All American forces pulled out of Iraq in December, thus ending an eight year war. Since then Iraq has encountered a few problems. Most of the attacks are targeting the Shiite majority, 11 were killed Monday and that brings the total to about 150 dead this year.
This is obviously bad for Iraq and shows many things about the country. First it shows that the country isn't united. We live in America, where we have a proud history of uniting, whether we're democrats or republicans or conservatives or liberals, when something happens we stand united. Iraq is very different. The two sects of Islam, Sunni and Shiite have been fighting for over a thousand years. In Iraq they were only kept peaceful by the ruthless dictator Saddam Hussein.
Now that there is not dictator to keep them united, the two types of Islam are clearly against each other. The Sunni minority are planning attacks on the Shiite majority because they feel they have no say in their government.Another example of the religious conflict is when the Shiite government issued an arrest warrant for the Sunni Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi. They accused him of helping plan bombing attacks and running a death squad that killed Shiite Politicians.
All of this threatens Iraq in a few ways. The first way is that it's own government could become deadlocked or someone could take over from the inside. If the military views the government as to weak there is a chance it will stage a coup. However that isn't very likely because of the military's size and its decreased influence from the Saddam days. Another possible outcome is the continuation of the Arab spring in Iraq. Iraq witnessed major protests about corruption and the government promised reforms. If the Iraqis want more change they may want to take to the streets and peacefully protest again. A third outcome is destabilization and civil war. During the American occupation Iran armed, trained, and supplied militants in Iraq. They may still be doing it and may continue to do it to destabilize Iraq. They could then either attack this weak Iraq or they could hope to overthrow the government and secretly support a new radical regime.
Hopefully the people of Iraq will be able to stand united just like we have done for over 200 years. In the words of Abraham Lincoln, "a house divided against itself cannot stand".
News Video on the bombings:
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2012/01/05/72-killed-in-anti-Shiite-bombings-in-Iraq/UPI-35251325765599/
A video on the VP's arrest warrant:
http://www.france24.com/en/20111219-iraq-issues-arrest-warrant-vice-president-hashemi-maliki
Once again, nice ending quote and you really know this topic well.
ReplyDeletewow its sad how even with our help for eight years, iraq is still having problems. Hopefully they can resolve it soon without starting a civil war, or worse yet, a war with other countries.
ReplyDeleteI like how the end quote successfully ends this passage.
ReplyDeleteBy the looks of this article, Iraq seems to be doomed for any type of peace or happiness in their country. They are constantly trying to start never-ending battles that they don't win. It's very sad.
ReplyDeleteI hate war, sad and harmful.
ReplyDeleteIraq is a country with great promise. They have incredible potential as an oil exporter, but their Sunni/Shiite conflict is the roadblock to that success. Unfortunately we knew the dynamics of this country going into the war, and we're seeing those dynamics walk right out the other side.
ReplyDeletevery good idea to use the lincoln quote, it still applies to this day. I think your point about Americans being united is debatable, as Republicans and Democrats officials grapple for control over our government. To them, getting elected and fulfilling the agendas of their respective parties comes before working for positive change. Wow look at me getting all political-y. And I'm pretty sure it had nothing to do with the main idea of your article. Oh well, at least your post was thought provoking.
ReplyDelete