Iraq's war against Islamic State will extend into 2017

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Oil And Gas ◽  
National Guard ◽  
Oil Field ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Oil And Gas Development ◽  
Knock Out ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Us Military ◽  
The Us ◽  
The City

Significance The province's capital, Ramadi, fell to ISG on May 17 after the group launched a knock-out blow against embattled Iraqi Security Force (ISF) units. These units had been fighting intensively for nearly eighteen months and were on the point of exhaustion when ISG launched its offensive on the city, carrying out 30 suicide truck bombs in a matter of days. ISF exhaustion combined with ISG shock tactics meant that a thousand jihadists were able to outfight government forces. Impacts Iraq will remain in a state of high-intensity conflict into 2017. Sunni Arabs will be incorporated into the Iraqi army and paramilitary units. The National Guard initiative will cause controversy among Iraqi factions. The US military is likely to intensify airpower and special forces presence in Iraq. The conflict will set back oil and gas development, such as new licensing rounds and Kirkuk oil field.

A new US-Iran war will play out in Iraq and beyond

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Prices ◽  
External Action ◽  
Personal Networks ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Islamic Revolution ◽  
Donald Trump ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Us Military ◽  
Military Presence ◽  
The Us

Significance The operation, authorised by US President Donald Trump, killed Qassem Soleimani, longstanding chief of the Quds Force -- the external action wing of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC). Others also died, notably Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the leader of Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kata’ib Hezbollah, which had been targeted in earlier US strikes. Impacts Baghdad’s parliament will consider a bill to evict the US military presence. The confrontation with Iran will undermine efforts to combat the residual Islamic State presence. As the responses play out, oil prices are likely to rise further. The 2015 Iran nuclear deal could at last collapse. Damascus may increase its dependence on Moscow in the absence of Soleimani’s personal networks.

New Saudi leaders may seek to rein in national guard

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
National Guard ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
The Body ◽  
Regional Security ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Internal Security ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Us Military ◽  
Crown Prince ◽  
State Group

Subject National guard role in Saudi politics and security. Significance The Saudi Arabian National Guard (SANG) faces a number of questions about its future following the accession of King Salman in January. SANG is headed by Prince Mit'eb bin Abdallah, son of the deceased king and a previous contender for the throne. However, on Salman's accession he was sidelined in favour of new deputy crown prince and Defence Minister Mohammed bin Salman under the new succession and leadership arrangements. A vital part of Saudi Arabia's internal security capabilities, SANG faces new uncertainty at a time when Saudi Arabia is at war with the Huthi movement in Yemen, al-Qaida remains potent, and the kingdom faces external and internal threats from Islamic State group (ISG) fighters. Impacts Financial cuts could weaken SANG's patronage power over key tribes, thereby affecting security and political stability. Reduced arms purchases could damage Saudi-US ties as SANG is a major conduit of US military hardware and cooperation. Efforts by Mohammed bin Salman to exert control over SANG could damage the body and stoke tensions within the Saudi leadership. A strong and effective SANG will improve border security, with wider benefits to regime, national and regional security

Kurdish-Turkish spat may save Islamic State in Syria

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Second Phase ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Medium Term ◽  
The West ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The North ◽  
The Us ◽  
The City

Significance The Kurdish-dominated SDF, with weapons and air support from the US-led coalition fighting IS in Iraq and Syria, on November 5 launched a campaign to encircle and eventually seize Raqqa. The Wrath of the Euphrates offensive made some progress against outlying villages to the north of the city, and on December 10 began a second phase to take territory to the west. Impacts Turkish-US relations could worsen as Ankara confronts the SDF and engages more deeply with Moscow. Turkey could use the non-jihadi Syrian opposition in Syria’s north more openly to confront the Kurdish forces. IS, although weakened, will survive into the medium term owing to cleavages and disputes among its many enemies.

Rivals will use tribes to destabilise Syria’s Raqqa

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Islamic State ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Us ◽  
The City

Significance Some 80% of the city, which was the de facto capital of Islamic State (IS) until its capture by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), was ruined in fighting and reconstruction efforts have been limited. With 90% of the governorate's population of tribal origin, the Kurdish-dominated SDF relies on clientelist networks with tribal leaders, all Sunni Arab, to maintain order and garner support. Impacts Local and regional actors will compete for tribal leaders’ loyalty, creating divisions within tribes and clans. The SDF will retain the support of Raqqa-based tribal leaders. Tribal leaders who have fled elsewhere will promote dissent in SDF areas of control. Some youths who sympathise with IS’s cause will cause instability in Raqqa.

Sectarianism raises jihadist blowback threat in Gulf

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Security Cooperation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Lone Wolf ◽  
Us Military ◽  
The Us ◽  
Gulf States ◽  
Security Relationship ◽  
State Group

Subject 'Islamic State' blowback risk in Gulf Significance A recent spate of attacks in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states suggest that the threat posed to them by the Islamic State group (ISG) arises primarily from 'lone wolf' operations. However, the GCC states face a deeper challenge both internally from networks of ISG cells, and externally from the flow of Gulf nationals to ISG battlefronts in Iraq and Syria. With the Gulf states leading the region in partnering with the United States in the air campaign against ISG, officials must balance this close security relationship with the threat of backlash from domestic supporters of ISG. Impacts GCC states will seek to avoid being drawn directly into any military escalation against ISG in Iraq and Syria. Instead, they will rely on the US military to take the lead, underlining their reliance on Washington as an external security guarantor. GCC states will become increasingly critical of the US air campaign if it fails to roll back ISG gains. Gulf authorities are using the extremist threat to delegitimise and ban most forms of political and popular dissent. Greater security cooperation with Jordan will solidify the kingdom's incorporation into a GCC sphere of regional influence.

