Wednesday, May 4, 2022

This Day In Iraqi History - May 4 UK bombed Iraqi airfields and destroyed most of Iraqi air force WWII

(Historynet)
 

1918 Najaf revolt ended after rebels gave up Ended Zuqurt and Shumurt control of city

1920 Nationalist group Haras al-Istiqlal leader Timam went to Karbala and met with Grand

Ayatollah Shirazi clergy and sheikhs Shirazi said worried couldn’t militarily beat British Wanted peaceful protests

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

1941 UK bombed Iraqi air bases in Baghdad and Baquba Destroyed or damaged 29 planes in

Baghdad 14 in Baquba

(Musings On Iraq interview with Prof Boich World War II In Iraq and Syria)

1941 British bombers arrived at Habaniya airbase in Anbar from Egypt while Iraqis continued to shell

base 150 UK troops also flown into base

1941 British troops in Habaniya base Anbar launched attacked and failed to take Sin al-Dhibban used to

cross Euphrates and supply Iraqi troops outside base

1941 British dropped leaflets on Baghdad saying war was with PM Gaylani govt not Iraqi people

1941 Regent broadcast radio message asking people not to follow Gaylani govt Baghdad radio called on

govt to arm the people

1941 PM Gaylani sent diplomat to Tehran and told embassy in Turkey to pressure Germans to send aid

1941 UK Chiefs of Staff told Mid-East commander Gen Wavell he had to take action against the Gaylani

govt

1941 UK War Sec Eden told Iraqi charge d’affaires if war continued and Germany joined all of Iraq

would become a battlefield

(Musings On Iraq review Persian Gulf Command, A History of the Second World War In Iran and Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq review Iraq 1941, The Battles for Basra, Habbaniya, Fallujah and Baghdad)

(Musings On Iraq review Rashid Ali al-Gailani, The National Movement in Iraq 1939-1941)

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

(Musings On Iraq review Blood, Oil and the Axis: The Allied Resistance Against A Fascist State In Iraq and the Levant, 1941)

1966 PM Bazzaz push for negotiations with Kurds overruled by military Govt launched new

offensive against Kurds aimed at sealing border with Iran

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

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

(Musings On Iraq review The Kurdish Revolt 1961-1970)

(Musings On Iraq review Journey Among Brave Men, Travels in Kurdistan)

1981 Iraq began shelling Iran’s oil refinery at Abadan

(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 review The Iran-Iraq War 1980-1988)

(Musings On Iraq review Iran-Iraq War, The Lion of Babylon, 1980-1988)

(Musings On Iraq review The Iran-Iraq War)

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

(Musings On Iraq review The Iran-Iraq War Volume 1: The Battle for Khuzestan, September 1980-May 1982)

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

(Musings On Iraq review The Iran-Iraq War Volume 3: Iraq’s Triumph)

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

1988 Iraqi forces attacked PUK in Askar Kurdistan during 4th Anfal campaign

(Musings On Iraq Iraq’s Anfal Campaign And The Destruction Of The Kurdish Opposition)

1989 Saddam’s cousin and Defense Minister Adnan Kairallah died in helicopter crash

Hussein Kamil later admitted to killing him on orders from Saddam

1991 2nd round of peace talks between Kurds and Baghdad postponed due to differences between KDP

and PUK over need for international help and oil

1995 Turkey withdrew 15,000 troops after KDP said it would crackdown on PKK in Kurdistan

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

2003 Sec State Powell said sure US would find Iraq’s WMD Sec Def Rumsfeld said US never claimed

finding WMD would be easy Powell denied stories that Iraq sent its WMD to Syria

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

(Musings On Iraq How The Administration Reversed Itself On Finding Iraq’s WMD)

(Musings On Iraq review Hoodwinked, The Documents That Reveal How Bush Sold Us a War)

(Musings On Iraq review What Happened, Inside the Bush White House and Washington’s Culture of Deception)

2003 US official said unlikely to find any large MWD or nuke stocks in Iraq Said sanctions had led Iraq

to get rid of most of its WMD

2003 Iraqi scientists told US investigators Iraq had no WMD for years

2003 ORHA memo said security was still top priority in Iraq

(Musings On Iraq review Iraq and Back, Inside The War To Win The Peace)

2004 Shiite leaders called on Sadr to withdraw his Mahdi Army from Najaf and Karbala

2004 US announced it would not be withdrawing forces from Iraq as planned

(Musings On Iraq Did the US Ever Have A Strategy To Win In Iraq Before the Surge?)

