Tuesday, October 31, 2017

This Day In Iraqi History - Oct 31


1982 Iran launched Muharram al-Haram attacking Diyala and Maysan Took
            Back 120 sq mi of Iranian territory 330 sq mi of Iraqi land
1982 Iranian Op Muharram al-Haram made Iraq call up its reserves
1995 INC HQ in Salahaddin, Irbil bombed by Iraqi National Accord killing 28
1998 Iraq suspended all cooperation with UN weapons inspectors 
1998 Pres Clinton signed Iraq Liberation Act opening up $97 mil for opposition parties
2001 ABC withdrew story that Iraq might be behind anthrax letters sent to Wash DC
2002 Blair agreed to offer a division to US for invasion of Iraq
2002 UK energy companies met with govt official complaining business deals
            being made for postwar Iraq and they were being left out
2004 US Gen Sattler Unless US and Iraqi forces stopped insurgent intimidation campaign against 
            Iraqi civilians they couldn’t win
2004 Report US intel est 8,000-12,000 insurgents in Iraq and financing Far more than
            previously believed
2004 Report US army overrode objections of contracting officers who complained
            about cost overruns and non-competitive bids given to Halliburton in Iraq
2005 US report Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Iraqi militias and police carrying out
            assassinations in Basra
2005 IRGC gave assassination orders to Sayid al-Shuhada, Iraq Hezbollah, Thar Allah,
            Fadhilah, Badr and others
2006 ISI’s Furquan Institute for Media Production made its first release
2006 State Dep memo to Rice said ISF not capable of controlling violence Meant
            Clear Hold Build impossible
2006 State Dept memo to Rice Maliki talked about being national leader but was
            proving sectarian
2010 ISI attacked Our Lady of Salvation church in Baghdad taking 100 hostages Goal
            was publicity and gain donations
2015 Albu Faraj noth of Ramadi attacked by ISF after it was declared freed 3 times
2016 Iraqi forces attacked Gogjali eastern suburb of Mosul 

Monday, October 30, 2017

Barzani’s Followers Respond With Violence To News He Will Step Down


President Masoud Barzani delivered a letter to the Kurdistan parliament and then appeared on TV for the first time since the September 2017 referendum to announce that he would step down from office. His followers immediately took to the streets and assaulted members of the press and political parties, burning down offices, as well as storming the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) parliament building.

This Day In Iraqi History – Oct 30


1918 British forces took Shirqat from Ottomans
1918 Armistice of Mudros signed between British and Ottomans 6th Army
            surrendered to British Ended WWI in Mesopotamia
1918 British officials in Baghdad told London to create central council of chiefs of
            Southern Kurdistan
1936 PM Yasin al-Hashimi became 1st Iraqi premier overthrown in a coup King Ghazi
            supported his removal
1936 Hikmat Sulaiman became premier of Iraq leading to 1st govt with pan-Arabists
            out of power
1936 Sulaiman govt banished former PM Hashimi, Rashid al-Gaylani and Nuri al-Said
1980 Saddam predicted Iran-Iraq War would only last 6-12 months
1990 NatlSecAdv Scowcroft said US policy at fork in road Could continue defense or
            go on offense against Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait
1990 Joint Chiefs head Gen Powell said Gen Schwarzkopf asked for troops for
            offensive operations against Iraq in Kuwait
1990 Def Sec Cheney said offensive action against Iraq should be on the table
1990 Bush decided to double number of US troops in Saudi Arabia
1997 Tariq Aziz claimed surveillance planes used by inspectors were working for US
            intelligence Threatened to shoot them down
2002 Cheney told head UN Inspector Blix that inspections couldn't last forever and US
            was ready to discredit them anyway to disarm Iraq
2003 Cheney said Iraq had WMD
2003 Dep Sec of Def Wolfowitz said because US had missed so much of Iraq’s WMD
            program in 1991 it might have exaggerated them in 2003
2003 Report White House pushing Pentagon to speed up training of Iraqi forces
2005 Spec Insp Gen for Iraq Recon report said US had no policy for staffing
            reconstruction of Iraq
2005 Spec Insp Gen for Iraq Recon said lack of planning by US plagued reconstruction
2005 Report Italian press believed SISMI intel agency forged docs claiming Iraq-Niger
            uranium deal and shared them with US and UK
2005 Report PUK building dozens of houses in Kirkuk City and moving Kurds in Said
            to reverse Saddam’s Arbization program
2006 Militias kill 17 Sunni police near British run training center in Basra
2006 SecState Rice aide told her little chance for US success in Iraq Another said
            Iraq heading towards genocidal violence
2006 SecState Rice talked about giving up reconciliation in Iraq with aides and
            just worrying about stability
2015 PM Abadi went to Dawa meeting to answer critics of his reforms


