Community Resilience and the Return of Iraqi IDPs with Perceived Affiliation to the Islamic State

Abstract

This article examines the development of two resilience responses by communities in Iraq when faced with the return of internally displaced persons (IDPs) with perceived affiliation to the Islamic State (IS) in the years following the military campaign to dislodge the group. Whereas some communities developed preventive resilience as a strategy to keep the perceived threat posed by IDPs with perceived affiliation away from the communities, others developed responsive resilience as a strategy to absorb this threat. The factors that influenced which response each community developed included differences in past levels of intra-community violence; differences in geography; and differences in the social fabric of the community. IDPs experienced very different outcomes under each resilience response: preventive resilience led to instances of re-displacement and an increased risk of protracted displacement; responsive resilience facilitated the return of IDPs with perceived affiliation, but failed to address the long-term safety and sustainability of their return. These divergent outcomes highlight the key role communities have in facilitating the return of IDPs with perceived affiliation to an extremist or non-state armed group. The research is based on primary data collected in six Arab Sunni communities in Anbar governorate of Iraq from June to August 2019.