Summary In Iraq the issue of decentralization tends to kick up a flurry of activity and discussion whenever Law 21 is amended or a governor attempts to create a new region. Otherwise though, federalism only draws attention as it relates to Baghdad-Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) relations, oil revenue sharing, or both. However, while federalism rarely lends itself to meani
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Notwithstanding their decades of contention, the two governments must resolve their differences legally to make way for economic development and stave off public unrest. Despite their country producing 4.3 million barrels of oil per day, Iraq’s population remains poor. Gathering in the streets of southern towns, masses are protesting government corruption, power shortages, and
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What happened? On 16 October 2017, the Iraqi federal government launched an operation to restore Iraqi sovereignty over the disputed territories, including Kirkuk and its oil fields. This reversed the situation in place since the Iraqi army collapsed in the face of an onslaught by the Islamic State in June 2014. Why did it happen? The action was triggered by the indep
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Iraq Reborn: In an exclusive interview for Patrick Cockburn's new series on the resurgence of this key Middle Eastern nation, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi reveals how Baghdad will hammer home its twin victories over Isis and the northern Kurds Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi is triumphant as he describes his country’s security forces driving out Isis from its last str
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To keep Iraq united and help minimize the divisive sectarianism that has characterized past elections, Washington and the UN need to push for dialogue on the KRG crisis. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al Abadi published an op-ed in the New York Times on Wednesday, denouncing the "illegal" referendum held by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of Iraq last month, but more im
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