Michael Knights

Guest Author

Michael Knights (@Mikeknightsiraq) is the Jill and Jay Bernstein Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He has spent extensive time on the ground in Iraq in militia-saturated environments and interviewing militia-linked politicians. Along with Hamid Malik and Aymenn al-Tamimi, he is the author of “Honored , Not Contained: The Future of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces”. He is the editor of the Washington Institute’s Militia Spotlight forum, which documents evidence of militia crimes in Iraq and Syria.

Knights earned his doctorate at the Department of War Studies, King’s College London.

Articles by this author:

Supporters of Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr gather outside the main gate of Baghdad's Green Zone on July 27, 2022 to protest.

Remaking Iraq: How Iranian-Backed Militias Captured the Country

Mar. 20, 2023 Crispin Smith and Michael Knights

Iraqi fighters of the Hashed al-Shaabi units stand guard during a campaign gathering for the Fateh Alliance, a coalition of Iranian-supported militia groups, in Baghdad on May 7, 2018, ahead of Iraq's parliamentary elections to be held on May 12. Some hold weapons, and a few sit on the ground.

Team of Legal Gladiators? Iraqi Militias’ Tortured Relationship with Law

Apr. 12, 2021 Crispin Smith, Hamdi Malik and 1 more