Colin Kahl Quoted From NSN Press Call By US News On Iraq

Sayonara, Iraq Borders

By Paul D. Shinkman

June 27, 2014 | US News

Throughout the confusion and disarray that has plagued the Middle East in recent weeks, one likelihood has emerged: Iraq, as the Western world knows it, is likely over.

Extremist group the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has turned the Iraqi-Syrian border into little more than a doormat as it continues to strike security bases, seize territory across the former U.S. war zone and descend upon the capital Baghdad. President Barack Obama said last week he would deploy as many as 300 special operations commandos to not only bolster what’s left of the Iraqi forces, but also attempt to add some clarity to a situation that has left most national security officials scratching their heads.

“The border between Syria and Iraq has effectively been erased,” said Colin Kahl, a professor at Georgetown University and senior fellow at the D.C.-based think tank Center for a New American Security, while speaking on a conference call with reporters organized by the National Security Network.

To continue reading, click here