tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28250692216162830362011-10-06T05:54:10.632-07:00NEW IRAQ DINAR INVESTMENTINVESTASI MATA UANG DINAR IRAK MUMPUNG KURSNYA LAGI JATUH TERSEDIA PECAHAN 25000 DINAR 10000 DINAR DAN 5000 DINAR READY STOCK. INVESTASI MINIMAL 1 TAHUN SAMPAI DENGAN 2 TAHUN. BELI 1 JUTA DINAR = RP.17.000.000, HASIL MINIMAL 9 MILIAR....MENAKJUBKAN BUKAN...AYO BURUAN...nogo dininoreply@blogger.comBlogger151100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2825069221616283036.post-29782222958462965892009-03-22T08:35:00.000-07:002009-06-28T23:15:55.318-07:00THE NEWEST NEWS<div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">THE NEWEST NEWS</span></span><br /></div><pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><tt style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><br /></span></tt><span><span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">28 Juni 2009</span></a></b></span></span></span></span></span></span></pre><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="font-size:85%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> Announcement No.(</span></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">14<span lang="ar-iq">3</span><span lang="en-us">9</span>)</span></b></span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:85%;" > <span style="color:black;">T</span></span><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:85%;" lang="en-us" >he 143<span lang="en-us">9</span> daily currency auction was held in the Central Bank of Iraq day<span lang="en-us"> Sunday</span> 28</span><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:85%;color:black;" >-6-2009 so the results were as follows :</span></p><span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" > <span lang="en-us"> </span></span> <table style="width: 408px; height: 220px;" class="ms-grid8-main" border="1"><tbody><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-tl" style="text-align: center;" colspan="2" height="22" width="415"> <span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Details </b></span></td> </tr> <tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" height="22" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:85%;" >Number of banks</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" height="21" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">8</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:85%;" >Auction price selling dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="en-us" style="font-size:100%;">117</span><span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">0</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:85%;" >Auction price buying<span lang="en-us"> </span>dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq"><span style="font-size:85%;">-----</span></span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:85%;" >Amount sold at auction price (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" height="19" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">70.100.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style="font-size:85%;">Amount purchased at Auction price (US $) </span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:85%;" >Total offers for buying (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">70.100.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:85%;" >Total offers for selling (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" height="20" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq"><span style="font-size:85%;">-----</span></span></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:85%;" >Dollar's exchange rates / in Baghdad markets</span></div></blockquote><pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 0);"></span><br /><br />28 November 2007</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">Dear Customer,</span><br /><br /></span></tt></span></pre><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">Are you getting sick of hearing the good news?? I hope not!!</span></span></tt></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">The Dinar has gone up again yesterday and again today from 1224 to 1223 to <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">1222</span> to 1 USD</span></span></tt></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">If you want to see a full History of the strengthening Iraqi Dinar click on the following link ==></span></span></tt></span><br /><tt><tt><a target="_blank" href="http://www.cbiraq.org/C.B.I.%20FOREIGN%20EXCHANGE%20AUCTIONS.pdf"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1196229948_0">http://www.cbiraq.org/C.B.I.%20FOREIGN%20EXCHANGE%20AUCTIONS.pdf</span></a> <==</tt></tt><br /></div><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);"><br /></span></span><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);font-size:85%;" ><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">Kind Regards,<br />Martin</span></span></span></span><br /></span><pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><br /><br /><tt style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><span style="font-family:Arial;">22 November 2007<o:p></o:p><br />Dear Customer,<o:p></o:p></span></tt><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">When I checked again today, I wasn't surprised to see the Dinar has</span><o:p style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"></o:p><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">gone up in value yet AGAIN!!</span><o:p style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><br /></o:p><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">It has risen from 1227 Dinar to</span> <blink style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">1226</blink> <span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);">Dinar to 1 USD.</span><o:p style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><br /></o:p><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);">I know I keep saying it...but really...the price is going up on the</span><o:p style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"></o:p><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"> website.</span><span style=""> </span><o:p><br /></o:p></span></tt><span style=";font-family:Arial;color:black;" ><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><br />Kind Regards,</span><br /><br /><u1:p style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"></u1:p><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">Martin</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">061-77492185</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">081973136058</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">081534751557</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">Email & YM: </span><a style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);" href="mailto:martin_evb@yahoo.com">martin_evb@yahoo.com</a><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">Address: Jln Brig.Katamso No.23 - </span><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on" style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on" style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><st1:place st="on">Medan</st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></span><br /><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><br />13 November 2007<br />Dear customer,<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p><br /><br /></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">This is just a super quick email to let you know<br />the Dinar has risen in<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">value yet again. It has risen from 1229<br />Dinar to 1228 Dinar to 1 USD.