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1914: The Battle for Basra

With one-third of Iraq under the control of an Islamic State bent on redrawing the map of the modern Middle East, the legacy of decisions made during and immediately after the First World War continue to cast their long shadow over the region.

Ashura

Jihadi Blowback in Saudi Arabia

After recent attacks on Saudi Shiites by jihadis returning home from the war in Syria, Paul Aarts asks whether Islamic State’s sectarian war might spill over into Saudi Arabia.