From sectarianism to nation-building: Recalibrating Iraq’s identity politics in the shadow of Tehran

Amid Iranian stoking of sectarian coals and the incessant primacy of confessional politics in Iraq, the cultivation of a shared national identity is paramount to facilitate national development and the progress of the nation.

Alfadhel Ahmad

Opinion

Two Fronts, One Strategy: Baghdad’s Campaign Against Kurdistan

The Iraqi government's ongoing denial of funds to Erbil, meddling in its oil sector, and convenient ignorance of a wave of attacks perpetrated in the Kurdistan Region are not only indicative of hostility to the Region's government but also a callous display of enmity toward Iraq's Kurdish citizenry.

Mohammed A. Salih

Opinion

The disarmament of symbols in a complicated war: Reflections on the Turkey-PKK peace process

In light of the ongoing peace process between Turkey and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), many doubts linger regarding Ankara's willingness to offer any concessions to its Kurdish minority, raising fears that Turkey desires the group's disarmament to moreso mirror a unilateral surrender than a mutual peace agreement.

Hassan Ahmad Mustafa

Opinion

Kurds and the Israel-Iran clash: New openings or old dangers?

A sad common denominator across all the states ruling over the Kurds—from Iraq and Iran to Turkey and Syria—as well as among many intellectual and media elites of the dominant ethnic and religious groups monopolizing power in those states, is the relentless fear mongering against Kurds. Instead of engaging in such behavior and tossing out accusations of separatism and partition, these actors ought to look in the mirror. They should ask themselves what they continue to do wrong that might push Kurds to consider seeking external alliances or to seize on shifting regional dynamics created by war to challenge a repressive and exclusionary status quo.

Mohammed A. Salih

Opinion

Iraq balances on the edge: Staying neutral in a divided region

Since October 2023, Iraq has tried to avoid being pulled into fights between big powers like the US and Iran. The government is using careful diplomacy to stay neutral, reduce violence, and protect the country’s sovereignty.

Muhi al-Ansary

Opinion

Confederalism: Iraq’s last best option

With the distance between Baghdad and Erbil growing further in light of ongoing disputes regarding the Kurdistan Region's oil revenues and federal budget entitlements, this opinion piece explores how a confederal model could serve as a mechanism to ensure a brighter future of mutual cooperation.

Mohammed A. Salih

Opinion

What still connects us to Baghdad? Kurdistan's struggle for rights in a fading federation

This opinion piece explores the ongoing financial and political tensions between Iraq’s federal government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), questioning what links Erbil to Baghdad amid budget restrictions and fears of greater centralization.

Abdulla Reshawi

Opinion

A new era in US-Kurdish relations?

This commercial-centric worldview allows Kurdistan to be appreciated for what it has, not just whom it fights. It creates a broader foundation for bilateral relations that could prove more durable and impactful than past cooperation tied narrowly to security crises

Mohammed A. Salih

Opinion

Iraq’s 2025 elections: A chance for the opposition

As we approach new parliamentary elections in a few months, the question arises again: Is there a chance for a new political current to break into the scene? Have the rules of the game that shaped the 2021 elections changed?

Ahmed Saadawi

Opinion

PKK dissolves: Will lasting peace follow in Turkey and the wider region?

A seminal declaration by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) that the militant group would bring an end to four decades of insurgency against the Turkish state has ushered in a new era of both hope and uncertainty, with many details of the process to follow remaining hazy.

Mohammed A. Salih

Opinion