The Civilians’ Dilemma: How Religious and Ethnic Minorities Survived the Islamic State Occupation of Northern Iraq

How did Iraq’s ethnic and religious minorities survive the Islamic State (ad-Dawlah al-Islāmiyah, IS) occupation of Ninewa Governorate? Existing accounts wartime survival either essentialize social identity or ignore it altogether by reducing to cost-benefit calculations political opportunism. Against conventional wisdom, this article argues that individuals conflict drawing on repertoires – consisting practices, tools, organized routines, symbols, rhetorical strategies navigate violent situations. Distinct from deliberate rational strategies, are creative, flexible, often contradictory. The author examines Iraqis’ reliance through a mixed-methods research design observational data fieldwork. This study begins analyzing migration patterns recorded in United Nation’s Displacement Tracking Matrix. To understand how Iraqis who remained survived conflict, work draws original interviews with Iraqi peacebuilders minority communities. While most fled during IS offensive June 2014, those pursued various forms cooperation, contention, neutrality. finds mobilizing self-defense groups their coordination members anti-IS coalition. Opportunistic collaboration insurgents initial stages was less common. In areas where Security Forces (al-Quwāt al-Maslahah al-ʿIrāqiyya, ISF) Peshmerga were absent, residents mobilized community militias unaligned Baghdād Arbīl. findings provide insights for scholars practitioners interested peacebuilding, transitional justice, post-conflict reconstruction fragile states.