The Iraqi Origins of the Islamic State

Hans Olav Arnesen      |      10/02/2017

A seminar with Dr Truls Hallberg Tønnessen, Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI).Free admission and open for all.Time and place: Feb. 17, 2017 10:15 AM12:00 PM, Eilert Sundts hus, aud.6 Add to calendar

Truls Tønnessen (Foto: FFI)

The predecessor of the group current known as the Islamic State, al-Qaida in Iraq, was founded by foreign veterans from the conflict in Afghanistan. The Islamic State itself has attracted an unprecedented large number of foreign fighters from all over the world and engaged in a campaign of international terrorism. At the same time, the Islamic State has also been described as the heirs of Saddam Hussein and the Ba‘th party.

What are the Iraqi origins of al-Qaida in Iraq, and subsequently the Islamic State? What role did Iraqis play within the organization and to what extent has recent historical trends in Iraq and the Iraqi context influenced and facilitated the rise of al-Qaida in Iraq and its successor, the Islamic State?

Truls Hallberg Tønnessen is a Research Fellow at the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment’s (FFI) Terrorism Research Group, and former visiting scholar at Center for Security Studies, Georgetown University (2016). He holds a Phd in history from University of Oslo on the rise of al-Qaida in Iraq. He has published several articles on the conflict in Iraq and Syria.

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