In March 2017, EPIC Program Assistant Matthew Schweitzer traveled to the recently-liberated neighborhoods in eastern Mosul. During this trip, he accompanied Layla Salih, Director of Antiquities for Ninewa Province, into tunnels dug by ISIS underneath the now-destroyed shrine and tomb of Jonah (known in Arabic as Nabi Younis). There, ISIS… Read more
This week's headlines: Federal Police, PMU Accused of Detaining and Abusing Civilians ▪ Displacement from Western Mosul as Military Operations Grind On ▪ Iraqi Security Forces Push into Last ISIS Neighborhoods in Western Mosul ▪ Iraqi Kurdish Forces Repel ISIS Attack in Tuz Khurmatu; Militants Shift Command to Hawija ▪ Security Situation in Diyala Continues to Unfurl ▪ Major Suicide Attacks in Baghdad, Basra
This week's headlines: Residents in Western Mosul Lack Essential Services Amid Reports of Forced Returns; Humanitarian Organizations Prepare for Summer Heat ▪ Advance into Western Mosul Continues; US Ambassador Comments on Hawija and Tal Afar Liberation ▪ Support for IDPs in Anbar; Civilians Executed by ISIS as Security Operations Continue ▪ Security Forces Uncover Mass Grave in Diyala ▪ Kurdish Policymakers Plan to Unify Peshmerga
This week's headlines: Iraqi Security Forces Push into Western Mosul; Civilians Return to Cleared Western Neighborhoods ▪ Humanitarian Situation in Mosul Evolves, UNHCR Opens New Camp for IDPs ▪ Anti-ISIS Forces Continue Operations in Anbar ▪ U.S. Combat Troops to Maintain Advisory Role in Iraq Post-ISIS ▪ ISIS Launch Attack on Peshmerga Base with U.S. Presence; Hawija Security Continues to Deteriorate
Liberation without a complementary plan for sustained recovery will leave unmet needs among fragile populations, fostering conditions for renewed instability.… Read more
Our recent publications focus on Iraq's most immediate humanitarian needs, the importance of strong U.S. and international commitment to peace and reconstruction, and the urgency of supporting political moderates who can carry Iraq forward.
Stigma, insufficient training in mental healthcare for physicians, and subsequent lack of treatment capacity have handicapped efforts to build Iraqi mental healthcare capacity or deliver much-needed psychosocial services.… Read more
This week's headlines: Mosul Displacement Increases as Humanitarian Funding Goals Only Partially Met ▪ Thousands of Children Out of School in Mosul; Iraqi Kurdistan Struggles to Educate Displaced Population ▪ Mosul Operations Continue on New Axis, with Rising Civilian Casualties; U.S. Soldier Killed in Ninewa ▪ Security Forces Engage ISIS in Diyala Province ▪ Turkey Continues Deadly Air and Artillery Strikes in Northern Iraq ▪ U.S. Military Contractor Accused of Misconduct
Stability and sustainable recovery in Iraq after ISIS will require that policymakers and NGOs address the legacy of upheaval far beyond the current emergency context.… Read more
