Syria and Iraq Ethnic Conflict – Term Paper

Barnes-Dacey, J. (2014). Syria and Iraq: One conflict or two? 

The article, Syria and Iraq: One conflict or Two? reports that Sunni and Shia communities are not the only drivers to the conflicts in Iraq and Syria. There are other regional actors like Saudi Arabia and Iran who are involved in the conflict for political supremacies. The author, Barnes-Decay states that Iran has become dominant in the Middle East since Iraq joined allied it. He further accounts that there are plans by the Sunni community to break the bond between the two nations. Other key actors in the conflict included in the article are Tehran and Riyadh.

Black, I. (2015, April 05). Sunni v Shia: Why the conflict is more political than religious. 

The author of this article, Black, proposes that the conflict in Syria and Iraq are related in many ways. For Syria, the conflict is mainly geared by the Alawite monopolization authority and the governance of Bashar al-Asaad. He contradicts the governance of President Asaad with that of his father. The article puts it that Asaad’s father ruled from the rural margin while his son governance is based on the few rich elites. The article, further, reveals that the war in Iraq is as a result of the Sunni revolt that protests against the sectarian and marginalized ruling by Maliki. The article also articulates that despite ISIS there are other several fighters who demand safe political and economic empowerments. The author notes that the war in Syria is one of the biggest terror of the 21st century.

Blanchard, C. M., Nikitin, M. B. D., & Humud, C., E. (2016).Armed Conflict in Syria: Overview and the U.S Response. Congressional Research Service. 

The journal by the Congressional Research service reports that with the current situation, mercy and peace may be minimal in Iraq and Syria. The Journal cites horrific scenes involving the brutal murder and beheading of Shia soldiers and Yazidi group. The authors report that most people are running from the affected areas in fear of losing their lives. It also adds on that ISIS and al-Qaeda affiliates have been attacking the Shia people from mosques to bus terminal killing thousands with them.

Cockburn, P. (2015, December 27). Syria and Iraq: Ethnic cleansing by Sunni and Shia jihadist is leading to a partition of the Middle East. 

The author of this article, Cockburn describes the effects of the conflicts in Syria and Iraq. He states that the conflicts forced the weaker groups to move out of the enemy dominated regions. It also gives a brief history of the origin of the conflicts. It quotes a Professor who claims that the cleansing may never unite Syria or Iraq. It quotes a Sunni photographer who was in fear of being forced out of the country like the Christians. The author gives an example of the Sunni People’s Protection Unit which bars other fighters from moving to their dominated areas. It also accounts for the 14 million populations of people who either died or are displaced by the conflict.

Gissinger, A., Casey, D., Tabaj, S., & Shannon, U. (2016). The Syrian Conflict: A Systems Conflict Analysis. ARK Group DMCC. (2016). 

The article published by the Ark Group DMCC gives the various challenges faced by the unifying factors put in place in Iraq and Syria. The authors point out that challenges like; regional fragmentation and the interconnection between the conflicts make it has for a solid solution to be adopted. 

Jenkins, M. B. (2015). How the Current Conflicts are Shaping the Future of Syria and Iraq. Expert Insight on a Timely Policy Issue.RAND Corporation. 

In this journal, Jenkins of the RAND Corporation outlines the causes of artillery and bombings in Syria. He accounts that the Sunni community had shown hostility to Asaad’s government prompting the government to attack them to stop the revolt. The author also adds that the rich elite Sunni are supporting the government against the rural Sunni communities.

Monitoring BBC. (2016, August). Turkey v Syria’s Kurds v Islamic State.;

This article by BBC monitoring outlines some of the procedures, like local governance and women empowerment, put in place to counter the hostility. It also points on the uncertainty in the conflicts by giving examples of the Syrian Kurds and Turkey.

Porgmun Security Council. Resolving the Conflict in Syria and Iraq: An International Coalition against ISIS.;

The article documents the effects of threats and killings by the Isis. It estimated the number of deaths to 200000 to date. It articulates that the both sides are unwilling to fall by the wave of the other. It concludes that due to the hostility of both sides, the war is liable to exist for decades. It proposes that unless solid changes are made there may be no peace in the two countries.

Tucker, N. (2015). Central Asian Involvement in the Conflict in Syria and Iraq: Drivers and Responses. United States Agency for International Development. USAID: For the American People.;

The journal by USAID gives data on the relationship between the conflicts in Iraq and Syria. It states that the relationship in the conflict in Iraq and Syria has reached higher levels. The journal reports that Isis has demolished the border between Iraq and Syria to enable their one nation idea. The author, Tucker, further gives details in the presence of Isis in both countries in which it plans to make a single strong Islamic State. The journal also reflects on the possibility of Isis winning the fight as they can operate from both countries.;

References

Barnes-Dacey, J. (2014). Syria and Iraq: One conflict or two? Retrieved November 19, 2016, from http://www.ecfr.eu/article/commentary_syria_and_iraq_one_conflict_or_two280

Black, I. (2015, April 05). Sunni v Shia: Why the conflict is more political than religious. Retrieved November 19, 2016, from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/05/sunni-shia-why-conflict-more-political-than-religious-sectarian-middle-east

Blanchard, C. M., Nikitin, M. B. D., ; Humud, C., E. (2016).Armed Conflict in Syria: Overview and the U.S Response. Congressional Research Service. https://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RL33487.pdf

Gissinger, A., Casey, D., Tabaj, S., ; Shannon, U. (2016). The Syrian Conflict: A Systems Conflict Analysis. ARK Group DMCC. (2016). http://arkgroupdmcc.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/ARK-Syria-Conflict-Analysis-Digital-copy.pdf

Jenkins, M. B. (2015). How the Current Conflicts are Shaping the Future of Syria and Iraq. Expert Insight on a Timely Policy Issue.RAND Corporation. http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/perspectives/PE100/PE163/RAND_PE163.pdf

Monitoring BBC. (2016, August). Turkey v Syria’s Kurds v Islamic State. Retrieved November 19, 2016, from http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-33690060

Porgmun Security Council. Resolving the Conflict in Syria and Iraq: An International Coalition against ISIS. Retrieved November 18, 2016, from http://porgmun.cz/doc/2016/Security_Council_Research_Paper.pdf

Cockburn, P. (2015, December 27). Syria and Iraq: Ethnic cleansing by Sunni and Shia jihadis is leading to a partition of the Middle East. Retrieved November 19, 2016, from http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/syria-and-iraq-ethnic-cleansing-by-sunni-and-shia-jihadis-is-leading-to-a-partition-of-the-middle-a6787731.html

Tucker, N. (2015). Central Asian Involvement in the Conflict in Syria and Iraq: Drivers and Responses. United States Agency for International Development. USAID: For the American People. https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1866/CVE_CentralAsiansSyriaIraq.pdf