Kurdishglobe

The Formation of a Sunni Arab Region in Iraq: Opportunities and Challenges

By  Tahseen Wsu Abdullah

Since 2003, with the arrival of US-led coalition forces in Iraq, the issue of partition has been raised, and some even predicted that the country’s geographical dissolution would not take long, especially after the recognition of the Kurdistan Region as a region within the framework of the Iraqi federal state according to constitution, which was seen as a helpful factor for other communities, especially Sunni Arabs.

However, Sunni Arabs have not been able to take advantage of this opportunity to create their own region. The reasons for this are comprehensive.

Although Sunni Arabs have made various efforts for this purpose since 2003, but the efforts have not reached results, after all the disasters and destruction that Sunni areas have faced, whether by the Iraqi government itself, from sectarian war to handing over their areas to terrorist organizations and then to religious militia forces and groups.

Today, the voice of Iraqi Sunni Arab political forces to demand a Sunni region, like the Kurdistan Region, especially after the ruling Shiite authorities through various means trying to change the demographics of their regions and remove their personalities and politicians from the political process.

Despite the demands of the Sunni Arab community for their own region, they face a few major challenges, perhaps the most obvious of which is that the Shiite forces that rule Iraq today do not accept such a proposal Sunni province, especially those with large oil reserves.

On the other hand, after the disappearance of ISIS in Sunni Arab areas, religious groups and militias have taken complete control of these areas, such as Mosul and its surroundings.

It is important to keep in mind that demanding a region is a constitutional right and does not mean secession, but can Sunni Arabs or any of their governors form a region? This has nothing to do with the wishes of those who demand it, but rather with the interests of political, security and economic actors, whether inside or outside Iraq.

Today, the government, which can be described as the government of Shiite Arab political forces, makes decisions in Iraq, and controls these governors and has ultimately become a route for weapons to be smuggled from Iran through Iraq to Syria and Lebanon to weaken the central government, which is dominated by Shiite Arab forces and parties.

Regarding the active foreign forces in Iraq, Iran, the United States and Turkey do not see any opportunity or interest for such a region, especially since the current government is pursuing a mechanism of appeasement of all parties, which is important for it to continue until the 2025 elections Shiites, who make up.

But if the current government in Baghdad, or the government that will come after the 2025 elections, continues to ignore such calls, and ignore the demands of these provinces, the call of a region may change when the Sunnis are completely disappointed. Therefore, the issue of creating a region in Iraq is seen as an option for the Sunnis.

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