Crisis in Iraq: Why is the country in such turmoil?

The Heat

As a fast-moving Islamic insurgency marches towards Baghdad, U.S. President Barack Obama has been considering how to respond to the Iraqi government’s plea for help. How will the U.S. proceed? And why is Iraq in such turmoil?

As the U.S.-backed government of Nuri al-Maliki loses up to half its territory to jihadist forces, Iraq is entering its biggest crisis in years. At the root of its trouble lies sectarianism. The Maliki government and a majority of Iraqis are Shia Muslims. The insurgents, known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), are Sunni, and have been excluded from representation. The failure of Iraqi forces to stand and fight has led to what appears to be a rapidly deteriorating situation. CCTV’s Nathan King reports.

Follow Nathan King on Twitter@nathanking

Is the crisis in Iraq getting worse? CCTV’s Anand Naidoo interviews Seyed Mohammad Marandi, Professor of North American Studies and Dean of Faculty of World Studies at the University of Tehran.

Professor Marandi on the crisis in Iraq

To discuss the crisis in Iraq, CCTV's Anand Naidoo is joined by Seyed Mohammad Marandi, Professor of North American Studies and Dean of Faculty of World Studies at the University of Tehran.

To discuss the situation in Iraq, CCTV’s Anand Naidoo is joined by Bill Roggio, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies; and Abbas Kadhim, a senior fellow with the Foreign Policy Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.