Thomas Vladimir Brønd

By providing the conceptual framework for the contributions tothis Special Issue, this article argues that impunity as an omnipres-ent reality in Iraq can be better understood through the twin con-cepts: impunity state and impunity politics. It defines impunity stateas a sphere of radical security and exception from punishment, forwhich elite players strive, while creating insecurity for non-eliteIraqis. This state is sustained by impunity politics, i.e. the informalbargaining, negotiation, competition, and violence of elite actors toachieve and maintain impunity. The article draws on WalterBenjamin’s ideas and recent advances in Critical Security Studies toshow how impunity functions on a foundational level and destabil-izes Eurocentric understandings of state and sovereignty in Iraq. Itdemonstrates how the US imposed impunity on Iraq after the inva-sion in the long 2003. Lastly, it highlights how each article contrib-utes to central theme of this Special Issue.