Musings On Iraq In The News

I was interviewed by Iraq In Context, "Musings On Baghdad and Erbil: An Interview with Joel Wing." I was quoted in this article in Caixin "US Secretary of State called on Middle East allies to block the Iranian move against Iraqi politics." I was also cited in The Struggle for Iraq: A View From The Bottom Up by Thomas Renahan.

Sunday, October 29, 2017

This Day In Iraqi History - Oct 29


1936 Planes dropped flyers over Baghdad demanding PM Yasin Hashemi’s
resignation as troops marched on capital in coup
1936 PM Hashemi asked for King Ghazi’s support When didn't get it offered his
            resignation
1936 Parliament building bombed in coup
1936 Def Min Askari was assassinated by Gen Bakr Sidqi coup plotters
1990 UN Security Council said overtures to Iraq had failed and talked about
            alternatives but came up with nothing
1990 Bush said US wouldn’t rule out use of force against Iraq for Kuwait invasion
1997 Tariq Aziz said no Americans would be allowed as inspectors accusing them of being
            spies
1997 IAEA suspended all its work in Iraq
2003 Bush said he supported Bremer’s plan for Iraq but that it could be speeded up
2004 CIA report said that Iraqi elections would likely lead to opposition from Sunni
Arab govts
2004 1st Lancet report on Iraqi casualties claims 100,000 Iraqi civilians died since
            invasion mostly due to Coalition
2004 1st Lancet gained huge publicity but is mostly discredited by experts
2004 Al Qaeda in Iraq beheaded Japanese civilian Shosei Koda
2004 Report US forces reached Al Qaqaa nuclear site during 03 invasion then left and
            site looted of high grade explosives
2015 VP Maliki said PM Abadi removing Vice Presidents was illegal 

Saturday, October 28, 2017

Baghdad Ups Ante Attempting To Seize Control Of Kurds’ Oil Pipeline


The fighting between the Iraqi government and the Peshmerga took another turn. Initially, Baghdad was demanding that the Kurds return all the areas that they occupied in 2014 when the Islamic State swept through Iraq. After that was largely achieved Prime Minister Haidar Abadi took another step and had federal units move on a border crossing where the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) pipeline crosses into Turkey. This was a decided escalation since the area is within the KRG, but the central government is claiming that it should have authority over all Iraqi territory and borders.

This Day In Iraqi History – Oct 28


2003 Bush speech said Iraq frontline of war on terror and would take time to win
2003 Rumsfeld and Joint Chiefs Vice Chairman Gen Pace said US had to return
            sovereignty as soon as possible and get Iraqis to run things
2003 Powell said security number one priority in postwar Iraq otherwise nothing else
            would matter
2005 Cheney chief of staff Libby indicted obstruction perjury false statements for
            retaliating vs FmrAmb Wilson over Iraq-Niger deal
2006 ISI launched first chlorine bomb
2016 KRG PM Barzani replaced 4 Gorran ministers with 4 KDP politicians in
            dispute over Pres Barzani’s term

