Reuters quotes Rafik Hariri Center Nonresident Fellow Ramzy Mardini on how Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is using state television to persuade his population to help confront the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham:
“Maliki is presenting himself as a national leader pitted against Sunni militants. The message is: if you’re against me, you’re with the terrorists,” said analyst Ramzy Mardini.
“In his mind, now is not the time to compromise and look weak and vulnerable,” said Mardini, a non-resident fellow at the Washington think-tank Atlantic Council.