This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 30 Start of 1920 Revolt vs British Mandate in Iraq

 

1915 UK committee wrote paper advocating for break up of Ottoman Empire and creation of

Iraq to control its oil and agriculture Cabinet didn’t agree

(Musings On Iraq review The Chatham House Version and other Middle-Eastern Studies)

(Musings On Iraq review Enemy On The Euphrates, The Battle For Iraq 1914-1921)

(Musings On Iraq review U.S. Policy In Post-Saddam Iraq)

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 29 Nouri mosque in Mosul liberated where IS’s Baghdadi declared the caliphate Iraqi forces claimed Mosul freed but fighting continued

 

1915 US consulate report on anti-Turk riot in Karbala

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 28 CPA disbanded and sovereignty returned to Iraq

 

1914 Ottomans agreed to oil concessions for British and Germans in Mosul and Baghdad

provinces Never happened because WWI

Review The U.S. Army In The Iraq War Volume 2, Surge And Withdrawal 2007-2011

Rayburn, Colonel Joel, Sobchak, Colonel Frank, Editors, The U.S. Army In The Iraq War Volume 2, Surge And Withdrawal 2007-2011, Strategic Studies institute and U.S. Army War College Press, 2019

 

The second volume of the U.S. Army’s official history of the Iraq War covers the Surge of 2007 to the Americans returning to Iraq after the fall of Mosul in 2014. Three things stand out. First was how dysfunctional the Bush administration was when it rolled out its new strategy in 2007. The second is the details provided on how Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki hallowed out the Iraqi Security Forces so he could take control of them which helped lead to the resurgence of the insurgency. Last, it touches on how paranoid Maliki was. The sheer length of the book at over 600 pages and its density makes it one for Iraq researchers more than the general public.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 27 Iraq’s Revolutionary Command Council approved invasion of Kuwait

 

1916 UK report on defeat at Kut published Led to Secretary of State for India Chamberlain to resign

Blamed India for mismanaging and never adequately funding war in Mesopotamia

US Army In The Iraq War Volume 2 Ch 5 “The Surge Of Operations”

Chapter 5 of the second volume of the U.S. army’s history of the Iraq War focuses upon the summer of 2007. The Americans expanded their operations from Baghdad into neighboring Diyala while there were still differences over the new strategy. Part of that effort to turn tribes and insurgents against the Islamic State of Iraq ran into continued opposition from Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. On the other hand, Iranian backed militias were fighting each other for control of southern Iraq.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 26 Iraqi intel rounded up Iraqi National Accord coup plotters backed by US Called CIA and told them to go home

 

1922 Commerce Min Timman resigned over proposed Anglo-Iraq Treaty King Faisal ordered PM

Gaylani not to accept resignation

US Army In The Iraq War Volume 2 Ch 4 “The Awakening Gathers Momentum”

Chapter 4 of the second volume in the U.S. army’s history of the Iraq War is about how the Anbar Awakening expanded in the province. That eventually led to other tribes and insurgent groups to turn against the Islamic State of Iraq across central Iraq in what became known as the sahwa.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 25 Gen Qasim ordered the military to come up with a Kuwait invasion plan

 

1915 British troops took Nasiriya Ottomans had 200 casualties British 500

Security In Iraq Jun 15-21, 2024

There were just two security incidents reported in Iraq from June 15-21.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 24 Dozens killed 3000 arrested over house arrest of Ayatollah Sadiq al-Sadr

 

1923 Protests against voting on Anglo-Iraq treaty in Karbala

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 23 Faisal arrived in Iraq to become its first king

 

1921 Faisal arrived in Basra and then went to Najaf and Karbala as gesture towards Shiite

clergy as preparation to be crowned king Clerics opposed him

(Musings On Iraq review Empires of the Sand, The Struggle For Mastery In The Middle East 1789-1923)

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 22 Gertrude Bell said that Shiites were under the pay of leading cleric Khalisi who was a Persian

 

1915 British troops began attack upon Nasiriya

(Musings On Iraq review When God Made Hell, The British Invasion of Mesopotamia and the Creation of Iraq, 1914-1921)

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 21 Ayatollah Khomeini announced Iran would invade Iraq in Iran-Iraq War

 

1920 Foreign Min Lord Curzon wrote that head political officer in Iraq Wilson’s ideas were

backwards and him leading Mandate was a problem Wilson rejected self-rule

(Musings On Iraq review Britain In Iraq, Contriving King and Country)

(Musings On Iraq review Enemy On The Euphrates, The Battle For Iraq 1914-1921)

(Musings On Iraq review U.S. Policy In Post-Saddam Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq review When God Made Hell, The British Invasion of Mesopotamia and the Creation of Iraq, 1914-1921)

Review The Prisoner in His Palace, Saddam Hussein, His American Guards and What History Leaves Unsaid