<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">A small change, however it just<br />keeps going up which is a great thing<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">for investors.<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">As soon as<br />I get a spare moment I am going to raise the prices on the<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">website.<br />So if you have been on the edge on whether to invest or not,<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">you<br />should get in now before we change the prices.<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><br />If the Dinar keeps going as it is, frequent price rises on the<br />site will<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">soon become the norm.<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">If you would like to invest click<br />on the following link:<o:p></o:p></tt><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);" class="yshortcuts"><u><br /><a href="http://www.new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com/">http://WWW.NEW-DINAR-IRAQ.BLOGSPOT.COM</a> or</u></span><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> <o:p></o:p></tt><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);" class="yshortcuts"><u><br /><a href="http://www.new-dinar-iraqi.blogspot.com/">http://WWW.NEW-DINAR-IRAQI.BLOGSPOT.COM</a></u></span><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> <==<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Hurry!<br />Starting from now, we will be raising the prices at any given<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">moment.<br />We look forward to supplying you with your New Iraqi Dinar<o:p></o:p></tt><tt><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">investment.</span><o:p></o:p></tt><tt><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt><br /></tt><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Kind Regards,</span><o:p style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"></o:p><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Martin</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">061-77492185</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">081973136058</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">081534751557</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Email & YM: </span><a style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);" href="mailto:martin_evb@yahoo.com">martin_evb@yahoo.com</a><o:p></o:p><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Address: Jln Brig.Katamso No.23 - </span><st1:city st="on" style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Medan</st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></span></span><tt><o:p></o:p></tt><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />08 November 2007<o:p></o:p><br />Dear Customers<o:p></o:p></span></pre> <pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p></o:p>I meant to let you know 2 days ago that the Dinar went UP in value but I have been so busy<br />getting ready some new and exciting things that we are launching soon.<o:p></o:p><br />(From 1232 Dinar to 1231 Dinar = 1 USD)* And then yesterday, the Dinar went UP again<br />in value.<o:p></o:p></span></pre> <pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >I got distracted again and forgot to send out an email. (From 1231 Dinar to 1230 Dinar= 1 USD)*<o:p></o:p></span></pre> <pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p></o:p>And now today, the Dinar has yet AGAIN gone UP in value, so I just had to let you know.<br />(From 1230 Dinar to 1229 Dinar = 1 USD)*<br /><br /><o:p></o:p>*Note: As the value of the Dinar goes down in numerical value, it is in fact Increasing in value.<o:p><br /></o:p>Please note that we will be forced to increase the prices on the website very soon without<br />notice, as our<o:p></o:p> contacts in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region></st1:place></st1:country-region> have already done to us.<o:p><br /><br /></o:p>Kind Regards,<o:p></o:p><br />Martin<br />061-77492185<br />081973136058<br />081534751557<br />Email & YM: <a href="mailto:martin_evb@yahoo.com">martin_evb@yahoo.com</a><o:p></o:p><br />Address: Jln Brig.Katamso No.23 - <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Medan</st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></span></pre> </div><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:8;" ><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"></st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></span><o:p></o:p></div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">Dear Customer New-Dinar-Iraq & New-Dinar-Iraqi,<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p></o:p>More good news coming from <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region>:<o:p><br /></o:p>International expectations of economic growth in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region><o:p><br /></o:p>Deputy Prime Minister, Dr. Barham Salih, said that the economic<o:p></o:p> situation continues to improve and international estimates expect high rates<o:p></o:p> of growth in the Iraqi economy, about 6%, and inflation was brought<o:p></o:p> under control by hitting another level of about 33% this year and 16% for<o:p></o:p> this month.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p></o:p>This came during a media symposium held in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">London</st1:place></st1:city> recently on the<o:p></o:p> sidelines of his official visit to <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Britain</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Dr. Barham Salih, Head of the<o:p></o:p> economic file said that the Iraqi government decided to allocate about<o:p></o:p> two and a half billion, for the development of provinces distributed<o:p></o:p> among regions according to population.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">Source:<st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region> Directory<o:p></o:p><br />INTERVIEW-Iraq sees $42 bln 2008 budget, up $1 bln on 2007<o:p></o:p><br />Check out this link for the article (MUST READ):<o:p></o:p><br /><a style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);" href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKKAR43809320071008?pageNumber=1&sp=true">http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKKAR43809320071008?pageNumber=1&sp=true</a><o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-size:85%;">Kind Regards,<o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span><span style="font-size:85%;">Martin<o:p></o:p></span> </div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p></o:p>P.S.Customer, in the coming weeks you are going to be hearing some<o:p></o:p><br />exciting news from<br /><a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);" href="http://www.new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com/">WWW.NEW-DINAR-IRAQ.BLOGSPOT.COM</a> or<br /><a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);" href="http://www.new-dinar-iraqi.blogspot.com/">WWW.NEW-DINAR-IRAQI.BLOGSPOT.COM</a><br />Stay tuned because it could change<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><span style="font-size:8;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 102, 204);font-size:85%;" >your life!