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Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality

Welcome to the Neno's Place!

Neno's Place Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality


Neno

I can be reached by phone or text 8am-7pm cst 972-768-9772 or, once joining the board I can be reached by a (PM) Private Message.

Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality

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    The New York Times: The invasion of Iraq unleashed the dominant Shiite genie in the Middle East

    Rocky
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    The New York Times: The invasion of Iraq unleashed the dominant Shiite genie in the Middle East Empty The New York Times: The invasion of Iraq unleashed the dominant Shiite genie in the Middle East

    Post by Rocky Sun 19 Mar 2023, 7:20 am

    [size=38]The New York Times: The invasion of Iraq unleashed the dominant Shiite genie in the Middle East[/size]


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    March 19, 2023[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
    Baghdad / Obelisk: A report published by the American newspaper The New York Times considered that the biggest winner of the Iraq war is Iran, as the post-Saddam Hussein regime gained it deep political influence in the country and reaped economic benefits, and for Washington, these consequences were unintended.
    And the Iraqi Shiites began to practice their religious rituals on a large scale, and these rituals and rituals became dominant over the social face of the whole of Iraq, especially in Baghdad, the center and the south.
    The newspaper featured a picture of visitors to the shrine of Imam Ali in Najaf, the Shiite holy city.
    The report written by Vivian Yee and Alyssa J. Rubin states that the late Iranian leader, Qassem Soleimani, has the most prominent role in Iraq over the past twenty years, and he represented the external arm of the powerful Iranian Revolutionary Guard, with a semi-legendary position in influential Iraq that helped make both Iraq and Iran as if they were one country.
    The report said that Soleimani, who was assassinated by the United States in Iraq in 2020, succeeded in radically influencing Iraqi security and politics.
    This, in turn, gave Iran enormous influence over the Middle East and beyond. Analysts and former US officials revealed that the rise of Tehran exposed the unintended consequences of Washington's strategy in Iraq, and damaged the US relationship with its regional allies.
    Emile Hakaim, a fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a British think tank, said the invasion was the "original sin". It helped Iran strengthen its position and eroded the image of the United States.
    The US State Department declined to comment on the impact of the war in Iraq. But the automatic email response to questions, he said: "Our partnership today has evolved beyond security, into a 360-degree relationship that delivers results for the Iraqi people."
    All this was made possible by the political changes initiated by the US invasion of Iraq on March 20, 2003. Subsequently, the ISIS takeover of a large area of ​​northern Iraq prompted Iraq to turn to Iran and the United States for help, which strengthened Iran's hand.
    As destabilizing as Iranian involvement was for many Iraqis, it was at least unsettling to much of the rest of the region.
    Iraq and Iran are the two largest countries in the Middle East with Shiite majorities, and the Shiites emerged from the Iraq war empowered throughout the region much to the alarm of their old sectarian foes, the Sunni Muslims, who dominate most other Arab countries.
    Under Saddam Hussein's rule, the Sunni minority formed the basis of power, and as soon as he was killed, the security, political and economic powers of influence became absolutely Shiite, and this caused the resentment of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries.
    Prior to 2003, it would have been difficult to imagine Saudi Arabia, a pillar of US policy in the Middle East for decades and a leading Sunni power, displaying open anger toward US leaders for their behavior in the region. But the then-Saudi king did just that in a January 2006 meeting with the US ambassador to Iraq, telling him that the way Washington sees things going in Baghdad reflects "wishful thinking," according to a State Department cable released by WikiLeaks in 2010. .
    Saudi King Abdullah said Iraq should be relied upon as another Sunni power to keep Iran in check. Now, as the king said, Iraq has been handed over to Iran like "a gift on a plate."
    Adding to this Shiite influence, Iran can build on the bonds created by the Shiite faith it shares with many of Iraq's residents.
    Iranian and Iraqi clerics, along with millions of pilgrims, frequented Shiite shrines in both countries each year and enjoyed a mutual understanding of each other's culture. Tribes and families straddle its nearly 1,000-mile border. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the bomber of Iran's Islamic Revolution in 1979, spent 13 years in the Iraqi Shiite pilgrimage city, while Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's supreme Shiite cleric, was born in an Iranian holy city and educated in another.
    However, this closeness did not give birth to a friendship, at least before 2003.
    After the 2003 invasion, Iranians poured into Baghdad and the Shiite-dominated south: construction engineers to rebuild Iraqi cities, political consultants to train Shiite activists ahead of Iraqi elections, and media professionals to set up Shiite-owned television channels.
    Iranian pilgrims who were banned under Saddam Hussein from visiting Shiite shrines in Iraq are now rushing across the border to the holy cities of Karbala and Najaf, where Iranian companies have invested in acres of hotels and restaurants for millions of worshipers, many of them. An Iranian visits the shrines every year.
    Many of the Iraqi leaders who emerged after 2003 had ties to Iran. Shiite and Kurdish opposition politicians who sought refuge in Iraq years ago returned to Iraq after the invasion. Some of the largest Shiite parties in Iraq have received support and technical support from Iran
    Marwan Muasher, who was Jordan’s foreign minister at the time, said last week that the Americans “somehow have not made contact with Iran explicitly and understand that it is not the Shiites who are given the upper hand, but only the Shiites who are supported by Iran.”
    Across Iraq's southern border, Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies watched with growing frustration.
    Before 2003, the Gulf was also worried about the Iraqi dictator. But Western-led sanctions have weakened Iraq, and the Gulf states and Iraqis have a common enemy in Iran.
    Translated by Adnan Abu Zaid
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