Monday, October 21, 2024

This Day In Iraqi History - Oct 21 UK decided to seize Baghdad during WWI Would say would be there temporarily but created Iraq as a British mandate


 

1914 Ottoman Basra Governor demanded UK withdraw warship from Shatt al-Arab docked in

            Persia to protect oil concession Ottomans began shooting at ship UK agreed

(Musings On Iraq review Iraq In World War I, From Ottoman Rule to British Conquest)

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

 

1915 UK War Council met Decided UK would take Baghdad then announce UK was there

temporarily and would accept an Arab state and Baghdad might be part of it Contradicted talk in Foreign Ministry that Basra and Baghdad would be controlled by UK

(Musings On Iraq book 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)

1930 Royal Iraqi Air Force flew 1st combat mission attacking Kurdish rebels

(Musings On Iraq review Wings of Iraq, Volume 1: The Iraqi Air Force, 1931-1970)

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

1980 Iraqi forces reached city center in Khorramshahr, Iran

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

1980 Taha Yassin Ramadan head of Baath Popular Army said Khuzistan oil was Iraq’s until Iran

opened negotiations to end war

1983 Iran expanded Op Wa al-Fajr in Sulaymaniya with 2nd front

(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)

1989 Sec State Baker letter to Foreign Min Aziz Said US not trying to destabilize Iraq Said

there was an investigation of Agriculture Dept’s credit program but hoped it would be resolved so that business with Iraq could continue

1990 Joint Chiefs head Gen Powell told Gen Schwarzkopf he needed to plan for flank attack on

            Iraqi forces in Kuwait

1991 Iraq admitted to UN weapons inspectors it had program to build a nuclear bomb

(Musings On Iraq UN Inspectors Were Right Iraq Was Not A Threat)

(Musings On Iraq Iraq’s Rejection of UN Inspectors Led To Mistrust Over WMD and 2003 Invasion)

(Musings On Iraq review The Saddam Tapes)

1991 US and western health study found Iraq’s power system repaired and working at 68% of

prewar levels Found power plants out of spare parts which meant system would eventually decay

1992 Peshmerga helped Turkish troops fight PKK in northern Kurdistan

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

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

1992 Experts challenged Bush’s claim during presidential debate no US tech used for Iraq’s nuke

program Inspectors found US tech was used US Customs investigated US tech going to Iraq for program

1996 PUK backed by Iran recaptured most of territory it lost to KDP except Irbil city Saddam

            US and Iran warned Talabani not to take city

(Musings On Iraq review Sanctioning Saddam, The Politics Of Intervention In Iraq)

2000 Izzat al-Duri attended Arab summit saying Iraq believed only jihad could save Palestinians

            in latest conflict with Israel

2000 King Hussein called for end of sanctions on Iraq at Arab summit

2001 Bush asked Def Sec Rumsfeld how Iraq war plans going

2002 Report Czech Pres Havel told White House 9/11 terrorist Atta did not meet with Iraq

            intelligence in Prague

(Musings On Iraq Overview of America’s Policy Towards Iraq: From The Clinton Years To The

Sectarian War of 2006)

2004 US soldier found guilty of abuse in Abu Ghraib prison scandal given 8 yrs in prison

2006 ISF and US forces patrolling Amara to enforce ceasefire between Mahdi Army and Badr

Suweira Mahdi Army and Badr clashed Mahdi Army blamed for bombing ISCI office in Hamza al-Sharqi

(Musings On Iraq Badr Organization A View Into Iraq’s Violent Past And Present)

2006 Inter Min Bolani met with Sadr in Najaf to try to get him to reign in Mahdi Army

2006 Insurgents started two days of attacks on police base in Baquba Diyala Up to 80 police

            killed

2007 PM Maliki complained to US about Oct 20 US raid into Sadr City Called it barbaric Said

            mostly civilians killed by US Maliki restricted US raids into Sadr City afterward

2008 ISF raided head of Sahwa in Buhriz Diyala Arrested spokesman for Diyala Sahwa and beat

            him Was part of PM Maliki’s crackdown on Diyala Sahwa

(Musings On Iraq Government Continues Its Crackdown On Diyala Sons Of Iraq)

(Musings On Iraq Carrot and the Stick With Diyala’s Sons of Iraq, Or Just The Sticks?)

