So Iraq is Totally Doing Great Right?

With the increasing violence in Syria the international community’s attention has been taken away from the continuing instability and crisis taking place in Iraq. The withdrawal of the United States from the region and the introduction of a “stable democracy” makes many people think that there was some sort of conflict resolution. Despite these misconceptions, the country has witnessed increasing levels of violence by bombings aimed at the majority Shi’ite population that now make up most of the government. Time magazine explains that the “Sunni bombing campaign [has been] aimed at the Shi‘ite-dominated political status quo” since the toppling of Saddam’s Sunni led regime by the US invasion of the country in 2003. Attacks have increasingly been coordinated to destabilizing the current political order. Groups such as al-Qaeda and the newly formed organization known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria have been connected with widespread attacks covering large areas of the population. The Economist notes that the number of people dying in car bombings is the highest recorded since the civil strife in 2007-2008 during the Iraq War. To date there has been over 6000 fatalities resulting from the increasing domestic violence (Political Violence @ a Glance).

This raises an important question: Can the Iraqi conflict be classified as a civil war? There are good reasons to argue for this to be the case. What has been seen in the last several months has been insurgent operations directed by a minority ethnic group (the Sunnis) targeting the majority ethnic group in power (the Shi’ites) through terrorist operations. This has apparently been in reaction to grievances experienced by the minority group, and the opportunity to act on those misgivings during a time of political instability. Foreign Policy notes that the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has used his position to exclude, “Iraq's Sunni minority and [to centralize] his own power.” The report goes on further to explain the grievances felt by the Sunni population saying:

There is little question that Maliki's persistent exclusion of Sunnis and consolidation of power has kept Baghdad's perpetual political crisis boiling. The initially peaceful protest movement that broke out among Iraqi Sunnis earlier this year was driven by widespread grievances over his sectarian politics, his government's corruption, and his consolidation of autocratic power. Frustrations grew over his refusal to compromise, and exploded over the government's brutal crackdown on peaceful demonstrations… his obstinate political approach created a perfectly toxic environment for Iraqi insurgents to build upon their successes in Syria.

These grievances may have given organizations such as al-Qaeda the opportunity to motivate the repressed Sunni population to rise against the current administration at a time when it is politically and economically vulnerable because of the government’s developmental immaturity. The civil strife has also been exacerbated by the violence spilling over the border from Syria. Maybe the US should pay a little more attention to Iraq once again and start thinking about whether the current situation can be categorized as a civil war. This distinction could change international position and action regarding the country, and is important to the United States since the lasting violence in Iraq could have lasting impacts with the future of US-Iraq relations.

Sources:

• http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21584052-civil-strife-now-vicious-it-was-five-years-ago-bloodier-ever
• http://world.time.com/2013/10/01/iraqs-months-of-sectarian-violence-threaten-to-trigger-a-civil-war/
• http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2013/10/18/iraq_s_moment_to_rise_or_burn
• http://politicalviolenceataglance.org/2013/10/17/why-not-call-iraq-a-civil-war/