This Day In Iraqi History - Apr 7

1916 Start of Battle of Bait Alsa and Sannaiyat between British and Ottomans 

1941 UK Middle East cmdr Gen Wavell told War Office military intervention in Iraq not possible and  

diplomacy should be used instead UK Mid East Cmdr Gen Wavell thought Regent of Iraq could be restored to power by strong statement and show of force by Royal Air Force  

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

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

1972 Soviet PM Kosygin inaugurated Russian company’s production at North Rumaila oil field  

1980 Iran withdrew all its diplomatic personnel from Iraq  

1980 Iran put military on full alert after accusing Iraq of repeated attacks upon its border area 

(Musings On Iraq book review The Longest War, The Iran-Iraq Military Conflict) 

1988 Start of 3rd Anfal campaign focused upon Germian, Sulaymaniya Civilians in area rounded up and  

many executed  

(Musings On Iraq article on Anfal campaign)  

1991 Sec State Baker condemned Iraq crimes against its people but said US would not get involved  

1991 US began humanitarian airdrops to Kurds 

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

(Musings On Iraq Review The United States And Iraq Since 1990, A Brief History With Documents)  

1998 IAEA told UN Iraq not carrying out any prohibited nuclear activities at sites it had visited  

(Musings On Iraq article on UN weapons inspections)  

2002 Blair and Bush met Blair pushed going to UN against Iraq Some claimed Blair okayed war with  

Iraq at meeting Blair denied that 

2002 Bush told TV network he’d decided Saddam must go  

(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) 

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

(Musings On Iraq Review Hubris, The Inside Story of Spin, Scandal, And The Selling Of The Iraq War)  

(Musings On Iraq book review The Bush Administrations and Saddam Hussein, Deciding on Conflict)  

(Musings On Iraq book review Plan of Attack: The Definitive Account Of The Decision To Invade Iraq) 

2003 US 3rd Inf Div conducted 2nd Thunder Run into Baghdad Iraq’s Info Min Mohammed Sahaf denied  

U.S. forces were in Baghdad  

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

2003 US Marines entered east Baghdad which was empty of Iraqi forces 

2003 US got intel Saddam in Mansour Baghdad Carried out air raid that killed 18 civilians  

2003 British took Basra city  

2003 Ayatollah Haeri named Moqtada al-Sadr his representative in Iraq 

(Musings On Iraq A Divided Sadr Trend)  

2003 Looting reported in Baghdad  

(Musings On Iraq book review The Fall Of Baghdad)  

2003 NY Times reported 4 drums of possible nerve agents found near Karbala Story proved false  

2003 Sec Def Rumsfeld opponents within military leaked details of Rumsfeld micromanaging invasion  

plans to Seymour Hersh 

2004 Mahdi Army seized control of Kut forcing Ukrainian troops to withdraw Ukrainians refused to  

evacuate CPA civilians from city during retreat  

2004 Mahdi Army attacked Polish patrols in Karbala and fought Spanish troops in Najaf  

2004 Sadr claimed he was the military wing of Ayatollah Sistani 

2004 Another marine unit arrived to take part in Op Vigilant Resolve 1st Battle of Fallujah 

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

2004 PM Blair called White House over his concern about attacks upon civilians during Fallujah Battle  

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

2004 US intel memo said that Sunni areas were a lost cause Sunnis didn’t see themselves having role in  

new Iraq US trying to create  

2004 US report Iraq earned $10.1 bil by manipulating Oil for Food Program from 1997-2002 

2005 Talabani sworn in as Iraq president and named Jaafari as new premier Ended interim govt under  

PM Allawi 

2006 3 suicide bombers hit Buratha mosque attempting to assassinate ISCI MP Saghir suspected of  

running Badr death squads 80 killed 

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

2006 Court papers showed Bush authorized leak of information on Iraq-Niger uranium story to support  

administration 

2006 Prosecutor claimed Cheney Chief of Staff Libby’s leaks to press were part of campaign to discredit  

fmr Amb Wilson over Iraq-Niger story  

(Musings On Iraq article on Iraq-Niger story)  

(Musings On Iraq Review Hubris, The Inside Story of Spin, Scandal, And The Selling Of The Iraq War) 

2007 Islamic Army said it had tried working with ISI but failed Blamed ISI for killing anyone that didn’t  

follow it 

(Musings On Iraq article on splits within insurgency)  

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

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

2008 Sadr said Mahdi Army would not disarm after demand by PM Maliki and threat to exclude him from  

2009 provincial elections Then said would consider it if Ayatollah Sistani and Iranian clerics suggested it 

2008 Iran officially backed PM Maliki’s Charge of Knights Supported Mahdi Army during fighting and  

then negotiated ceasefire  

2009 Obama flew to Baghdad and met PM Maliki and Pres Talabani Said lots of political progress but still  

issues in Iraq  

2010 Sadrist referendum on who movement wanted as new premier picked Jaafari after national vote  

2012 Kurdish Alliance said committee put together to work out problems with PM Maliki 

2012 Dep PM Shahristani complained about KRG oil contracts saying they were unrealistic 

2013 Cabinet said it was going to amend Accountability and Justice Law to meet demands of protesters 

2013 PM Maliki said early elections should be considered to solve political stalemate in country  

2013 KRG PM Nechirvan Barzani said PM Maliki was violating constitution and consensus politics with  

dispute over budget 

2013 Report claimed soldiers in army brigade were told to vote for PM Maliki in elections 

2014 PM Maliki told Shiite politicians he was turning to militias for security because frustrated with ISF’s  

performance  

2014 PM Maliki gave militias like Asaib Ahl Al-Haq and Kataib Hezbollah control of security in Baghdad  

belts 

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

(Musings On Iraq Instrument Of Iran’s Power In Iraq And Syria Kataib Hezbollah)  

2014 Naqshibandi leader and son killed by ISIS in Hamrin, Diyala 

(Musings On Iraq Precarious Relationship Between The Islamic State of Iraq And The Baathist Naqshibandi) 

2015 Cabinet said Hashd part of ISF and under premier as commander in chief  

2015 Sunni tribes blamed for some of the looting in Tikrit after city freed  

2015 MP from Albu Ajeel tribe said looting and burning in Albu Ajeel and Dour were done out of  

revenge for Camp Speicher massacre 

2016 One committee set up to handle cabinet reform said most ruling parties rejected changes  

2018 People started two days of sit in protests in central Basra over lack of services corruption and jobs

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