The Quest to Rule

Since the NATO forces led an invasion of Iraq ,the country has never witnessed a day of peace,a day when the minority  Sunni population and the majority Shias have lived together in harmony. After the “secular” Saddam Hussein government was toppled ,a government divided on the basis of sectarian lines  - the Nouri al-Maliki (Shia led) government- has been accused of neglecting and excluding the Sunni population. In this scenario ,a group called ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) born out of  Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) aims to establish a caliphate where the Sunnis will have full authority over all the Muslims in the world and the state’s administration will be based the sharia law. 

What led to this current crisis in Iraq? The answer lies in the situations that precipitated before the Iraq invasion by the American troops took place.Going back to historical events,the conflict between the two sects of Islam began when Prophet Muhammad died in 632 A.D. and a clash erupted over who should succeed him. One side, who are now known as the Shiites, believed Muhammad’s heir should be someone from his blood relation; those who spawned the Sunnis held it could be a pious individual who could follow Muhammad’s customs. The rift has divided the Muslim landscape across the Middle East and beyond for 1,350 years, with some countries being controlled by Shiites and the others by Sunnis, and shifting back and forth. At present, in Iraq, the Muslim population consists of three groups - Arab Shia , Arab Sunni and Kurdish . Shia’s account for almost 70 percent of the population  , Arab Sunni, nearly 25 percent and the rest of the population is Kurdish . The Sunnis have always dominated Iraqi politics. Situations changed when the Saddam Hussein government was toppled and the Shia’s came to power. Several Sunni militant organisations were born as a result. Thus, one can assume the current conflict in Iraq is nothing but a power struggle. The Americans can be held equally responsible for the current crisis .There exists a doubt about the presence of WMDs that could have posed a threat to America or was it just another military expedition undertaken by America with a motive to make some economic gains? When the Obama administration pulled out its troops from the Iraqi soil in 2011 , the country was not at a situation to take stand on its own against the Islamist extremists especially when the Prime Minister himself alienated the Sunnis. The Iraqi army which is government trained – is itself divided along sectarian lines and largely consists of Shias - has proved unable to fight against the Sunni militants. 

The Americans do not want to intervene by sending their ground troops as it would polarize opinions in the International community. The Americans did not allow Russia to get directly involved in the Ukraine Crisis, it might have caused a problem in launching a ground operation. What Washington wants is to create a more inclusive, less sectarian central government bringing back the moderate Sunnis to be a part of it and take on ISIS. They have also launched air strikes targeting the ISIS militants and is now offering aid and food supplies to the minorities present there.But, these steps are not enough to try and topple a group which has managed to outgrow the largest Sunni militant organisation ,Al-Qaeda, by  seeking a Islamic caliphate.

 It is high time now that the US should start playing an important role in thwarting the militants.The United States should offer extensive military assistance to Iraq’s government forces. US should announce that if a non sectarian government emerges in Baghdad, it will greatly expand intelligence sharing ,arms sale and training of the government forces.Despite all of this, the future of Iraq lies in the hands of Iraqis themselves, but, America must keep try to make a meaningful impact as long it can , since it was one of the major reasons that shaped up the conflict.

Soumyadeep Guha