To what extent is Iran responsible for creating conflict in Iraq
Iraq has been contaminated with conflict for decades, from the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s, both Persian Gulf wars, as well as the rise of ISIS and militia groups terrorizing the region. Iran and Iraq’s perplexing relationship begins when Iran heavily intricated itself in Iraq after the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime. This has resulted in strong ties with political parties and military groups that patrol Iraq today. These groups have even publicly pledged their loyalty to the supreme leader of Iran. However, growing Iranian influence has led to increased tensions with the Iraqi people, it fueled the anti-government protests in 2019, which condemned Iran for constructing a corrupt system of government and taking advantage of a broken Iraq in the 2000s.
Overall, Iran wishes to gain influence in Iraq to pursue its own interests and has led it to continuously make impactful involvements within Iraq’s own politics and sovereignty, it interferes with Iraq’s military actions and decisions, and has fueled extreme sectarian violence, which have been key factors leading to conflict in Iraq. On the other hand, Iran has also proven to be a key actor in the deescalation of violence within Iraq, through helping combat groups such as ISIS, and majorly assisting in rebuilding Iraq. However, this essay will show that the actions of Iran in Iraq have not played a large part in creating conflict but rather fueling it, for Iran to be able to protect its own interests and values.
Iran's main mission in Iraq:
Iran seeks to control Iraq’s domestic affairs in order to be connected with its allies at the other side of Iraq and gain regional hegemony, as well as exterminate any foreign threat near its borders. Iran is directly affecting Iraq's sovereignty by managing its political landscape and military might, in order to gain influence in the region. They are pushing United States (US) military troops out of Iraq and gaining the trust of the Iraqi people. This has led to the rise of popular militia based political parties that have pledged their allegiance to Iran. Harakat Hezbollah Al-Nujaba is an example of this, US congress has deemed the group a terrorist organization, yet they are regarded as national heroes in Iraq, for their success of pushing ISIS out of Iran, as a part of the Popular Mobilization Forces.
If any party or individual who is loyal to Iran rises to power, it will allow for Iran to have huge amounts of influence in the Middle East, especially against regional actors such as Saudi Arabia. The control of Iraq opens the door for Iran to patrol a direct border into Saudi Arabia, a country who have been in a proxy war with Iran for decades. Iran also fuels the sectarian split in Iraq by aiding Shia political parties and funding shia militias, a direct blow to Saudi Arabian influence on Iraq's Sunni population. Furthermore, this rise of influence is brewing conflict between Washington and Iran. If Iraq falls into the hands of Iran, the US would have little power or influence in the Middle East, hurting its position as the global hegemonic power, threatening its control of Iran and the development of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in the Middle East. Overall, this would have the potential to lead to another proxy war in Iraq, which would have catastrophic consequences and would thus lead to the total destruction of Iraq.
The PMF and Iran’s involvement with helping defeat ISIS:
Iran is purposely funding and backing prevalent groups that are part of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) in order to gain military capability and influence in the region. The PMF is an umbrella which holds at least 50 militia groups, it was formed to combat the Islamic state's rise to power and is the replacement of a failed military in Iraq. Within these, particular groups had killed multiple American soldiers, which resulted in US Congress regarding them as terrorists and violent extremists. However, in the fight against ISIS, the PMF became an ally of the US, being able to liberate ISIS strongholds that the US could not. The PMF had a peak of 250,000 soldiers in the organization, and every one of them were regarded as heroes once ISIS collapsed in Iraq.
Iran used the PMF and Shia militias for their own interests in preventing ISIS from reaching the border of Iran and potentially infiltrating into its land. The most of the most prominent militias in the PMF, are funded and loyal to Iran due to their religious ties with the nation, as well as their common goal to exterminate ISIS forces from Iraq. These Shia militia members have lived the oppression of their religion in the regime of Saddam Hussein, with the Dujail massacre and the execution of 140 Shia Muslims as well as an additional 500,000 deaths that he is largely responsible for. Saddam Hussein has committed mass genocides and crimes against humanity, yet his most powerful crime was the assassination of the Shia father Ayatollah Muhammed Al-Sadr and two of his sons. He was a “pope” like figure to Shia Muslims, and his death caused the uprising of millions.
