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By John Cookson. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

The exact origin of the proverb "cometh the hour, cometh the man" are unknown, but there can be no doubt the man tasked with saving Iraq from disintegration at this dangerous hour is 63-year-old Nouri Al-Maliki.

In these pivotal days in Iraq's history, what do we know about him and can he crush the jihadists?

He rarely gives interviews but we know Al-Maliki is a man of determination who has successfully walked a treacherous political tight rope in a country still swirling with violence and intrigue after 40 years of conflict.

As leader of the Shi'ite Dawa Party he has been Prime Minister for two terms and - before ISIS's astonishing advance and the fall of Mosul - was bidding to be nominated for another 4 years.

But his critics - and there are many - accuse him of presiding over one of the most corrupt regimes in the world and his dictatorial style, personal control of security and intelligence services, and especially marginalisation of the Sunnis are seen by many as the primary causes of the present crisis.

In the past several senior US politicians have asked for him to be removed from office including Hillary Clinton and Carl Levin.

His opponents also claim he is a puppet of Iran, although Western diplomats in Baghdad insist he is his own man and regularly stands up to Teheran.

A strong orator, he is tough on enemies and readily signed Saddam's death warrant in 2006 saying there would be no appeal. He also crushed a rebellion by Muqtada al Sadr's militia in Basrah.

He is familiar with guerilla warfare having spent 25 years in exile during the Saddam era mostly in Syria directing operations against the Iraqi dictator.

By John Cookson. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Today's audacious jihadist attack on Mosul by Al Qaeda affiliate ISIS must surely be a massive wake up call in Washington that Iraq needs urgent help.

Hundreds of jihadists seized key government offices, banks and the airport in Iraq's second city. Prison doors were smashed open and up to a 1,000 inmates released.

In a damning indictment of Iraqi security forces, army and police officers abandoned their vehicles and uniforms and fled as ISIS forces went on the rampage.

ISIS already effectively controls Al Anbar governorate including Fallujah where it declared an Islamist state. This week saw deadly bombings of Kurdish targets in Diyala. ISIS is increasingly active in Salah-al din. And now Ninevah's capital is its latest target.

Caretaker Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has called for an emergency session of parliament on Thursday and by then Iraqi security forces will surely have regained some control of Mosul, where ISIS fighters may just have overreached themselves.

However the fact ISIS is so motivated, so well equipped and battle-hardened to even attempt to take Mosul is a huge blow not only to Baghdad, but also to the morale of Iraqi security forces and of course the long-suffering Iraqi people.