CONFLICTED

Iraq: Anatomy of a Broken State

Listen Later

Aimen's in the thick of it this week so isn't able to appear on the show. Sitting in for him is Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Russian-Israeli researcher and analyst, and a doctoral student at Princeton University. During field research in Iraq in 2023, she was kidnapped by Kata'ib Hezbollah and held in captivity for over two years, suffering torture and solitary confinement.

In what we hope will be the first of many appearances on Conflicted, Elizabeth discusses:

  • Saddam Hussein’s faith campaign and the rise of Shia religious politics in Iraq
  • The Sadrist movement in Iraq and Muqtada al-Sadr
  • The politicisation of sectarian identity in post-2003 Iraq
  • Iraqi militias as criminal-political enterprises engaged in in theft, extortion, oil smuggling, and dollar smuggling
  • The difference between Iraqi militias and Lebanese Hezbollah
  • The impact of militia rule on ordinary civilian life
  • Iraq’s extreme inequality despite its oil and gas wealth
  • The 2003 Iraq War and the debate over American responsibility
  • Iraqi elite agency and the failures of Iraq’s political class
  • The 2010 Iraqi election crisis and Nouri al-Maliki’s return to power
  • The Iraqi constitution and the failure of constitutional democracy
  • Iraq’s dependence on oil revenues and the Strait of Hormuz
  • The impact of the current Iran war on Iraq’s economy
  • Iranian attacks on Iraqi oil exports and oil tankers
  • The U.S. military presence in Iraq after ISIS
  • American influence over Iraqi prime ministerial politics
  • Nouri al-Maliki, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, and Ali al-Zaidi
  • Fa’iq Zaidan and the power of Iraq’s judiciary

    • Join the Conflicted Community here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠


    Elizabeth's personal website: https://elizabeth-tsurkov.net/en/

    Find Elizabeth on X: https://x.com/LizHurra

    Find Elizabeth on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-tsurkov-79491b15/


    Find us on X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/MHconflicted⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    And Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    And Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/conflictedpod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠


    Conflicted is a Message Heard production.

    Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.

    Produced and edited by Thomas Small.

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    ...more
    View all episodesView all episodes
    Download on the App Store
    CONFLICTEDBy Message Heard
    • 4.6
    • 4.6
    • 4.6
    • 4.6
    • 4.6

    4.6

    449 ratings

    More shows like CONFLICTED

    View all
    Dan Snow's History Hit by History Hit

    Dan Snow's History Hit

    4,813 Listeners

    TRIGGERnometry by TRIGGERnometry

    TRIGGERnometry

    2,187 Listeners

    WW2 Pod: We Have Ways of Making You Talk by Goalhanger

    WW2 Pod: We Have Ways of Making You Talk

    1,418 Listeners

    Conflicted: A History Podcast by Evergreen Podcasts

    Conflicted: A History Podcast

    543 Listeners

    The Story by The Times

    The Story

    247 Listeners

    In Moscow's Shadows by Mark Galeotti

    In Moscow's Shadows

    372 Listeners

    The Rest Is History by Goalhanger

    The Rest Is History

    15,843 Listeners

    This Is Not A Drill with Gavin Esler by Podmasters

    This Is Not A Drill with Gavin Esler

    150 Listeners

    The Rest Is Politics by Goalhanger

    The Rest Is Politics

    3,482 Listeners

    Battleground by Goalhanger

    Battleground

    342 Listeners

    Empire: World History by Goalhanger

    Empire: World History

    2,466 Listeners

    The Rest Is Politics: Leading by Goalhanger

    The Rest Is Politics: Leading

    742 Listeners

    The Rest Is Politics: US by Goalhanger

    The Rest Is Politics: US

    2,347 Listeners

    The Rest Is Classified by Goalhanger

    The Rest Is Classified

    1,107 Listeners

    The General & The Journalist by The Times

    The General & The Journalist

    31 Listeners