Friday, October 27, 2017

This Day In Iraqi History - Oct 27


1984 Iraq restored diplomatic relations with US which had ended in Oct 1967
1992 Report before Gulf War Bush admin approved sale of computers and software to Iraq that were
used on missile and supergun programs
1992 Opposition meeting in Salahaddin, Kurdistan called for democratic and federal Iraq Made
            INC umbrella org with ethnosectarian quotas
2001 Czech Inter Min said 9/11 hijacker Atta met with Iraqi intel in Prague
2002 US intel complained to press Pentagon using own intel on Iraq and relying
            upon INC too much
2003 Bremer returned to DC to discuss his long term plan for Iraq which White House
            had turned against
2003 Rumsfeld told Bremer of plan to return Iraq sovereignty by Apr 04 Bremer said
            needed new Iraqi govt & constitution 1st
2003 Bush at NSC meeting said US had to stay the course in Iraq
2003 Gen Abizaid at NSC meeting said US had to bring back ex-Iraqi soldiers to
            rebuild army Bremer said too risky
2003 Natl Sec Adv Rice Iraq insurgency desperate and not going to succeed
2003 Zarqawi bombed Red Cross HQ and 4 police stations in Baghdad Sixth attack
            foiled 35 dead and 244 injured at start of Ramadan
2003 Saddam called on insurgents to attack Iraqi security forces rather than U.S. led
            coalition
2003 U.S. military blamed foreign fighters for spate of Baghdad bombings Day before
            denied foreign fighters important in capital
2003 US military Insurgents were paying 10 times as much for people to carry out
            attacks against US forces
2003 UnderSecDef Feith provided evidence of Iraq-Al Qaeda ties his office had
            collected to Senate Intel Comm
2003 Feith told Senate Intel Comm Iraqi govt knew Zarqawi entered Iraq in 2002
2004 Report number of IEDs being planted in Iraq went from 500 per months in May &
            June 04 to 1,000 by Oct 04
2005 Baghdad insurgent leader told Guardian he supported voting on Constitution and
            opposed Al Qaeda in Iraq
2011 Salahaddin council voted to start process to become a federal region Maliki
            blocked move
2015 60 members of State of Law sent letter to Abadi demanding answers about his
            reforms organized by Maliki 

Thursday, October 26, 2017

2006 Clear Hold Build: An Iraq Strategy That Wasn’t A Strategy


President Bush constantly talked about winning in Iraq. In November 2006, the White House released its “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq.” The problem was at that time, the United States had no plan on how to achieve victory, and the strategy paper wasn’t even approved by the Pentagon or military.

This Day In Iraqi History – Oct 26


1952 Students led by Communists went on strike at Baghdad’s College of
            Pharmacy against govt
1978 Pres Assad visited Iraq to sign National Charter of Joint Action to counter
            Israel-Egypt peace treaty
1980 Iraq fired missiles at Dezful, Iran for 2nd day
1980 Most of the Iranian forces driven out of Khorramshahr, Iran by Iraqi army
1980 Soviet news agency accused Iraq of aligning with US in Iran-Iraq War
1980 Iran objected to Iraq abrogating 1975 Algiers Agreement in letter to U.N. Said
            Iran still following it Iraq broke it
1984 Tariq Aziz told Sec of State Shultz Iraq ready to resume full diplomatic relations
            with US after 17 yr break
1989 Sec of State Baker memo said that ties with Iraq important to shape Middle
            East politics
2001 After anthrax letters sent to Wash DC ABC reported anthrax trademark of Iraq’s
            WMD program
2001 Czech Interior Ministry told press 9/11 hijacker Atta met Iraqi intel officer
            in Prague
2003 Baghdad’s Rashid Hotel hit by rocket while Dep Sec of Def Wolfowitz staying
            there 1 US soldier killed 18 wounded
2003 US military said were not many foreign fighters in Baghdad
2004 PM Allawi blamed US for deaths of 49 army recruits killed in Diyala by Zarqawi
2005 Report CIA review said Zarqawi visited Baghdad May 02 but probably didn’t
            have protection of Iraqi govt
2005 CIA review of Zarqawi’s 02 trip to Baghdad based upon interviews with Saddam
            era Iraqi officials
2005 Bush admin originally claimed Zarqawi was given safe haven by Saddam and
            said sign of Iraq-Al Qaeda cooperation
2008 US Special Forces raided ISI camp in Syria used to ferry foreign fighters into Iraq
            captured huge amount of documents


Wednesday, October 25, 2017

In Face Of Referendum Fallout Kurdish Ruling Parties Decide To Hold Onto Power


After the September 2017 Independence Referendum, the two main Kurdish ruling parties found themselves in a quandary. President Masoud Barzani of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) was humiliated by the fiasco that followed the election where the Kurds gave up not only Kirkuk but almost all the disputed areas they had sought to annex following the fall of Saddam Hussein. The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) on the other hand was not only accused of selling out to Baghdad by ordering its Peshmerga to fall back in the face of the federal forces, but was deeply divided internally between two main factions. Faced with these issues the two parties decided to delay elections so that they could stay in power.

