Security In Iraq Jul 22-28 2019

(Iraqi News)

The fourth week of July saw the highest number of security incidents in two months. That being said it was still at relatively the same level seen throughout 2019, this despite the Islamic State declaring a new spring-Summer offensive Revenge of the Levant.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 31

1924 MP Chalabi rejected quotas in new parliament for minorities claiming everyone would be

represented

1928 Red Line Agreement allowed British Dutch French US Turkish oil companies to jointly control

Turkish Petroleum Company Would lead to Iraq Petroleum Company

1982 Iraq claimed it crushed Iranian Op Ramadan to seize Basra Retook most lost territory

(Musings On Iraq book review of Iran-Iraq War Volume 2: Iran Strikes back, June 1982-December 1986)

1983 Iraqi army took 8,000 men from Barzani clan and executed them Retaliation for KDP taking part in

recent Iranian offensive in Kurdistan

1986 Iraqi air force launched most devastating attack upon Kharg Island Iran’s major oil port Knocked

out its ability to load tankers Let Iranians off the hook by not attacking again

(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)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iraqi Mirages, The Dassault Mirage Family In Service With The Iraqi Air Force, 1981-1988)

1990 King Fahd and Pres Mubarak tried to mediate between Iraq and Kuwait Kuwit emir told his

representative to not give into any Iraqi demands at meeting in Saudi Arabia between 2 nations

1990 AsstSecState Kelly told House US had no defense treaty with Gulf States and didn’t take position on

border disputes or OPEC Said US would be concerned if Iraq invaded Kuwait but had no treaties with it

1990 Pentagon said it was committed to individual and collective defense of its allies in the Gulf

2002 Iraq Foreign Minister Sabri said Bagdhad rejected return of UN inspectors Said they would just collect

intel for US strikes

(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)

2002 Bush said US goal was regime change but denied any war plans were on his desk

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

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

Tragedy)

2002 Senate Foreign Relations Comm began hearing on Iraq invasion

2002 Sec Def Rumsfeld told Senate Comm time helped Saddam erode sanctions and spread terrorism

2002 NSA had drill on Iraq Found it had little signals intel on country

2002 Report Iraq working on nuclear program quoted fmr UN inspector Kay and INC defectors Hamza and

Haideri May 02 Haideri labeled fabricator by DIA

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

2002 INC defector ex-nuke scientist Hamza testified to Senate Foreign Relations Comm claiming Iraq only

lacked uranium to build nuke bomb in 1994

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

2002 Iraq conspiracy theorist Mylroie interviewed on CNN Said Bush was going to invade Iraq because of

WMD and its ties to terrorism including 9/11 Accused CIA of covering up Iraq’s involvement in 9/11

(Musings On Iraq article on Mylroie’s Iraq conspiracy theories)

2003 Sadr announced 10,000 man Islamic army being formed in Najaf

2003 Report several Iraqi scientists interviewed by US said Saddam had not restarted its nuclear or WMD

programs

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

2003 National Sec Adv Rice said international intel agencies all agreed with US that Iraq had WMD US

would prove right that Saddam was threat to world

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

2003 US forces found Iraqi jets buried at Taqadum airbase west of Baghdad Helped explain why Iraqi air

force didn't fight during invasion

(Musings On Iraq article on why Iraqi air force didn’t fight during 2003 invasion)

2004 US arrested Sadrist Sheikh Hasnawi in Karbala Mahdi Army kidnapped police in Najaf in response

2006 Displacement Min said 182,154 had been displaced since Askari shrine bombing in Feb 2006

2006 Police in 15 SUVs kidnapped 25 people from Iraqi American Chamber of Commerce and Rawi

telephone company in central Baghdad Never seen again

(Musings On Iraq book review Voices From Iraq, A People’s History, 2003-2009)

2007 VP Cheney said that he was wrong when he said insurgency in its last throes in 2005 Said that

benchmarks didn’t reduce violence and insurgency stronger than he thought

2008 Police raided Sahwa officer in Kut arrested 3 Sahwa that formed political party 2 months before

provincial elections

(Musings On Iraq article on govt crackdown on Sahwa)

2008 US and Iraq missed deadline to sign Status of Forces Agreement with Iraq (SOFA) US wanted residual

military force to stay in Iraq after official withdrawal

(Musings On Iraq article on missed deadline) 

2012 France’s Total signed contracts for two oil blocks in KRG

2015 Protest in Baghdad Basra Najaf over lack of electricity Called for Electricity Min to step down

2018 Human Rights Watch report No due process in Iraqi legal system Judges ignored torture allegations in

cases even after asked for report and told signs of torture present Torture banned in constitution

2018 PM Abadi said he would meet demands of protesters Said govt would publish names of officials sent

to Integrity Comm for corruption

2018 Sit-in protest in Muthanna and Burjisiya oil field in Basra for 3^rd day Sit in protests outside West

Qurna 1 oil field and Basra council building broken up by ISF Protests in Baghdad Dhi Qar Qadisiyah

