Chilcot Report Section 3.1 Development of UK Strategy and Options On Iraq, 9/11 to Early January 2002

Section 3.1 of the Chilcot Report documented the United Kingdom’s continued problems with its Iraq strategy at the start of the 2000s. London realized that international opinion had turned against its containment policy of sanctions and demanding weapons inspectors return to Iraq, yet it had no alternatives. Then 9/11 happened, opening the door to advocates of regime change within the new Bush administration. The Blair government initially believed that it still didn’t have to change, but finally decided that getting rid of Saddam had to be on the table. That was the start of London following Washington for the rest of the decade.

This Day In Iraqi History - Apr 30

1917 Battle of the Boot at Band-i-Adhaim between British and Ottomans

1924 Baghdad said willing to give land to Assyrians

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

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

1941 PM Gaylani refused permission for British troops to land in Basra

1941 2 brigades of Iraqi soldiers surrounded British Habaniya base ordered British to cease operations

there Iraq had 9000 troops British 2250

1941 Iraqi forces surrounded British embassy in Baghdad

1941 PM Gaylani hoped to pressure British to leave Iraq without a fight

1941 UK memo to Chiefs of Staff discussed destroying Iraq’s oil wells to deny them to Germany

(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)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq 1941, The Battles for Basra, Habbaniya, Fallujah and Baghdad)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq And Syria 1941, The Politics and Strategy of the Second World War)

1948 Jewish forces took Jaffa, and 7 other towns held by Iraqi volunteers in 1^st Arab Israeli War

1959 Qasim banned political organizing within army Was aimed at Communists

(Musings On Iraq book review Red Star Over Iraq, Iraqi Communism Before Saddam)

(Musings On Iraq Interview with Prof Johan Franzen on the history of the Iraqi Communist Party)

(Musings On Iraq interview with Western Kentucky’s Prof Romero on the Qasim govt)

1969 Bakr govt executed opponents in central Baghdad

1980 By end of April around 20 Iraqi officials had been killed in bombings by Shiite opposition parties

1980 Arab Iranians seized Iranian embassy in London demanding sovereignty for Khuzistan province Were

trained and armed by Iraq

1982 Iran launched Op Bait al-Moqaddas to recapture Khorramshahr across from Basra and liberate

Khuzistan province Iran has 12 divisions 200,000 soldiers vs 5 Iraqi divisions and 65,000 men Iran would gain 300 sq mi Iranian paratroopers dropped on Karun River near Darkhovin while engineers built bridge over river

(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)

1985 Sec State Shultz asked Def Sec Weinberger to speed up approval of technology exports to Iraq

1985 State Dept intel reported no evidence Iraq had started on a nuclear weapons program It had

1990 Jordanian prosecutor report detailed fake bank accounts Ahmed Chalabi ran with his Petra Bank

1996 Turkey began bombing campaign along border against PKK

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

1997 Fighting broke out between PUK and Kurdish Islamic Movement

2001 NSC meeting on Al Qaeda threat DepDefSec Wolfowitz asked why US should focus on bin Laden

when Iraq terrorism real threat

2001 Dep CIA Dir McLaughlin told DepDefSec Wolfowitz no evidence of Iraq terrorist threat to US

2001 DepSecState Armitage told DepDefSec Wolfowitz Al Qaeda was the main threat to US

2003 U.S. forces shot at civilians for 2^nd time in 2 days in Fallujah 2 killed

(Musings On Iraq book review The Battle for Fallujah, Occupation, Resistance and Stalemate in the War in Iraq)

2003 Rumsfeld visited Iraq Realized rebuilding country would take years which was not his plan

2004 Marines withdrew from Fallujah turning over security to Fallujah Brigade

(Musings On Iraq book review The Battle for Fallujah, Occupation, Resistance and Stalemate in the War in Iraq)

2004 Daily Mirror published what turned out to be fake pictures of UK forces abusing Iraqi prisoners

2004 Poll 71% of Iraqis saw US as occupiers 46% said invasion more harmful then good

2004 New Yorker publishes photos of Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal

2005 Mass grave with up to 1,500 Kurds killed by Saddam during Anfal campaign found outside Samawa

(Musings On Iraq article on Anfal campaign)

2006 Fmr Sec State Powell told UK TV he advised CENTCOM cmdr Gen Franks US needed more troops

before invasion but advise ignored

2006 Pres Talabani said 7 insurgent groups might be able to be talked into joining political process

2006 US Special Inspector Gen for Iraq Reconstruction report said attacks still retarding rebuilding projects

but real progress being made Said attacks on infrastructure down 60%

2006 Audit found effort to protect power and oil infrastructure largely failed Questioned 2 foreign security

companies contracted to train guards

2006 Class of new police recruits from Fallujah graduated Told they would serve outside Anbar 600 refused

to do so

2007 Anbar Awakening claimed to have killed ISI War Minister Masri Didn’t happen

2007 Report PM Maliki and ministers using Article 136B of Criminal Code to block corruption

investigations

2007 Report Maliki using PM and Commander in Chief offices to remove and arrest army and National

Police commanders for going after Mahdi Army or being Sunni US officers complained Maliki politicizing officer corps