When Saddam Hussein collapsed, his remaining forces retreated to rural Iraq and joined upcoming militias that were aligned with their beliefs. The most prominent one being ISIS, who was largely led by Sunni Muslims and the remnants of Saddam Hussein's Ba’athist government forces. The ones responsible for the oppression and deaths of thousands of Shia Muslims. This would fuel the hatred for ISIS in many militias in Iraq and lead them to engage in conflict with ISIS. To be able to have the capability to do this, militias turned to Iran for aid in the forms of weapons, transports and even soldiers. When this was given to them, Iran successfully protected themselves from ISIS.
Iran's funding and aid in the war against ISIS was crucial and helped rid Iraq of extreme violence and terrorism. When the Islamic state was rising in Iraq, the government turned to the US for help in the forms of air strikes and military aid. It took months for the US to achieve this, therefore in this time, Iraq turned to Iran for help. In the matter of days, Iraqi militias were aided with weapons, vehicles as well as thousands of soldiers. Overcoming the ISIS oppression would have never been possible without these resources. With the fall of ISIS, Iraq was liberated from a large amount of extreme terrorism and torture of its citizens across Iraq. Although Iran acted in their own self interests, it is still largely responsible for helping reduce conflict in Iraq caused by ISIS.
Sectarian violence in Iraq:
The different branches of Islam are divided in their views and Ideology, since their creation they lived in peace in harmony until the start of the 20th century when extreme members of each group started fighting for supremacy in politics. This sectarian violence has affected numerous countries in the Middle East, from Syria, Lebanon, Yemen to name a few. This religious division has a brutal history of oppression and violence yet has ramped up in recent decades as tension between the Shia capital of Iran and the Sunni capital of Saudi Arabia has risen.
The divide between Shia and Sunni Muslims has been the primary reason for conflict in Iraq. This sectarian split is linked with all conflict in Iraq over the past decades. From Saddam Hussein oppression of Kurds and shia Muslims, to the rise of the Islamic state led by Sunnis. It is not only connected to these larger conflicts, it is prevalent in everyday Iraqi violence, with countless incidents of car bombings near mosques or certain groups. It is even prevalent in Iraq’s politics as they struggle to find a presidential candidate that will not oppress any group, as previous political events have caused uprisings against the government for similar actions.
Iran has fueled this sectarian division with its aid to Shia militias and political groups. The funds and weapons given to Shia led groups have increased their political power in Iraq, especially, as well as the oppression and torture of Sunni Muslims by Shia extremists. An example of this violence against Sunnis Muslims, is when Shia militiamen killed 49 Sunni Muslims fleeing the ISIS occupied city of Fallujah. This violence has caused protests against the government and retaliation violence against shia Muslims. Iran is largely responsible for these political parties and militias to have the power and capability to oppress Sunni Muslims and cause violence, yet this sectarian division is at the core of all conflict in Iraq and cannot only be blamed on Iran’s involvement.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, Iran is not directly responsible for creating conflict in Iraq, yet they have funded it and fueled it to achieve their own interests. Iran’s main interests of keeping foreign powers out of the Middle East and gaining influence in Iraq came at the cost of funding sectarian violence against Sunni Muslims and Kurds through Shia militias in Iran. This was done on their path to become a regional hegemony of the Middle East against its rivals of Saudi Arabia. Conflict in Iraq is heavily linked with sectarian violence and the ruins of the political and geographical landscape, Sadam Hussein and the US left behind in the early 2000s. Which thus led to the rise of ISIS, in which Iran helped to defeat when the US wasn’t able to, leading to a little more peace. Therefore, Iran's involvement is not the sole factor leading to conflict in Iraq.