2018 Iraq Human Rights Commission said protesters beaten and tortured after arrest and reporters attacked

for covering demonstrations 1 shot

View the Iraq History Timelines 

Review Mosul Before Iraq, Like Bees Making Five-Sided Cells

Review Shields, Sarah, Mosul Before Iraq, Like Bees Making Five-Sided Cells, Albany: State University of New York Press, 2000

Professor Sarah Shields’ aim in Mosul Before Iraq, Like Bees Making Five-Sided Cells was to challenge traditional analysis of Ottoman provinces like Mosul that simply focused upon Europe’s either positive or negative effects. Before researchers would talk about how trade with Europe was supposed to help places like Mosul modernize. Then it switched to how Europe underdeveloped these areas and created a situation of dependency. Shields hoped to move away from both models and emphasize how a province like Mosul played a role in a regional economy within the Ottoman Empire as well as its connections with Europe. Her work goes through how different groups in the province like merchants, peasants, and tribes were connected to production, trade, and taxes in the last century of the empire. While there are some interesting points, after a while the book becomes rather monotonous.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 30

1920 War Min Churchill approved sending division to Mesopotamia from India to put down 1920

Revolt

(Musings On Iraq article on Churchill’s views on Mesopotamia)

(Musings On Iraq book review Churchill’s Folly, How Winston Churchill Created Modern Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq book review of Reclaiming Iraq, The 1920 Revolution and the Founding of the Modern State)

1933 Report French disarmed many Assyrians who had tried to get into Syria from Iraq

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

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

1968 Pres Bakr accused Def Min Daud and PM Naif of attempting to take over govt PM Naif arrested and

became Ambassador to Morocco Baath then purged govt of opponents

1968 Pres Bakr became prime minister and commander and chief of armed forces consolidating his power

Appointed Saddam deputy secretary general of Baath Party

1982 Iraq launched major counterattack against Iran’s Op Ramadan in Basra Halted by Iranians

(Musings On Iraq book review of Iran-Iraq War Volume 2: Iran Strikes back, June 1982-December 1986)

1983 Iran ended Op Wa al-Fajr 2 in Kurdistan Retook 195 sq km of Iranian territory Seized 220 sq

km of Iraqi land Cut KDPI supply lines and forced it to withdraw west KDP given control of Haj Omran pass

1983 Iran started Op Wa al-Fajr 3 to free Mehran Iran and then invade Wasit and cut Baghdad-Basra

highway Iraq discovered plan and launched pre-emptive strike Iran launched night attack infiltrating behind Iraqi lines

1983 Iraqi army began raids through villages and displaced camps in Irbil arrested all Kurdish males

1988 Iran and Iraq started talks at UN for ceasefire

(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)

1990 Saddam offered to withdraw his troops from Iran and settle Shatt al-Arab differences to prepare for

Kuwait invasion

1990 DIA analyst told DIA Dir Soyster Iraq could overrun Kuwait and northern Saudi Arabia and US would

have no warning Said that Saddam was going to use force vs Kuwait and Kuwait would make no concessions to Iraq

1990 DIA Dir Soyster disagreed with analyst about Iraq’s intentions but passed assessment to Sec Def    Cheney and Gen Powell

1991 Iraq admitted to have four times as many chemical munitions as it claimed before to UN weapons

inspectors

(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)

1992 Iraqi forces surrounded Shiite rebels in southern marshes and bombed them

1996 CIA report head of Iraq intel met bin Laden in Sudan and provided bomb making know how False

report bin Laden left Sudan May 96 and no reports he returned afterward

2002 PM Blair’s foreign policy adv Manning told Bush UK with US against Iraq but had to go through UN

2002 UK attorney general Goldsmith told PM Blair without UN resolution war against Iraq illegal

(Musings On Iraq article Chilcot Report Volume 2 Sec 3.3 Development of UK Iraq Strategy and Options April to July 2002)

(Musings On Iraq Chilcot Report Section 3.4 Development of UK Iraq Strategy and Options, Late July to 14 September 2002)

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

2002 French Pres Chirac said that Germany and France would only support an invasion of Iraq if backed by

a UN resolution

2002 Fmr head UN inspector Ekeus said US manipulated 90s inspections to spy on Iraqi security services

and find location of Saddam Said US wanted to create crises to justify attacks on Iraq

(Musings On Iraq article on how CIA used UN inspectors to spy and back coup in Iraq)

2003 Bush admitted Iraq-Africa uranium story should not have been included in his State of Union speech

(Musings On Iraq article on Iraq-Niger uranium story)

2003 Natl Sec Adv Rice said Saddam was a threat and he had WMD Said Iraq was buying all kinds of

            equipment for centrifuges including aluminum tubes

(Musings On Iraq article on the aluminum tubes story)