2008 PM Maliki said Mahdi Army had to be disbanded because couldn’t have militias and state

2008 Sadr spokesman said Iranian weapons in Iraq was normal because Tehran would sell to anyone

2008 Turkey said it would resume diplomatic relations with Kurdistan

2009 ISF started 2^nd Operation Promise of Good in Diyala

2010 Def Min said that ISI had lost its direction after 2 leaders Masri and Baghdadi killed

2010 PM Maliki claimed foreign countries were plotting coup against him

2010 Iraqiya threatened boycott after courts banned winning candidates for Baathist past

2011 Hundreds demonstrated in Kut for better services and against corruption

2011 Asayesh arrested four protest organizers trying to start demonstration in Sulaymaniya

(Musings On Iraq interview with journalist Wladimir Van Wilgenburg on 2011 KRG protests)

2011 US said Iranian investment projects in Karbala and Najaf were fronts for supported Asaib Ahl

Al-Haq and Kataib Hezbollah

(Musings On Iraq article on history of Asaib Ahl Al-Haq)

(Musings On Iraq article on Iran’s Iraq policy)

2012 KRG said Baghdad should pay foreign oil companies working in Kurdistan

2012 Allawi said he wouldn’t go to national conference to resolve differences with PM Maliki

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq From War To A New Authoritarianism)

2012 4 bodyguards of fmr Speaker Mashadani arrested for terrorism

2013 Kurdish ministers ended boycott of govt

2013 Islamic Army met with Kirkuk tribes to form armed group after ISF attacked Hawija protest site

2013 Sheikh Sulaiman said that protesters would go to war with govt after crackdown on Hawija protest site

2013 Insurgents attacked Wasit municipal council building

2013 Dep PM Mutlaq criticized ISF attack on Hawija protest site

2014 KRG parliamentary elections 1^st in 8 years

2014 Anbar tribes claimed Baghdad agreed to some of protesters’ demands to end fighting Didn’t happen

2014 ISIS ideologue Binali said that group didn't have to hold territory for Muslims to pledge allegiance to

it Was setting stage for declaration of Islamic State

2015 Head of Salahaddin council said Hashd were looting and burning buildings in Tikrit

2015 City worker in Tikrit said 300 buildings in northern section of city had been destroyed including 2

mosques

2015 IS seized half of Baiji refinery

2015 Head of Anbar Operations Command said Hashd were needed to fight IS in province

2016 Parliament refused to meet over PM Abadi’s technocratic govt Sadr called for popular revolution as

followers stormed Green Zone

(Musings On Iraq interview with Cambridge’s Michael Clark on Sadr, protests and PM Abadi’s reforms)

View the Iraq History Timelines 

Musings On Iraq In The News

I was quoted by Wladimir van Wilgenburg in "Iraq demands US Embassy delete 'offensive' Facebook post on Iran's Khamenei" in Kurdistan 24. The article was also re-posted on Hath al-Youm.

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

Islamic State’s Car Bomb Innovations Interview With Hugo Kaaman

Camouflaged IS car bomb (IS VIdeo)

Car bombs (VBIEDs) have been a favorite weapon of the Islamic State since its origins with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. He used vehicle bombs to destroy the U.N. compound in Baghdad and kill the organization’s representative to Iraq Sergio Vieira de Mello and assassinate Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim in Najaf along with 125 others. By 2014, IS had taken the VBIED to a new level. Its conquest of territory allowed it to build car bombs on an industrial scale. It was able to armor them, to camouflage them as civilian vehicles and a number of other innovations. Hugo Kaaman is an independent researcher who recently released a study, “Car Bombs As Weapons of War, ISIS’s Development Of SVBIEDS, 2014-19” for the Middle East Institute. This is an interview with Kaaman about the Islamic State’s car bomb developments.

This Day In Iraqi History - Apr 29

1916 Ottomans defeated the British at Battle of Kut after 4 months captured 13,000 prisoners

British lost 33,000 casualties One of largest UK defeats in WWI

1941 More British troops from 20^th Inf Brigade arrived in Basra Iraq protested

1941 British Ambassador told British women and children to leave Baghdad because of expected war

with Iraq

1941 PM Gaylani sent Iraqi forces to British air base at Habaniya Anbar 11^th Inf Brigade ordered to

Baghdad to later be deployed to Anbar UK Emb in Baghdad informed UK forces in Habaniya Iraqi army heading their way

1941 Iraqis flooded Habaniya area limiting movement of British troops there Occupied Kirkuk oil

fields Cut oil to Haifa and restarted flow to Lebanon for Vichy France that could be used by Axis