Bardenwerper, Will, The Prisoner in His Palace, Saddam Hussein, His American Guards and What History Leaves Unsaid, Scribner, 2017

 

When you first open The Prisoner in His Palace, Saddam Hussein, His American Guards and What History Leaves Unsaid by Will Bardenwerper it appears that it is just about the 12 American Military Police (MPs) that guarded Saddam Hussein. That did not seem like it would be that interesting. It turns out the book covers Saddam’s trial and execution and the people around him like a U.S. medic, the FBI agents that interrogated him, the former Qatari Justice Minister that represented him and others.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 20 General Qasim claimed Kuwait as part of Iraq

 

870 Abbasid Caliph Muhtadi killed in capital Samarra in revolt by Turkish soldiers over not being

paid

(Musings On Iraq review when baghdad ruled the muslim world, the rise and fall of islam’s greatest dynasty)

US Army In The Iraq War Volume 2 Ch 3 “The New Way Forward, February 2007-April 2007”

The third chapter of the U.S. army’s history of the Iraq War covers the start of the Surge in February 2007. There were two main issues. First, there were still differences over the new strategy. Second, the Americans looked to the Iraqi government to be a partner but it was an actor in the civil war trying to establish Shiite supremacy over Baghdad.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 19 Trying to play down the security situation in Iraq Sec Def Rumsfeld said the murder rate in Wash DC was worse than violence in Baghdad

 

1914 Germany and Britain asked Ottomans for oil concessions in Mosul and Baghdad provinces

US Army In The Iraq War Volume 2 Ch 2 “The Eve Of The Surge, December 2006-February 2007”

Chapter 2 of the U.S. Army’s second volume on the Iraq War covers the period after President Bush decided to surge troops into Iraq but before it was actually implemented. It showed more dysfunction within the U.S. government, while inside Iraq the warring factions were preparing for a final confrontation.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 18 Assyrian leader Mar Shimun petitioned League of Nations asking for autonomy for his people

 

1932 Assyrian religious leader Mar Shimun presented petition to League of Nations Mandate

Commission demanding autonomy for his people

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

(Musings On Iraq review State and Society in Iraq)

16 Year Anniversary Of Musings On Iraq

 

In 2008 I started Musings On Iraq. I was inspired to start researching Iraq after I heard former CIA Director James Woolsey on 9/11 saying that the U.S. needed to attack Saddam even if he had nothing to do with the terrorist attacks. That caught my attention and the next year when the Bush administration began its media campaign to drum up support for the invasion I decided I needed to find out why. That led me to start writing on message boards and then finally establishing this blog.

 

Thank you to all the readers. Unfortunately my work can no longer be read in Iraq because the government blocked my blog!

Security In Iraq June 8-14, 2014

The Islamic State was absent from Iraq for another week while pro-Iran groups continued attacks upon Israel during the Gaza War.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 17 London approved Arab govt with UK advisers to run Iraq under British Mandate

 

1919 British force defeated Sheikh Barzinji near Chamchamal

(Musings On Iraq Explaining Kurdish Nationalism Interview With Teen Tech Univ Prof Michael Gunter)

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 16 Iraq protested border treaty with Iran by sending troops into Khuzistan province Led to 88 Iraqi soldiers being killed

 

1920 UK govt decided to cancel proposed UK run provisional govt in Iraq for an Arab govt under

British influence

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 15 PM Nuri al-Said made cover of Time magazine Was Prime Minister of Iraq 9 times

 

1920 War Min Churchill wrote UK Cabinet that he was ready to give up Mosul province to save

costs

(Musings On Iraq How The Ottoman Province Of Mosul Became Part Of Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq Churchill In His Own Words On Mesopotamia/Iraq)

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

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

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

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 14 Ayatollah Sistani said his call for Iraqis to defend country meant joining ISF not militias that became Hashd al-Shaabi Was too late

 

1920 UK military governor in Basra reported political agitation from Baghdad trying to raise

support for Iraqi independence in Basra

Review Once Upon A Time In Iraq

Balian, Basil, Once Upon A Time In Iraq, Basil Balian, 2008

 

Basil Balian is an Iraqi-Armenian who grew up in Diyala and Baghdad under the monarchy. His autobiographical Once Upon A Time In Iraq is about his memories of his home in Iraq and then a short section on how he came to the U.S. and started a family there. It’s a quick and enjoyable read and provides another Iraqi voice too few of which are heard in the West.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 13 Ayatollah Sistani called for men to defend Iraq after fall of Mosul to ISIS Led to Hashd al-Shaabi

 

1920 War Min Churchill wrote PM George that British army overextended in Mesopotamia

and asked whether UK should give up Mosul province because of costs

(Musings On Iraq How The Ottoman Province Of Mosul Became Part Of Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq Churchill In His Own Words On Mesopotamia/Iraq)

