Brendan O'Neill: Israel’s clash with Iran is nothing like the Iraq War

Remember when Saddam Hussein sponsored an army of fascists that invaded the United States and raped and murdered thousands of Americans? And when he funded a gang of religious fanatics to fire thousands of rockets at people in Leeds and Manchester here in the UK? And when he himself pressed the button on ballistic missiles that landed on New York City and London? No, me neither. Which makes it perplexing that Israel’s push against Iran is being compared to the Iraq War of 2003 – for Iran has done all of that to the Jewish nation, and it dreams of doing more.

Barend Vlaardingerbroek: Operation Regime Change – some aren’t giving up

Operation Regime Change (as I’ll call it) achieved some of its objectives, particularly the elimination of Saddam Hussein and Muamar Ghadaffi, but has been an unmitigated disaster for the MENA region and for the world at large.

It gave us ISIS in Iraq and Syria, and the disintegration of Libya resulted in a country that now exists only as lines on a map and is about to become a staging post for ISIS metastases as well as being a springboard for illegal mass migration into Europe.

Ron Smith: Iraq deployment - second thoughts

In a blog I wrote mid-February (‘Fighting Islamist Extremism’), I argued that it was right for us to commit a small New Zealand training force to the war against ISIS.  There was continuing atrocity going on in ISIS-occupied Iraq and, as good international citizens (members of the Security Council, no less) we had an obligation to contribute to an international effort to resist what was, effectively, genocide.  I also spoke of a continuing obligation to traditional allies, although, even then, I expressed doubts about the commitment of some of the leading players.
 
Be that as it may, the fact is that the situation in the region has changed radically in the last six weeks.  To begin with, Iran has now intervened in the fighting in Iraq (around Tikrit), in support of Iraqi regular and irregular (militia) forces.  This throws up a number of questions, particularly since there have been reports of substantial atrocity by the Iraqi/Iranian forces.

Ron Smith: Fighting Islamist Extremism

Has the war on Islamic extremism got anything to do with us?  Specifically, should we contribute to any military action against the so-called Islamic State and its outliers?  

This, of course, is a multi-faceted question.  What are the grounds that might justify such intervention?  What contribution could we actually make?  What are the prospects for success for the operation that is presently envisaged?

Barend Vlaardingerbroek from Lebanon: “My enemy’s enemy is my friend” – but not ISIS

“My enemy’s enemy is my friend” goes the old adage. It’s been put into practice a number of times in history, such as when Churchill and Roosevelt teamed up with Stalin against Hitler. But this jaded pearl of wisdom has little to offer the new and dire Middle East crisis that is unfolding.

When Fallujah fell to ISIS earlier this year, it didn’t raise that much of a stir. Then a couple more towns including Tikrit went the same way. Now Mosul has fallen and many are sitting bolt-upright. Thirty thousand men of the Iraqi army downed weapons and ran as though pursued by demons, their commanders leading the frenzied dash for safety. Half a million citizens followed.