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

2004 Sec State Powell in Iraq said US worried about Iran’s influence in southern Iraq

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

2007 Cabinet passed new draft energy bill Cabinet approved another energy bill in February Neither made

it through parliament

2007 Oxfam found Maliki govt spent 22% of its development budget and 99% of its salary allocation in

2006

2007 Report Interior Ministry split between Dawa Badr Kurds Badr and Kurds fighting for control of intel

service Kurdish dep minister faced death threats from Badr dep minister Almost all Sunnis purged from ministry Interior Min trying to purge militias from ministry

2007 Fmr Amb to Iraq Khalilzad said that Saudis were undermining US effort in Iraq

(Musings On Iraq article on Saudi role in insurgency)

2008 U.S. forces officially withdrew troops from Iraqi cities

2008 Sadr said he was leading a nationalist movement against the US and needed to restrain abuses and

violence of Mahdi Army

2015 Protests in Arbat and Darabandikhan, KRG and Nasiriya and Amara over lack of services and

electricity

2018 Protest in Samawa and 2^nd day of sit ins outside of West Qurna 1 and Burjisiya oil fields in Basra

View the Iraq History Timelines 

Review Blood, Oil and the Axis: The Allied Resistance Against A Fascist State In Iraq and the Levant, 1941

Broich, John, Blood, Oil and the Axis: The Allied Resistance Against A Fascist State In Iraq and the Levant, 1941, New York: Abrams Press, 2019

In 1941 the British were facing one crisis after another. The Germans sent the Afrika Korps to North Africa, and then Yugoslavia and Greece fell to the Nazis. Into this mix came the March 1941 coup in Iraq where a group of Arab nationalist officers seized power, causing the pro-English monarchy to flee, and the new Iraqi government to reach out to the Axis. That led to the Anglo-Iraq War and then the invasion of Syria as Prime Minister Winston Churchill believed that Germany and Italy were making a play for the Middle East’s oil and to cut the Suez Canal. This is the topic of John Broich’s Blood, Oil and the Axis: The Allied Resistance Against A Fascist State In Iraq and the Levant, 1941. The author deals with not only the political background to this conflict and the military history, but also includes personal experiences from the Allied, Axis and Vichy French sides. This book gives a thorough account of Iraq in World War II, and one of the best coverages of the fighting in Syria.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 29

1933 Assyrian leader Mar Shimun wrote letter to Interior Minister saying he was being detained He

would help settle Assyrians but if govt did nothing he would go to League of Nations and advocate for Assyrians to leave Iraq Letter sent to ambassadors in Iraq embarrassing govt

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

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

1968 Baath had Def Min Daud visit Jordan so that party could take control of military while he was gone

Daud arrested when he arrived in Jordan Sent into exile as ambassador to Saudi Arabia

1988 Mujahedeen e-Khalq forced to withdraw from 2 Iranian towns ending hopes of Iraq backed revolt

against Khomeini

(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)

1990 OPEC agreed to raise prices 20% that year under pressure from Iraq that wanted to boost revenues to

rebuild after Iran-Iraq War

1990 Mukhabarat placed 30 agents at Kuwait oil fields and Kuwait city to help with invasion

1991 Talabani said that without another major international relief effort Kurds would face another disaster

2002 PM Blair’s foreign policy adv Manning told Rice UK with US against Iraq but had to go through UN

(Musings On Iraq article Chilcot Report Volume 2 Sec 3.3 Development of UK Iraq Strategy and Options April to July 2002)

(Musings On Iraq Chilcot Report Section 3.4 Development of UK Iraq Strategy and Options, Late July to 14 September 2002)

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

2002 NYTimes article on Iraq war plans Mentioned Gen Franks ideas for dealing with defense of Baghdad

(Musings On Iraq article on how arguments over Iraq invasion were fought through press leaks)

2003 US intel report Hezbollah attempted to reach out to Sadr and his Mahdi Army

(Musings On Iraq article on Hezbollah presence in Iraq)

2003 Report US held Iraqi detainees incommunicado and without access to lawyers

2003 Saddam recording said his sons Uday and Qusay died as martyrs for Iraq and US would be defeated

2007 Report PM Maliki said he couldn’t work with Gen Petraeus Said that if US kept using sahwa he would

arm militias Maliki ally Askari said Petraeus biased against Shiites

2008 Op Augurs of Prosperity in Diyala began ISF targeted Sahwa in Baquba

(Musings On Iraq article on Augurs of Prosperity op)

(Musings On Iraq article on govt crackdown on Sahwa)

2009 Results of KRG election Barzani re-elected president with 69% of vote KDP-PUK list won 57% of

parliamentary vote Change 23%

(Musings On Iraq Kurdish Election Results And Implications)

(Musings On Iraq Full Kurdish Election Results)

2013 ISI started new car bomb wave as part of Soldiers’ Harvest campaign

2018 PM Abadi dismissed Electricity Minister Fahadawi until investigation into poor services finished

Was in response to protests

2018 Protests in West Qurna 1 and Burjisiya oil fields in Basra Basra City Samawa Baghdad Nasiriya

2018 Member of European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations said 14,000 civilians were

wounded during Battle of Mosul 32% were children 4,000 still needed care

View the Iraq History Timelines 

This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 28

1920 US complained 2^nd time to England about San Remo agreement that divided Iraq’s oil between

England and France

1927 British report Difficult to settle Assyrians in north because land already inhabited

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

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

1959 Qasim govt disbanded communist led Federation of Trade Unions, arrested members Part of

            push back against communist influence

(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)

