Iraq War
All topics-
Interview with Iraqi political scientist Ghassan Al-Attiyah
A nation torn apart
According to Ghassan Al-Attiyah, Iraq's political elite failed to develop an interdenominational understanding of the state after the end of the Baath dictatorship. Mulham Al-Malaika spoke to the renowned Iraqi political scientist about the country's future and the fight against IS
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Interview with Rami G. Khouri
Fragmentation of the Arab world
The Palestinian-Jordanian political scientist and writer Rami G. Khouri sees links between increasing religious fanaticism and the reinvigoration of the old elites after the Arabellion. In an interview with Juliane Metzker, he looks back at four years of transformation, stagnation and instability in the Arab states.
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Sunni-Shia conflict
The enemy of my enemy
Anyone who thinks that the Sunnis in Tikrit and Mosul will welcome the opponents of Islamic State with open arms as liberators is mistaken. They fear the Shia militias even more than they do IS. This shows how the inner-Islamic religious war has polarised Iraqi society. By Stefan Buchen
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Interview with the Iraqi author Abbas Khider
"German is my new language"
The Iraqi writer Abbas Khider was already living in Germany when war broke out in his home country. In this interview with Abderrahmane Ammar, he talks about why he speaks about those events in the language of his new home country and why he now also writes his books in German
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The West's strategy in the Middle East
Hollow alliance
The islands of stability in the Arab-Islamic world are shrinking. In the face of war and chaos, the West continues to cling to its new-old allies: the "moderate Sunni regimes". The aim of this alliance, which purportedly shares goals and ideals, is that "good Islam" will conquer "bad Islam" with Western support. By Stefan Buchen
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The Middle East in 2014
New regional power games
The rise of Islamic State in Syria and Iraq has dramatically altered the regional order. While Iran and Turkey are becoming key political players in the crisis-torn area, the West continues to lose influence. An analysis by Karim El-Gawhary
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The genesis of Islamic State
A new chapter in the decline of the Arab world
IS is a child of the late cold war and at the same time the beginning of a total war against the countries of the Arab East. It is the consequence of a collapse of political, moral and social values in the region, writes the Lebanese author Elias Khoury
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Shifting alliances in the Middle East
My enemy's enemy is my friend
The successes of IS militias are turning the West's established concept of friend and foe on its head. Former rogue nations are emerging as strategic partners, and declared terrorists are becoming allies. By Karim El-Gawhary
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Iraqi crisis
A UN protection force, not arms shipments
If the threat of genocide in northern Iraq is to be averted and the advance of IS militias stopped, an international protection force must be dispatched to the region, says security expert Andreas Zumach
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Iraqi crisis
The expected death of a nation
Iraq has always been an artificial country, an entity created and beset by outside influences. However, Iraq is not currently being threatened by outside influences alone; discord is now flourishing within the country itself – with devastating consequences. A commentary by Rudolph Chimelli
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Book review: Christoph Bangert's "War Porn"
We must not look away
The simple, unassuming cover of this book belies its explosive content: in his latest photobook, "War Porn", photojournalist Christoph Bangert shows the true, ugly face of conflict in all its horror. He presents the reader with an unfiltered selection of images from his photographic archive, documenting the brutality of war, predominantly in the Arab world. By Felix Koltermann
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The Middle East policies of Europe and the US
Mistakes must not be repeated
For years, the West's foreign policy approach to the Middle East has been short sighted and counterproductive. A shrewd blend of engagement and restraint in the region is now required. However, where there is a threat of genocide at the hands of terrorists or regimes, civilians must be protected using all available means, writes Kristin Helberg