When it came to disinformation, shutting down the Internet to prevent protests in Iraq may have backfired. Iraqis get most of their information from social media and there was none, so false reports circulated wildly.
Iraqi Kurdistan’s opposition parties did not do as well as expected in May’s federal election. September's regional elections are their last chance to prove to disillusioned voters there’s a point to their existence.
Living conditions north of Iraq are not necessarily better than those in the south, where Iraqis are currently demonstrating. But the Sunnis who live there won’t join the protests:They fear the consequences.
Iraq’s politicians are not getting anywhere, as they negotiate to form the next government. It is apparently so frustrating that many have even started talking to their sworn political enemies again.
While parties are negotiating to form a new government and recounting votes, worried ex-parliamentarians are asking who will hold an interim administration to account.