1982 Iran made fifth attack in Basra as part of Op Ramadan but failed

(Musings On Iraq book review of Iran-Iraq War Volume 2: Iran Strikes back, June 1982-December 1986)

1982 During Iranian Op Ramadan Ayatollah Baqir al-Hakim crossed into Iraq from Iran

            Called for uprising vs Saddam

(Musings On Iraq history of Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq)

1983 Iraq counterattack against Iran Op Wa al-Fajr 2 with heliborne assault that recaptured Mount

Kerde Mand in Iraqi 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)

(Musings On Iraq book review Iran-Iraq War Volume 4: The Forgotten Fronts)

1990 Bush letter to Saddam asked him not to use force in region and hoped for continued good US-Iraq

relations Pentagon tried to block Bush note to Saddam fearing an Iraq invasion of Kuwait

1990 CIA briefed Bush warning that Iraq was going to invade Kuwait

(Musings On Iraq book review from storm to Freedom, America’s Long War with Iraq)

1996 Iranian Revolutionary Guard entered Kurdistan to fight the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran

but also to support the PUK against the KDP Guard went 40 miles into Kurdistan and stayed 72 hours When withdrew left behind weapons for PUK

2002 PM Blair told Bush UK would be with US on Iraq but had to consider difficulties and work on politics

of war

(Musings On Iraq article Chilcot Report Volume 2 Sec 3.3 Development of UK Iraq Strategy and Options April to July 2002)

(Musings On Iraq Chilcot Report Section 3.4 Development of UK Iraq Strategy and Options, Late July to 14 September 2002)

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

2002 Wash Post article on Iraq war plans Said many in military wanted containment of Iraq

2003 Blair govt accused of crimes against humanity for Iraq war in Greek court

2004 68 killed in suicide car bomb on police center Baquba Diyala

2007 US Inspector General found from 2005-07 Iraqi govt only accepted 435 out of 2797 reconstruction

projects Since Maliki govt took power in 06 had accepted few if any projects Finance Min Jabr blamed for not releasing money to take over projects US spent $90 mil to fix 2 turbines at Dora power plant Iraqis didn’t know how to work turbines and used wrong fuel Iraqi govt wouldn’t accept project Meant US turning over projects to provincial and city govts that didn’t have money or know how to run them Problem was US didn’t include Iraqis in projects who had no say in what was built

2008 3 female suicide bombers hit Shiite pilgrims in Baghdad’s Karrada 32 dead 100

            wounded

(Musings On Iraq article on female suicide bombing in Karrada)

2008 Suicide bomber attacked Kurds protesting provincial election results in Kirkuk 24 killed Crowd burned

down Turkmen Front office and attacked Arab councilman’s house afterward

(Musings On Iraq article on Kurdish protests and violence in Kirkuk)

2017 Protest in Baghdad Governor said demos legitimate and trying to improve services

            Also demo in Muthanna over electricity

2018 Protests in Baghdad outside West Qurna 1 oil field in Basra

View the Iraq History Timelines
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This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 27

1933 French forbid anymore Assyrians entering Syria

1933 Iraq asked French to impose treaty between two to remove Assyrians from Iraq-Syrian border and disarm

them for 2^nd time

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

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

1958 Provisional constitution gave Kurds recognition as equal to Arabs

1959 Gen Qasim passed deal promising Arab-Kurdish partnership after talks with Mullah Mustafa

Barzani

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

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

1968 Communists issued demands to new Baath govt calling for National Front and coalition govt

1973 Communists said Bakr govt’s policies leading Iraq towards socialism

(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)

1982 US official sent to Baghdad to share CIA satellite imagery of Iranian troop movements

1983 Iraq announced it would increase attacks on Iran’s oil facilities

1983 Iraqi forces regained control of Rayat and Mount Kerman from Iranians in Kurdistan

            Iran turned over Haj Omran to ISCI

(Musings On Iraq book review Iran-Iraq War Volume 4: The Forgotten Fronts)

1987 US asked Iraq to stop attacks on shipping in Persian Gulf in hopes that Iran would follow suit

(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)

1990 Congress voted to impose sanctions on Iraq for threats against Kuwait Israel nuke and WMD programs      and human rights violations White House opposed

1990 Israel Science Minister threatened retaliation with chemical weapons if Iraq attacked

(Musings On Iraq article on Saddam’s motivation for threatening Israel before the Kuwait invasion)

