Iraq

From the field My diary of Baghdad: sirens and music

Annet Henneman is founder, director and actress of Teatro di Nascosto – Hidden Theatre. For eight days she lived in Baghdad, working with a group of four young men from Baghdad to make a theatre reportage about the Voices of Baghdad. Here she explores what it means to live in this city and shares her experiences of her time in Baghdad. Iraq. Read more >>>

Interview Voices of Baghdad: an interview

Arabella Lawson interviews Annet Henneman who is tellling us about her impressions of her theatre reportage ‘Voices of Baghdad’, which she set up and performed with four young Iraqis. She tells us their stories and the difficulties in achieving change, and not loosing your own belief in making this change happen. Read more >>>

Commentary CeaseFire in Iraq – the social innovation kind

As a respected Shī‘ah anniversary date approached, representing a divergence in religious thinking with the Sunni, tensions in Basrah, Iraq were high. A date reserved for reverence historically triggered violent clashes. Anticipating the conflicts the Basrah Anti-Violence Campaign (BAVC), a replication of the CeaseFire violence prevention health model, went into action. Using social marketing and public health communication strategies, BAVC launched targeted messaging around the anniversary to interrupt the potential for violence. BAVC conflict mediators visited mosques, clerics and tribal leaders to defuse simmering tensions before they erupted. Read more >>>

From the field Women of Iraq – from victims to peacebuilders

Soon after the launch of the US-led war in 2003, Iraq witnessed the emergence of a violent conflict and the deepening of splits along communal, religious, confessional, tribal and ethnic lines. The resulting chaos gave rise to growing insecurity and lawlessness and an upsurge in religious extremism. To mark International Women’s Day, Benoite Martin reports on the work of Iraqi women’s groups to counter insecurity and extremism. Read more >>>

Iraqi Peacebuilders on Insight on Conflict

Today we have expanded the regions covered on Insight on Conflict with the addition of the Iraq section. Despite numerous challenges facing the country after the US invasion and subsequent insurgency, there is hope for Iraq’s burgeoning civil society, with many encouraged by the country’s recent NGO law. Read more >>>

Interview Interview with the Women’s Leadership Institute

Since its beginnings in 2005, the Women’s Leadership Institute (WLI) has grown into one of the leading voices of the women’s movement in Iraq. Local Correspondent for Iraq, Benoite Martin, has interviewed a representative of the WLI, and in the audio below we hear of the origins of WLI, the situation for women in Iraq, and an appeal for help. Read more >>>