MERI launches its annual forum at Erbil Citadel
The forum is set to formally begin on Tuesday in Erbil.
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Middle East Research Institute on Monday evening launched its annual forum in the Kurdistan Region’s capital Erbil, themed “Iraq for all”.
Held at the historic Erbil Citadel, the launching event was attended by members of the diplomatic community, government officials as well as pundits from both inside Iraq and abroad.
The opening panel, titled Prevention of Violent Extremism in the Middle East, witnessed a lengthy academic discussion on the root causes of the phenomena in the conflict-ridden region, where climate change threats have recently compounded the long-standing crisis such as militancy.
Coming from various research circles and academic backgrounds, the panelists highlighted a number of conflict-driven factors, including endemic corruption, severe unemployment, and weak state institutions.
Kamaran Palani, a research fellow at MERI, argued that the drivers of violent extremism in Iraq are no longer just religiously-motived. Rather, they are fueled by socio-economic inequalities that require a “radical change” in government and its institutions' approach to the issue along with research communities.
The forum is set to formally begin on Tuesday in Erbil, where top Iraqi and Kurdish leaders are expected to attend to speak about a variety of topics related to the ongoing political and economic challenges.
MERI is an Erbil-based research institute that focuses on policy issues in Iraq, Kurdistan Region, and the Middle East.
