Iraq’s Political Paralysis Deconstructed

Iraqi Voices hosts political analysts Lahib Hagel and Omar Al-Nidawi once again, a year after they joined the podcast to analyse the 2021 early elections, to deconstruct the political developments of the last 12 months and discuss the direction Iraq is headed in

Analysts Muhammad Al-Waeli, Ali Al-Mawlawi and Hamzeh Hadad discuss the latest political developments in Iraq including this week's violence between rival parties that led to tens of deaths in the heart of Baghdad.

Analysts Muhammad Al-Waeli, Ali Al-Mawlawi and Hamzeh Hadad discuss the latest political developments in Iraq including the Sadrist withdrawal from parliament and the struggle over political and religious leadership.

The makers of Iraqi Voices mark six months since the 2021 Iraqi election with a discussion about the key developments and milestones including the political impasse, Supreme Court rulings and more.

On International Women's Day, we discuss developments regarding Iraqi women's rights and Iraq's place in the global Women, Peace & Security agenda with Dr. Yasmin Chilmeran, a postdoctoral fellow at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs and an expert on gender and civil society in post-conflict settings.

Dr. Shamiran Mako, assistant professor at the Pardee School of Global Affairs at Boston University, discusses statebuilding in post-2003 Iraq and how legacies of exclusion continue to shape politics today.

Former Member of Parliament Sarkawt Shamsulddin provides unique insights into how Iraq's Parliament really functions, offering anecdotes from his personal interactions with leading powerbrokers, and explains why he thinks young Iraqis need to engage in politics.

Iraqi Voices hosts political and economic analyst Hamzeh Hadad, author of the recently published report, “Path to Government Formation in Iraq”. We discuss the first parliamentary session, majority versus consensus government, and the re-sectarianization of electoral politics.

Non-resident fellow at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation Mera Jasm Bakr explains the dynamics behind the ongoing protests in Iraqi Kurdistan and the recent wave of Kurdish migration to Europe.

We host Harry Istepanian, an Iraqi energy and water expert to discuss the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26. Harry talks to us about Iraq's potential to create green economy, water resource challenges, and more.