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Showing posts from April, 2026

Is a third wave of US-Iran war inevitable?

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  Any new military operation launched by the United States will not succeed unless the Iranian regime is overthrown in the process. Without the fall of the regime, Iran will celebrate a major American defeat, become the dominant power in the region, and the United States will be unable to return to its military bases or regain its previous political and economic weight in the area. This is very clear and evident within the United States, which is currently in the third wave of preparations for a military operation and a larger war, being prepared with greater precision than before. It is one of the most complex decisions the United States will make since the 2003 invasion of Iraq — this is the third round of this conflict. The 12-day war that Trump and Netanyahu launched against Iran was planned to last only 100 hours, enough time for the regime to fall and a new party to come to power that would hand everything over to the United States — including oil, the nuclear program, and lo...
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Farooq Rafiq (1959–2026): The Death of a Kurdish Philosopher and the Politics of Posthumous Hatred

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Between admiration and hostility, scholarship and activism: how Farooq Rafiq’s passing exposed a fragmented Kurdish intellectual landscape shaped by ideology, silence, and factional memory. Farooq Rafiq (1959–2026): Death, Intellectual Legacy, and the Fragmentation of Kurdish Public Thought Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj , Sulaimani, Iraq, April 29, 2026 ---   Farooq Rafiq, Kurdish writer, philosopher, critic, and editor-in-chief of the journal Awez , passed away on Tuesday at his home due to heart-related complications. Born in Sulaymaniyah in 1959, he held a PhD in philosophy from a Canadian university and spent several years in Canada before returning to the Kurdistan Region. His death immediately triggered not a unified moment of mourning, but a fragmented and often hostile debate about his intellectual identity. In doing so, it exposed one of the most sensitive features of Kurdish public life: the absence of a shared framework for evaluating intellectual authority. An Intellectual Life...
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How to read the first phone call between Iraq's Ali Zubaidi and Syria's Ahmad Al-Sharaa?

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A phone call between Baghdad and Damascus marks an early geopolitical positioning move as Iraq’s new government navigates regional fragmentation, security pressures, and shifting alliances. Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj , Sulaimani, Iraq, April 28, 2026 --  Geopolitical Analysis: Iraq’s Early Diplomatic Signal Toward Syria.  The recent phone call between Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Zubaidi and Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa is being presented in official language as a routine exchange of congratulations and goodwill. Yet in the context of Iraqi state formation and regional fragmentation, it functions as something far more strategic: an early foreign-policy signal about where Baghdad intends to position itself in an increasingly contested Middle East. At a moment when Iraq’s government is still consolidating authority, such diplomatic gestures are rarely symbolic alone. They are positional markers in a regional system defined by overlapping security architectures, competing influence bl...
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The Blue Carpet and the Politics of Trust

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  Why President Nechirvan Barzani's Reception in the UAE Matters Far Beyond Ceremony Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj , Sulaimani, Iraq, April 29, 2026 --  Diplomatic symbolism is rarely accidental, especially in the Middle East.  When President Nechirvan Barzani was welcomed in the United Arab Emirates on a blue carpet rather than the traditional red, the gesture carried significance that extended far beyond ceremonial protocol. In international diplomacy, symbolism often communicates what official statements cannot. Blue is widely associated with trust, stability, peace, and reliability. Unlike the red carpet, which traditionally projects power, prestige, and authority, the blue carpet is often interpreted as signaling partnership, confidence, and strategic alignment. For the UAE, a state that carefully calibrates every aspect of its foreign policy messaging, this was no mere aesthetic choice. It was a statement. Recognition of a Regional Statesman Over the past decade, Nechi...
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Baghdad's Security Monopoly Leaves Kurdistan Exposed

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Iraq Buys Anti-Drone Defenses for Itself While Denying Protection to the Region Most Under Attack Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj , Sulaimani, Iraq, April 29, 2026 -- Iraq's latest defense procurement has laid bare one of the central contradictions at the heart of the Iraqi state. On Wednesday, Iraqi Interior Minister Abdul Amir al-Shammari announced that Baghdad had signed a contract to equip the federal Interior Ministry with advanced counter-drone systems designed to protect key government institutions. Yet in the same breath, he made one critical clarification: the Kurdistan Region would not be included. That omission is more than administrative. It is profoundly political. It comes after the Kurdistan Region has endured more than 800 drone and missile attacks in recent years, targeting airports, energy infrastructure, military installations, and civilian areas. Many of these attacks have been attributed to Iran-backed militias operating inside Iraq, groups that often function within or a...
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Iraq's Muhasasa Strikes Back: Why Mohammed Shia al-Sudani Was Too Successful to Keep