(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)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq 1941, The Battles for Basra, Habbaniya, Fallujah and Baghdad)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq And Syria 1941, The Politics and Strategy of the Second World War)

1948 Battle of Katamon began between Jewish forces attacking Iraqi volunteers and Arab Legion in 1^st

Arab-Israeli War

1954 Arshad al-Umari became premier 2^nd time

1959 Communist central committee demanded power sharing within Qasim govt

(Musings On Iraq book review Red Star Over Iraq, Iraqi Communism Before Saddam)

(Musings On Iraq Interview with Prof Johan Franzen on the history of the Iraqi Communist Party)

(Musings On Iraq interview with Western Kentucky’s Prof Romero on the Qasim govt)

1969 Iraq condemned Shah of Iran for unilaterally ending 1937 border treaty over Shatt al-Arab waterway

1981 Amnesty Intl report interviewed 15 Iraqis exiles detailing torture methods used by govt

1986 Iran launched counterattack along 3 fronts in Basra Advanced up road to Um Qasr and north along

Fao Peninsula Caused 4000 Iraqi casualties

1986 Iraq launched counterattack to stop Iran Al Fajr 9 outside Rawanduz Kurdistan

(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 Iraqi army launched new military campaign to drive out displaced and rebels from southern marshes

1994 Sec State Christopher said Iraq complying with UN Res 687 was not enough to end sanctions

Contradicted resolution

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

2002 Pentagon official said 9/11 hijacker met with Iraqi intel officer in Prague Didn’t happen

2003 2^nd anti-American protests in Fallujah Threw rocks at US troops who fired into crowd killing 3

wounding 16

(Musings On Iraq book review The Battle for Fallujah, Occupation, Resistance and Stalemate in the War in Iraq)

2003 50 former British ambassadors and senior officials wrote letter to Blair criticizing having no plan for

post-invasion Iraq

(Musings On Iraq Book Review The Report of the Iraq Inquiry, Executive Summary)

2003 ORHA head Garner told White House flying frozen Iraqi assets to pay for salaries and pensions helped

stabilize Iraq

2004 US announced end of Battle of Fallujah Would withdraw turn over security to Fallujah Brigade

2004 Sheikh Jabani’s brother and 3 kids kidnapped in Fallujah for fighting insurgents

(Musings On Iraq book review The Battle for Fallujah, Occupation, Resistance and Stalemate in the War in Iraq)

2005 Gen Vines issued order for US troops to stop and report any cases of abuse by Iraqi forces

2007 Report Spec Insp Gen for Iraq Recon looked at 8 US projects 7 were not operating or had major

problems Power station for Baghdad airport had $11.8 mil spent on generators $8.6 mil worth not operating Hospital in Irbil had incinerator for waste locked and key lost Dumped waste into sewage system contaminating local water system Water purification system at hospital broke Oxygen system not used by staff that didn’t know how it worked Special Forces barracks in Baghdad had 4 generators broken due to no maintenance and supply pipes had been stolen Spec Insp Gen had warned that US was leaving projects for Iraqis that could not be maintained and were waste of money

2008 2^nd ISCI and Dawa delegation went to Iran to meet Sadr and Gen Suleimani to negotiate ceasefire

2008 MPs found torture at Karbala prison overcrowding in Babil ones

2008 Accordance Front sent list of candidates to replace their vacant ministers in cabinet PM Maliki

rejected some of them

2008 Turkey’s Foreign Minister said Ankara wanted better relations with KRG

2008 Fmr Dep Sec of Def Wolfowitz said Bush admin never expected an insurgency in Iraq

2008 Female suicide bomber attacked bus stop in Muqtadiya Another female suicide bomber attacked

Sahwa in Abu Said both in Diyala

(Musings On Iraq article on female suicide bombers)

2009 Police sent by Integrity Comm to arrest Trade Min Sudani for corruption got into shootout with

guards in Baghdad

2009 Interior Ministry said ISI had successfully penetrated ISF and used agents to carry out attacks

2010 PM Maliki said that there were no secret prisons in Iraq after one at Muthanna Airport prison was

revealed Claimed that torture victims at Muthanna prison gave themselves scars to fake abuse

2010 US accused Iran of using Hezbollah to carry out attacks against its forces in Iraq

(Musings On Iraq article on Hezbollah presence in Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq article on Iran’s Iraq policy)

2010 Sadrists said PM Maliki could not get a second term as premier

2011 Obama’s National Security Adviser suggested 10,000 US troops stay in Iraq after withdrawal

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

2011 Sadr threatened to bring back Mahdi Army if US forces stayed past end of year

2011 KRG security forces arrested one of top protest leaders in Sulaymaniya

(Musings On Iraq interview with journalist Wladimir Van Wilgenburg on 2011 KRG protests)

