Fanar HADDAD, Sectarianism in Iraq - Antagonistic Visions of Unity

Abstract

Much of recent policy analyses on Iraq seem overwhelmed by simple but insufficient explanatory patterns vis-a-vis the sectarianism problematique between the Shi’as and the Sunnis of Iraq. Haddad’s work thus targets superficial approaches that portray Iraqi society as a fixed sectarian body. Whilst promoting a more sensitized perception of the sectarianism problem in Iraq, the author emphasizes how certain historical shifts, in particular the 1990-1991 and the post-2003 periods, have impacted sectarian sentiment within Iraqi society. In doing so, Haddad applies some constructivist analytical concepts such as the “myth-symbol complex” which, he argues, explain the salience of sectarianism in given socio-political contexts.