This report was produced through a desk study and a workshop with a number of Iraqi politicians, academics and activists, as well as a few international representatives, in Baghdad in September 2019. We wholeheartedly thank these individuals for their energy, commitment and time.

We also would like to express our gratitude to Hashim al-Rikabi (Al-Kufah University) for his analysis of protests across Iraq until October 2019, which provided the basis for Section 5. Some of his findings have also been published in a helpful paper: The Rising Tide of Change in Iraq: An Assessment of the 2018 and 2019 Protests (online) via the Arab Reform Initiative.

Sincere thanks are also due to Ali al-Mawlawi (Al-Bayan Center), Violet Benneker (Leiden University), Hashim al-Rikabi (Al-Kufah University), Antoine Brasset, Emma Wind and Edin Elgsaether (Netherlands Institute for Multi-party Democracy (NIMD)) as well as Mariska van Beijnum (Clingendael) for reviewing the report.

The research for the report was concluded in October 2019 and the peer review in January 2020. The report benefited from a light update in May 2020 to take account of Iraq’s three government formation attempts that took place between January and April 2020. A light update, because the evidence so far has not led us to believe fundamental change has occurred in relation to the findings of this report.

The contents of the report naturally remain the responsibility of the authors.