Bibliography:
Al-Aloosy, M. (2022, August 11). By violent means: Iraq's pmf descent from popularity to corruption and repression. Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. Retrieved January 8, 2023, from https://agsiw.org/by-violent-means-iraqs-pmf-descent-from-popularity-to-corruption-and-repression/
ABC News. (n.d.). ABC News. Retrieved January 10, 2023, from https://abcnews.go.com/WNT/IraqCoverage/story?id=2761722&page=1
Jones, S. G. (2019, March 19). War by proxy: Iran's growing footprint in the Middle East. War by Proxy: Iran's Growing Footprint in the Middle East | Center for Strategic and International Studies. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.csis.org/war-by-proxy
Life, K. (2022, October 14). New Iran-backed prime minister to form government in Iraq. KAYHAN LIFE. Retrieved January 8, 2023, from https://kayhanlife.com/news/middle-east/new-iran-backed-prime-minister-to-form-government-in-iraq/
Mahmoud, S. (2022, November 29). Iraq's militias set to benefit as government creates company for state-backed groups. The National. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/iraq/2022/11/29/iraqs-militias-set-to-benefit-as-government-creates-company-for-state-backed-groups/
Nada, G. (2018). Part 1: Iran's role in Iraq. Wilson Center. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/part-1-irans-role-iraq
Oweis, K. Y. (2021, July 1). Who are the Iran-backed militias the US targeted with air strikes? The National. Retrieved January 8, 2023, from https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/iraq/who-are-the-iran-backed-militias-the-us-targeted-with-air-strikes-1.1173579
Robinson, K. (2022, October 18). How much influence does Iran have in Iraq? Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.cfr.org/in-brief/how-much-influence-does-iran-have-iraq
Sayah, R. (2017, December 7). This Iran-backed militia helped save Iraq from ISIS. now Washington wants them to disband. PBS. Retrieved January 11, 2023, from https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/this-iran-backed-militia-helped-save-iraq-from-isis-now-washington-wants-them-to-disband
vicenews. (2015, February 12). The battle for Iraq: Shia militias vs. the Islamic state. YouTube. Retrieved January 13, 2023, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pEZcCJIKkg&ab_channel=VICENews
vicenews. (2020, January 3). Iran's power over Iraq. YouTube. Retrieved January 11, 2023, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTPKJtPWNRQ&ab_channel=VICENews
voxdotcom. (2017, July 17). The Middle East's Cold War, explained. YouTube. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veMFCFyOwFI&t=317s&ab_channel=Vox
Wikipedia. (2022, September 17). Dujail massacre. Wikipedia. Retrieved January 14, 2023, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dujail_Massacre
Iraq has been contaminated with conflict for decades, from the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s, both Persian Gulf wars, as well as the rise of ISIS and militia groups terrorizing the region. Iran and Iraq’s perplexing relationship begins when Iran heavily intricated itself in Iraq after the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime. This has resulted in strong ties with political parties and military groups that patrol Iraq today. These groups have even publicly pledged their loyalty to the supreme leader of Iran. However, growing Iranian influence has led to increased tensions with the Iraqi people, it fueled the anti-government protests in 2019, which condemned Iran for constructing a corrupt system of government and taking advantage of a broken Iraq in the 2000s.
Overall, Iran wishes to gain influence in Iraq to pursue its own interests and has led it to continuously make impactful involvements within Iraq’s own politics and sovereignty, it interferes with Iraq’s military actions and decisions, and has fueled extreme sectarian violence, which have been key factors leading to conflict in Iraq. On the other hand, Iran has also proven to be a key actor in the deescalation of violence within Iraq, through helping combat groups such as ISIS, and majorly assisting in rebuilding Iraq. However, this essay will show that the actions of Iran in Iraq have not played a large part in creating conflict but rather fueling it, for Iran to be able to protect its own interests and values.
Iran's main mission in Iraq:
Iran seeks to control Iraq’s domestic affairs in order to be connected with its allies at the other side of Iraq and gain regional hegemony, as well as exterminate any foreign threat near its borders. Iran is directly affecting Iraq's sovereignty by managing its political landscape and military might, in order to gain influence in the region. They are pushing United States (US) military troops out of Iraq and gaining the trust of the Iraqi people. This has led to the rise of popular militia based political parties that have pledged their allegiance to Iran. Harakat Hezbollah Al-Nujaba is an example of this, US congress has deemed the group a terrorist organization, yet they are regarded as national heroes in Iraq, for their success of pushing ISIS out of Iran, as a part of the Popular Mobilization Forces.