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Sudani was never meant to become independent. Once he did, Iraq's political cartel moved to replace him. Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj , Sulaimani, Iraq, April 28, 2026 -- In Iraq, prime ministers are often chosen for one reason above all others:  They are supposed to be manageable. That was certainly the logic behind the rise of Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani . When the Coordination Framework elevated him, he was widely viewed as a safe pair of hands—a compromise figure, politically reliable, and unlikely to challenge the coalition that delivered him power. In short, he was expected to govern, not rule . But Iraqi politics has a habit of punishing prime ministers who begin taking their own office seriously. That may be precisely what happened to Sudani. From Proxy to Politician Sudani was never the ideal candidate . He was the acceptable one. For the Coordination Framework, his appeal lay in his predictability. He had roots in the Shiite political establishment, extensive bureaucratic exp...
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Ali al-Zubaidi's Defining Test: Human Rights, Legitimacy, and Iraq's Crisis of Trust

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Iraq's next prime minister will inherit more than a government. He will inherit a broken relationship between the state and its citizens . Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj , Sulaimani, Iraq, April 28, 2026 -- Ali al-Zubaidi may soon become Iraq's next prime minister.  If he does, he will inherit a state facing not one crisis, but several at once.  Economic vulnerability. Political fragmentation. Militia influence. Institutional decay. Regional competition. Fiscal dependency. Youth unemployment.  Yet beneath all of these lies a deeper and more dangerous problem: legitimacy. For years, Iraq's political class has struggled not merely to govern, but to persuade citizens that government serves them at all. The gap between state and society has widened steadily, accelerated by corruption, poor services, and, most consequentially, impunity.  That is why the warning issued by the Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights deserves close attention. The organization argued that Zubaidi's nomi...
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Mam Jalal's Global Diplomacy: Reminiscing on Key Encounters and the Evolution of the Kurdish Cause

  Former Iraqi President Jalal Talabani recounts his diplomatic journey, meeting iconic world leaders, and how decades of advocacy elevated the Kurdish cause to the international stage .  MED TV archive interview with the late former Iraqi President Mam Jalal Talabani By Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj Reporter: My question is: Jalal Talabani has been in contact with many people around the world, in America, Europe, Asia—meaning there is no state where the Kurdish issue was not present, that he has not visited . There, of course, he met many figures and individuals . In short, were there people who influenced him or whom he cannot forget ? In these last 20–30 years, who were those personalities ? Mam Jalal: Yes, 40 years ago... 40 full years . In 1955, I went abroad for the first time from Kurdistan ; I went to the World Festival of Youth and Students in Warsaw . When we first went there, intending specifically to participate under the name of the Kurdistan Youth Delegation, it was not al...
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The United Nations or the World Cup of Diplomacy and Artificial Intelligence?

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The UN as the world’s “World Cup of diplomacy,” its evolving role, and how AI is reshaping global diplomacy and international security. Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj A year ago, it looked like the United Nations was coming to an end. Funding was cut by the United States, it constantly appeared to be an ineffective institution, and there were fears that Donald Trump would withdraw the United States from the United Nations, which he founded and mainly funded. There was even talk that Trump's “peace board” could become an alternative or rival to the United Nations. But this week, as world leaders met again in New York, there was a new energy palpable. The first meeting on artificial intelligence in the history of the UN Security Council was held. Trump, although still as violent and threatening as ever, did what should be done at the United Nations: he used diplomacy. What has happened at the United Nations in recent days deserves careful attention and research. People talk a lot about how ineff...
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Iran-Aligned Militias Threaten Iraqi Airports Over Suspended Iran Flights

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Iran-aligned militias threaten Iraqi airports over suspended Iran flights, raising aviation security risks and tensions with Washington. As flights between Iraq and Iran, including those to and from Najaf International Airport, come to a halt amid U.S. sanctions on Iran's aviation industry, Iran-aligned militias are leading the loyalist camp's rejection of the suspension. DEVELOPMENT Borderline Advisory Services has reported that At 2100 local time on 25 September, Akram al-Ka'abi, Secretary-General of Harakat al-Nujaba (HAN), issued a statement threatening to mobilize supporters for sit-ins at Iraqi airports unless the suspension is lifted. Ka'abi also called for breaking U.S. hegemony and rebuked the governing parties for acquiescing to Washington's demands. Earlier, at 1830 local time, Kata'ib Hezbollah (KH) said that any ground handling company complying with the U.S. decision "has chosen for itself the role of a submissive backer of the U.S. and Zionis...
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