EPIC | Promoting a Free & Secure Iraq

Promoting a free and secure Iraq since 1998, EPIC impacts U.S. policy to address the root causes and humanitarian consequences of conflict in Iraq. We help connect and support organizations and individuals taking humanitarian action for peace in Iraq.

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EPIC statement on the end of U.S. combat operations in Iraq

Hundreds of Iraqi teachers and government employees demonstrate outside Sulaymaniyah's Dept. of Education, protesting dismissals and other politically motivated retributions against opposition supporters. (EPIC Photo, Sulaymaniyah, IRAQ, Sept. 15, 2009)

Today the combat phase of the United States military's role in Iraq officially ends. Today also marks a new beginning in our nation's relationship with Iraq and its people. Tonight President Obama will mark the occasion with his third Presidential address to the nation.

Here at EPIC, we welcome the end of U.S. combat operations in Iraq and the opportunity to turn a new page in U.S.-Iraq relations. But like you, we believe that it is very important how that new relationship is defined.

Risking Their Lives to Protect Human Rights in Iraq

Sometimes at great risk to themselves, Iraqi human rights defenders provide vital background information, contacts, and documentation of violations to the international community. their work elevates the issues the world would rather ignore: targeted attacks on minorities in Iraq, threats faced by journalists, and even torture.

In Part Two of Ground Truth Project interview with Samer Muscati, a human rights researcher, talks about the important work activists are doing to defend their fellow Iraqis.

From Our Blog

Iraq’s 2009 Drought

Iraq is facing a drought again. Officially, it has been going on for the last two years. Unofficially the United Nations says four. The lack of rain, no government water policy, and population growth are the main causes, but Baghdad has been blaming its neighbors as well. Iran, Syria, and Turkey have all built dams that affect Iraq’s two main rivers, the Euphrates and Tigris, along with smaller tributaries.

Iraqi Deaths Continue To Fluctuate Up And Down

As has been the pattern for 2009, the number of monthly deaths in Iraq continues to go up and down with each month. August saw a large increase compared to July, and then September took a dip. For example, Iraq Body Count, the organization that usually has the highest casualty numbers, recorded 395 deaths in July, 537 in August, and their preliminary figure for September is 296.

Referendum On Kurdish Constitution Moves Forward

As reported before, on July 10, 2009 the Kurdistan regional parliament postponed a referendum on a new draft constitution. Now, on September 23 the Iraqi Election Commission said that it was ready to hold the vote. It still needs a referendum law and a budget to carry out the process.

Kirkuk And The 2010 Election Law

Kirkuk is again the leading issue in Iraq’s parliament as it discusses a new election law. Parliamentarians have agreed upon all the major points in the bill except for voting in Tamim province, the home of Kirkuk. The Kurdish Alliance is pushing for Tamim to vote as a regular governorate.

Targeted Assassinations In Iraq

Violence in Iraq is down across the board. The number of deaths has gone up and down each month in 2009, and are even below the months immediately following the U.S. invasion in 2003. The number of security incidents in 2009 is down almost 66% compared to 2008.

Joint U.S.-Iraq-Kurdish Patrols In Disputed Areas Remains A Political Football

In mid-August 2009, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq General Ray Odierno proposed joint U.S.-Iraqi-Kurdish patrols in Ninewa. The Americans made the proposal after a series of mass casualty bombings rocked the province. The offer was later extended to all of the disputed territories in northern Iraq.

Work Begins On Improving Iraq’s Electricity Supply But Problems Remain

This year Iraq is embarking on a massive development plan to increase its electrical network. It is buying new turbines, constructing new power plants, and garnering international loans and other financial assistance to pay for it. Iraq still lacks the capacity to supply all the power the country needs however.

Will The Kurds Be Kingmakers In Iraq?

Iraq’s Kurds remain the most unified ethnosectarian voting bloc in Iraq. As the Sunnis and Shiites split up into smaller factions, the two major Kurdish parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) remain largely popular amongst their constituency, and in control of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the majority Kurdish regions within the disputed territories in northern Iraq.

More On Allawi-National Alliance Talks

Contradictory stories are swirling over whether former Interim Prime Minister Ilyad Allawi will join the new Iraqi National Alliance (INA). On Wednesday September 23, 2009 Allawi publicly denied that he had been talking with the National Alliance. The Iraq Pundit Blog also seems to think that the story is all rumors.

Iraq-Syria Dispute Update

While Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has said that talks with Syria have gone nowhere over the August 2009 Baghdad bombings, and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani called for an international tribunal to investigate the attacks while at the United Nations in New York City, behind the scenes things actually seem to be making some progress.