2011 Anbar councilman Fallujah police chief and other officials arrested in Anbar Anbar Ops Command

and PM Maliki blamed

2012 Pres Barzani told US he objected to selling F-16s to Baghdad Said didn’t trust PM Maliki with them

2013 PM Maliki and Pres Barzani agreed on 7 point program to repair relations between Baghdad and Irbil

2013 ISIS set off 2 car bombs in central Karbala 2 car bombs in Amarah 1 car bomb in Diwaniya

2013 Turkmen in Kirkuk demanded peshmerga withdraw from disputed areas

2014 ISIS took credit for suicide bombing of PUK rally in Khanaqin, Diyala that killed 30

2014 Report that US intel believed Maliki getting re-elected PM would divide Iraq more

2016 Protests in Baghdad Basra Najaf Qadisiya Maysan Karbala Dhi Qar Muthanna against corruption and

sectarian quotas in govt

View the Iraq History Timelines 

This Day In Iraqi History - Apr 28

1922 UK Iraq Commissioner Cox said King Feisal racially weak for disagreeing with him

1929 Tawfiq al-Suwaidi became premier of Iraq, would hold that office 3 times

1941 PM Gaylani and Golden Square officers decided to go to war with British Asked Axis for military and

financial aid for second time to be used against British

1941 UK Amb to Iraq told PM Gaylani second contingent of British troops landing at Basra Gaylani

refused them entry Amb ordered start of evacuation of British civilians from Iraq

1941 364 British troops airlifted to Habaniya air base

(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)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq 1941, The Battles for Basra, Habbaniya, Fallujah and Baghdad)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq And Syria 1941, The Politics and Strategy of the Second World War)

1947 Mustafa Barzani and 500 supporters returned to Iraq from Iran

1959 Communist paper editorial demanded positions in Qasim govt Turned down

(Musings On Iraq book review Red Star Over Iraq, Iraqi Communism Before Saddam)

(Musings On Iraq Interview with Prof Johan Franzen on the history of the Iraqi Communist Party)

(Musings On Iraq interview with Western Kentucky’s Prof Romero on the Qasim govt)

1973 Iraq offered to talk with Kuwait over border dispute

1974 Iraq bombed Halabja killing 42 and wounding over 100 during KDP rebellion

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

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

1990 Iraq hosted Arab summit Saddam attacked Kuwait for economic warfare vs Iraq

1990 Saddam asked Emir of Kuwait if Iraq could use two of its islands Emir said no

1991 US led Coalition created safe zone for Kurds near Dohuk after uprising put down

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

1992 Report CIA continued to give intel to Iraq until day it invaded Kuwait in Aug 90

1998 Inspectors report to UN said no progress in last 4 months due to confrontation with Iraq

(Musings On Iraq article on UN weapons inspections)

2001 Report 9/11 terrorist Mohammed Atta met with Iraqi intel officer in Prague Story false

2002 US military leaked story to press that Iraq invasion could use a force as small as 70,000 Was push

back against Rumsfeld’s small invasion force

(Musings On Iraq article on war in the press over Rumsfeld’s invasion plan)

2003 Protest in Fallujah led to shooting US troops killed 17 and wounded more than 70 Start of insurgency

in city

(Musings On Iraq book review The Battle for Fallujah, Occupation, Resistance and Stalemate in the War in Iraq)

2003 ORHA Garner met with 350 Iraqis in Baghdad and told them they were in charge of Iraq said would

be meeting to create interim govt in 4 weeks

2003 Dep Sec of Def Wolfowtiz said US occupation of Iraq would not need as many troops as invasion did

2003 Pentagon paper said interim Iraqi govt had not been decided upon

2003 Gen Franks asked UK to take control of 5 southern Iraqi provinces UK said could only handle 4 Basra

Maysan Dhi Qar Muthanna

2003 UK report Iran sending in groups into southern Iraq to influence postwar situation

(Musings On Iraq article on Iran’s Iraq policy)

2004 Fighting between US marines and insurgents continued in Fallujah while US commander claimed

ceasefire holding

2004 Marines began forming Fallujah Brigade to take over security of city

(Musings On Iraq book review The Battle for Fallujah, Occupation, Resistance and Stalemate in the War in Iraq)

2004 UK intel assessment said another attack upon Fallujah would make political and security situation in

            Iraq worse

(Musings On Iraq Book Review The Report of the Iraq Inquiry, Executive Summary)

2004 UN Rep Brahimi reported to Security Council that interim govt would serve until elections held in

late 2004-early 2005

2004 General Mark Kimmitt deputy director of Coalition operations in Iraq told CBS News he was

disappointed in a few soldiers for Abu Ghraib scandal

2005 PM Jaafari’s cabinet approved by parliament 5 ministers and 1 dep PM either empty or temporary

pending deal with Sunnis Defense Oil Electricity and Human Rights Ministers not been named yet

