All about Iraq Crisis...
Following a week of city seizures and strikes by an al-Qaeda splinter
group, the situation in Iraq continues to escalate. With deaths in the
hundreds and no foreseeable end to the violence caused by the Islamic
State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), here are the answers to the
important questions on the state of Iraq.
Who are the ISIL?
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) - also called Islamic
State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) - began as an offshoot of al-Qaeda and
its Syrian counterpart Juhbat al-Nursa. ISIL left al-Qaeda following
disagreements over Syria and is often called "too extreme" for its
parent group.
What has happened so far?
ISIL has been successful in capturing much of the northern Iraqi
territory over the past week. Monday, forces seized Tal Afar, a
potential key in connecting the Islamic states of Iraq and Syria, as
it continues to move toward the capital of Baghdad. Tal Afar joins
Mosul, the country's second-largest city, Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's
hometown, and a number of other prominent cities under ISIL control.
Pictures released by ISIL show the execution of Iraqi soldiers and
massacred civilians. There are no confirmed death tolls at this time,
although it is likely in the hundreds.
How did the conflict begin?
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite, took power in 2006 and
largely left out many Sunnis from ascending in the political ranks,
leaving religious strife as the centerpiece of this disagreement. In
the past, al-Maliki has also been criticized for his alleged "spoils
system" approach in promoting his political allies to posts in the
military. Many cite his regime and rapid promotion process as the
chief reason behind an under-prepared Iraqi military after President
Obama's withdrawal of all American troops in 2011.
What is Iraq's response?
The Iraqi military has made attempts to keep ISIL at bay but has
failed to reclaim the cities ISIL been taken. Recently, al-Maliki gave
an impassioned speech calling for Iraqi citizens to fight to reclaim
"every inch" of the captured land.
How is the United States involved?
President Barack Obama ordered 275 U.S. military servicemembers to
deploy to Iraq to provide support and security for U.S. personnel and
the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. Obama also said the troops are equipped
for combat and will remain in Iraq until the security situation
becomes such that they are no longer needed. Last week, Obama ruled
out ground troops in Iraq. But Secretary of State John Kerry, in a
recent Yahoo! News interview, announced that the administration is
pursuing every possible option, including working with Iran to reach
an end to this conflict.
How is India involved?
Forty Indian workers working for the Turkish Construction Company have
been kidnapped by suspected militants in Iraq's Mosul city. The
country has still not received any ransom call. No information
regarding their whereabouts is available. The Foreign Ministry did not
say who had seized the workers although earlier media reports blamed
it on the Sunni insurgents who have seized key cities in violence-hit
Iraq.
Why Iraq crisis shouldn't worry Indian markets?
The violence in Iraq is not seeing any end and the crude oil prices
are moving higher with every passing day. Exxon Mobil has carried out
a 'major evacuation' of their staff and BP has evacuated 20 per cent
of its staff.
Brent crude oil prices have surged over $114 per barrel on concerns of
disruption in oil supply. Volatility in oil prices with upward bias
has the potential to have a negative impact on India's balance sheet
and will also fuel inflation. It is also likely to put pressure on the
rupee, which is hovering near 60 per dollar level.
However, the Indian markets are not reacting sharply to the crisis in
Iraq. According to analysts, investors are likely to ignore oil
concerns because of the following factors:
ISIL fighters have control of Iraq's largest oil refinery in Baiji,
which is a major supplier of oil to Iraq's domestic market. Supply
disruption could aggravate the scarcity of electric power and the
availability of gasoline in Iraq only.
However, the oilfields in southern Iraq, which supply oil to the
international market, are unaffected. These oilfields account for 90
per cent of Iraq's oil production.
Major oil producing fields in Iraq are in Kirkuk, the North Rumaila
field in southern Iraq, and the South Rumaila field. Iraq accounts for
more than three per cent of world supplies. The supply right now onto
tankers in the Persian Gulf from Basra terminals is uninterrupted.
Global oil prices have failed to surge as Iraq's oil production has
not been significantly disrupted.
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