European Parliamentary Research Service Blog
iraq
Escalating US-Iran conflict: The EU’s priorities
On 3 January 2020, a United States (US) strike outside Baghdad killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, the leader of the al-Qods force within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IGRC), and arguably the second most important man in Iran after Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Continue reading
Iraq: towards an independent Kurdistan?
Written by Eric Pichon, [last update December 2016] Consult also our Briefing: Regional implications of Iraqi Kurdistan’s quest for independence (6 December 2016) On 3 July 2014, the President of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) in Iraq asked the regional parliament to prepare a referendum on independence. The KRG is in a strong position to … Continue reading
Iraq-Iran relations following the nuclear deal
Written by Beatrix Immenkamp, Critics of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran have warned that Iran would use any financial benefits to further strengthen its influence in the region, by supporting its allies, which include important Shia militias in Iraq. While the nuclear deal has yet to translate into major economic and financial benefits for … Continue reading
Protection of cultural heritage in armed conflicts
Written by Magdalena Pasikowska-Schnass , Cultural heritage is vulnerable. Composed of historic buildings, monuments and artefacts of artistic, historic, religious, scientific or technological importance, it contributes to national identities, but can be destroyed in military conflict. The value and rarity of many cultural artefacts exposes them to human greed: they are vulnerable – especially during … Continue reading
Foreign fighters – Member State responses and EU action
Written by Piotr Bąkowski and Laura Puccio, As the hostilities in Syria and Iraq continue, and terrorist activities worldwide appear to be on the rise, EU Member States are increasingly confronted with the problem of aspiring and returning ‘foreign fighters’. Whereas the phenomenon is not new, its scale certainly is, explaining the wide perception that … Continue reading
‘Foreign fighters’ – Member States’ responses and EU action in an international context
Written by Piotr Bakowski and Laura Puccio As the hostilities in Syria and Iraq continue and terrorism activities worldwide seem to be on the rise, EU Member States are increasingly confronted with the problem of aspiring and returning ‘foreign fighters’. Whereas the phenomenon is not new, its scale certainly is, which explains the wide perception … Continue reading
Irak : le sort des Yézidis [keysource]
Dernière mise à jour : 22/12/2016 Une note “en bref” [FR et EN] sur le même sujet a été publiée le 09/12/2016. Le prix Sakharov 2016 décerné par le Parlement européen à Nadia Mourad Bassi Taha et Lamiya Aji Bachar rappelle le sort de leur peuple, les Yézidis, proportionnellement l’un des plus touchés par la … Continue reading
The situation of minorities in Iraq
Written by Eric Pichon, Iraqi minorities (Turkmens, Yazidis, Christians and other smaller communities) have long been discriminated against in Iraq. Violence against them has increased dramatically in areas of Iraqi territory that have fallen under the control of the Islamist terrorist group that has declared itself ‘the Islamic State’ (known variously as IS, ISIS or … Continue reading
The situation of Kurds in Kobane
3 language versions available in pdf: The situation of Kurds in Kobane Die Lage der Kurden in Kobane La situation des Kurdes à Kobané Commenting on the fighting against the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria, citizens called on the EU to help the civilians and threatened minorities. In particular, they were concerned about the … Continue reading
Iraq: le sort des Yézidis
Written by Eric Pichon 6 language versions available in PDF format Irak: Das Schicksal der Jesiden Irak: la suerte de los yazidíes Iraq: le sort des Yézidis Iraq: il destino degli yazidi Irak: los jazydów Iraq: fate of the Yezidi community Dans les zones dont se sont emparées les combattants de l’”État islamique” dans le … Continue reading
Topics and links – August 2014
Update: This post is available in all EU languages – please see at the bottom of this post. In this issue: ISIS terror and humanitarian disaster in Iraq, tensions between Russia and Ukraine, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, independence of the judiciary in Turkey, TTIP negotiations. Recent international conflicts were the dominating issues in the correspondence of citizens … Continue reading
EU response to Iraq’s degenerating situation
Iraq is suffering from a new surge in sectarian violence. The EU and the international community have expressed their concerns over the growth in instability in the country, and stressed the importance of an inclusive political process and the holding of free and fair elections, planned for April 2014. Current situation Since the departure of … Continue reading
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