This Day In Iraqi History – Oct 25


1922 Gertrude Bell wrote that King Faisal was trying to create his own party
            but was being played by politicians
1980 Iraq fired missiles at Dezful, Iran
1983 Iran claimed Iraqi troops destroyed Kurdish town of Penjwin
1984 Iranian troops recaptured Mehran, Iran ending Op Dawn 7
2000 Congress authorized increase in support for Iraqi opposition groups to $25 mil
            in 2001 $18 mil would got to INC
2002 VP Cheney met with Russian For Min Told him countries that sided
            with US in war would get preferential treatment in contracts afterward
2003 Iraqi prisoners were stripped, handcuffed and piled in pyramid on top of
            each other by US jailers in Abu Ghraib
2004 Report top contracting official at US Army Corps of Engineers questioned
            Halliburton’s no-bid Iraq contracts
2004 Report 380 tons of high grade explosives looted from Al Qaqaa nuclear site
2005 Results of Constitutional referendum announced 79% voted for constitution Anbar
            and Salahaddin overwhelmingly voted no
2005 Death toll for Americans in Iraq reached 2,000 since 03 invasion
2005 Iraq Body Count est 26,690-30,051 Iraqi civilians & police died since 03 invasion
2006 Bush speech Iraq challenge of our time Knew people weren’t happy with Iraq
            war and neither was he
2006 Bush speech said US winning in Iraq Didn't say he thought strategy failing and
            working on new one
2009 ISI bombed Justice & Municipalities Ministries in Baghdad 155 dead 721 wounded Maliki
            blamed Baathists but was ISI

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Security In Iraq Oct 15-21, 2017


For the twelfth time in the last thirteen full weeks Iraq witnessed less than 100 security incidents. Casualties were extremely high however because of clashes between the Peshmerga and Iraqi forces.

This Day In Iraqi History - Oct 24


1978 Pres Assad visited Baghdad to talk about unifying Iraq and Syria Issued
            unification declaration
1980 Iraq crossed Shatt al-Arab and took city center in Khorramshahr
1984 US Info Service reopened office in Baghdad Closed since 1958 in first step to
            reestablish formal relations between US & Iraq
2002 Pentagon's Policy Counterterrorism Group briefed Rumsfeld on Iraq-Al Qaeda ties
2002 Rumsfeld told press Policy Counterterrorism Group was not an intel unit
2002 Intel officials complained to press that Pentagon politicizing intel on Iraq
2003 US secured $13 bil in aid and loans from allies for Iraq at Madrid conference
2005 Palestine Hotel and Sheraton Ishtar Hotel in Baghdad hit by truck bombs
2014 Babil’s Jurf al-Sakhr finally cleared after a dozen attempts All civilians forced
            out of city and have not been allowed to return since

Monday, October 23, 2017

Seven Expert Opinions On The Kirkuk Crisis


In the after math of the September 2017 Kurdish independence referedum, Prime Minister Haidar Abadi demanded that the Kurds relinquish control of the areas it occupied in Kirkuk during the summer of 2014. This could have led to a war with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) across northern Iraq. Instead, divisions within the two main Kurdish parties the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) led to the Peshmerga not only giving up the territory the premier demanded, but Kirkuk city and disputed areas they took in Diyala and Ninewa. There were some armed clashes as well. To try to give perspective to this shocking series of events are several experts giving their personal views.