(Musings On Iraq review Surge, My Journey with General David Petraeus and the Remaking of the Iraq War)

2008 Report US and Iraq had no reliable numbers on ISF Didn’t know numbers because ghost

ISF used to steal salaries Also hired more personnel then authorized Many were not trained 7th Army Div had 11,478 on payroll Only 7556 on duty Rest were on leave AWOL killed or wounded Dec 07 Interior Min said it got rid of 2500 ghost employees

2009 Report Head of Election Comm charged with cheating in 2009 election Accused of

            changing voter lists and helping certain parties Accused of stealing money

2010 Report 700 killed with sticky bombs 600 killed with silencers in 2010 Most targeted ISF at

checkpoints US military thought sign insurgents couldn’t carry out large bombings anymore Believed attacking checkpoints to allow movement through areas

2010 US Marathon Oil signed deal for four oil blocks with KRG

(Musings On Iraq Kurdistan Signs New Oil Deal With U.S. Firm)

2010 Allawi’s Iraqiya said it supported ISCI’s Abdul Mahdi for PM to try to block 2nd term for

            PM Maliki

2010 Report Iraqi politicians said US losing influence in Iraq because of military withdrawal

while Iran increasing its power VP Biden was lobbying Iraqis over forming new govt US first told Iraqis they needed to quickly form govt Then said to slow down to try to block Sadr from having prominent role

(Musings On Iraq Sadr’s Decision To Support Maliki And Its Effect Within And Without Iraq)

2011 US announced it would withdraw its force from Iraq on Dec 31

(Musings On Iraq review Quicksilver War, Syria, Iraq and the Spiral of Conflict)

2011 Obama told PM Maliki not getting stay behind US forces in Iraq was ok because US would

            still have influence

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

2011 Report Sadrist MPs said they would leave ruling coalition if US forces allowed to stay into

            2012

2011 Report Some in US military upset Obama admin didn’t get troop extension past 2011

withdrawal Jun Obama said 10,000 troops would stay into 2012 PM Maliki said he needed to build consensus on matter Aug US dropped to asking for 3000-5000 troops staying Pushed by Natl Sec Adv Donilon over military US intel said Iraq unlikely to see major violence after US withdrawal which bolstered Donilon’s argument for fewer troops Oct US pushed Iraqi leaders to meet at Pres Talabani’s to discuss issue Agreed to troop extension but no immunity US and Iraq then talked about having US troops as trainers

2013 ISF said ISI tried to take over a govt complex in Fallujah Were in control of building for a

            few hours ISI also attacked Ana and Rawa

2013 Report Supreme Court struck down law restricting Judicial Council Allowed chief judge

Medhat Mahmoud to resume control of judiciary Council oversaw appointment of judges 2004 Mahmoud made head of Council 2005 became chief justice of Supreme Court Dec 2011 parliament passed law that removed Mahmoud from being head of Council and Supreme Court because he was aligned with PM Maliki March 2010 Mahmoud ruled largest bloc could be formed after votes totaled Allowed Maliki to out maneuver Allawi and win 2nd term Court then ignored lawsuits by Maliki opponents to force parliament to elect president 30 days after election as stated in constitution which also helped Maliki Court allowed ministers and PM to avoid being questioned by parliament Court ruled parliament couldn’t start laws only president and cabinet could

2014 Report Diyala govt said province threatened with food insecurity due to war 70% of

farming stopped Insurgents controlled water infrastructure Poverty and unemployment went up

2014 Report Sep Asaib Ahl Al-Haq kidnapped businesswoman in Basra who was relative of Dep

PM Shaways Asked for $1.66 mil ransom Moved her to Baghdad Escaped and told Federal Police who raided building Asaib Ahl Al-Haq demanded women be given back to them or they would kill police Led to shoot out 4 police wounded 

2014 Report More than 100,000 militiamen put on govt payroll with Hashd Given weapons and

uniforms Access to govt vehicles Sadr’s Saraya al-Salam refused govt pay Hashd only followed their own leadership Badr member named Interior Minister Hashd freed Amerli Salahaddin and cleared southern Baghdad Jul Human Rights Watch reported 48 Sunnis killed by Hashd Mar-Apr Another 61 killed Jun-Jul Amnesty Intl reported Hashd abuses

(Musings On Iraq review A Stranger in Your Own City, Travels in the Middle East’s Long War)

2014 Report Quds Force cmdr Gen Suleimani posted pictures of himself on social media

advising Iraqi forces Thought message to MidEast and US that Iran was main ones supporting Iraq

(Musings On Iraq Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ Commander General Suleimani And His Role In Iraq, An Interview With The New Yorker’s Dexter Filkins)

