This brief delves into what Turkey’s newfound involvement could bring to the political and military situation in Syria, given their strategic geopolitical position.

The US and its coalition should look hard as its position in siding with an ally that fears a Kurdish State more than an Islamic one.

The Kurds have been among the greatest victims of history.

“For the first time in 1600 years, no Christmas and Easter masses were celebrated in Mosul.”

The HSC’s Executive Director, Julie Lenarz, tells Dotun Adebayo that much more needs to be done to defeat ISIS. “Our current strategy is one of containment, not elimination.”

Devotees of more realpolitik oriented foreign policy persuasions claim they aren't under any illusions about the brutality of the regime of Syria's Bashar al-Assad. Nevertheless in their worldview limited cooperation with him against a threat like Islamic State (IS) is necessitated by the dire and unsavoury circumstances which exist today in Syria. And since neither the United States nor the United Kingdom are likely to insert ground forces to combat IS forces in Syria a temporary alliance or coordination of operations with Damascus solely in order to fight IS is the best option to feasibly confront this threat.

On 18th August 2014, the HSC’s Executive Director, Julie Lenarz, was on LBC discussing the threat posed by ISIS and strategy in Iraq.

Campaigners have marched through the streets of London to protest against recent attacks on Iraqis and Syrians by ISIS militants. Hundreds of people gathered outside BBC Broadcasting House before marching through Oxford Street towards the US Embassy. Demonstrators, led by ...

On 13th August, 2014, the Human Security Centre’s Executive Director, Julie Lenarz, was invited by Channel 4 News to discuss the Yezidi situation in Iraq and the way forward.

The active sectarian rivalry and conflict in Iraq – long exploited by successive governments in Bagdad – has reached crisis proportions. Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city and a primary oil centre, was overrun and occupied June 12th 2014 by the Sunni militant group the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham) (ISIS) which formerly fought under the al-Qaeda banner. ISIS are making gains on their previous successes in taking large parts of the central city of Fallujah in December 2013