(Musings On Iraq review The War Within, A Secret White House History 2006-2008)

2004 CIA started investigation into whether it kept undocumented prisoners in Iraq It did

2005 Sadrist cleric in Basra talked about imposing Islamic Law on city including bombing liquor stores

imposing Islamic dress attacking mixed picknickers Said movement didn’t want to be like Iran because most Iranians were corrupt

2005 Doctors in Basra said Mahdi Army tried to stop male doctors from serving female patients Posted

pictures of Sadr in hospitals

2006 Zarqawi gave presentation saying Al Qaeda in Iraq needed to expand its base from Anbar into

Salahaddin and Diyala Said Ramadi was to be named capital of emirate

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

2006 Fmr CIA National Intelligence Officer Pillar said that Bush admin manipulated evidence to tie Iraq

to Al Qaeda before invasion Part of CIA vs White House blame game for prewar intel

2007 US broke up arms smuggling ring in Sadr City bringing in EFPs and other arms from Iran into Iraq

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

(Musings On Iraq Iran’s Policy Towards Iraq)

2007 Iraqi Accordance Front said joining politics was a disaster Said it agreed to join politics based upon

promises of constitutional reform and reconciliation but didn’t happen

2008 ISF destroyed Thar Allah HQ in Basra after weapons found there

2008 Govt spokesman said Iraq had hard evidence of Iranian support for militias and violence Later in

day changed to saying didn’t have hard evidence It did

(Musings On Iraq Iran’s Policy Towards Iraq)

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

2008 Iraq general in Karbala said Iran giving weapons to militias in city and undermining security

2008 PM Maliki adv Haidar Abadi said Iran denied they were sending weapons to Iraq Iran told Iraq it

would be foolish to send arms with Iranian markings on them That’s actually what Iran did

2008 Report Sadr refused to meet with Iraqi delegations sent to Iran to negotiate ceasefire Said didn’t trust

Shiite parties and would not talk with them Said he was using Pres Talabani and Speaker Mashadani as middlemen

2009 Sadr said he had given up on armed struggle against US and wanted to focus upon politics

(Musings On Iraq A Divided Sadr Trend)

2009 ISCI MP from Diyala said that no one trusted ISF or new Op Promise of Good II in province Said false

info being used to conduct arrests Another MP demanded that Gen Ghidan in charge of operation resign

(Musings On Iraq Local Criticism of New Security Operation In Diyala)

2010 Baathist leader apologized for mistakes of party Said wanted to join politics Public needed to

remember achievements of party

2010 State of Law and National Alliance announced National Coalition after meetings organized by

Iran Maliki agreed to deal because lost election and wanted to remain PM

(Musings On Iraq Turkey, Saudi Arabia, And Iran’s Role In Putting Together A New Iraqi Government)

(Musings On Iraq Iraq’s Shiite Parties Unite To Sideline Allawi, Up Next Maliki)

2010 Kurdish journalist Osman kidnapped in Irbil Found shot in the head in Mosul few days later

Gorran blamed KRG for allowing death Some implied govt involved

(Musings On Iraq Kurdish Coalition Put On Hold Due To Internal Divisions)

2010 Report State of Law member arrested in Switzerland with $275 mil that came from party’s

campaign Said it was to be deposited in Swiss account

2011 PM Maliki submitted new list of nominees for security ministries empty since 2010 elections

2011 Report April were 44 assassinations in Baghdad 31 in March 12 in Feb All used silencers ISI blamed

but political parties also involved

2011 Govt worker at Baghdad mayoralty convicted of stealing $9 mil in salaries in 2010

(Musings On Iraq interview with Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction Stuart Bowen on Iraq’s fight with corruption) 

(Musings On Iraq interview with former anti-corruption official Vincent Foulk)

2011 MPs said found corruption in arms deal with Serbia

2011 Men in peshmerga uniforms attacked Ruber Kurdish weekly in Irbil Took equipment Editor blamed

ruling parties

2011 Speaker of the House Boehner said US troops should stay in Iraq past the Dec withdrawal deadline

Came after trip to Iraq where he met PM Maliki

(Musings On Iraq U.S. Steps Up Efforts To Let Troops Stay In Iraq Past Withdrawal Date)

2012 Pres Barzani gave speech saying Kurds would never live under a dictatorship meaning PM Maliki

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

(Musings On Iraq interview with Inside Iraqi Politics’ Sowell on whether Maliki became a dictator)

(Musings On Iraq interview with Historian Phebe Marr comparing PM Maliki with MP Said)

2012 KRG called for Baghdad to pay oil companies operating in Kurdistan Wanted independent oil

contracts but for Baghdad to pay its bills

2012 KRG said in talks with Turkey to build an oil and gas pipeline between two

(Musings On Iraq Iraq’s Kurds’ Gambit On Pipelines To Turkey May Not Pan Out)

