Explosion and Evolution: The Sunni-Shi'a Conflict in Iraq 1991-2013

The 1991 uprisings in Iraq's southern governorates following Operation: Desert Storm - and the decade of trauma that followed them - were the "Big Bang" that begat the modern era of Iraqi sectarianism and the Sunni-Shi'a divide. The memory of the 1991 intifada created new Iraqi Sunni and Shi'a identities alike, and set the stage for the period of open confrontation and civil war following the US-led invasion in 2003. The new, Shi'a-led Iraqi government now faces a retrenching Sunni opposition, and strives to get its own internal problems resolved, as the two sides find themselves locked in an increasingly non-violent (but also increasingly tense) stand-off. At stake are the future of Iraq and the safety of Iraq's Sunni and Shi'a alike.