Review The Occupation of Iraq, Winning The War, Losing The Peace

Review Allawi, Ali, The Occupation of Iraq, Winning The War, Losing The Peace, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2007

Initially, the dominant narrative about the 2003 invasion of Iraq came from the Americans and the British. As time passed, Iraqis were able to add their voice to what happened to their country. One of the most prominent was Ali Allawi. He had an interesting background as he was involved in exile opposition politics in the 1990s. Then, after the overthrow of Saddam, he served in the 2004 interim government and then the 2005 Jaafari administration. That insider perspective was what made his The Occupation of Iraq, Winning The War, Losing The Peace a standout book about post-Saddam Iraq. Allawi’s main thesis was that Iraq was a lesson in unintended consequences. The United States invaded a country which it took no time to study and never seriously planned for. The result was unleashing a firestorm of forces that were completely out of control of the Americans. The new Iraqi elite that took power was little better as they provided no national vision for the new Iraq, something that had been a problem since Iraq was formed after World War I. Allawi therefore believed that Iraq was an unmitigated disaster.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 26

1925 Abdul Sadoun became PM of Iraq for 2^nd time

1940 PM Gaylani asked Italy to become involved in Syria to block Turkey occupying it Came after

Syria joined Vichy France

(Musings On Iraq book review of Rashid Ali al-Gailani, The National Movement in Iraq 1939-1941)

(Musings On Iraq book review of Persian Gulf Command, A History of the Second World War In Iran and Iraq)

1948 Muzahim al-Pachachi became premier

1988 Iraq recaptured Majnoon Islands from Iran

(Musings On Iraq interview with author Anthony Tucker-Jones on Iran-Iraq War)

(Musings On Iraq interview with author Tom Cooper on Iran-Iraq War)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iran-Iraq War Volume 3: Iraq’s Triumph)

(Musings On Iraq book review The Iran-Iraq War 1980-1988)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iran-Iraq War, The Lion of Babylon, 1980-1988)

(Musings On Iraq book review The Iran-Iraq War)

1989 Iraq said it was clearing all civilians from 20 mil border area with Iran and Turkey in Kurdistan

relocated 200,000-5000,000 Kurds

(Musings On Iraq book review of The Kurds, A Modern History)

(Musings On Iraq book review Kurds of Iraq, Tragedy and Hope)

1993 Pres Clinton ordered cruise missile attack on Iraq’s intel HQ in Baghdad for attempted assassination of

ex-Pres Bush in Kuwait

1996 Iraqi govt rounded up 120 coup plotters and executed most of them in failed plot by CIA and Iraqi

National Accord Iraqi intel had captured satellite phone from Iraqi National Accord agent in Iraq and uncovered CIA-INA plot Iraqi intelligence used captured phone to call CIA and told them to go home

(Musings On Iraq book review The United States And Iraq Since 1990: A Brief History with Documents)

2002 Gen Franks met with commanders in Germany and told them to switch from original war plan to new

Running Start Would begin war before all forces in theater

(Musings On Iraq book review of Shaping the Plan for Operation Iraqi Freedom, The Role of Military Intelligence Assessment)

2002 INC memo to Senate Approp Comm said group had led to 108 articles from Oct 01-May 02

and White House officials had received those products

(Musings On Iraq book review Leap of Faith, Hubris Negligence, and America’s Greatest Foreign Policy

Tragedy)

2003 UN terrorism committee draft report found no Iraq-Al Qaeda links

2003 Ayatollah Sistani issued fatwa saying Iraqis should elect council to draft new constitution vs CPA

plan 

2003 Report quoted State Dept memo that too early to tell whether captured Iraqi trailers were mobile

WMD labs

(Musings On Iraq article on mobile labs story)

2005 Def Sec Rumsfeld said US conducting secret talks to try to split Iraqis from foreign insurgents

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq’s Sunni Insurgency)