1993 Iran asked for aid for 4,000 Iraqi refugees that entered country as southern marshes were drained

2001 Pentagon memo said that sanctions were falling apart Meant US could face a nuclear armed

            Saddam Advocated for regime change without saying how to achieve it

2003 DepSecDef Wolfowitz claimed that Iraq’s insurgency had no support in Iraq or in region

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

2003 Iraq Survey Group head Kay briefed Bush VP Cheney Def Sec Rumsfeld Dep Def Sec Wolfowitz CIA

Dir Tenet Natl Sec Adv Rice Chief of Staff Card on WMD hunt Said Iraq probably only had surge capacity to quickly restart WMD programs but no stockpiles Said trailers found were probably not mobile WMD labs Said Bush seemed unphased by fact that no WMD found

(Musings On Iraq article on mobile labs story)

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

2003 Kay separately briefed VP Cheney who asked Kay to look into whether Iraq sent its WMD to Syria or

Bekka Valley Lebanon

2005 Saddam’s trial ended

2006 Iraq and UN announced International Compact to help develop country

2006 UK Amb to Iraq Patey said that de facto division of Iraq and civil war more likely than transition to

democracy

2007 KDP and PUK renewed strategic power sharing agreement

2007 Report Jan 07 Saudis told US Amb to Iraq Khalilzad that PM Maliki an Iranian agent and helped

Sadr Bush officials said Saudis not helping with Iraq Financing Sunni groups Half foreign fighters to Iraq Saudis Majority of suicide bombers Saudis 40% of foreign fighters in Iraq Saudis Saudis asked Gulf States to help it finance Sunni groups opposed to Maliki US didn’t publicly criticized Saudis because of alliance

(Musings On Iraq article on Saudi role in insurgency)

2015 Protests in Rania KRG over project being stopped that led to clash with police

2018 Protests in Basra Babil Dhi Qar Karbala Baghdad Najaf Maysan Muthanna Qadisiya for jobs services

(Musings On Iraq article on Jul 27 protests)

View the Iraq History Timelines 

This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 26

1920 Gertrude Bell wrote that Baghdad started the 1920 Revolt but not lost

control of it when tribes rose up and they listened to no one Baghdad did not start revolt

(Musings On Iraq book review of Reclaiming Iraq, The 1920 Revolution and the Founding of the Modern State)

(Musings On Iraq book review of Gertrude Bell And Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq book review Gertrude Bell, Explorer of the Middle East)

1933 Iraq-French meeting Iraq told new border meant Assyrians who tried to get into Syria

            were actually still in Iraq French didn't want them in Syria

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

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

1983 Iran Op Wa al-Fajr 2 captured Haj Omran pass and Mount Kerde Mand in Iraqi Kurdistan

1985 Iranian Op Al Quds 4 in Mandali Diyala

1988 Iraq began Op Eternal Light using Mujahedeen e-Khalq attacking towards Kormanshah

Advanced 60 miles Took 2 Iranian towns with Iraqi air support hoping to start revolt against Khomeini

1988 Iran and Iraq foreign ministers met to discuss ceasefire

(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)

1988 PUK decided to withdraw from Balisan Valley Hit by chemical weapons while retreating

2001 Last of 4 NSC Deputies Committee meetings on revising Iraq policy

2005 US Army interrogators testified that dogs sleep deprivation and nudity all used on

            prisoners held at Abu Ghraib

2007 Bombing in Baghdad market killed 92

(Musings On Iraq book review Voices From Iraq, A People’s History, 2003-2009)

2007 US general said militias more accurate in targeting Green Zone because of training from Iran

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

2007 Audit Bechtel only finished half of its contracts Other half either canceled cut back or didn’t

            finish US only had 2 people to oversee contracts

2010 ISI bombed Al Arabiya TV station

2012 Protests in Basra against lack of electricity

2014 Ansar al-Islam refused to give allegiance to IS in Sadiya Diyala Led to fighting

            between two with IS winning

(Musings On Iraq book review The Caliphate At War, Operational Realities and Innovations of the Islamic State)

2015 Protest in Nasriaiya over power shortages

2017 Court issued arrest warrant for head of Salahaddin council for corruption

2018 Protest at West Qurna 2 field in Basra Tried to set up sit-in camp Broken up by ISF

            Another protest at Zubayr oil field went off peacefully 

View the Iraq History Timelines 

Review Iraq After America, Strongmen, Sectarians, Resistance

Rayburn, Joel, Iraq After America, Strongmen, Sectarians, Resistance, Stanford: Hoover Institution Press, 2014

Iraq After America is one of the best books to help understand post-Saddam Iraqi politics. Retired Colonel Joel Rayburn broke up the country’s political groups into three categories: authoritarians, sectarians, and the resistance. He starts with Nouri al-Maliki as the authoritarian who used his position as prime minister to centralize power and divide, conquer and arrest his opponents. The sectarians were split between the Shiite supremacists who wanted to assure the Shiite majority dominated the state, Sunni chauvinists that rejected the new Iraq, and Kurdish maximalists that hoped to expand Kurdistan. Finally, there was the resistance that was made up of Iranian backed militias and Al Qaeda in Iraq. Rayburn was notable for not only coming up with a broad basis for evaluating Iraq, but he was also very prescient predicting many events that occurred after the book was published. His thesis was that all these groups increased the divisions in Iraq and might have caused irreparable damage.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 25