If any party or individual who is loyal to Iran rises to power, it will allow for Iran to have huge amounts of influence in the Middle East, especially against regional actors such as Saudi Arabia. The control of Iraq opens the door for Iran to patrol a direct border into Saudi Arabia, a country who have been in a proxy war with Iran for decades. Iran also fuels the sectarian split in Iraq by aiding Shia political parties and funding shia militias, a direct blow to Saudi Arabian influence on Iraq's Sunni population. Furthermore, this rise of influence is brewing conflict between Washington and Iran. If Iraq falls into the hands of Iran, the US would have little power or influence in the Middle East, hurting its position as the global hegemonic power, threatening its control of Iran and the development of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in the Middle East. Overall, this would have the potential to lead to another proxy war in Iraq, which would have catastrophic consequences and would thus lead to the total destruction of Iraq.
The PMF and Iran’s involvement with helping defeat ISIS:
Iran is purposely funding and backing prevalent groups that are part of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) in order to gain military capability and influence in the region. The PMF is an umbrella which holds at least 50 militia groups, it was formed to combat the Islamic state's rise to power and is the replacement of a failed military in Iraq. Within these, particular groups had killed multiple American soldiers, which resulted in US Congress regarding them as terrorists and violent extremists. However, in the fight against ISIS, the PMF became an ally of the US, being able to liberate ISIS strongholds that the US could not. The PMF had a peak of 250,000 soldiers in the organization, and every one of them were regarded as heroes once ISIS collapsed in Iraq.
Iran used the PMF and Shia militias for their own interests in preventing ISIS from reaching the border of Iran and potentially infiltrating into its land. The most of the most prominent militias in the PMF, are funded and loyal to Iran due to their religious ties with the nation, as well as their common goal to exterminate ISIS forces from Iraq. These Shia militia members have lived the oppression of their religion in the regime of Saddam Hussein, with the Dujail massacre and the execution of 140 Shia Muslims as well as an additional 500,000 deaths that he is largely responsible for. Saddam Hussein has committed mass genocides and crimes against humanity, yet his most powerful crime was the assassination of the Shia father Ayatollah Muhammed Al-Sadr and two of his sons. He was a “pope” like figure to Shia Muslims, and his death caused the uprising of millions.
When Saddam Hussein collapsed, his remaining forces retreated to rural Iraq and joined upcoming militias that were aligned with their beliefs. The most prominent one being ISIS, who was largely led by Sunni Muslims and the remnants of Saddam Hussein's Ba’athist government forces. The ones responsible for the oppression and deaths of thousands of Shia Muslims. This would fuel the hatred for ISIS in many militias in Iraq and lead them to engage in conflict with ISIS. To be able to have the capability to do this, militias turned to Iran for aid in the forms of weapons, transports and even soldiers. When this was given to them, Iran successfully protected themselves from ISIS.
Iran's funding and aid in the war against ISIS was crucial and helped rid Iraq of extreme violence and terrorism. When the Islamic state was rising in Iraq, the government turned to the US for help in the forms of air strikes and military aid. It took months for the US to achieve this, therefore in this time, Iraq turned to Iran for help. In the matter of days, Iraqi militias were aided with weapons, vehicles as well as thousands of soldiers. Overcoming the ISIS oppression would have never been possible without these resources. With the fall of ISIS, Iraq was liberated from a large amount of extreme terrorism and torture of its citizens across Iraq. Although Iran acted in their own self interests, it is still largely responsible for helping reduce conflict in Iraq caused by ISIS.
Sectarian violence in Iraq:
The different branches of Islam are divided in their views and Ideology, since their creation they lived in peace in harmony until the start of the 20th century when extreme members of each group started fighting for supremacy in politics. This sectarian violence has affected numerous countries in the Middle East, from Syria, Lebanon, Yemen to name a few. This religious division has a brutal history of oppression and violence yet has ramped up in recent decades as tension between the Shia capital of Iran and the Sunni capital of Saudi Arabia has risen.
The divide between Shia and Sunni Muslims has been the primary reason for conflict in Iraq. This sectarian split is linked with all conflict in Iraq over the past decades. From Saddam Hussein oppression of Kurds and shia Muslims, to the rise of the Islamic state led by Sunnis. It is not only connected to these larger conflicts, it is prevalent in everyday Iraqi violence, with countless incidents of car bombings near mosques or certain groups. It is even prevalent in Iraq’s politics as they struggle to find a presidential candidate that will not oppress any group, as previous political events have caused uprisings against the government for similar actions.
