With Nouri Al Maliki agreeing to step aside in favour of Haider Al Abadi, Iraq may have passed its first hurdle on the way to forming the kind of government that will be needed to defeat the Islamic State and save the country from further conflict and fragmentation. Passing this hurdle may also serve to vindicate the cautious approach the Obama administration has taken in addressing the crisis created by the brutal eruption of the Islamic State.
Iraq’s problems didn’t begin with the advances of the Islamic State. The successes of this horrific and violent extremist movement were in large measure the result of years of Mr Al Maliki’s bad governance and sectarian repression.
In late 2011, when America was preparing to leave Iraq and Mr Al Maliki was completing the first year of his second term, Zogby Research Services polled Iraqi public opinion. The survey revealed warning signs on the horizon. Two-thirds of all Iraqis said they were afraid that with the departure of the US their country would sink into civil war, split into parts, and/or be dominated by a neighbouring country. A plurality of respondents in all groups – Sunni Arabs, Shia Arabs, and Kurds – were, therefore, worried about the US departure. The survey also established a deep sectarian and ethnic divide, with Sunni Arabs and Kurds being the most worried about the US departure and having the deepest concerns about the future of their country. The poll also revealed Mr Al Maliki to be a polarising figure. Attitudes towards him were nearly evenly divided among Shia Arabs, while three-quarters of Sunni Arabs and Kurds viewed him unfavourably. Most Iraqis said they lacked confidence in Mr Al Maliki.
He lived up to these negative expectations. With the US departure, he broke his commitment to absorb tens of thousands of decommissioned Sunni “Sons of Anbar” into Iraq’s military and security services. He tormented prominent Sunni leaders with charges of “supporting terrorism”, forcing them into exile. And he operated in an increasingly authoritarian manner.
In the face of such oppressive sectarian behaviour, a disaffected Sunni insurgency in the restive Anbar region was inevitable. And as the brutality of Mr Al Maliki’s response matched that of his Syrian neighbour, Bashar Al Assad, it was also inevitable that the Iraqi insurgency would become increasingly extreme and that it would develop closer ties with its Islamic State counterparts operating across the border in Syria.
Mr Al Maliki’s forces engaged in bloody conflict with the Islamic State and an array of Sunni Arab groups for months. It was not until the Islamic State overran Mosul in the face of a disintegrating Iraqi military that he felt the need to appeal to the US for help. This presented the Obama administration with both domestic and foreign policy challenges.
Conservatives, who had long blamed the president for having left Iraq in the first place, were now hounding him to become militarily engaged. Liberals were war-averse and cautioned against any involvement, fearing “mission creep”.
Aware of both the regional and worldwide threat posed by the Islamic State and the problems created by Mr Al Maliki’s sectarian rule, the Obama administration took a cautious approach. Making it clear that it did not want to strengthen Mr Al Maliki’s hand, the US made support for the Iraqi military conditional on the establishment of a more inclusive and representative government in Baghdad. The US also provided emergency airlifts to beleaguered refugees fleeing Islamic State brutality and used air power to strike at both Islamic State targets.
Even this limited engagement paid dividends. It provided many of the previously trapped refugees with the cover they needed to escape. It enabled Kurdish forces the opportunity to regroup and retake some areas that had fallen under the control of the Islamic State. And with the US back in the game, it became clear to Iraqis that only with Mr Al Maliki out of the way could the Iraqi military and political system secure the support they needed to beat the extremists.
Had the knee-jerk liberals had their way, the Obama administration would have done nothing for fear of becoming ground down in another Iraqi war it could not win. Had the knee-jerk conservatives won the day, the US would have supported Mr Al Maliki, thereby reinforcing his corrupt, autocratic and sectarian rule.
The Obama approach recognised that the problem of the Islamic State was created by bad governance and could only be remedied by Iraqis moving in a different direction. With Mr Al Maliki gone, one hurdle has been passed. In the next month, Mr Al Abadi must make critical decisions. He must form a government that will be inclusive of all segments of Iraqi society, he must act quickly to re-engage Sunni leaders who were forced into exile by his predecessor, and he must create opportunities for disaffected Sunni Arabs and Kurds so that they see the government in Baghdad as representing their interests.
This struggle against the Islamic State in Iraq is only one front in what will be a long and protracted conflict against militant extremism in the Levant. The Iraqi military will need to finish the job by defeating the group militarily. Then comes the more difficult task of tackling the group’s base of operations in Syria – a situation made more difficult by the very different circumstances that exist in that country.
James Zogby is the president of the Arab American Institute
On Twitter: @aaiusa
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
The%20specs
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Company Fact Box
Company name/date started: Abwaab Technologies / September 2019
Founders: Hamdi Tabbaa, co-founder and CEO. Hussein Alsarabi, co-founder and CTO
Based: Amman, Jordan
Sector: Education Technology
Size (employees/revenue): Total team size: 65. Full-time employees: 25. Revenue undisclosed
Stage: early-stage startup
Investors: Adam Tech Ventures, Endure Capital, Equitrust, the World Bank-backed Innovative Startups SMEs Fund, a London investment fund, a number of former and current executives from Uber and Netflix, among others.
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
AT%20A%20GLANCE
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Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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Liverpool 4 (Salah 25', 48', 76', Cook 68' OG)
Man of the match: Andrew Robertson (Liverpool)
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Company%20Profile
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ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures
October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA
Company profile
Company: Eighty6
Date started: October 2021
Founders: Abdul Kader Saadi and Anwar Nusseibeh
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Hospitality
Size: 25 employees
Funding stage: Pre-series A
Investment: $1 million
Investors: Seed funding, angel investors
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
THE BIO
Age: 30
Favourite book: The Power of Habit
Favourite quote: "The world is full of good people, if you cannot find one, be one"
Favourite exercise: The snatch
Favourite colour: Blue
Zayed Sustainability Prize
History's medical milestones
1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
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The specs
Engine: 2.9-litre, V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: seven-speed PDK dual clutch automatic
Power: 375bhp
Torque: 520Nm
Price: Dh332,800
On sale: now
Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
PROFILE BOX
Company name: Overwrite.ai
Founder: Ayman Alashkar
Started: Established in 2020
Based: Dubai International Financial Centre, Dubai
Sector: PropTech
Initial investment: Self-funded by founder
Funding stage: Seed funding, in talks with angel investors
The five pillars of Islam
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Secret Nation: The Hidden Armenians of Turkey
Avedis Hadjian, (IB Tauris)
The Internet
Hive Mind
four stars
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
