The Brewing Battle for Baghdad

Baghdad Diary

The Islamic State threatens Baghdad and hopes to provoke a new civil war. But Iraq’s capital won’t fall without a bloody fight.

Published Aug. 3 2014 6:30PM EDT

articles/2014/08/03/a-sectarian-storm-is-brewing-in-iraq/140802-siegel-iraq-tease_vcgdd1 — Jacob Siegel/The Daily Beast

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- On the night of July 14, after being served a generous dinner in one of Baghdad’s better neighborhoods and then given a tightly controlled, almost scripted interview, I watched a video of a man being tortured.

Jacob Siegel

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The Brewing Battle for Baghdad

The Islamic State threatens Baghdad and hopes to provoke a new civil war. But Iraq’s capital won’t fall without a bloody fight.

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Jacob Siegel