So, Iraq is in the news again (and of course, not in a good way). Let me try to explain it to non-Iraqis—and I’ll do my best to make it not too confusing. Iraq is a majority Arab country, with a significant Kurdish population .

The Kurds live in the north under a separate governance structure called the KRG (Kurdistan Regional Government). They have their own military, the Peshmerga. While they share the same currency and remain part of federal Iraq, the relationship is toxic and transactional. The Kurds attempted to separate in 2017, but many countries—including the UnitedStates—adhere to a “OneIraq” policy .

Important note: Iraqi Kurds are more closely related to the Kurds in Iran. They are distinct from the Kurds in Turkey and Syria—different heritage, even different languages .
Iraqi and Iranian Kurds mostly speak Sorani, while most Syrian and Turkish Kurds speak Kurmanji.
While Iraqi and Iranian Kurds may share more linguistically, political alliances don’t follow this divide cleanly
I know, it’s already sounding confusing.
Now, about the Arabs in Iraq—there are basically four main groups .

Sunni Arabs who reject the nation-state (e.g., ISIS and similar groups)

Sunni Arabs who support the idea of Iraq as a nation-state

Shia Arabs who believe Iraq is part of—or an extension of—the Islamic Republic of #Iran

Shia Arabs who believe in Iraq as an independent nation-state

Confused yet ?

Group 3 has built a parallel state within Iraq, complete with militias and infrastructure, and they follow orders from Iran. These are IranianProxies.

Think: Hezbollah, AsaibAhlAlHaq, Iraqi Hezbollah is a lazy version of Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Think Hezbollah but on tequila.

Group 4 is more complex. While they reject Iranian dominance, some in this group still consider Iran an ally, some see it as a neighbor, and others treat it as a frenemy. But the common thread is that they see Iraq as a distinct entity with its own interests.

This is the camp where Iraq’s civil government belongs.
That government tries to balance between the US and Iran—basically, hedging.
So when Group 3 threatens or attacks the USEmbassy, Group 4 steps in and tells them to knock it off.

By most international standards, this would be called a FailedState.
But by Iraqi standards, this is the most stability we’ve had in decades.