1920 Karbala joined 1920 Revolt Tribal fighters beat British at Raranjiya

(Musings On Iraq book review of Reclaiming Iraq, The 1920 Revolution and the Founding of the Modern State)

1961 Gen Qasim claimed Kuwait as part of Iraq for 2^nd time

1985 Congress agreed to State Dept request to remove Iraq from list of states supporting terrorism Was

            part of Reagan’s move towards Iraq

1990 OPEC agreed to raise oil prices and follow quotas allaying Iraq complaints Kuwait and UAE

overproducing and lowering prices

1990 Saddam met US Amb to Iraq Glaspie saying he wanted meeting to be message to Bush Saddam said

that US and Iraq didn’t have close understanding of each other that could lead to problems and misunderstandings Claimed US was plotting against him Said UAE and Kuwait forcing down oil prices which was an attack upon Iraq Said US supporting Gulf States at expense of Iraq Said US had to choose sides Said that he would not threaten Kuwait if it forgave debt agreed to OPEC quotas Saddam said he would talk to Kuwait but would not sit and wait while Kuwait waged economic war on Iraq Said that Gulf States refused to renegotiate Iraq’s debt and this was conspiracy led by Kuwait Claimed he would talk with Kuwait about dispute if they didn’t give into Iraqi demands he would act

1990 Amb Glaspie told Saddam Bush wanted better Iraq-US relations Apologized for bad press on Iraq

Asked why Saddam had placed troops near Kuwait border Told Saddam US had no opinion on Iraq-Kuwait border dispute but warned not to use force

1990 US Defense Special Assessment said Iraq trying to pressure Kuwait to give into its demands and

didn’t think it would use military force

1990 Sec of State Baker told Commerce Dept export controls needed on US technology going to Iraq that

could be used for weapons programs

1990 Asst Sec State for Near East Kelly cancelled interview with Voice of America that would have warned

Iraq about troops buildup along Kuwait border

1990 Pres Mubarak called Saddam worried about Iraq putting troops on Kuwait border Claimed Saddam

promised not to attack Kuwait Saddam later denied that

2003 Sadr held rally in Najaf saying that he would form his own army to oppose US occupation

2003 Japan authorized largest deployment of troops since 1945 to be sent to Iraq

2005 New US Amb Khalilzad said security was his top priority

2005 Sunni members of constitutional committee ended boycott after member assassinated

(Musings On Iraq interview with constitutional scholar Zaid al-Ali on Iraq’s constitution)

2006 Op River Falcon to secure Sayifiya south of Baghdad started

2007 Report Iran gave PM Maliki his own personal jet

2009 KRG held parliamentary and presidential elections

(Musings On Iraq Implications of the Kurdish Elections On Iraq’s Parliamentary Vote)

2018 Protest in Dhi Qar Called for removal of governor

2018 Report Iraq Election Comm warned that using electronic voting machine could undermine trust in

vote Told machines had major problems South Korean company would not properly audit vote

View the Iraq History Timelines 

Review Bradley vs BMP, Desert Storm 1991

Review Guardia, Mike, Bradley vs BMP, Desert Storm 1991, Oxford, New York: Osprey Publishing, 2016

Bradley vs BMP, Desert Storm 1991 was the second in Osprey’s Duel series to deal with the Gulf War. This one focuses upon the armored fighting vehicles (AFV) of the American and Iraqi forces the Bradley and BMP respectively. Like all the Duel books this one follows the same format. First it breaks down the two vehicles, then the opposing forces, and then the combat. Author Mike Guardia’s main argument was that this was the first time modern American equipment was tested against its Soviet counterparts. It should have been that a developing country like Iraq with twenty year old vehicles was no match for a superpower with the latest technological innovations.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 24

1915 British forces captured Nasiriya Ottomans had 2000 casualties British 500 casualties

1920 British regiment driven from Kifl during 1920 Revolt after losing 180 men killed and 160

captured

(Musings On Iraq book review of Reclaiming Iraq, The 1920 Revolution and the Founding of the Modern State)

1923 Turkey signed Treaty of Lausanne agreeing to League of Nations deciding future of Mosul 

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

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

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

1983 Saddam and Adnan Khairallah went to Kurdistan Khairallah took control of defenses against 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 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)

