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For Immediate Release:

March 13, 2020

If you’re looking for an independent source to provide insight and perspective on the impact on the U.S. airstrikes on Iranian-backed militia sites in Iraq and the growing tensions between Tehran and Washington, Middle East expert is available for an interview.

Khalil, who specializes in U.S. foreign policy toward the Middle East, the modern Middle East, and the Arab-Israeli conflict, is an Associate Professor of History in Syracuse University’s . He is the author of , a history of Middle East studies in the United States that was named by Foreign Affairs as a Best Book of 2017. Khalil was interviewed by and the following the U.S. airstrike in Iran in January, and he was interviewed by television following Iran’s response.

For use in your stories, here’s what Khalil says about the strikes that were in response to the rocket attack earlier this week that killed two Americans and a British soldier:

“The renewal of tensions between the United States and Iran in Iraq was predictable after the United States’ assassination of Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the Deputy Chairman of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units, in early January. Although the Trump administration insisted that the assassinations were necessary due to an imminent threat against U.S. forces as well as to restore deterrence, these claims have been proven to be false.

“The attack on the U.S. base in Taji, Iraq, and the retaliatory air strike against the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units with American, Iraq and coalition casualties will be the new normal. We should expect tensions to continue to escalate into the spring and summer with regional and global political and economic implications.”

Thank you for your consideration. For more information or to request an interview with Prof. Khalil, please contact:

Matt Michael
Media Relations Specialist
Division of Marketing and Communications

T 315.443.2990   M 315.254.9037
mmicha04@syr.edu

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