CRS – Iraq: Politics, Governance, and Human Rights, Kenneth Katzman,  Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs, October 29, 2014

“Since the 2011 U.S. military withdrawal from Iraq, sectarian and ethnic divisions have widened, fueling a major challenge to Iraq’s stability and to Iraq’s non-Muslim minority communities. Many of Iraq’s Sunni Arabs have sided with radical Sunni Islamist insurgents as a means to reduce Shiite political domination. Iraq’s Kurds have been separately embroiled in political disputes with Baghdad over territorial, political, and economic issues, particularly their intent to separately export large volumes of oil produced in the Kurdish region. The political rifts—which were contained by the U.S. military presence but escalated after late 2011—erupted in December 2013 into a sustained uprising led by the extremist group Islamic State, formerly known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The group and its allies took control of several cities in Anbar Province in early 2014 and captured Mosul and several other mostly Sunni cities in June 2014, accompanied by a partial collapse of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF). The crisis has had some potentially serious consequences for Iraq’s long term future. The ISF collapse enabled the Kurds to seize control of the long-coveted city of Kirkuk, positioning the Kurds to break away from Iraq entirely were they to decide to do so. And, the crisis has provoked the revival of Shiite militia forces, politically aligned not only with dominant Shiite factions in Iraq but also with Iran. These forces have helped defend Baghdad and other areas to compensate for the weakness of the ISF, but the militias have also caused many Sunnis to see the Islamic State as a more favorable ally than the Iraqi government. The Islamic State’s gains in Iraq prompted a U.S. military response in Iraq and formulation of a broader strategy, articulated by President Obama on September 10, to try to defeat the group in both Iraq and Syria. The President’s speech came as a new government headed by Shiite Prime Minister Haydar al-Abbadi was inaugurated in Iraq. U.S. officials assert that Abbadi’s government is more inclusive of Sunnis than was the government of ex-Prime Minister Nuri al- Maliki, but many Sunnis apparently seek to assess his actions over an extended period of time before giving him their support…The ISIL offensive has caused Iran to increase military support to the Iraqi government, potentially increasing Tehran’s influence in Iraq. The Administration has held discussions with Iran diplomatically on restoring stability to Iraq, but has repeatedly ruled out any direct cooperation with Tehran in Iraq.”