2005 US pressured PM Jaafari to name partial cabinet because filing ministers was taking too long

2005 SCIRI head Abdul Aziz al-Hakim gave speech threatening to purge the security forces of former

regime members

2005 MP Mishan al-Jabouri accused Shiites of dividing Iraq and Sunnis were marginalized

2006 New US military campaign plan issued continuing with withdrawal

(Musings On Iraq article on pre-Surge US Iraq strategy)

2007 Report ex-CIA Dir Tenet’s book said WMD not main reason why US invaded Iraq but that Bush

wanted democratic change in Middle East Said Pentagon officials like Wolfowitz and Feith focused on Iraq before 9/11 Said on 9/11 Def Adv Board member Richard Perle said Iraq responsible for attack and had to pay Said State and Pentagon at war with each other over Iraq Said US had no postwar plan for Iraq other than to put Chalabi in power Said White House ignored warnings about insurgency and failing policies in Iraq in 03 Said White House called CIA defeatists

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq’s Future The aftermath of regime change)

2008 ISCI and Dawa delegation went to Iran to meet Sadr and Gen Suleimani to negotiate ceasefire

2010 Court acquitted former Trade Min Sudani of corruption for lack of evidence after witnesses

disappeared or changed testimony under State of Law pressure

2010 Accountability and Justice banned Iraqiya members of Diyala council for Baath past

2010 Baathists held meeting in Damascus trying to unify two factions of Mohammed Yunis and Izzat al-

Duri

2011 1920 Rev Brigades and Asaib Ahl Al-Haq agreed to disarm and join politics after talks with

National Reconciliation Min Didn’t happen

(Musings On Iraq article on history of Asaib Ahl Al-Haq)

2011 Chief of staff of ISF Gen Zebari said Iraq would not be able to defend itself until 2020

2011 US Gen 25^th Inf Div said Iranian backed Special Groups were attacking US forces

(Musings On Iraq article on Iran’s Iraq policy)

2011 Sadrists said that if US stayed passed end of year that would justify attacks upon them

2012 Pres Barzani Pres Talabani Sadr Speaker Nujafi and Allawi met in Irbil to discuss no confidence vote

against PM Maliki

2012 Sadr issued demands to PM Maliki saying he would be removed if didn’t submit to them

2012 Pres Talabani tried to moderate between Maliki Barzani and Allawi over having no confidence vote

against PM

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq From War To A New Authoritarianism)

2013 Sheikh Abu Risha turned over 2 people said responsible for killing 5 soldiers at Fallujah protest site

2014 Ibrahim Jaafari said that PM Maliki’s mistakes led to deterioration in security

2014 ISIS seized control of 6 voting centers in Qara Tapa, Diyala

2014 Iran signed oil and natural gas deal with KRG

2014 Special voting started in national elections for parliament

2015 Badr’s Ameri said Hashd would not wait for permission to enter Anbar Were already there

(Musings On Iraq article on the history of Badr Organization)

2015 Sadr criticized Hashd trying to politicize fight against IS to gain power

View the Iraq History Timelines 

This Day In Iraqi History - Apr 27

1924 New parliament met for 1^st time to ratify Anglo-Iraq Treat write constitution write law for

parliamentary elections Was lots of opposition to treaty Some wanted to amend which UK rejected

1980 Radio Tehran aired fake story that Saddam had been assassinated

1981 Iraqi counterattack stopped Iranina effort to retake Qasr e-Shirin central front

1982 French delegation returned to Iraq to help work on its Osirak nuclear reactor Left after Iranian

bombing of reactor in 1980

1987 Iran Op Karbala 10 took 2 towns and 100 sq mi in Sulaymaniya

(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)

1987 Syria agreed to stop backing Iraqi Kurds

1991 Iraq made declaration of its nuclear program to UN inspectors but was hiding most of it

(Musings On Iraq article on UN weapons inspections)

(Musings On Iraq book review The Saddam Tapes)

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

2003 ORHA head Garner made first radio address to Iraqis calling for return to normalcy

2003 Report evidence found linking Ansar al-Islam with Al Qaeda

2003 Captured Mukhabarat documents showed it had meetings with Al Qaeda in 1990s

2003 Grenade thrown at 82^nd Airborne troops wounding 2 in Ramadi

2003 Baghdad conference opened to discuss forming an Iraqi provisional govt with 300 Iraqis attending

Endorsed by US

2003 ORHA and Oil Ministry officials met and picked top positions in ministry

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq and the Politics of Oil, An Insider’s Perspective)

2004 60 Minutes II showed pictures of Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal

2007 Report ex-CIA Dir Tenet’s new book said White House made him scapegoat for Iraq war and bad intel

on Iraq’s WMD Said officials like Cheney Rice and National Sec Adv Hadley tried to blame him Said White House never had serious debate about Iraq threat Claimed Cheney and Pentagon officials like Wolfowitz and Feith were pushing for war at end of 2011 Said CIA opposed White House argument of Iraq-Al Qaeda connection

