Iraq & Syria: ISIS’ Fall Will Change the Game, But How?
On Facebook Live, USIP Experts Discuss the Challenges Ahead
Read the Event CoverageU.S.-backed military offensives, at Mosul in Iraq and at Raqqa in Syria, are squeezing the Islamic State (ISIS) from its last territorial strongholds. But what will replace ISIS rule? Persistent conflicts in both countries, including new ones fueled by ISIS’ brutal rise, continue to undermine stability. Can Iraq steady itself, even as ethnic Kurds have called a referendum on independence? In eastern Syria, what groups might fill the post-ISIS power vacuum? Will ISIS even be truly eliminated? On June 30, experts from the U.S. Institute of Peace held a Facebook Live discussion on the rising challenges.
Iraq’s communal and political divides could ignite new violence and block the reconstruction work vital to stabilizing the country. In Syria, ISIS still has thousands of loyalists who could sustain campaigns of terror in the region and beyond. Will the United States and its partners help reduce the humanitarian disasters and displaced populations that will offer new opportunities to extremists? Will they invest in helping the two countries establish the effective governance and reconciliation needed to bring stability?
USIP held a discussion on Facebook to ask viewer questions to the Institute’s panel. Mona Yacoubian served until January as the USAID deputy assistant administrator for Syria, Iraq and their region. Journalist and author Robin Wright returned recently from Mosul and has covered ISIS and the region for USIP and The New Yorker. Dr. Eli Abouaoun has worked for years in Iraq and neighboring countries for non-government human rights and relief organizations. They took questions from an online audience on June 30 from 9:30am to 10am.
A recording of the event can be found on this event page.
Speakers
Elie Abouaoun
Director, Middle East and North Africa Programs
Mona Yacoubian
Senior Policy Scholar, Middle East and Africa
Robin Wright
Distinguished Scholar
