Iraqi Ethnic Tensions Stoke Insurgency in Mosul

[Rob Thornton]

Well - you know how even after a short time after you leave there you feel like you've lost touch - well being gone for 8 months and I feel dated - particularity with so many other things going on in Iraq.

East Mosul was more Kurd then Arab, and West Mosul more Arab then Kurd - and they layout is different - on the W. Side - the Kurds live in and amongst the larger Arab population, on the East side - it was more like enclaves. The story is 1/2 right when it says there is no tribal infrastructure there. There is, but its different. Its not like Anbar - on the inside - Mosul is a city with a long history that has made it different - the sheiks exert different levels of control and influence - more like a business city based on the commerce that comes through there - both now and historically. many of the "Sheiks" are not of the same making as in other places - many who claim to be sheiks are just guys with money and power.

As such I don't think you can approach it the same way as some other places (no templates) - what is needed there is a kind of board of directors buy in - one where everybody sees the potential profit from pooling their business interests and pursuing it from that line of effort - through time Mosul has been both a regional textile hub, and a place where commerce passes (at one point it was an Assyrian capital) - as such there is a real teamsters/organized crime/business district feel to the people there ( and there probably always will be) - the leaders must be co-opted through the potential for profit - they will put aside differences in favor of $$$. It will take a city leader who has a mind for business to work effectively with local elected leaders and the real power brokers - those with the money and connections (many of whom reside outside of Mosul, and some outside of Iraq) and can co-opt buy-in toward what the city could be if they were willing to work toward it. We used to joke and say Mosul needed a Rudy for mayor and a Bernard for a police chief - to overcome some of the inertia - I was always reminded of the 1930s period of business/organized crime.

Over time as different dynasties and conquers have come through Mosul - be they Khanates, Mogul or other - they have had to afford Mosul a certain degree of autonomy in order to get any revenue out of it. Even if a strong central government in Iraq is ever realized - Mosul (like other cities) will probably still retain an individuality that is part of its historical makeup.

Best, Rob