Political Mobilization in the Absence of a State: Islamism, Nationalism and Sectarianism in Iraq

Abstract

Iraq is the first autocratic and Muslim-majority country that the United States has attempted to democratize since Sept. 11. Regime change in Iraq was part of the broader U.S. project to plant democracy in the Middle East, albeit with force and from without, in hopes that this would eradicate terrorism and create an impetus for positive change in the broader region. Unfortunately, said Toby Dodge, lecturer in the Department of Politics at Queen Mary University in London, this project has clearly failed, both in its implementation and the realization of its goals.