 In the past week, the Iraqi forces backed by the U.S.-led coalition have made advances into the western half of Mosul to recapture the area from ISIS. Mosul is the second largest city in Iraq, so its capture by ISIS in 2014 was particularly symbolic and its pending liberation will mark a turning point in efforts to defeat this terrorist group. Leaders of Iraq's Shia, Sunni, Kurdish and religious minority communities have recognized the cost of this conflict and are willing to engage in a political dialogue, but they need a mediated process to help bring them together. And now it is becoming even more urgent because Iraq is entering an election cycle with overdue provincial elections in the fall and debate about the timing of parliamentary elections. That means that any discussion of political reconciliation risks getting lost in sectarian electoral competition. So we need to urgently help them reach political consensus, especially right now, as many Iraqis are cooperating in the fight against ISIS. If we miss this opportunity to stabilize Iraq, we run the risk of Iraq falling back into pre-ISIS sectarian divisions or even worse. That could mean much more community violence and further radicalization.