Iraq faces an existential crisis: the Sunni-dominated group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria has declared itself “the Islamic State”; Kurds in the north are solidifying their autonomy; and the largely-Shiite controlled government in Baghdad braces against further gains by its foes. In 2007, Brookings Senior Fellow Michael O’Hanlon and SAIS (Johns Hopkins) Senior Fellow Edward Joseph wrote a paper, “The Case for Soft Partition in Iraq,” in which they laid out the rationale for an Iraq-led approach to a viable soft-partition of Iraq in the wake of then-escalating intercommunal violence. In a new opinion piece, O’Hanlon and Joseph revisit their proposal in light of the current situation, writing that “Though it would be difficult to accomplish, federalism could still be a helpful element as Iraqis struggle through their current tragic mess.”