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

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

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

Iraq’s Oil Exports And Revenue Drop In May

In May Iraq suffered a drop in international oil prices. Its exports dipped as well.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 12 ISIS massacred around 1200 cadets at Camp Speicher

 

1920 Protest in Karbala mosque calling for revolt vs British

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

(Musings On Iraq review Enemy On The Euphrates, The Battle For Iraq 1914-1921)

Musings On Iraq In The News

 I was quoted by Robert Tollast in this article "The rise and fall of ISIS, 10 years on" in The National.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 11 ISIS seized Tikrit without a fight

 

1925 Head of League of Nations Mosul Commission called King Faisal a “poor creature”

Security In Iraq, June 1-7, 2024

The Islamic State disappeared from Iraq once again while pro-Iran groups continued attacks upon Israel.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 10 Mosul fell to the Islamic State

 

1915 US consulate report Ottomans might have lost control of Najaf and Karbala and UK

money behind it

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 9 1st UN weapons inspection began in Iraq

 

1920 British forces retook Tal Afar after bombing broke Iraqi rebels British carried out collective

punishment destroying and looting homes Large number of people forced out into desert

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 8 Iraqi commanders said they were retreating during ISIS attack on Mosul leading to mass desertions

 

1920 Ex-Ottoman officer and nationalist al-Ahd member Jamil al-Midfai’s forces attacked Mosul

but turned back Tried to start revolt vs UK Mandate in Iraq

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 7 Al Qaeda In Iraq leader Zarqawi killed in US air strike

 

1920 Ex-Ottoman officer and nationalist al-Ahd member Jamil al-Midfai’s forces reached Mosul

hoping to start revolt against British

Review Cairo 1921, Ten Days That Made the Middle East

Faught, C. Brad, Cairo 1921, Ten Days That Made the Middle East, Yale University Press, 2022

 

The 1921 Cairo conference held by British Colonial Secretary Winston Churchill helped create the modern Middle East. Borders were drawn, kings were installed, and a new policy of neo-colonialism was created. That’s what C. Brad Faught’s Cairo 1921, Ten Days That Made the Middle East focuses upon.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 6 ISIS attacked Mosul eventually taking city

 

1919 Iraq High Commissioner Wilson told to take over Kurdish affairs Meant Kurds in Mosul to be

included in Iraq

Pro-Iran Groups Attack US Businesses In Iraq And Call For Their Expulsion

Since May 26 there has been a series of attacks upon U.S. franchises in Baghdad. The latest was on June 3 when a KFC and Chili’s in Baghdad were set upon by around 30 people. 13 were later arrested some of which belonged to the Iraqi security forces. Al Rafidain reported that Kataib Hezbollah was behind the incidents.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 5 Ali and Faisal sons of Sharif of Mecca announced Arab Revolt against Ottomans Many Iraqis joined

 

1916 Ali and Faisal sons of Sharif Hussein announced Arab Revolt against Ottomans Many

Iraqi Ottoman officers would join revolt UK promised Sharif empire after war

(Musings On Iraq review Enemy On The Euphrates, The Battle For Iraq 1914-1921)

(Musings On Iraq review Empires of the Sand, The Struggle For Mastery In The Middle East 1789-1923)

US Army In The Iraq War Volume 2 Ch 1 “Strategy In Crisis, October-December 2006

The second volume of the U.S. Army’s official history of the Iraqi War starts off with President Bush trying to come up with a new Iraq strategy. He’d been disengaged from the war and finally realized in 2006 that things were not going well. It took an extended period of time to formulate a new approach which highlighted the continued dysfunction within the White House over a conflict which was supposed to be a defining moment in the administration.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 4 Jamil al-Midfai led nationalist group seized Tal Afar in attempt to start revolt vs UK Mandate in Iraq

 

1915 Ottomans counterattacked trying to retake Amara Failed

Islamic State And Pro-Iran Groups Pick Up Operations In Iraq In May 2024

May saw a relatively high level of activity by the Islamic State and the Islamic Resistance In Iraq.

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 3 Ali Hassan al-Majid ordered 1,000 Kurdish villages be destroyed

 

1915 British took Amara after Ottomans withdrew

(Musings On Iraq review When God Made Hell, The British Invasion of Mesopotamia and the Creation of Iraq, 1914-1921)

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 2 UK political officer in Iraq Sir Wilson told Iraqi nationalists an Arab govt would have to wait UK mandate would rule Iraq

 

1915 British troops from Persia crossed Tigris and attacked Amara after convincing Ottoman

garrison commander to surrender 

This Day In Iraqi History - Jun 1 Farhud anti-Jewish pogrom started in Baghdad

 

1932 Most Assyrian Levies resigned over treatment of their community Worried about what new

Iraqi govt would do with them

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

(Musings On Iraq review State and Society in Iraq)