1986 Saddam said unwise to clash with rising Islamism in Arab World but Iraq should be ready to strike

against it if threatened

1986 Saddam decided to reach out to Muslim Brotherhood in Sudan

1990 US military exercise with UAE Spokesman said US committed to defending its friends in the Gulf

Saddam said he felt betrayed by US forces moving through the Persian Gulf

1990 White House said it was concerned about Iraqi troop buildup along Kuwait’s border

1990 State Dept US had no defense treaties or special relationship with Kuwait Did support Gulf States

right to self defense

1991 Operation Provide Comfort II started to enforce northern fly zone and contain Saddam

1993 Kurds threatened retaliation if Iran didn’t stop shelling of border region trying to hit Iranian Kurdish

groups

2002 Kurds claimed Iraq coordinating with Ansar al-Islam and Al Qaeda in pre-invasion propaganda

campaign

2003 Spain Foreign Min Palacio said no evidence Iraq had a nuclear bomb program

2004 Zalmay Khalilzad became new US ambassador to Iraq Wanted to defeat insurgency not withdraw

which was existing plan

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

2004 500 marched in Sulaymaniya demanding an independent Kurdistan

2005 Allawi’s Iraqiya threatened to boycott constitutional commission because it wasn’t taken seriously the

concerns of Sunni delegation

(Musings On Iraq interview with constitutional scholar Zaid al-Ali on Iraq’s constitution)

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

2006 Report US 4^th Div carried out mass incarcerations abused Iraqi prisoners while stationed in Salahaddin

03-04

2006 Report Inter Min fired all Anbar police during 2004 Battle of Fallujah and police never rebuilt No

police in Rutba Ana Haditha few in Rawa

2007 US-Iran held 2^nd talks about Iraq US accused Iran of sending weapons and training militias Iran

accused US of occupation

2008 US Amb Crocker said insurgency had lost most of its relevancy

(Musings On Iraq article on decline of insurgency)

2008 Female suicide bomber killed Sahwa leader and 7 others 24 wounded in Baquba

(Musings On Iraq article on Baquba suicide bombing)

2014 IS attacked State Company for Pharmaceutical Supplies in Ninewa to capture bomb supplies

2017 Ammar Hakim announced he was leaving Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq and forming new Hikma

Party

2017 Protesters in Babil cut Babil-Baghdad highway over lack of water due to drought

View the Iraq History Timelines 

Security In Iraq Jul 15-21 2019

(Shafaaq News)

Attacks in Iraq have returned to pre-Revenge of the Levant levels in July. That means they are back in the teens raising questions about the state of the Islamic State.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 23

1933 Iraq asked France to impose treaty between two to remove Assyrians from Syrian border and

disarm them

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

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

1982 Iran Op Ramadan made fourth attack into Basra Iraq counterattacked pushed Iranians back

again

(Musings On Iraq book review of Iran-Iraq War Volume 2: Iran Strikes back, June 1982-December 1986)

1986 US briefing said that Iraq might need more US help because facing setbacks in Iran-Iraq War

(Musings On Iraq book review The Saddam Tapes)

1987 Iraq For Min Aziz wrote UN saying Iraq welcomed ceasefire proposal UN Res 598

(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)

2002 Blair cabinet meeting John Scarlett head of Joint Intel Com said Saddam could only be

removed by invasion Sir Dearlove head of MI6 said Washington decided war was inevitable Bush wanted to justify invasion via terrorism and WMD Said that intelligence and facts were being used to justify invasion Blair’s foreign policy adviser said Iraq was fourth most dangerous country with WMD behind North Korea Iran and Libya Defense Staff head Sir Boyce gave 3 options for British in Iraq 1 Offer bases to US 2 Add air navy special forces 3 40,000 troops for invasion

(Musings On Iraq article Chilcot Report Volume 2 Sec 3.3 Development of UK Iraq Strategy and Options April to July 2002)

(Musings On Iraq Chilcot Report Section 3.4 Development of UK Iraq Strategy and Options, Late July to 14 September 2002)

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

2003 Bush said deaths of Qusay and Uday Hussein showed that the old regime was gone and would

not return

2003 US released photos of Uday and Qusay to prove they were killed in face of Iraqi rumors they were

alive

2003 Bremer said only matter of time before Saddam was captured

2004 Ayatollah Sistani spoke against attacks on Christian churches

2008 Kurdish List got Pres Talabani to veto draft provincial election law that included equal division of

power in Kirkuk

(Musings On Iraq article on veto of election law)

2012 ISI carried out 30 car bombs and other attacks across 20 cities as part of new Breaking Walls

Campaign that killed more than 115

2018 Protesters blocked highway in Dhi Qar and march in Qadisiya broken up by ISF before it started

2018 Basra councilmen asked province to become autonomous region in response to demonstrations

View the Iraq History Timelines 

Hikma’s Calls For National Protests In Iraq Fizzle

HIkma protesters in Najaf (Al Mirbad)

Ammar Hakim’s Hikma party went into the opposition in June 2019. This was part of growing criticism of Prime Minister Adil Mahdi’s government. In a test of its new found position the party called for national protests on July 19. Those did not turn out as well as hoped for.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jul 22

1920 Albu Hassan took Kifil from British 1920 Revolt All of Mid-Euphrates under tribal control

except for Hillah Babil

1920 TE Lawrence wrote British officials refused to give Iraq autonomy

(Musings On Iraq book review of Reclaiming Iraq, The 1920 Revolution and the Founding of the Modern State)

