In October 2019, a broad based protest movement in Iraq seized international headlines with mass rallies, marches, occupation-style encampments, and civil disobedience in Baghdad and other cities across the south. Activists dubbed their movement “Tishreen” from the Arabic word for October. Despite the largely peaceful, inclusive, and organized nature of the movement, the protests were […]
Category: Interviews
Iraq’s Shabaks and the Search for Land Rights and Representation
Interview with Mr. Hussein al-Shabaki, member of the Free Shabak Movement This is the third in a series of interviews we had with representatives of various minority communities in Ninewa. More interviews will be published in the coming weeks. As part of EPIC’s work on Safe Return, a USAID project designed to enable the safe […]
Five Years after ISIS: The Yazidis’ Quest for Justice and Recovery
Interview with Ido Babasheikh, Former Member of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq Parliament and former adviser to the president of Iraq. This is the second of a series of interviews we had with representatives of various minority communities in Ninewa that will be published in the following weeks. In July, EPIC traveled to Iraq and […]
Iraq’s Assyrian Christians’ struggle to secure political rights
Interview with Yacoob Yaco, the deputy secretary general of the Assyrian Democratic Movement. This is the first of a series of interviews we had with representatives of various minority communities in Ninewa that will be published in the following weeks. In July, EPIC traveled to Iraq and visited Erbil and Ninewa provinces as part of […]
The Ongoing Crisis in Basra: Interview with Benedict Robin-D’Cruz – Part 2
Protests and political violence continues to plague Basra, Iraq’s southernmost province. The province is largely populated by Iraq’s Shia majority, which has dominated Iraq’s post-2003 political order. Basra’s oil fields are the primary source of Iraq’s oil exports and proven oil reserves and Basra is home to Iraq’s only port. Despite all of these promising […]
Violence in Southern Iraq & Shia Politics: Interview with Benedict Robin-D’Cruz – Part 1
Away from the limelight, violence continues to rage in southern Iraq in the form of tribal clashes, pro-government militia infighting and criminal violence. This violence often affects unarmed bystanders and makes life in Basra, which is already challenging due to government neglect, lack of services and rife unemployment, even more precarious. Although most residents of southern Iraq are Shia, Iraq’s current political elite, which claims to represent the Shia community, has failed to address the needs of the south.
Interview with Yazidi Activist Hazim Avdal on Post-Genocide Peace and Justice
In 2014, the Iraqi Yazidi community, a small ethno-religious minority residing mostly in the area of Sinjar, a mountainous region in Ninewa, northwestern Iraq, was subjected to a campaign of massacres, mass kidnappings and enslavement of women, boys and girls at the hands of ISIS. Between 2,000-5,000 Yazidis lost their lives and about 6,000 […]
Interview with Fanar Haddad: After Sectarianism
Iraqi political and sect-based identities have fundamentally transformed as a result of the violence in 2014-2017.
Interview with Renad Mansour: Iraq’s Permanent Mobilization
The most powerful groups within the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) existed long before ISIS seized Mosul in June 2014, and will continue to build influence in the future now that operations to liberate the city have concluded.
Interview with Bilal Wahab: Erbil’s Endgame
Preparations for the independence referendum highlight political and generational divides in Iraqi Kurdistan.