Iran has fueled this sectarian division with its aid to Shia militias and political groups. The funds and weapons given to Shia led groups have increased their political power in Iraq, especially, as well as the oppression and torture of Sunni Muslims by Shia extremists. An example of this violence against Sunnis Muslims, is when Shia militiamen killed 49 Sunni Muslims fleeing the ISIS occupied city of Fallujah. This violence has caused protests against the government and retaliation violence against shia Muslims. Iran is largely responsible for these political parties and militias to have the power and capability to oppress Sunni Muslims and cause violence, yet this sectarian division is at the core of all conflict in Iraq and cannot only be blamed on Iran’s involvement.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, Iran is not directly responsible for creating conflict in Iraq, yet they have funded it and fueled it to achieve their own interests. Iran’s main interests of keeping foreign powers out of the Middle East and gaining influence in Iraq came at the cost of funding sectarian violence against Sunni Muslims and Kurds through Shia militias in Iran. This was done on their path to become a regional hegemony of the Middle East against its rivals of Saudi Arabia. Conflict in Iraq is heavily linked with sectarian violence and the ruins of the political and geographical landscape, Sadam Hussein and the US left behind in the early 2000s. Which thus led to the rise of ISIS, in which Iran helped to defeat when the US wasn’t able to, leading to a little more peace. Therefore, Iran's involvement is not the sole factor leading to conflict in Iraq.
Bibliography:
Al-Aloosy, M. (2022, August 11). By violent means: Iraq's pmf descent from popularity to corruption and repression. Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. Retrieved January 8, 2023, from https://agsiw.org/by-violent-means-iraqs-pmf-descent-from-popularity-to-corruption-and-repression/
ABC News. (n.d.). ABC News. Retrieved January 10, 2023, from https://abcnews.go.com/WNT/IraqCoverage/story?id=2761722&page=1
Jones, S. G. (2019, March 19). War by proxy: Iran's growing footprint in the Middle East. War by Proxy: Iran's Growing Footprint in the Middle East | Center for Strategic and International Studies. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.csis.org/war-by-proxy
Life, K. (2022, October 14). New Iran-backed prime minister to form government in Iraq. KAYHAN LIFE. Retrieved January 8, 2023, from https://kayhanlife.com/news/middle-east/new-iran-backed-prime-minister-to-form-government-in-iraq/
Mahmoud, S. (2022, November 29). Iraq's militias set to benefit as government creates company for state-backed groups. The National. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/iraq/2022/11/29/iraqs-militias-set-to-benefit-as-government-creates-company-for-state-backed-groups/
Nada, G. (2018). Part 1: Iran's role in Iraq. Wilson Center. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/part-1-irans-role-iraq
Oweis, K. Y. (2021, July 1). Who are the Iran-backed militias the US targeted with air strikes? The National. Retrieved January 8, 2023, from https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/iraq/who-are-the-iran-backed-militias-the-us-targeted-with-air-strikes-1.1173579
Robinson, K. (2022, October 18). How much influence does Iran have in Iraq? Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.cfr.org/in-brief/how-much-influence-does-iran-have-iraq
Sayah, R. (2017, December 7). This Iran-backed militia helped save Iraq from ISIS. now Washington wants them to disband. PBS. Retrieved January 11, 2023, from https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/this-iran-backed-militia-helped-save-iraq-from-isis-now-washington-wants-them-to-disband
vicenews. (2015, February 12). The battle for Iraq: Shia militias vs. the Islamic state. YouTube. Retrieved January 13, 2023, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pEZcCJIKkg&ab_channel=VICENews
vicenews. (2020, January 3). Iran's power over Iraq. YouTube. Retrieved January 11, 2023, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTPKJtPWNRQ&ab_channel=VICENews
voxdotcom. (2017, July 17). The Middle East's Cold War, explained. YouTube. Retrieved January 6, 2023, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veMFCFyOwFI&t=317s&ab_channel=Vox
Wikipedia. (2022, September 17). Dujail massacre. Wikipedia. Retrieved January 14, 2023, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dujail_Massacre