2006 Al Qaeda in Iraq robbed $7 mil from Rafidain bank branch in Ramadi

2007 US gen in charge of advisers warned ISF years away from being able to handle security Warned

against early withdrawal of US forces as a result

2008 ISI suicide bomber hit tribal council meeting Killed 26 including Garma mayor

2016 Fallujah finally freed of insurgents 

View the Iraq History Timelines

Iraq Finally Has A Defense Interior Justice Ministers

New Def Min Shawani (Al Mirbad)

Prime Minister Adel Mahdi took office on October 25, 2018 with an incomplete cabinet. That included no Defense, Interior and Justice ministers. This time it was even more difficult for parliament to fill these positions because Mahdi had no list behind him for support. Instead he was selected by a compromise between Moqtada al-Sadr and Hadi Amiri who led the two main winning lists in the election. Sadr has become increasingly critical of the PM giving him a ten day ultimatum to fill the empty spots in his government. After nine months, lawmakers finally filled those three ministries.

This Time In Iraqi History - Jun 25

1933 Iraqi army sent to Dohuk in show of force against armed followers of Assyrian leader Mar

Shimun

(Musings On Iraq book review of The Tragedy of the Assyrian Minority in Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq book review State and Society in Iraq)

1961 Gen Qasim called for Kuwait to be re-united with Iraq Egypt said it was opposed to idea because

Nasser opposed Qasim

1988 2^nd Op Tawakal ala Allah using chemical weapons Iraq attacked and retook Majnoon Islands

(Musings On Iraq interview with author Anthony Tucker-Jones on Iran-Iraq War)

(Musings On Iraq interview with author Tom Cooper on Iran-Iraq War)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iran-Iraq War Volume 3: Iraq’s Triumph)

(Musings On Iraq book review The Iran-Iraq War 1980-1988)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iran-Iraq War, The Lion of Babylon, 1980-1988)

(Musings On Iraq book review The Iran-Iraq War)

1991 Iraqis fired on UN weapons inspectors at suspected nuke site

(Musings On Iraq article UN Inspectors Were Right Iraq Was Not A Threat)

(Musings On Iraq article Iraq’s Rejection of UN Inspectors Led To Mistrust Over WMD and 2003 Invasion)

(Musings On Iraq book review The Saddam Tapes)

(Musings On Iraq Chilcot Report Sec 1.1 UK Iraq Strategy 1990 To 2000)

2003 Report Captured Zarqawi operative in Germany said Zarqawi independent terrorist not part of Al

Qaeda

2003 Report State Dept WMD analyst told Congressional hearing he felt pressured to tailor intel to fit Bush

admin agenda on Iraq

2003 UN Sec Gen Annan met with PM Blair Annan said that UN was pushing Bremer to transition

to Iraqi control as quickly as possible Said Bremer good at making fast decisions but that meant he didn’t talk to others Complained deBaathification had gone too far

2004 INC turned over captured Iraqi doc Iraq intel and bin Laden met in 90s Iraq agreed to air anti-Saudi

tapes but request for joints ops unanswered by Iraq

2006 PM Maliki announced national reconciliation program Included Reconciliation Council National

Dialogue Plan fighting terrorism Reviewing Debaathification Commission Amnesty for prisoners not involved in terrorism Compensation for terrorism and Saddam victims and IDPs Improving services Dealing with militias Fighting poverty and joblessness Nothing came of it

2006 Health Ministry recorded over 50,000 Iraqi deaths since 2003 from terrorism and military clashes

2006 Report CIA officer Drumheller warned Agency before Bush’s Jan 03 State of the Union and Sec

State Powell’s Feb 03 UN speech not to use story Iraq had mobile WMD labs

2006 Report CIA officer warned that source of mobile labs story Iraqi named CURVEBALL held by

Germans was unstable and story not verified

2006 Report Germans warned CIA that CURVEBALL was unreliable and refused to allow CIA access to

him

2006 CIA Dir Tenet told Sec State Powell it had multiple sources confirming Iraq mobile lab story while

preparing Powell’s UN speech CURVEBALL was only real source

2006 Right before Sec State Powell’s speech CIA Dir called CIA officer Drumheller to fact check speech

Told Tenet not to use mobile labs claim

(Musings On Iraq article on how CURVEBALL influenced US intel on Iraq’s WMD)