This Day In Iraqi History - Oct 23


1918 Battle of Shirqat started as British forces moved north from Baghdad to
            confront Ottomans
1973 Baghdad ordered its units home in 1973 Arab-Israeli War
1977 Ayatollah Khomeini’s son Mustafa died in exile in Najaf Iranian secret police
            believed to be behind it
1980 US said Iran’s national integrity was threatened by Iraq Pres Carter was trying
            to get US hostages released by Iran
1996 PUK and KDP signed ceasefire brokered by US, UK and Turkey
1997 UN Resolution 1134 said that Iraq had to fully comply with weapons inspectors
            and condemned non-cooperation
1997 Were splits within UN security council over continued weapons inspections
2002 US and UK submitted draft resolution for new inspections in Iraq
2003 Madrid Conf began with 76 countries to garner international aid for Iraq
            Germany Russia France offered nothing having opposed war
2004 Al Qaeda in Iraq dressed as police took 49 Iraqi soldiers off bus and executed
            them in Diyala 

Sunday, October 22, 2017

Musings On Iraq In The News

I was quoted in "Iraqi Kurdistan in disarray after the loss of Kirkuk" by Paul Iddon in The New Arab.

This Day In Iraqi History - Oct 22


1965 Gen Nasser said he supported Iraqi govt against Mustafa Barzani’s Kurdish
            rebellion
1980 Iraqi forces surrounded and began siege of Abadan, Iran
1981 UN backed Islamic Conference Organization’s attempt to end Iran-Iraq War
2004 Sistani aide Safi in Friday sermon said voting in 2005 elections was a
            religious duty
2010 Wikileaks released thousands of classified US reports on Iraq 

Saturday, October 21, 2017

This Day In Iraqi History - Oct 21


1980 Iraqi forces reached city center in Khorramshahr, Iran
1991 Iraq told UN weapons inspectors it had program to build a nuclear bomb
1996 PUK backed by Iran recaptured most of territory it lost to KDP except Irbil
2002 Report Czech Pres Havel told White House 9/11 terrorist Atta did not meet
            with Iraq intelligence in Prague
2004 US soldier found guilty of abuse in Abu Ghraib prison scandal given 8 yrs in
            prison
2007 Maliki complained to US about Oct 20 US raid into Sadr City and wanted
            investigation into US abuses in Iraq
2011 US announced it would withdraw its forces from Iraq on Dec 31
2011 Obama told Maliki not getting stay behind US forces in Iraq was ok because US
            would still have influence
2014 New operation to try to clear Babil’s Jurf al-Sakhr started after Sep attempt failed

 View the Iraq History Timeline

Friday, October 20, 2017

Security In Iraq Oct 8-14, 2017


Iraq had another week of very low violence. There have been less than one hundred security incidents reported for the last eleven weeks. Casualties were high however as the government made a rare announcement of casualties from the Hawija operation.

This Day In Iraqi History – Oct 20


1980 US said Iraq invasion of Iran threatened security in Gulf and land should
            not be seized by force
1983 Iran launched Wa al-Fajr 4 in Kurdistan taking 25 mi of Iraqi land
1991 Report Saddam was arming PKK to fight Turkey
2000 British Foreign Office said wanted to offer end of sanctions to return inspectors
            but didn’t think US would agree
2002 Czech Intel told US no evidence 9/11 hijacker Atta met with Iraq intelligence
            in Prague
2004 Report Jan 03 Natl Intel Council warned building democracy in Iraq would be
            long difficult and turbulent
2004 Report Jan 03 Natl Intel Council warned that overthrowing Saddam could lead to
            ethnosectarian rivalries and power grabs in Iraq
2004 Transparency International ranked Iraq one of most corrupt countries in world
2005 One of Saddam’s lawyers kidnapped and killed
2007 US Special Forces raid into Sadr City hunting Special Groups led to huge
            firefight
2015 Baiji town finally cleared

Thursday, October 19, 2017

Inside Iraq’s Oil Sector Interview With Gary Vogler


Gary Vogler worked extensively in Iraq’s oil sector starting in 2002 when he was recruited by the Pentagon to plan for postwar situations. That group was then folded into the Office for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA) and then the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). Vogler would later work as a contractor and consultant in Iraq until 2015, and was involved in several major projects. He recently published a book about his experiences Iraq and the Politics of Oil, An Insider’s Perspective.