2008 PM Maliki met with VP Hashemi to try to get Accordance Front to end cabinet boycott

2008 40 MPs said Maliki’s crackdown on Sadr needed to end

2008 Baghdad Operations Command said they captured Iraqis trained and armed by Iran to fight ISF

2009 PM Maliki announced Iraqi forces captured Abu Omar al-Bahgdadi Didn’t happen

(Musings On Iraq interview with Naval War College’s Prof Whiteside on ISI leader Abu Omar al-Baghdadi)

2009 PM Maliki condemned US raid in Kut that killed 2 civilians calling it a crime

2012 Kurdish Alliance returned to Ninewa council after boycott started in 2009 when Hadbaa took all the

top posts after elections

2013 Peshmerga said it was moving into disputed areas of Kirkuk Diyala Salahaddin to protect against

increased violence

2013 PM Maliki blamed Syria for rise of sectarianism and increased violence in Iraq

2013 Naqshibandi claimed they were behind rise in violence after ISF attacked Hawija protest site

2013 Anbar Operations Command set 24 hrs deadline for killers of 5 soldiers at Fallujah protest site to be

turned over

2013 5 Anbar tribes said they were arming to fight ISIS in province after 5 soldiers killed at Fallujah site

2013 2 tribes withdrew from Anbar protests after 5 soldiers killed at Fallujah site

2014 ISF claimed it was starting op to retake Fallujah that Anbar council denied was happening

2015 Arabs accused Peshmerga of destroying homes in 5 villages after freed from IS in Kirkuk

2015 Badr’s Ameri said using Hashd only way to free Anbar

(Musings On Iraq article on the history of Badr Organization)

2015 IS head Baghdadi called on Syrian fighters to help fight in Salahaddin and Anbar

View the Iraq History Timelines

Chilcot Report Section 1.2 UK Iraq strategy September 2000 To September 2001

Section 1.2 of the Chilcot Report discussed the difficulties the United Kingdom ran into trying to maintain its containment policy on Iraq. First, the international community and Arab states were losing interesting in Iraq, so it was more difficult to maintain sanctions against it. Second, elements in the new Bush administration were talking about removing Saddam as soon as they entered office. Despite that, London mistakenly believed that it could continue with its Iraq strategy.

This Day In Iraqi History - Apr 26

1916 British arranged a ceasefire with Ottomans in Kut Wasit after 146 day siege

1923 UK’s Iraq committee presented findings and okayed by cabinet to stay path in Iraq

1941 PM Gaylani asked Axis for military and financial aid against British

(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)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq 1941, The Battles for Basra, Habbaniya, Fallujah and Baghdad)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq And Syria 1941, The Politics and Strategy of the Second World War)

1947 Iraq left San Francisco Conference on creating UN to protest creation of Israel

1960 Iraqi Islamic Party founded as branch of Muslim Brotherhood

1987 Jordan and Saudis arranged meeting between Saddam and Syria’s Assad to try to improve ties

1990 Report Bush pushed greater economic ties with Iraq

1991 Kurdish refugees began leaving Turkish mountains for refugee camps in Kurdistan Baghdad offered

amnesty to Kurds that fled during uprising

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

2003 Marines blocked demonstration against Mishan Jabouri declaring himself mayor of Mosul Shots fired

from crowd at Marines They fired back killing 10-15 civilians Led to riot

2003 ORHA held first meeting of the Iraqi Interim Authority made up of Iraqi exiles and opposition

figures

2003 Report Bush invaded Iraq to try to transform Middle East by creating a democracy and countering

draw of terrorism

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq’s Future The aftermath of regime change)

(Musings On Iraq book review Wanting War: Why the Bush Administration Invaded Iraq)

2003 White House said evidence Iraq might have destroyed its WMD right before war and that proved war

right

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

2003 Report no WMD found in sites Powell mentioned in his 03 UN speech

2003 Ayatollah Haeri issued fatwa from Iran saying clerics needed to fill power vacuum left by US invasion

2003 Sheikh Naifus of Albu Alwan in Babil arrested for taking part in executions of rebels after 91 uprising

2004 Zarqawi announced his group Tawhid wal-Jihad

(Musings On Iraq interview with former CIA analyst Nada Bakos that tracked Zarqawi)

