Iraq: Politics, Governance, and Human Rights

Since the 2011 U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, sectarian divisions have widened, fueling a revival of a Sunni Muslim insurgent challenge to Iraq s stability. Iraq s Sunni Arab Muslims resent Shiite political domination and perceived discrimination by the government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. Iraq s Kurds are embroiled in separate political disputes with the Baghdad government over territorial, political, and economic issues, particularly their intent to separately export large volumes of oil produced in the Kurdish region. The political rifts produced a significant and sustained uprising in December 2013 led by the Sunni insurgent group Al Qaeda in Iraq, now also known by the name Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ISIL. The group and its allies still control several cities in Anbar Province, including the key city of Fallujah, and have pockets of control near Baghdad. There are a growing number of reports that some Shiite militias have reactivated to retaliate for violence against Shiites. The sectarian rift and violence, which killed nearly 9,000 Iraqis in 2013 double the figure for 2012, could affect the legitimacy of national elections for a new parliament and government set for April 30, 2014. Facing divided opponents, Maliki is widely expected to seek to retain his post after that vote, largely on the strength of Shiite voters who see him as standing up to the Sunni challenge. The latest violence has exposed weaknesses in the 800,000 person Iraqi Security Forces ISF in the absence of direct U.S. military involvement in Iraq. The ISF and informal security structures put in place during the U.S. intervention in Iraq in 2003-2011 have faltered against the ISIL challenge. Some formerly pro-government Sunni fighters have joined the uprising, further weakening government attempts to suppress the uprising.