Mass Executions in Iraq

ISIS Posts Photos of Mass Executions
- Qassim Abdul-Zahra and Sameer N. Yacoub

Islamic militants from ISIS posted graphic photos showing their gunmen massacring scores of captured Iraqi soldiers. Iraqi military spokesman Lt. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi confirmed that 170 soldiers were shot to death by the militants after their capture. 
(AP-ABC News)


US & Iran Talk Cooperation to Counter Iraq Insurgents
- Jay Solomon, Carol E. Lee & Ali A. Nabhan
 
The Obama administration said it is preparing to open direct talks with Iran on how the two longtime foes can counter the radical Sunni ISIS insurgents in Iraq. U.S. officials said it is imperative for Washington to discuss the security situation in Iraq with Iran and other regional powers in a bid to better coordinate a response against ISIS. Iranian President Hasan Rouhani said that his government was open to cooperating with the U.S. in Iraq.
(Wall Street Journal)
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VIDEO: US-Iran Dialogue on Iraq "Extremely Dangerous"
- Deborah Kan interviews Jonathan Schanzer     

As the U.S. and Iran prepare for talks on the declining situation in Iraq, Jonathan Schanzer, vice president for research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, says:     
"We are involved with high stakes nuclear negotiations with the Iranians; our asking them for assistance will only give them leverage at the negotiating table."    
(Wall Street Journal)
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Getting Fooled by Iran in Iraq - Max Boot
 
The State Department spokesman claims that the U.S. and Iran have a "shared interest" in pushing back against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Is it really necessary to point out that letting Iranian forces dominate Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq is a win for Iran - not for the U.S.? It's true that Iran doesn't want to see ISIS or the Nusra Front, another al-Qaeda-affiliated group, dominate Iraq or Syria. But that's because it would like to see those states dominated by its own proxies who are every bit as bad.
    
The increasing Iranian prominence will only drive Sunnis, who constitute the region's vast majority, into greater militancy. Do you honestly think Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE will stand by and watch Iran and its stalking horses take control of Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon? Not a chance. They will amp up their aid to ISIS and other Sunni extremist groups. 
The writer is a Senior Fellow in National Security Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.
(Commentary)


ISIS Leader: "See You in New York" - Michael Daly    

When Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi walked away from a U.S. detention camp in 2009, the future leader of ISIS said, "I'll see you guys in New York," recalls Army Col. Kenneth King, then the commanding officer of Camp Bucca.     

King had not imagined that in less than five years he would be seeing news reports that al-Baghdadi was the leader of ISIS, the extremist army that was sweeping through Iraq toward Baghdad.    
(Daily Beast)
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