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

2004 US announced Iraqi police returning to Fallujah and would start join patrols with Iraqi Civil Defense

Forces

2004 Aid agencies claimed Geneva Convention was violated in Battle of Fallujah due to civilian casualties

2006 PM Maliki told Rice and Rumsfeld he was going to fight terrorism improve services clean up police

2006 Barham Salah said PM Maliki was step towards reconciliation

2006 Amb Khalizad took credit for creating new coalition that appointed Maliki premier

2007 Congress passed bill calling for US withdrawal from Iraq by 10/1/07 Was vetoed by Pres Bush

2008 Chalabi called Petraeus saying he could speak for militias to negotiate ceasefire in Sadr City

2008 VP Hashemi said Accordance Front interested in ending its boycott of cabinet

2008 ISF said cleared last Sadr stronghold in Basra

2010 Baath exile faction led by Ahmad Yunis said wanted to unite with other faction led by Izzat al-Duri

during meeting in Damascus

2010 Human Rights Watch interviewed prisoners who were held at secret prison at Baghdad Muthanna

Airport and tortured by ISF

2010 Kurdish member of Kirkuk council said displaced Arabs had to leave province and go home

2011 PM Maliki admitted his 100 day deadline to reform ministries was not enough time

2011 State of Law held counter protest in Mosul supporting PM Maliki

2011 Ninewa Gov Nujafi called for strike in response to security forces attacking protest camp in Mosul

2012 Sulaymaniya court gave protest organizer life in prison after policeman killed at protest in Halabja

2012 Report that Kurds being threatened and driven out of Khanaqin district northeast Diyala

2012 Sadr went to Irbil to meet Pres Barzani over no confidence vote against PM Maliki

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq From War To A New Authoritarianism)

2013 4 Sunni mosques bombed in Baghdad after noon prayers

2013 Anbar protest leaders called for a popular army to be formed to protect demo sites

2013 Fallujah protest site announced formation of Pride and Dignity Army to protect demonstrators from

ISF

2013 5 Intelligence officers killed at Fallujah protest site

2013 ISF retook Suleiman Beq from insurgents who seized town for several days

2015 Kataib Hezbollah withdrew from southern Fallujah claiming PM Abadi and US were preventing it

from fighting there

2015 Head of Anbar council announced PM Abadi okayed recruiting locals for Hashd

2016 Sadrists protested while parliament voted in 5 new ministers as part of PM Abadi’s technocratic

cabinet

(Musings On Iraq interview with Cambridge’s Michael Clark on Sadr, protests and PM Abadi’s reforms)

2017 Hashd took Hatra Ninewa

2018 Iraq held auctions for 11 oil and gas fields half of which got winning bids

View the Iraq History Timelines 

Chilcot Report Sec 1.1 UK Iraq Strategy 1990 To 2000

The Chilcott Inquiry was created to explain the decisions that led to England’s participation in the Iraq War. The first section covered the United Kingdom’s strategy towards Iraq from the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait to 2000. London’s main concern during this period all the way to 2003 was Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction and nuclear programs. British intelligence believed that Iraq was close to getting a nuclear bomb and had a large and active chemical and biological weapons arsenal. After the Gulf War, the UK committed itself to a containment policy that backed United Nations’ inspectors to destroy Iraq’s weapons programs and a no fly zone to deter any further aggression. This set the stage for Downing Streets’ Iraq strategy all the way up to 2003.

This Day In Iraqi History - Apr 25

1920 San Remo Agreement created British Mandate in Iraq France agreed to

            give up Mosul vilyat in return for oil concessions in Iraq

(Musings On Iraq article on how Mosul province became part of Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq interview with Princeton’s Sara Pursley on Sykes-Picot and creation of Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq book review The Creation of Iraq 1914-1921)

(Musings On Iraq book review Dictatorship, Imperialism & Chaos, Iraq since 1989)

(Musings On Iraq book review An Analysis of Hanna Batatu’s The Old Social Classes and the Revolutionary Movements of Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq book review Inventing Iraq: The Failure of Nation Building and a History Denied)

(Musings On Iraq book review Supremacy And Oil, Iraq, Turkey, and the Anglo-American World Order, 1918-1930)

1929 Iran officially recognized Iraq as a country Hadn’t before due to complaints of

            mistreatment of Persians in Iraq

1941 Iraq-Italian treaty signed to provide financial and military aid to Iraq for war against UK Axis

would get oil concessions and use ports and military bases

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

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq 1941, The Battles for Basra, Habbaniya, Fallujah and Baghdad)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq And Syria 1941, The Politics and Strategy of the Second World War)

1991 Kurdish parties agreed to deal with Saddam including autonomy to end

            revolt after Gulf War

1991 Turkey told UN 30,000 Iraqi Kurds had entered Turkey in 2 days and 220,000

            were on there way as Kurdish uprising put down

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

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

1994 Iraqi govt announced completion of Mother of all Battles Irrigation Canal meant to

            drain southern marshes to drive out displaced and rebels

1995 Turkey’s Op Steel ended Withdrew 20,000 troops but left 15,000 in Kurdistan

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

1998 Was story that bin Laden sent delegation to Iraq for Saddam’s birthday and

            Uday agreed to train Al Qaeda Report false

2002 For Sec Straw said UK had to stand up to “bullies” like Saddam

2002 IAEA report that during inspections in 1990s Iraq’s nuclear program was

            dismantled and no ability to produce nuke material

(Musings On Iraq article on UN weapons inspections)