scholarly journals Mapping Oil and Gas Development Potential in the US Intermountain West and Estimating Impacts to Species

PLoS ONE ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 4 (10) ◽  
pp. e7400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holly E. Copeland ◽  
Kevin E. Doherty ◽  
David E. Naugle ◽  
Amy Pocewicz ◽  
Joseph M. Kiesecker
Keyword(s):  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Intermountain West ◽  
Oil And Gas Development ◽  
Development Potential ◽  
The Us

Structural modelling of internal risk factors for oil and gas construction projects

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 975-1000
Author(s):  
Mukhtar A. Kassem ◽  
Muhamad Azry Khoiry ◽  
Noraini Hamzah
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Project Success ◽  
Partial Least Square ◽  
Oil Field ◽  
Path Coefficient ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Oil Companies ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose Project failure is the result of one or a combination of several causes of risk factors that are very important to identify for effective performance. This study aims to focus on studying the fundamental relationship between internal risk factors and the negative effect on oil and gas project success in Yemen using the partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) method. Design/methodology/approach Data collection was carried out using a formal questionnaire survey of the oil field sector in Yemen by companies involved in mega-oil and gas construction projects. A hierarchical model for determining causative internal risk factors and their effects was developed and evaluated using SEM method by SmartPLS3 software technology. Findings The findings of analyzing model indicate that all categories have a significant effect on project success, while the most significant affected categories in the internal risk factors are project management factors, feasibility study-design and resources-material supply with a path coefficient value of 0.213, 0.197 and 0.186, respectively. Moreover, for the hypotheses test, the positive relationship means that all experimental hypotheses are accepted according to path coefficient value analysis. In addition, the internal risk factors research model shows the ranking of effects on project success starting with project stoppage (loading factor 0.841), cost overruns (loading factor 0.818), time overruns (loading factor 0.726) and project target failure with loading factor 0.539. Research limitations/implications The research was limited to the oil and gas construction projects in Yemen. Practical implications Interpreting the relationship between internal risk factors and their impact on the success of construction projects in the oil and gas sector will assist project team and oil companies in developing risk response strategies and developing appropriate plans to mitigate the effects of risks, which is presented in this paper. Originality/value The paper explains the relationship between cause and effect of internal risk factors in oil and gas projects in Yemen, and is expected to be a guideline for the oil companies and future academic research in the risk management area.

Brothers in arms: Visual commonalities between US and IS recruitment strategies

2019 ◽  
pp. 175063521988777
Author(s):  
Lawrie Phillips ◽  
Maha Ghalwash
Keyword(s):  
Visual Image ◽  
Military Power ◽  
Recruitment Strategies ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Armed Groups ◽  
Multimodal Discourse Analysis ◽  
Multimodal Discourse ◽  
Us Military ◽  
The Sublime ◽  
The Us

This article claims that the visual image contributes to, reflects and supports the dominant discourse of two powerful armed groups that have operated in Iraq and Syria: the US military and the Islamic State (IS). This research uses multimodal discourse analysis to explore two crucial insights into the ideological power of the visual image: the power of the image as spectatorship or spectacle and the sublime or transcendental nature of the visual image. The authors conclude that US and IS recruitment and propaganda videos share these two crucial ideological elements: pride in the spectacle of their military power, discipline and technologies, and sublime commitment to the act of killing and dying for the cause. In this sense, the US military and IS are brothers in arms.

Popular reporting: learning from the US experience

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Manes-Rossi ◽  
Natalia Aversano ◽  
Paolo Tartaglia Polcini
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Legitimacy Theory ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The City ◽  
Qualitative Characteristics ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore a citizen-centered tool for public accountability, the popular report (PR). Elaborating on previous studies and on content analysis of a sample of municipalities in the USA, this paper aims to identify the qualitative characteristics and content elements that PR should have to serve as a legitimation tool. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a mixed methodology. After the analysis of previous studies on PR and best practices in US municipalities, a list of content elements and qualitative characteristics of PR is compared with results emerging from the content analysis of PR published by of a sample of municipalities in the USA. Findings The analysis reveals that the PR should embed information about the government’s sources of revenues and taxes, expenditures, cost of government services, liveability and governance of the city. Research limitations/implications The paper offers new knowledge on reporting centered on citizens, framing the analysis in the legitimacy theory. Even though the research relates only to the US context, the results may assist standard setters in preparing guidelines for local governments to communicate financial data to citizens and stimulate further research in other contexts. Practical implications The results may encourage local governments to prepare a PR suitable to discharge accountability and gain legitimation. Originality/value This study is the first to discuss the PR within a theoretical framework, in this case, legitimacy theory. Moreover, a further novelty lays in the analysis carried out on the PRs published by US municipalities in order to derive qualitative characteristics and content elements with which the PR should comply.

Rise of Shia militias will reshape Iraqi politics

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Prime Minister ◽  
National Guard ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Power Struggle ◽  
Medium Term ◽  
Content Type ◽  
State Group

Subject The rise of Iraq's Shia militias. Significance Shia militias, known as Popular Mobilisation Units (PMUs), are the most capable offensive forces at the federal government's disposal in its fight against Islamic State group (ISG). Yet Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's cabinet only exercises limited control over these forces, many of which receive backing from Iran. While Iraq's battle against ISG is progressing steadily, the emergence of these powerful Shia militias could represent a larger medium-term challenge to state stability. Impacts Shia militias will probably be less effective in Sunni-only areas. Iraq boasts insufficient offensive forces to attack Mosul in the first half of 2015. The National Guard initiative will take months to be ratified in parliament. Politics in the oil-rich south will be complicated by a power struggle between Shia politicians and militia leaders.

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