This research project examines sectarianism and sectarian violence in Pakistan between 1996-2005. It represents a departure from the security-focused research on sectarianism and provides contemporary analysis of sectarian violence by contextualising it. This thesis distinguishes sectarianism as an analytical concept from sectarianism as a phenomenon in Pakistan. The existing literature on sectarianism and sectarianism in the Pakistani context is critically examined, and this research is located within that body of knowledge. In this thesis, sectarian violence is understood as being conducted to reproduce and reinforce exclusivist sectarian discourse. This premise is analysed through the framework of identity formation and identity politics, and spatial understandings of identities. The study examines the locations of sectarian violence in Pakistan, and analyses the spaces where sectarian identity discourse is enforced and maintained through violence. Consequently, the concept of sacred space and sacred time are analysed as locations of sectarian violence. The contestations of public space by competing identity discourses, and the spatial manifestations of those competing identities are analysed. This dissertation also attempts to draw out whether sectarian violence is only located within and through the organised sectarian groups, or whether the sectarian violence indicates wider fault lines in the Pakistani society.

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No / Are oil-rich countries prone to war? And, if so, why? There is a widely held belief that contemporary wars are motivated by the desire of great powers like the United States or Russia to control precious oil resources and to ensure energy security. This book argues that the main reason why oil-rich countries are prone to war is because of the character of their society and economy. Sectarian groups compete for access to oil resources and finance their military adventures through smuggling oil, kidnapping oil executives, or blowing up pipelines. Outside intervention only makes things worse. The use of conventional military force as in Iraq can bring neither stability nor security of supply. This book examines the relationship between oil and war in six different regions: Angola, Azerbaijan, Colombia, Indonesia, Nigeria and Russia. Each country has substantial oil reserves, and has a long history of conflict. The contributors assess what part oil plays in causing, aggravating or mitigating war in each region and how this relation has altered with the changing nature of war. It offers a novel conceptual approach bringing together Kaldor's work on 'new wars' and Karl's work on the petro-state.

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This research project examines sectarianism and sectarian violence in Pakistan between 1996-2005. It represents a departure from the security-focused research on sectarianism and provides contemporary analysis of sectarian violence by contextualising it. This thesis distinguishes sectarianism as an analytical concept from sectarianism as a phenomenon in Pakistan. The existing literature on sectarianism and sectarianism in the Pakistani context is critically examined, and this research is located within that body of knowledge. In this thesis, sectarian violence is understood as being conducted to reproduce and reinforce exclusivist sectarian discourse. This premise is analysed through the framework of identity formation and identity politics, and spatial understandings of identities. The study examines the locations of sectarian violence in Pakistan, and analyses the spaces where sectarian identity discourse is enforced and maintained through violence. Consequently, the concept of sacred space and sacred time are analysed as locations of sectarian violence. The contestations of public space by competing identity discourses, and the spatial manifestations of those competing identities are analysed. This dissertation also attempts to draw out whether sectarian violence is only located within and through the organised sectarian groups, or whether the sectarian violence indicates wider fault lines in the Pakistani society.

Cette thèse ne traite pas de l'Islam, mais uniquement d'une partie de celui-ci, la frange extrême. Il y a dans ce travail une progression, la vision radicale de l'islam engendre d'abord des victimes, une partie des croyants sont sous une emprise que l'on peut qualifier de sectaire. Ce terme tabou pendant longtemps n'a jamais été associé à l'islam avant le rapport parlementaire sur le port de la burqa. Pourtant, par un raisonnement par analogie, des branches de l'islam fonctionnent comme les sectes dénoncés dans de nombreux rapports parlementaires.Lorsque l'adepte cherche à appliquer les préceptes les plus rigoristes de l'islam, il se trouve parfois en conflit avec les valeurs et le droit français, dont l'origine et les fondements actuels sont totalement différents. Il y aura alors une mutation. L'adepte victime d'une forme sectaire de l'islam va se retrouver auteur de faits pénalement répréhensible, cette situation pouvant l'amener jusqu'à tomber dans l'activisme. Cette frange est numériquement dérisoire, mais elle s'appuie sur un système financier pour fonctionner plus large et difficilement cernable. L'image du rhizome peut s'appliquer à ce financement. En effet, comme ce végétal, le financement de l'activisme puise à plusieurs sources et alimente plusieurs tiges. L'activisme islamiste en France est passé d'un phénomène relativement ancien et importé de l'étranger à une crainte permanente avec des acteurs pouvant être français / This thesis does not deal with Islam, but only a fraction of it, it's extreme fringe. As this work progresses, it highlights that radical Islamism firstly creates victims, and places a part of the believers under an influence that can be defined as sectarian. This term remained taboo for a long time and has never been associated with Islam before the parliamentary report on the wearing of the burqa. Yet, arguing by analogy, one can see that branches of Islam do function just like sects denounced in several parliamentary reports.When a follower tries to apply the most rigorous precepts of Islam, he may enter a conflict with French values and law, who's origin and actual foundations are entirely different. Their takes place a mutation. A follower being the victim of a sectarian form of Islam gets to become the perpetrator of criminal offenses, this situation may further lead him up to fall into activism. This fringe is numerically absurdly low, but is backed in it's functioning by a financial system that is larger and hard to figure out. The rhizome may give a close picture of this financing. As this plant, the financing of activism has several sources and feeds several stems. Islamic activism in France, formerly a relatively ancient phenomenon imported from abroad, is now a permanent fear and could involve French actors

The recent policies of former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, combined with the collapse of the Syrian state in 2011, created conditions that led to the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or “ISIS.” As of November 2014, ISIS controls large areas of western and northern Iraq and northern and eastern Syria, an area roughly the size of Belgium. The rise of ISIS in the past three years has caught the attention of every major nation, especially the United States, and world leaders are justified in fearing a strong ISIS in the Middle East. The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of the US strategy in combating the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. The effectiveness of the United States strategy is closely linked with numerous factors, including the history of sectarian violence in Iraq. These factors will be explored throughout the paper. This analysis sheds light on the strengths and weaknesses of the US strategy and provides various ways the US can further its goals in the region.