This Day In Iraqi History - Mar 27

1918 British defeated Ottomans in Battle of Khan al-Baghdadi

1922 General Haldane commander of UK forces compared Iraqis to children

1979 Saddam told Baath meeting that Iraq was going to get a nuclear weapon with help of Soviets so he

could go to war with Israel  

(Musings On Iraq article on the origins of Iraq’s WMD programs)

1979 Saddam believed having a nuclear bomb would allow a conventional war of attrition with Israel that

could cost 50,000 Iraqi casualties

1979 Saddam discussed with advisers how to punish countries that backed Sadat’s peace treaty with Israel

1981 Start of second attempt by Islamic Conference to negotiate ceasefire in Iran-Iraq War

1982 3^rd phase of Iranian Op Fath began to take Fakkeh strategic crossroads to Maysan Saddam ordered 4^th

Corps to retreat from Shush in face of Iranian attack

1984 Iraq began tanker war using Super Entendard jets

1988 Iran Op Bait al-Moqaddas 4 in Kurdistan started

(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 The Iran-Iraq War Volume 4: The Forgotten Fronts)

1988 Iraq dropped chemical bombs for 2^nd day on Karadagh Kurdistan 64 killed 210 wounded total

during Anfal Campaign

(Musings On Iraq article on Anfal campaign)

1991 2^nd day fighting between Iraqi forces and peshmerga on Khanaqin-Jalawla road Diyala

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

1991 White House spokesman said that US had made no promises to Shiites or Kurds and US public not

interested in getting involved in an Iraqi civil war

(Musings On Iraq interview with National Univ of Singapore’s Fanar Haddad on the Impact of the 1991 Uprising)

(Musings On Iraq article on 1^st hand accounts of 1991 Uprising)

(Musings On Iraq article on Saddam’s view of 1991 Uprising)

(Ahulbayt Video on 1991 Uprising)

(Musings On Iraq article on how US encouraged 1991 uprising)

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

1995 Fighting between KDP and PUK killed 100 in Irbil

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

1996 UN Resolution 1051 set up monitoring system for Iraqi imports-exports under Oil for Food program

2003 Coalition ground forces commander Gen McKiernan ordered halt to operations to regroup forces

2003 U.S. forces entered Samawa, Muthanna and encountered fierce fighting by Fedayeen Saddam

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

2003 Iraqi forces began withdrawing in Kirkuk Looting started

(Musings On Iraq interview with Petit of 173^rd Airborne Bgd on operations in Kirkuk)

2003 Iraq DefMin reviewed war Told US capturing transportation hubs attacking multiple targets at same

time Report ignored by Saddam

2003 ORHA had meeting of all 4 postwar groups to come up with unified plan for Iraq Didn’t happen

2003 4 postwar Iraq groups had all been created separately within Bush admin with no coordination

between them

2003 Dep Sec Def Wolfowitz told House of Reps committee Iraq oil would pay for reconstruction

2003 USAID disaster response team entered Um Qasr, Basra to assess humanitarian situation in city

2003 Pres Assad called on Arab countries to stand up against US invasion

2003 Iraqi govt claimed 350 civilians killed in Coalition air strikes during invasion

2004 Report sent to Washington that after examination 2 trailers found during invasion were not mobile

WMD labs as originally thought

(Musings On Iraq article on mobile labs story)

2004 Marine patrol got into 36 hr gunfight in Fallujah

2007 Anbar council said no oversight of border crossings and 40% of tariffs stolen due to corruption

2007 1920 Revolution Brigade leader killed by ISI for refusing to join it and talking with govt

2007 Report fighting between Islamic Army and 1920 Revolution Brigades vs ISI in Anbar and Abu Ghraib

and Taji areas of Baghdad over tactics and ISI trying to dominate insurgency Also splits in Diyala

(Musings On Iraq article on splits within insurgency)

2007 US Mil intel report that Iranian intelligence working with Badr and Mahdi Army to assassinate

Industry Ministry officials

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

2007 Report 1^st EFP attack Aug 2003 Aug 05 Natl Sec Adv Hadley said Iran probably behind EFP attacks

Oct 05 UK Amb to Iraq said Iran giving aid to militias to attack British forces Apr 06 EFP attacks began increasing then dropped start of 07 Bush admin struggled over what to do with attacks Decided upon raids and media briefings EFPs supplied by Iran and Hezbollah

(Musings On Iraq interview with Galen Wright of Arkenstone blog on Iranian arms shipments to Iraqi militias) 

(Musings On Iraq article on Iran training Iraqi militias)

2008 Presidential Council approved General Amnesty Law as part of reconciliation Allowed release of

thousands of prisoners

(Musings On Iraq article on Amnesty Law)

2008 Sadrists kidnapped Baghdad Operations Command spokesman

2008 Mahdi Army attacked Iraqi army units moving from Nasiriya to Basra

2008 Basra police chief escaped assassination attempt

2008 Mahdi Army fired rockets at Green Zone for 2^nd day

2008 Police in New Baghdad abandoned checkpoints 400 of 550 in 4^th National Police Brigade deserted

rather than fight Mahdi Army

2008 US told that Maliki did not want US advisers in Charge of Knights just US firepower

2008 Fighting started between ISF and Special Groups in northern and southern Dhi Qar

2008 Pipeline in Basra blown up cutting exports in 1/3

2010 Kurdish Alliance said wanted assurances on Kirkuk and Article 140 before it joined any new govt

2011 Iraq parliament cancelled deal with Chinese National Petroleum Corp for Ahdab field in Wasit

2012 Baghdad hosted Arab Summit marking major move back into Arab politics

2014 Islamic Party accused ISF of being involved in killing civilians in Buhriz, Diyala

2015 Tikrit operation re-started after US airstrikes requested by PM Abadi

2015 Asaib Ahl Al-Haq accused US of trying to save IS in Tikrit

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

2016 Supreme Council complained that PM Abadi not consulted with them over his reforms

2016 Sadr went into Green Zone to start his own sit in protests

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

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