The Iraqi army recaptured Mosul's historical al-Nuri mosque and its leaning minaret on June 29, 2017. Cheng Shuaipeng/Xinhua News Agency/Press Association. All rights reserved. The territorial defeat of the Islamic State (IS) in Mosul is a significant moment for Iraq, a country that has come a long way since IS was rapidly gaining territory with such ease in the summer of 2014.
This success was enabled by the fact that all sections of Iraqi society came together in the face of a common enemy – a dynamic that needs to prevail if the country is to cement IS’ defeat. IS still holds pockets of territory, with Hawija being of particular importance, but it is only a matter of time before they return to the shadows and the tactics of a non-territory-holding entity. Once they do, it will be difficult to address, as many of the structural and political failures that facilitated IS’ growth in Iraq will need to be gradually overcome, beginning with the reluctance of the political elite to enforce change. Moreover, there are a number of issues that have emerged as a direct reaction, and in response, to the rise of IS and it is these issues that need to be addressed first following their defeat.
Kurdish gains
As a result of the fight against IS the Kurds have made significant territorial gains, either through taking territory from IS (for example in parts of Nineveh) or through filling the vacuum left by the Iraqi army’s withdrawal from territory (for example in parts of Kirkuk). These disputed territories have long been claimed by the Kurds, who have now taken the opportunity gained by their control of these areas to call a referendum for independence on 25 September 2017.