2014 Report Iraqi forces still trying to clear Babil’s Jurf al-Sakhr after 9 security ops PM Maliki

appointed officer from his clan to lead effort

2014 Iraqi forces began 10th security operation to try to clear Babil’s Jurf al-Sakhr

2014 Report 6000 soldiers killed in Anbar Jan-Jun More than double that deserted according to

sources 60,000 soldiers on paper in Anbar Because of ghost soldiers might only be 20,000 in reality Anbar govt has constantly criticized army for making bad decisions

2014 Ablu Nimr tribe and ISF attacked Hit in Anbar but repulsed

2015 Report Head of Joint Chief Gen Dunford visited Iraq Met with PM Abadi and Defense Min

Obeidi Said if Iraq asked for Russian help vs IS US would cut its support

2015 US launched Op Tidal Wave II to degrade IS oil industry

2015 Report Members of National Alliance were pushing PM Abadi to ask for Russian help vs

IS Mid-Oct official request for Russian help sent to Abadi but he didn’t respond Badr leader said Russia did more in Syria than US did in Iraq so Iraq should ask Russia for help

2015 Report army’s 5th Div and part of Interior Min under Badr control 1 ISF officer said 70%

of Interior Min under Hashd control esp Badr Interior Minister from Badr PM Abadi spokesman said he was trying to fire officers within Interior and Defense Ministries that didn’t follow his commands Fmr US officer said Iraq only had 5 fully functioning divisions with about 50,000 men Abadi was angry with op to free Tikrit Hashd started shelling civilian areas without his knowledge Hashd looted part of Tikrit After suicide bombing of wedding in Diyala Hashd killed 25 Sunnis and dumped bodies in river Hashd attacked protesters Was increase in kidnappings and robberies in Baghdad blamed on Hashd

2015 National Alliance MP said list had agreed to block National Guard law Said if passed would

divide Iraq

2016 Iraqi forces freed Bartella Ninewa from IS

2016 IS attacked Kirkuk city Afterward Kurdish forces forced out 100s of displaced Sunni Arabs

Kurds also expelled Arabs from nearby town

2016 Peshmerga said had deal with PM Abadi to keep all the territory they cleared during Mosul

            op

2017 Report Army’s 15th Div took four oil fields in Ninewa from Kurds

2017 PM Abadi spokesman said govt had no timeline for talks with KRG over aftermath of independence

referendum KRG had to agree to integrity of Iraq constitution handing over border ports airports enforcing rule of law in disputed areas

2017 Pavel Talabani said KRG referendum was a mistake KRG should’ve accepted US

            mediation

2017 Gorran called on Pres Talabani to resign and dismiss Kurdish govt over KRG independence referendum

2019 Report People in Mukhisa Diyala told ISF they had 10 days to deal with IS or they

would abandon village

2019 Ministerial investigation found snipers fired at protesters in Baghdad Found one sniper

spot on top of building Baghdad Ops Command claimed didn’t know who snipers were Defense Min Shammari said same thing

2019 Cabinet investigation of attacks upon protesters finished but report never released UN

said report found 44 members of security forces including high ranking officers in security forces involved in killing and wounding protesters

2020 Report Jun pro-Iran leaders told Green Zone security chief not to stop Hashd from entering

to protest outside US embassy after Kataib Hezbollah members arrested by Kazemi govt PM Kazemi fired security chief as a result Trump Admin pushed Kazemi to move against pro-Iran Hashd to stop rocket and IED attacks Kazemi appointed commanders throughout ISF

2020 Think tank report Iraq middle class shrunk from 61% in 2007 to 30% in 2020 Lower class

grew from 22% in 2007 to 60% in 2020 Rich went from 16% in 2007 to 10% in 2020

2020 Report KRG had 5 mil people 1.2 mil were govt workers 40% of them were police and

peshmerga 2020 KRG only paid govt salaries for 6 months Jun KRG announced 21% cut in salaries

2020 Parliament’s finance comm complained about Kazemi govt borrowing to pay govt salaries

Claimed govt had money

2021 Election Comm ordered voting recounts in Baghdad Basra Irbil Ninewa after complaints

Election Comm members in Maysan got death threats from Hashd

(Musings On Iraq Protests Continue In Iraq Over Election Results)

2021 4 activists and teachers from Dohuk convicted of conspiracy Got 1 yr in prison for protesting 5 others

acquitted Were kept in jail for 1 yr before trial Part of KRG crackdown on protests

 View the Iraq History Timelines

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