ASSESSMENTS

Ethno-Sectarian Tensions Beyond the Baghdad Bombings

Dec 23, 2011 | 12:59 GMT

KHALIL AL-MURSHIDI/AFP/Getty Images

Summary

The Dec. 22 bombings in Baghdad represented the largest and most coordinated attack on the Iraqi capital since August. Most of the explosions targeted mainly Shiite neighborhoods. Although no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, Iraqi Sunni have the skills and expertise to remain a large and formidable force. However, with the withdrawal of U.S. forces, the Shiite majority enjoys both legal and extra-legal means with which to consolidate power over Iraq — a plan that will tip the regional balance of power toward Iran. A Sunni response supported by interested outside Arab powers like Saudi Arabia could turn Iraq into a proxy battleground between regional powers.

The Sunni insurgency in Iraq that subsided alongside the 2007 U.S. surge was never fully defeated, and as the Shia-dominated government moves against Sunnis, could be preparing more militant reprisals....

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