Ideas

The Inconvenient Truth About ISIS

The group is even bigger now, and America’s conflict with Iran is only making the fight against it more complicated.

Threats

The Iraq War Has Cost the US Nearly $2 Trillion

The figure includes $838 billion in “emergency” and “overseas contingency operation” funding and $59 billion spent by the State Department and USAID on Iraq and Syria.

Ideas

Iraq Is the One War Zone Trump Doesn’t Want to Leave

The president’s resistance to withdrawing from the country boils down to three of his main enemies: ISIS, Iran, and Obama.

Ideas

ISIS Is No Reason to Stay in Iraq

Don’t take the wrong conclusion from recent news about the group’s “resurgence.”

Policy

What We Learned from the House Vote to Limit Trump’s Power to Fight Iran

Democrats, and some Trump allies, challenged the White House’s latest interpretation of presidential warmaking powers.

Threats

Now It's 64. Wounded Troop Tally from Iran Missile Strike Rises Again

Trump “understands the nature” of brain injuries, says Defense Secretary Esper after the president downplayed Americans’ wounds as not “serious.”

Ideas

We Can End Our Endless Wars

America should end its military involvement in conflicts in the Middle East and bring our troops home.

Threats

34 Injured in Iran Attack, Pentagon Now Says; Launches a Review of Reporting Procedures

SecDef Mark Esper ordered a review of “processes for tracking and reporting injuries” after criticism in the wake of the Iranian missile attack.

Threats

As Toll Mounts, Trump Downplays Injuries Suffered in Iranian Attack

The president's dismissive statements about the brain trauma suffered by U.S. troops at Al Assad may reflect a considered attempt to de-escalate – or not.

Threats

Eleven US Troops Were Injured in Jan. 8 Iran Missile Strike

The troops were medevaced this week to Germany and Kuwait to be treated for traumatic brain injury after experiencing concussion symptoms.

Threats

US, Iran Back Away From Conflict—For Now

The crisis appears to be cooling, at least for now, as U.S. lawmakers — and presumably the president — return their focus to the looming impeachment trial in the Senate.

Ideas

Don’t Let Iran Tensions Stop the Battle Against ISIS

My recent journey through northern Iraq revealed how fragile the region remains, and how extremism could once again take root.

Threats

Iran Launched Missiles at Iraqi Bases with US Forces, Pentagon Says

More than a dozen ballistic missiles were fired at the Al-Assad air base in Anbar province and a base in Irbil, in Iraqi Kurdistan, a DOD statement said. 

Threats

Offering No Evidence, Esper Says Soleimani Attack On US Was ‘Days’ Away

Meanwhile, confusion continues over draft letter citing plans to move U.S. forces in Iraq.

Policy

Iraqi Lawmakers Ask Government to Expel US Troops

Iraq analysts say the nonbinding vote is important but removal of U.S. troops is far from a done deal.

Threats

Soleimani Strike Could Imperil US Troops In Iraq

Trump and his allies have sought to frame Iraq’s response to the strikes as a choice between Tehran and Washington, but the situation is not so black-and-white for Baghdad.

Ideas

Who’s Next? Trump Crossed a Line with Soleimani’s Assassination

The Iranian was much more than a general. Who else is the U.S. president willing to kill?

Threats

Iran’s Soleimani Killed in Trump-Ordered Airstrike

The stunning killing of the Quds Force leader follows Iranian-backed militia attacks on U.S. embassy in Iraq, and months of Tehran testing Washington’s stomach for violence.

Ideas

In Iraq, the US Gets Hit Where It Hurts

The storming of the U.S. embassy in Baghdad demonstrated that America doesn’t have a monopoly on pressure.