This Day In Iraqi History – Oct 19


1948 All Jewish Iraqi govt workers fired after creation of Israel
1958 Gen Bakr forced to retire after Col Arif lost power struggle with Gen Qasim
            within govt
1980 Saddam speech said Iraq couldn’t win war because outnumbered by Iran
2003 Powell said US had found evidence of Iraq’s WMD programs & that
            Saddam always wanted nuclear weapons
2004 Head of aid group Care was kidnapped in Baghdad Later killed by insurgents
2004 Iraq conspiracy theorist Mylroie wrote OpEd in NY Sun that Iraq was training
            foreigners to carry out terrorist attacks and working with Islamic groups
2005 Saddam’s trial started and pled his innocence
2005 Rice told about Senate Clear Hold Build counterinsurgency plan for Iraq Was not
            discussed with US military beforehand
2005 US Iraq Cmdr Gen Casey US Iraq Amb Khalizad later asked Rice
            what Clear Hold Build was & why not consulted
2005 Rumsfeld complained to Rice that he did not back Clear Hold Build and he
            was not consulted about it
2006 IED killed Amara police chief from Badr Police arrested brother of suspected
bomber from Mahdi Army 2 days of fighting started
2006 Mahdi Army stormed 3 police stations manned by Badr in Amara
2006 US general said Op Together Forward II failed to reduce violence in Baghdad
2006 US Iraq Cmdr Gen Casey US Amb Khalzad gave press conference saying
            Op Together Forward II in Baghdad working
- 2013 IS held parade in southern Fallujah

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Kurds Fall Back To 2014 Borders


For the second day, the Peshmerga continued to withdraw from territory they occupied during 2014. All did not go peacefully however as there was a short gun battle at Mosul Dam.

This Day In Iraqi History – Oct 18


1980 Pres Carter called on Iraq to withdraw from Iran Carter was trying to get
            US hostages held by Tehran released
1984 Iran launched Op Dawn 7 to recapture the city of Mehran Won back some
            Iranian territory
2001 CIA report on story that Iraq tried to buy uranium from Niger Said Iraq
didn’t have facilities to process uranium
2001 WSJ OpEd by ex-CIA Dir Woolsey said Iraq behind 9/11
2002 Sec of Def Rumsfeld told Under Sec of Def Feith to create postwar planning
            office for Iraq Cancelled few days later
2002 Cancellation came from White House that didn’t want postwar planning
            because could derail invasion

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

Kirkuk Aftermath: PM Abadi And PUK Winners, KDP Losers, KRG Done For?


Golden Division sitting in Governor Karim’s seat in Kirkuk City (Rudaw)

Prime Minister Haidar Abadi’s move in Kirkuk went from a possible disaster to an unmitigated success. After fighting broke out in the morning of October 16 the Kurds withdrew and the Iraqi forces took all the positions they wanted plus Kirkuk city and areas of northeast Diyala. This was the result of a deal with the major wing of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), which has left the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and President Massoud Barzani hanging high and dry, and threatens the future of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

This Day In Iraqi History – Oct 17


1973 Saddam said govt and KDP were far apart on autonomy talks for Kurds
1980 UN Security Council discussed Iran-Iraq War Addressed by Iran PM and Iraq
            Foreign Minister
1980 Iran For Min told UN Iraq was aggressor Saddam wanted to overthrow Iranian
            govt Iraq backed by superpowers & Arab countries
1980 Iraq For Min said Iran violated treaties attacked border towns never replied to
            letters calling for negotiations
1980 UN Security Council backed Secretary General’s attempts to negotiate a ceasefire
            in Iran-Iraq War
1987 Iraq held national census
1994 Iraqi defector Saadi claimed he went to Jordan with Mukhabarat to buy nuke
            material from Russians for a bomb
2001 NY Times article reported Iraqi defector saw Iraq training terrorists at Salman
            Pak to take airliners
2001 NY Times reported INC said that Iraq diplomat met bin Laden in 98 and offered
            him safe haven
2001 NY Times article Czech Inter Min said 9/11 hijacker Atta met with Iraqi intel
            officer in Prague
2003 Iraqi prisoner photographed stripped and handcuffed to cell door by US jailers
            at Abu Ghraib
2003 Gunfight outside Sadr office in Karbala killed 3 US soldiers and 7 Iraqis
2004 Zarqawi pledged allegiance to Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda Tawhid wal Jihad
            became Al Qaeda in Iraq
2004 Heavy fighting in east and south Fallujah between US forces and insurgents
2006 NSC started review of Iraq strategy to come up with new one
2016 Mosul campaign started with joint operations between Iraqi forces and Peshmerga


Monday, October 16, 2017

Fighting Breaks Out Between Federal Forces And Peshmerga In Salahaddin And Kirkuk


The game of brinkmanship blew up in the faces of Baghdad and Irbil on October 16 as talks gave way to fighting in south Kirkuk and Tuz Kharmato in Salahaddin.

