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Tag Archives: Iraq

VICE NEWS DOCUMENTARY: THE ISLAMIC STATE

VICE NEWS DOCUMENTARY: THE ISLAMIC STATE

  Within a few weeks of its bloody foray into northern and central Iraq, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), which was rebranded by its top management as the Islamic State (IS), has built a global reputation for unbridled savagery and ruthlessness. The group’s ongoing use of social media channels and of professional video […]

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GailForce: Aspen Security Forum Part II

GailForce:  Aspen Security Forum Part II

It is no use saying, ‘We are doing our best.’ You have got to succeed in doing what is necessary. Winston Churchill I woke up in the middle of the night a couple of days ago and couldn’t get back to sleep, so I decided to get up and see what was going on in […]

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Dr. Larry Goodson of U.S. Army War College on the Middle East

Dr. Larry Goodson of U.S. Army War College on the Middle East

This week, we spoke to Dr. Larry Goodson the Dwight D. Eisenhower Chair of National Security and Professor of Middle Eastern Studies at the Army War College. Dr. Goodson discussed the role of the U.S. in ensuring stability in the region, the performance of the U.S. military in Iraq from 2003 to present, and what the future could hold for Iraq.

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Iraq’s Oil Split

Iraq’s Oil Split

  It is not breaking news that Iraq sits atop vast amounts of oil. The country has the fifth largest proven crude oil reserves globally with an estimated 140 billion barrels. (For comparison: Iran, fourth globally, has an estimated 150 billion barrels, and Kuwait, sixth globally, has about 104 billion barrels of proved reserves. Iraq […]

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Knowledge is Power, But A Lack of Knowledge can be Shocking

Knowledge is Power, But A Lack of Knowledge can be Shocking

  It is interesting to see the current commentary on ISIS/ISIL in Iraq and how policymakers and the mainstream media have reported on a situation that is confusing and complicated. In reality, the suppression of the 2009 election in Iran lead to a violent response to protestors in Syria, leading to a dithering policy on […]

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The ISIS Story

The ISIS Story

Known today at the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, ISIS has gone through many reorganizations and name changes in the course of the past dozen years, but it has kept essentially the same goals. Although sometimes referred to as a branch of al Qaida, it is better described as a rival organization that formed […]

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Iraq returns – Failure of American foreign policy under Obama?

Iraq returns – Failure of American foreign policy under Obama?

Will Iraq haunt Obama’ second mandate? Obama’s approval rating in foreign policy continues to slide down amid of an eventual military intervention – through airstrikes – in Iraq. According to a recent poll ran by the New York Times and CBS News Poll, President Obama’s approval rating in foreign policy is sliding down and is […]

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A Candid Discussion with Soner Cagaptay of the Washington Institute

A Candid Discussion with Soner Cagaptay of the Washington Institute

Soner Cagaptay is the Beyer Family fellow and director of the Turkish Research Program at The Washington Institute. Dr. Cagaptay has written extensively on U.S.-Turkish relations, Turkish domestic politics, and Turkish nationalism, publishing in scholarly journals as well as key American and Turkish media outlets. He writes regularly as a columnist for Hürriyet Daily News, Turkey’s oldest and […]

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Obama’s tough choice on Iraq: cooperation with Iran

Obama’s tough choice on Iraq: cooperation with Iran

Yesterday President Barack Obama spoke to media in the White House briefing room in order to provide an update on his government’s approach to the situation in Iraq. The Commander-in-Chief, looking visibly tired, told reporters that under his direction the U.S. has increased its intelligence capabilities in Iraq; will continue to support Iraqi security forces […]

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Insurgencies and Their Equipment: Modern Challenges on the Field of Battle

Insurgencies and Their Equipment: Modern Challenges on the Field of Battle

With the ISIS forces entering the outer region of Baghdad, the move towards Iraq’s capital lead to a lot of equipment being captured by those forces. This new and advanced equipment will likely play an important role in future battles. It is important to look at some of the tanks and artillery that might become […]

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The Spy Who Told Me

The Spy Who Told Me

With the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) pressing now toward Baghdad, Iraq’s only hope in the chance of a more inclusive government is to move toward a coalition embracing all of the country’s religious and ethnic groups.   But with suspicion and hatred in Iraq running deep, it’s easier said than done, and […]

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Saudi-Iranian Face-Off in Iraq

Saudi-Iranian Face-Off in Iraq

I have been recently asked by LinkedIn to contribute writing for the professional social networking site. So, for my first piece I decided to write the following on the worsening situation in Iraq. The piece can be accessed in its entirety here. The crumbling of government authority in Sunni-dominated areas of Iraq under the alarming onslaught […]

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Restoring the Culture of Jewish People from Arab Lands

Restoring the Culture of Jewish People from Arab Lands

  I was recently reading on the history of the Persian Empire and was drawn to the history before Alexander the Great, where the Persian Empire conquered ancient Babylon. The Persian Empire was likely the first multicultural empire that allowed different groups to preserve many of the cultures within its dominion. Part of the history discussed […]

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Failure of Imagination – Rumsfeld’s interpretation of American foreign policy

Failure of Imagination – Rumsfeld’s interpretation of American foreign policy

Errol Morris’ latest documentary, the Unknown Known, about and starring Donald Rumsfeld offers a superb regard into the life of one of the most divisive American foreign policy makers. This is not only a picture about power, but also about truth, imagination, history and rational action. The Unknown Known provides an opportunity for international relations […]

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Defining Sexism in the Middle East, Latin America and Everywhere Else

Defining Sexism in the Middle East, Latin America and Everywhere Else

One famous singing icon who has a particularly strong following in Latin America and the Middle East due to her cultural connections to both regions is Shakira. Recently, a debate arose worldwide over her boyfriend, famous footballer Gerald Pique “forbidding” Shakira from doing sensual music videos with men, raising the question to whether a partner […]

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