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Can Iraq Avoid Fragmentation?

We are in Baghdad where the central government struggles to keep control of the whole country while it faces challenges from Islamic State militants and accusations of corruption.

Ever since the invasion in 2003 Iraq has faced ceaseless conflict. Today there are two parallel crises. In Baghdad protesters are demanding an end to elite corruption. And, on the battlefield, the Iraqi army and Shia militias are fighting so-called Islamic State. But Iraqis are wondering about the battles to come. Will the central government have to cede power to armed groups that control their own areas? Owen Bennett-Jones is in Baghdad, along with his guests to discuss the forces threatening Iraq's fragmentation.

(Photo: Protest by supporters of the Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Credit: AP/Khalid Mohammed)

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50 minutes

Last on

Sat 2 Apr 2016 10:06GMT

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  • Fri 1 Apr 2016 08:06GMT
  • Fri 1 Apr 2016 23:06GMT
  • Sat 2 Apr 2016 03:06GMT
  • Sat 2 Apr 2016 10:06GMT

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