Haunted Life: Sovereignty, Affect, and Impunity in Iraq

The 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq unleashed aspirations for democratic governance grounded in human rights and dignity. While some promises have been met, many have not. During the past 20 years, the US-led invasion of Iraq ultimately established a state of impunity. This article explores how Iraqis make sense of their lives amidst legacies of violence and the hauntings of its potential return. It focuses on Ahmed–an Iraqi man who endured years of extrajudicial detention and horrific violence. It argues that past horror plays an ever-present, haunting role in shaping the lives of survivors and their communities. By examining how Ahmed narrates his past and navigates a present where everyday routines are filtered through emotions, senses, and behaviors marked by profound insecurity, this article contends that horror and haunting must be understood as both state affect and an affective state of being. The article contributes to understandings of how impunity and sovereign violence operate and are experienced by those who are subjected to them.