2012 Pres Barzani said he didn’t fear Iraq getting F-16s after he came out against US selling them due to

fears about their use Claimed Iraqi army wanted to attack KRG

2012 Report UN said Iraq’s 5 yr plan failed Budgeted $86 bil for investment and development projects

Planning Min said security and politics would delay implementing 5 yr plan until 2013

2012 Head of Natl Investment Comm said Iraq had signed 780 investment licenses worth $32 bil since 08

Only 30% started Held up by disputes between govt offices and lack of qualified bureaucrats Maysan Wasit Diyala Baghdad only 3 or fewer out of every 10 projects started

2012 Spokesman for Higher Educ Minister said parliament questioning minister was illegal Iraqiya

accused minister of removing professors for sectarian reasons using deBaathification Was no confidence vote against him

(Musings On Iraq The Failure Of Iraq’s Parliament To Oversee The Government: The Case Of Higher Education Minister Adeeb)

2013 Election Commission announced final results for provincial elections State of Law

            lost 30% of its seats from 09 vote Still won 7 of 12 provinces 51% voter turnout

(Musings On Iraq Major Winners In Iraq’s 2013 Provincial Elections)

2013 Asaib Ahl Al-Haq rally in Baghdad announced it was fighting in Syria as part of Abu al-Fadhl

al-Abbas Brigade

(Musings On Iraq Asaib Ahl Al-Haq From A Breakaway Sadr Militia To Defenders Of Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq Abu Fadhl Al-Abbas Brigade From Fighting In Syria To Iraq)

2014 Al Qaeda’s Zawahiri said that ISIS fighting in Syria was a disaster

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

2014 Fighting between Ansar al-Sunna and ISIS in Kirkuk

(Musings On Iraq Iraq’s Resurgent Insurgency Interview With Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi)

2014 Sadrists said talks with ISCI Kurds and Allawi to block Maliki from 3rd term as PM

2014 Human Rights Watch report Govt not helping people flee fighting in Anbar 8 people in Fallujah and

Ramadi said they saw ISF kill displaced

2015 Report When Tikrit fell to IS in 2014 had been weakened by sustained assaults by insurgents

IS and Albu Ajeel captured 1500 cadets at Camp Speicher and executed them IS recruited from poor towns around Tikrit and some Tikritis IS demanded govt workers and professions in Tikrit repent or be killed IS set up administration Went after ISF members Jabour tribe fought IS Nov 2014 IS saw Jabour tribesman with Iraqi flag Thought it was sign of attack Kidnapped 20 men Blew up 50 houses When assault to retake city started most people fled to Kirkuk and KRG IS looted abandoned houses After city freed Hashd looted and destroyed property Many locals angry for ISF not stopping Hashd and govt refusing to talk about it

2017 Report April PM Abadi had meeting with cmdrs on Mosul Battle Demanded pace be

increased because taking too long Decided army’s 9th Div would attack from west Plan was to stretch IS defenders by attacking from 2 directions

(Musings On Iraq Mosul Campaign Day 200, May 4, 2017)

2017 Army’s 9th Div attacked Mosul from northwest Supported by US advisers

2017 US official said 775 ISF killed and 4,600 wounded in Mosul Battle

2018 Sistani representative said people should not vote for corrupt and those that had failed in the

past

(Musings On Iraq Ayatollah Sistani Makes Statement On Iraq’s 2018 Election But Will It Matter?)

2018 PM Abadi speech attacked Hashd leaders for corruption Said some were stealing salaries Said

he would find and punish them

2019 Integrity Comm found $64 mil stolen from Mosul rebuilding by Ninewa officials and

fmr Gov Aqub

2019 Report Little of Mosul rebuilt despite 750 bil dinars in 2018 and 280 bil dinars in 2019

and intl donations Ninewa Council said parties and Hashd controlling projects

2020 World Bank predicted Iraq’s GDP to contract 9.7% in 2020 due to COVID and collapse of oil

market Said Iraq’s oil dependency made it unable to deal with crisis Oil dependency and state run economy hindered private sector 2019 PM Abdul Mahdi increased govt jobs Lowered retirement age increasing pensions Increased govt spending which was now threatened by crisis

2021 US govt said Lockheed Martin contractors withdrew from servicing Iraqi F-16s in Mar due to

security threats Came after Hashd attacked bases Some returned

(Musings On Iraq Attacks By Pro-Iran Groups Force American F-16 Contractors To Withdraw)

2021 Head of KRG Retirement Dir said 7000 govt workers suspended for getting 2 salaries

2021 Oil Min said KRG not sent any customs or oil revenue to Baghdad as obligated under 2021

budget

(Musings On Iraq Iraq’s Kurdish Regional Government Doesn’t Intend To Follow 2021 Budget)

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