Inside Story

Who can stop the Islamic State’s advance?

Concern as the Islamic State continues expanding its territories under its control in Iraq.

Islamic State fighters have won yet another battle, this time over Kurdish fighters, known as the Peshmerga. The IS managed to grab an oil field and 3 towns.

There are reports it may have seized the Mosul dam, Iraq’s largest.

This is seen as a severe setback for the Kurds, who rule themselves in a northern enclave guarded by the Peshmerga units. They had expanded areas under their control in recent weeks while avoiding direct confrontation with the Islamic State, even as Iraqi central government troops fled.

The Islamic State controls cities in Iraq’s Tigris and Euphrates valleys north and west of Baghdad, and a section of Syria stretching from the Iraqi border in the east to Aleppo in the northwest.

So, how far will the group go as it consolidates its gains? And how much of a threat is it to Iraq and the region?

Presenter: Hazem Sika

Guests:

Sabah Al Mokhtar – president of the Arab Lawyers Association in the UK.

Ahmed Habib – editor of Shakomako.net and author of “Dummies Guide to Iraq: 10 Years After the American led Occupation of 2003″