This Day In Iraqi History – Oct 16


1973 Iraqi, Syrian and Jordanian forces attacked Israeli positions but were turned back
2001 CIA Dir Tenet met with UK officials and agreed no Iraq-9/11 connection
2002 Iraq held elections where Saddam voted president for another 7 years
2002 Iraq renewed offer for new UN inspections after US rejected deal
2002 French Pres Chirac said no Iraq Al Qaeda ties & attacking Iraq could
            lead to new terrorist attacks
2003 UN Resolution 1511 set 12/15/03 as date for Iraqi Governing Council to
            submit plan for interim govt & constitution
2012 Maliki removed Shababi after he refused to stop dinar re-valuation Appointed ally
            Turki as new bank head
2017 As Iraqi forces moved towards military base and oil fields in south Kirkuk fighting
            broke out with Peshmerga
2017 Were also clashes in Tuz Kharmato between Hashd and Peshmerga


Sunday, October 15, 2017

This Day In Iraqi History - Oct 15


1927 1st successful oil well started at Baba Gargur field in Kirkuk
1960 Islamic Party complained to Gen Qasim that his govt neglected religion while
            accepted Communists
1960 Islamic Party asked Qasim to ban Communists and their media while releasing
            any cleric arrested since 1958 coup
1973 Syrian-Jordanian-Iraqi offensive in southern Syria failed to achieve results
1980 Iraq Foreign Minister Hamadi presented Iraq’s case to UN claiming it acted in
            self-defense in Iran-Iraq War
1994 Iraq withdrew troops from Kuwait border after Russian diplomacy and UN
            Resolution 949 that demanded withdrawal
1994 UN Res 949 demanded Iraq’s full cooperation with UN inspectors
1995 Saddam won referendum with 99.9% of vote for him to be president for 7 more
years
1997 Ayatollah Mohammed Sadiq al-Sadr gave sermon saying No! Yes is just for
            God mocking Yes to Saddam slogan
1997 Turkey’s Op Dawn ended against PKK in Kurdistan
2001 CIA report from Rome said that Italian intel said Iraq tried to buy uranium from
            Niger but didn’t see much merit in it
2001 Under Sec of Def Feith briefed NSC on plan for governing postwar Iraq with
             3-star general in charge of military and civilian administrator
2001 White House spokesman said no connection between Iraq and anthrax letters
            sent to Wash DC
2002 Rumsfeld wrote list of 29 things that could go wrong with Iraq War One was
            finding no WMD
2002 Rumsfeld's list was to point out possible problems so war could be successful 
2003 Powell said that his claims about Iraq’s WMD program had been proven
2003 Rice said CPA’s schedule for Iraq wouldn’t work and new one had to be created
2003 Sadr followers failed to take over Karbala shrine
2004 US put Zarqawi on its terrorist list
2004 Cheney said Iraq could have given WMD to terrorists
2005 Referendum on new Iraqi constitution held
2006 Mujahedeen Shura Council again announced ISI and Islamic State in Baghdad
            Anbar Diyala Kirkuk Salahaddin Ninewa Babil
2006 Islamic State in Iraq said its goal was to govern
2015 Immediately after Baiji refinery liberated Hashd began looting facility and selling
            off equipment to Iraqi and Iranian businesses

View the Iraq History Timeline 

Review Raid On The Sun, Inside Israel’s Secret Campaign That Denied Saddam The Bomb

Claire, Rodger, Raid On The Sun, Inside Israel’s Secret Campaign That Denied Saddam The Bomb , Broadway Books, 2004   Rodger Claire’s Ra...