</span></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2825069221616283036-2978222295846296589?l=new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>nogo dininoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2825069221616283036.post-48937217965089690472007-12-06T23:04:00.000-08:002009-01-22T02:34:21.731-08:00The Newest News<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:85%;" > </span></a></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span></span></span><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a><span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span></span></span></span><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a><span><span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">21 January 2009<br /></span></a></b></span></span></span></span></span></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> Announcement No.(</span></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">13<span lang="en-us">30</span>)</span></b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;"> <span style=";color:black;" >T</span></span><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;color:black;" >he 13<span lang="en-us">30 </span>daily currency auction was held in the Central Bank of Iraq day <span lang="en-us">Thursday</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;color:black;" > 22-1-2009 so the results were as follows :</span></p><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><br /></a><table style="width: 434px; height: 184px;" class="ms-grid8-main" border="1"><tbody><tr></tr><tr><td class="ms-grid8-tl" style="text-align: center;" colspan="2" width="415" height="22"> <span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Details </b></span></td></tr><tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289" height="22"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Number of banks</span></td><td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="21"> 11<span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;"></span></td></tr><tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price selling dinar / US $</span></td><td style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">1170</span></td></tr><tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price buying<span lang="en-us"> </span>dinar / US $</span></td><td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-----</span></td></tr><tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Amount sold at auction price (US $)</span></td><td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="19"> <span style="font-size:100%;">168.990.000</span></td></tr><tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style="font-size:100%;">Amount purchased at Auction price (US $) </span></td><td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-----</span></td></tr><tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for buying (US $)</span></td><td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">168.990.000</span></td></tr><tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for selling (US $)</span></td><td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="20"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-----</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span><span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span></span></span></span></span><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a><span><span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span></span></span></span></span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b> <p class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"> </p> <!-- MSTableType="layout" --><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:9;color:black;" ></span> </a><p class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"> </p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> </span><p class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><b> </b></p><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a><span><span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span></span></span></span></span><span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"><br />10 Juni 2008<br /></span></a></b></span></span></span></span></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:85%;" > Announcement No.(</span></a></b><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:85%;" ><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_">1184</a>)</b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:85%;" ><b> D.G. of Foreign Exchange Control </b></span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: justify;"> <span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" >T</span><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;color:black;" >he <span lang="en-us">1</span>184 daily currency auction was held in the Central Bank of Iraq day <span lang="en-us">Tuesday </span> 2008/6/10 so the results were as follows :</span><span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" > <span lang="en-us"> </span></span></p> </blockquote> <table style="width: 434px; height: 184px;" class="ms-grid8-main" border="1"><tbody><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-tl" style="text-align: center;" colspan="2" width="415" height="22"> <span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Details </b></span></td> </tr> <tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289" height="22"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Number of banks</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="21"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">16</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price selling dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">1197</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price buying<span lang="en-us"> </span>dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-----</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Amount sold at auction price (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="19"> <span style="font-size:100%;">113.055.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style="font-size:100%;">Amount purchased at Auction price (US $) </span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-----</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for buying (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">113.055.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for selling (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="20"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-----</span></td> </tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size:100%;"><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></span><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><br /></a><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><br /></a><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">11 Mei 2008</span></a></b></span></span></span></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> Announcement No.