1923 UK Minister to Tehran arrived in Baghdad to discuss deportation and immigration of Iraqi opposition

figures to Persia Iraqi govt said they could return after elections for assembly held

1929 Iraq High Commissioner Sir Gilbert Clayton said giving Iraq concessions was best way to maintain

good relations with Iraq and bad negotiations would have opposite effect

1931 Shiite leaders told Yasin Hashemi they would back him for PM if they got majority of cabinet posts

1979 Televised session of Baath meeting Former Revolutionary Command Council secretary general

Mashadi claimed there was a Syrian backed coup Said Syria wanted to remove Iraqi leadership so that two countries could unite

1979 66 accused coup plotters had names read and then taken from Baath party meeting Party members

began praising Saddam Accused coup plotters included 5 of 21 from Revolutionary Command Council Former Oil Min Hadithi who helped nationalize Iraq Petroleum Company

1979 Another accused plotter Adnan Hussein al-Hamdani deputy prime minister and head of president’s

office who had been close aide to Saddam

1979 Court made up of 7 members of Revolutionary Command Council created to try 66 coup plotters 

1983 Iran’s Op Wa al-Fajr 2 took Piranshahr pass Attacked Haj Omran KDPI HQ and Rayat Mount

Kerman Advanced 10 mi into Iraqi Kurdistan

1988 Iraq Op Tawakalna ala Allah 4 in Qasr e-Shirin in center and Hoveyzah in south to push Iran

into direct talks Saddam didn’t believe Khomeini committed to UN Res 598 ceasefire Just wanted break and return to war Saddam also wanted one last try at victory in Iran-Iraq War with new offensive Iraqi forces turned back in Kurdistan and Basra but gained 40 mi in Khuzistan province 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 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)

1992 Iraq bombed southern rebels killing 30

2002 DIA officer told to start making secret intelligence briefings to Rumsfeld on Iraq-Al Qaeda ties based

upon request by Deputy Def Sec Wolfowitz

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

Tragedy)

2002 US Energy Dept assessed Iraq trying to buy magnets meeting with scientists Niger uranium story

showed that Iraq restarted nuclear program

(Musings On Iraq article on Iraq-Niger uranium story)

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

2003 Iraqi Governing Council took office

2003 U.S. forces killed Saddam’s sons Uday and Qusay Hussein in raid in Mosul

(Musings On Iraq book review Special Operations Forces in Iraq)

2003 UN report said Iraqis becoming frustrated at US plans for returning sovereignty because would take

too long

2003 Bush speechwriter Gerson found 2 CIA memos from Oct 02 on why Iraq-Niger uranium story should

not be used in Bush speech Gerson’s discovery came just after White House blamed CIA Dir Tenet for why Niger story was used in Bush’s Jan 03 State of Union

(Musings On Iraq article on Iraq-Niger uranium story)

2004 Pentagon report acknowledge abuse of Iraqi prisoners including sexual and physical assault and deaths

2004 9/11 report 1994 or 95 Al Qaeda and Iraqi officials met Al Qaeda asked for aid and training camps Iraq

didn’t reply Al Qaeda worked with Ansar al-Islam in Iraqi Kurdistan

2006 US Iraq Cmdr Gen Casey said PM Maliki took no responsibility for anything Tried to take control of

ISF Casey said Maliki blocked 5 ops in Sadr City to protect Mahdi Army Maliki gave him list of 10 Shiite notables that could not be touched by US Sadr and aides at top of list

2006 US Iraq Cmdr Gen Casey said PM Maliki wanted militias to gain more control over Baghdad Said

Shiite politicians not serious about limiting Mahdi Army or death squads Said US forces clearing areas in Baghdad but Iraqis couldn’t hold them

2006 US Iraq Cmdr Gen Casey said US had no political strategy for Iraq since Dec 05 elections

2006 US Iraq Amb Khalizad said Sunnis and Shiite not accepted each other as equals not willing to

cooperate

2006 NatSecAdv Hadley told Bush US had no security strategy for Baghdad

(Musings On Iraq book review Voices From Iraq, A People’s History, 2003-2009)

2008 109,087 pardoned under Amnesty Law Govt originally claimed only had 26,000 prisoners

(Musings On Iraq article on Amnesty Law)

2012 ISI head Baghdadi announced it had returned to its strongholds that it was driven out of by by Surge

2013 ISIS issued paper arguing that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was fit to be the next caliph

(Musings On Iraq book review The Caliphate At War, Operational Realities and Innovations of the Islamic State)

2017 Anbar council voted 3^rd and final time to dismiss Governor Rawi on corruption charges

2018 Protests in Baghdad Basra Qadisiya and Wasit for jobs water electricity Dhi Qar and Muthanna

demonstrators called for governor to step down

2018 Communications Minister said govt had blocked certain websites because they were being abused by

demonstrators

2018 PM Abadi said he needed more time to meet demands of protesters so soon after war with Islamic

State ended

2018 Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights said Iraqi forces were making arrested protesters sign pledges not

to demonstrate again in order to be released from jail

View the Iraq History Timelines