral intelligence sharing accordingly.
Sep 5, 2024
◆
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Iraqi Parliament
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Iraqi Parliament and Child Marriage: Iraqi Child Rights from One Tight Spot to Another
The new amendment has been met with concerns as it is believed to promote child marriage, raising the stakes of this proposed amendment and its potential implications.
Sep 4, 2024
◆
  • Bashar AlHadla

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Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics

The Washington Institute's Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics focuses on social, political, and economic developments in the Arab world, with an emphasis on the Arab countries of the Levant.

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Featured experts

Michael Eisenstadt
Michael Eisenstadt
Michael Eisenstadt is the Kahn Senior Fellow and director of The Washington Institute's Military and Security Studies Program.
Michael Knights
Michael Knights
Michael Knights is the Jill and Jay Bernstein Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute and cofounder of the Militia Spotlight platform, which offers in-depth analysis of developments related to Iran-backed militias.
Bilal Wahab
Bilal Wahab
Bilal Wahab was the Nathan and Esther K. Wagner Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute.
Elizabeth Dent - source: The Washington Institute
Elizabeth Dent
Elizabeth Dent is a Senior Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, where she focuses on U.S. foreign and defense policy toward the Gulf states, Iraq, and Syria.
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