The Americans Are Gone. Will Iraq’s Militias Disarm?
On September 30, the US completed its military withdrawal from Iraq, ending a 12-year-long mission to combat ISIS that began in 2014. The date was also meant to be the deadline for disarming the largely Iranian-backed militias known as the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), but Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has now pushed that cutoff back to June 30, 2027. MEI Distinguished Diplomatic Fellow Amb. (ret.) Robert S. Ford joins hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj to discuss what the US military withdrawal means for Iraqi security and the nature of the bilateral relationship going forward. They also speak about what it will take for Baghdad to bring the PMF militias to heel, and how Iraq may navigate the post-Iran war era.
Jordan’s Economy Weathers Iran War’s Shocks and Finds New Opportunities
In the summer of 2003, King Abdullah II told Bloomberg Jordan sits “between Iraq and a hard place,” a play on words designed to describe the kingdom’s challenging environment to an American audience amid the US-led Iraq war to the east and the lingering Palestinian-Israeli conflict to the west. Jordan is grappling with a much “harder place” today.
Proponents of the war with Iran have taken recent increases in crude-oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz as proof that the US strategy is finally working. President Trump is so confident in this that he recently rejected a seven-day plan, set forward by Iran’s foreign ministry, to end the war and open the strait. The United States is “winning tremendously,” Trump boasted.
In this week’s Monday Briefing, MEI experts Gonul Tol, Randa Slim, Alex Vatanka, Marvin G. Weinbaum, and Mabrouka M’Barek provide analysis on recent and upcoming events including Turkish President Erdogan’s upcoming meeting with Russian President Putin, the upcoming speech by Hezbollah Secretary General Nasrallah, the suprising popularity of Rouhani’s VP in the Iranian Presidential Race, the Taliban’s new Spring offensive, and protests in Tunisia over a government proposal to give amnesty to the country’s corrupt financial elite.
Quds Force and Iraqi Allies Allegedly Setting up New Offices in Mosul
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (I.R.G.C.) has been setting up new offices in Mosul, the capital of Iraq’s Nineveh Province, according to a report in
I.R.G.C. Chief Calls for Preparing Next Generation to Defend Revolution and Export It Abroad
The chief commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (I.R.G.C.) has called for preparing Iran’s next generation to defend the country’s clerical establishment and export its revolution abroad. “The next phase of the Islamic Revolution is creating an Islamic government, Islamizing the society, and expanding the Islamic Revolution across the world,” Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari told more than a thousand teachers and school principals at a gathering organized by the Basij Organization on Sunday.
Iranian Navy Says Crossing Atlantic Ocean on Agenda
The chief commander of Iran’s Navy has said that crossing the Atlantic Ocean is on the agenda of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, the Iranian media reported.
Khamenei: Engagement with West Hasn't Removed “Shadow of War”
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei rejected President Hassan Rouhani’s claim that his administration’s engagement with the West has removed the “shadow of war” over Iran.
Soleimani Hails Iranian Health Ministry’s Aid to Wounded Combatants in Syria
Iran’s Quds Force Commander Major General Qassem Soleimani has thanked the country’s Ministry of Health for providing assistance to his forces and Iranian-controlled militiamen fighting in Syria under his command.
Former I.R.G.C. Chief Says Iran Paid a Price by Hastily Negotiating Nuclear Deal with U.S.
Former Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (I.R.G.C.) Commander Mohsen Rezaei said the Rouhani administration “paid a price” and made “tactical and strategic mistakes” by “hastily” negotiating the 2015 nuclear agreement with the United States and five other world powers.
Rouhani Calls on Islamabad to Prosecute Border Guards’ Killers to Save Ties with Tehran
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has sent a letter to Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, calling on Islamabad to prosecute perpetrators of an attack that killed 10 Iranian troops along the Iranian-Pakistani border on Wednesday. A militant group called Jaish al-Adl claimed responsibility for the attack. According to Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, Rouhani blamed the Pakistani government’s “inaction” and “lack of necessary measures” for repeated attacks originating from Pakistan against Iranian border guards.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry Slams Israel for Syria Attack
Iran’s Foreign Ministry slammed Israel for allegedly launching an air strike against Syria, the Islamic Republic News Agency reported. “Repeated acts of aggression by the Israeli regime against Syria violate this country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and is in breach of international norms,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Ghassemi said. “There is no doubt such attacks are aimed at weakening the legitimate government of Syria… and is against international peace and security.” He also called on the United Nations to make sure such attacks are not repeated.
New Iranian Ambassador Arrives in Damascus after Six-Month Hiatus
Iran’s new ambassador to Syria, Javad Torkabadi, presented his credentials to Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem on Wednesday, the Iranian media reports. He arrived in Damascus on Tuesday and was welcomed by Iranian and Syrian officials, including Syrian Social Affairs Minister Rima al-Qadiri.
Iran Reportedly Offers to Deploy Ground Forces to Syria to Counter Potential U.S.-led Intervention
The latest air strikes on an airport near Damascus purportedly by Israel and increased U.S. military activities on Jordan’s northern border have triggered a concern in Tehran about the possibility of a broader U.S.-led military campaign in Syria.
Iran’s FM Zarif Defends Hostile I.R.G.C. Encounter with U.S. Navy in Persian Gulf
American officials said on Wednesday that a U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer fired a warning flare to deter an Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (I.R.G.C.) vessel approaching it in the Persian Gulf.
Iran, Russia and Syria Vow to Continue Joint Military Efforts
Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan and his Russian and Syrian counterparts, Sergey Shoygu and Fahd Jassem al-Freij, stressed that they will co
Iran’s Defense Minister Calls for New World Order to Counter U.S.-led “Global Fascism”
The Iranian defense minister has called for establishing a new multi-polar world order to tackle international security threats and counter U.S.-led “hegemonic” ambitions in East Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe.
The oldest peer-reviewed publication dedicated to the study of the modern Middle East, MEI’s flagship journal covers politics, society, and culture in the region.