(Musings On Iraq articles on the CURVEBALL story)

2007 ISI suicide bomber killed Sheikh Gaood of Albu Nimr tribe Sheikh Rifai al-Fahdawai of Albu Fahad

Sheikh Azziz al-Fahadawi Sheikh al-Assafir head of the Albu Assaf tribe in Baghdad hotel before meeting with US officials Were all Awakening members

2007 US cmdr Op Arrowhead Ripper in Baquba said ISF not capable of holding areas cleared by US

General in southern Baghdad said same thing

2014 Al-Nusra commander on Syrian-Iraq border gave allegiance to ISIS

2014 Ishaqi Salahaddin declared freed 3^rd time in just a few days

(Musings On Iraq Iraq’s Northern Front Stalemate In Salahaddin)

View the Iraq History Timelines 
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Security In Iraq Jun 15-21 2019

(Iraqi News)

Despite the Islamic State being in the third month of its spring-summer campaign Revenge of the Levant incidents have decreased every week of June. There were 26 the first week, 25 the second, and then 16 the third week. That could be because two of the main sources on violence in Iraq are offline so there were likely more incidents then were recorded this month.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 24

1933 Interior Minister would not let Assyrian leader Mar Shimun leave Baghdad after being in

capital for nearly a month

(Musings On Iraq book review of The Tragedy of the Assyrian Minority in Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq book review State and Society in Iraq)

1981 UK signed trade pact with Baghdad that would expand trade to more than $2 bil/yr

1982 9^th Regional Baath Party Congress held in secret Saddam said party infiltrated by enemies and suffered

bad decisions to get rid of dissenters Health Min Hussein who said Saddam might step down was executed Saddam changed party leadership to ensure his control

1984 Iraq air raids resumed on Iranian oil infrastructure with attack on Kharg Island Iran’s main oil

terminal Destroyed docking bay but operating again in 5 days

(Musings On Iraq interview with author Anthony Tucker-Jones on Iran-Iraq War)

(Musings On Iraq interview with author Tom Cooper on Iran-Iraq War)

(Musings On Iraq book review The Iran-Iraq War 1980-1988)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iran-Iraq War, The Lion of Babylon, 1980-1988)

(Musings On Iraq book review The Iran-Iraq War)

1994 SCIRI claimed govt building new canal to drain southern marshes and drive out displaced and rebels

2003 Def Sec Rumsfeld said Iraq had chemical weapons but not nuclear weapons

(Musings On Iraq article on how poor US intel work led to claim Iraq rebuilt its nuclear weapons program)

(Musings On Iraq article Iraq, One Of The Worst Intelligence Failures In US History)

2003 UN head inspector Blix said inspectors were not impressed with Sec State Powell’s Feb 03 speech to

UN on Iraq’s WMD

(Musings On Iraq article UN Inspectors Were Right Iraq Was Not A Threat)

(Musings On Iraq article Iraq’s Rejection of UN Inspectors Led To Mistrust Over WMD and 2003 Invasion)

2003 Weapons search in Maysan’s Majar al-Kabir led to shootout and death of 6 British soldiers

2003 UK intel report believed Iran backed Mujahedeen for Islamic Revolution in Iraq that killed 6 British

soldiers

2003 Fallujah’s mayor’s office hit by RPG for working with US

2004 Al Qaeda in Iraq carried out multiple car bombs and attacks on police in Baghdad Baquba Fallujah

Ramadi and Mosul killing 92 wounding 285 Took over police station and city hall in Baquba and held city center for 6 hours

2004 Sadr announced unilateral ceasefire with US in Sadr City

2014 Operation to try to free Tal Afar launched and failed

2018 Protest in Diyala over electricity cuts Province had not received 35% of its power

View the Iraq History Timelines 
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Musings On Iraq in The News

Musings On Iraq was cited in "Reclaiming The Initiative: Proxy Warfare In The Middle East" by Yaniv Friedman and Lazar Berman in Small Wars Journal.

Link to all of Musings On Iraq's citations, appearances and original work.