Iraq

Obama’s ISIS Strategy: Is It Enough?

By The Atlantic Council

Following President Obama’s September 10 speech outlining the US strategy to “degrade and ultimately destroy” ISIS, the Atlantic Council held a conference call to assess the president’s plan. Listen to the audio below for expert analysis from Michael V. Hayden, former director of the National Security Agency, former CIA director, and Atlantic Council board director; […]

Expert Reactions to President Obama’s Speech on ISIS

President Barack Obama has faced tremendous pressure to respond to the stunning growth of the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS, ISIL, or Islamic State). The group’s videos, showing the beheading of two American journalists, brought the conflict to bear directly on the United States in a way that captured domestic attention as never […]

PM Haider al-Abadi: A New Era in Iraq?

By Daniel R. DePetris

The announcement of a new government in Iraq represents perhaps the best news out of the country since former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki relinquished power peacefully. Political players set aside a highly partisan dynamic, in part to address the existential terrorist threat facing Iraq.