U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that the United States will help the Iraqi government in the battle against al Qaeda-linked fighters in western Iraq, but he stressed it won't send troops.
Here are five questions about the deteriorating situation:
1. I thought the Iraq war was over. Why is there still fighting?
Well, actually last year was the deadliest since 2008. The number of dead reached its worst levels since the height of the Iraq war, when sectarian fighting between the country's Shiite majority and its Sunni minority pushed it to the brink of civil war. Those tensions continue to be fueled by widespread discontent among the Sunnis, who say they are marginalized by the Shiite-led government and unfairly targeted by heavy-handed security tactics. Sunni anger has made it easier for al Qaeda-linked militants to recruit and operate while eroding the public's cooperation with security forces. Violence has flared in recent days because of the arrest of a Sunni lawmaker in Ramadi and the dismantling of protest sites by the army in Falluja and Ramadi. Sunnis have rejected the authority of the government, and some Sunni officers in the army have deserted to fight Iraqi forces and attack police stations and prisons. Now fears are mounting that national elections in April will bring more violence and descend into civil war.
2. Wait, I thought al Qaeda was on the run? Now they control parts of Iraq?
The U.S. made impressive gains in weakening the so-called "core al Qaeda" leadership in Afghanistan and Pakistan, but affiliate groups, specifically in Iraq, are gaining strength. Since the 2011 withdrawal of U.S. troops, the Sunni-led group tied to al Qaeda, known as the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), has staged a comeback amid Iraq's growing sectarian tensions and launched a series of bloody attacks on government buildings and personnel, killing thousands of civilians. ISIS has been working doggedly to exploit the security vacuum across Iraq. Conflicting reports say ISIS this weekend captured the western city of Falluja and took control of most parts of the principal capital of Ramadi. Iraqi troops are now battling insurgents in both places for control.
3. Falluja and Ramadi were pretty important to the U.S. during the Iraq war. Isn't the U.S. going to help?
Both were important battlegrounds for the U.S. during the Iraq war. Falluja was an insurgent stronghold until U.S. Marines fought their bloodiest battle of the war in 2004 to drive militants out. In Ramadi, the U.S. supported the "Awakening," in which tribal leaders turned on al Qaeda and aligned themselves with American and Iraqi forces to secure Anbar province. That was a turning point in the war. Now that U.S. troops are all out of Iraq, Washington is not eager to go back in.
Kerry said Sunday the U.S. would help the Iraqis in their fight against al Qaeda, but "this is their fight."
4. What does Syria have to do with it?