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

2003 US arrested ex-Iraq Amb to Tunisia Farouk Hijazi who reportedly met with Al

            Qaeda in 90s and cited as proof of Iraq-Al Qaeda ties

2003 Bush said Iraq’s WMD were either hidden or were destroyed but US would find

            them

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

2003 White House official told NY Times Iraq may not have had WMD just agents to

make them

2003 Only Iraqi policemen to help US in Fallujah executed outside his house

2003 US Cmdr in Iraq Gen Franks said didn’t know how long it would take to

            rebuild and stabilize Iraq

2003 Iraqi opposition met in Madrid but failed to agree on an interim govt

2004 Rumsfeld said US troops in Iraq would have tours extended for 3 months

2004 Marine generals met with Iraqis to discuss creating a Fallujah brigade after 1^st

            battle of Fallujah

(Musings On Iraq book review The Battle for Fallujah, Occupation, Resistance and Stalemate in the War in Iraq)

2004 Larry Diamond worked as democracy expert for CPA said US encouraged Iraqis

            to participate in new Iraq but didn’t provide them security

2005 Iraq Survey Group found Gulf War and UN sanctions destroyed Iraq’s WMD

            programs and Saddam didn’t try to rebuild them

2005 Iraq Survey Group found no evidence that Iraq’s WMD were sent to Syria

2005 White House said Iraq Survey Group found Saddam wanted WMD in the future

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

2006 Memo by Gen McCaffrey said that Iraqi army was making real progress but was

            badly equipped lacking armor air support etc

2006 Memo by Gen McCaffrey said Iraqi police heavily infiltrated by insurgents and

militias Said that Al Qeada in Iraq had been defeated as a strategic threat to the Iraqi govt

2008 Sadr said he was only opposed to US occupation not Maliki govt

2008 Report Badr and Mahdi Army setting up checkpoints and killing each other in Qadisiyah and

Baghdad

(Musings On Iraq article on the history of Badr Organization)

2008 Maliki said all parties supported his crackdown on Sadr and sign of reconciliation

2008 Maliki said if Sadr disarmed dropped politics turn in wanted militiamen would

stop Charge of Knights

2008 Fmr Under Sec of Def Feith said he warned of postwar chaos in Iraq but

            was ignored and Pentagon was on top of issue not State or CIA

2009 Gorran List founded by former PUK leader Mustafa

2009 Shiites protest in Khalis, Diyala claiming Baathists taking over new provincial

council after elections

2009 Arab tribes in Makhmour and Qaraj demanded Asayesh withdraw claiming

            harassment

2010 Iraqi Airways flew to London for first time in 20 years

2010 Court upheld Accountability and Justice Comm banning 52 winning candidates

            for Baathist ties

2011 Maliki claimed power had been decentralized in response to national protests

2011 ISF tried to stop protesters from gathering in Mosul Led to clash killing 1

            demonstrator and wounding 9 others

2011 Protest in Ramadi demanding US withdrawal close secret prisons and stop

            Iranian influence in country

2011 Peshmerga Minister accused Kurdistan Islamic Group and Kurdistan Islamic

            Union of being saboteurs and fostering jihadists

2011 Kurdistan Islamic Union said KRG had cut its monthly budget

2011 Soldiers and KDP security got into shoot out in Kirkuk City after brother 12^th Div

commander killed a taxi driver and was arrested

2011 Speaker Nujafi said Iraq didn’t need US troops anymore and any extension would have to go through

parliament

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

2012 Accordance Front and Iraqiya threatened no confidence vote against Maliki unless

he followed Irbil power sharing agreement

2012 Pres Barzani said that unless Maliki shared power would be a revolt by

            other ruling parties Said Maliki was like a dictator

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraq From War To A New Authoritarianism)

2013 Maliki gave TV speech saying security would be restored after ISF attack

            on Hawija protest site led to spike in violence

2013 Heavy fighting in Mosul 10 police and 31 insurgents killed

2014 Boko Haram pledged support to ISIS

2014 US sent intelligence officers to assist Iraq with fighting insurgency, started

            training Iraqi Special Forces in Jordan

2014 KRG offered North Oil Company to use its pipeline to Turkey

2014 Report that insurgents were split over whether to support elections or not

2015 PM Abadi said Hashd should include all Iraqis from all backgrounds

2015 Kudish Alliance said opposed National Guard in disputed areas because

            peshmerga could secure them

2015 Yazidi militia leader Haider Sesho said that Yazidis would form their own

            party in Sinjar and be independent of KDP

2015 IS took over army base in Thar Thar, Anbar 141 soldiers killed in fighting

2017 Turkey bombed PKK positions in Sinjar Ninewa

View the Iraq History Timelines