(</span></a></b></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_">1162</a>)</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b> D.G. of Foreign Exchange Control </b></span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: justify;"> <span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" >T</span><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;color:black;" >he <span lang="en-us">1</span>16<span lang="en-us">2</span> daily currency auction was held in the Central Bank of Iraq day <span lang="en-us"> Sunday </span> 2008/5/<span lang="en-us">11</span> so the results were as follows:</span><span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" > <span lang="en-us"> </span></span></p> </blockquote> <table style="width: 437px; height: 220px;" class="ms-grid8-main" border="1"><tbody><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-tl" style="text-align: center;" colspan="2" width="415" height="22"> <span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Details </b></span></td> </tr> <tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289" height="22"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Number of banks</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="21"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">13</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price selling dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="en-us" style="font-size:100%;">12</span><span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">00</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price buying<span lang="en-us"> </span>dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">1198</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Amount sold at auction price (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="19"> <span style="font-size:100%;">35.400.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style="font-size:100%;">Amount purchased at Auction price (US $) </span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">950.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for buying (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">35.400.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for selling (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="20"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">950.000</span></td> </tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"><br /></span></a></b></span></span></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">28 April 2008</span></a></b></span></span></span> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> Announcement No.(</span></a></b></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_">1153</a>)</b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b> D.G. of Foreign Exchange Control </b></span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: justify;"> <span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" >T</span><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;color:black;" >he <span lang="en-us">1</span>153 daily currency auction was held in the Central Bank of Iraq day <span lang="en-us"> Sunday </span> 2008/<span lang="en-us">4</span>/27 so the results were as follows:</span><span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" > <span lang="en-us"> </span></span></p> </blockquote> <table style="width: 442px; height: 184px;" class="ms-grid8-main" border="1"> <tbody><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-tl" style="text-align: center;" colspan="2" width="415" height="22"> <span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Details </b></span></td> </tr> <tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289" height="22"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Number of banks</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="21"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">11</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price selling dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="en-us" style="font-size:100%;">12</span><span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">02</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price buying<span lang="en-us"> </span>dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">1200</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Amount sold at auction price (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="19"> <span style="font-size:100%;">38.130.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style="font-size:100%;">Amount purchased at Auction price (US $) </span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">350.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for buying (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">38.130.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for selling (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="20"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">350.000</span></td> </tr></tbody> </table> <span style="font-size:100%;"><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"><br /></span></a></b></span></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><br /></a></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">08 April 2008</span></a></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> Announcement No.(</span></a></b></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_">1141</a>)</b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b> D.G. of Foreign Exchange Control </b></span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: justify;"> <span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" >T</span><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;color:black;" >he <span lang="en-us">1</span>14<span lang="en-us">1</span> daily currency auction was held in the Central Bank of Iraq day <span lang="en-us"> Tuesday </span> 2008/<span lang="en-us">4</span>/<span lang="en-us">8</span> so the results were as follows:</span><span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" > <span lang="en-us"> </span></span></p> </blockquote> <table style="width: 431px; height: 220px;" class="ms-grid8-main" border="1"><tbody><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-tl" style="text-align: center;" colspan="2" width="415" height="22"> <span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Details </b></span></td> </tr> <tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289" height="22"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Number of banks</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="21"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">17</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price selling dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="en-us" style="font-size:100%;">12</span><span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">04</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price buying<span lang="en-us"> </span>dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">1202</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Amount sold at auction price (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="19"> <span style="font-size:100%;">149.035.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style="font-size:100%;">Amount purchased at Auction price (US $) </span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">1.000.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for buying (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">149.035.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for selling (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="20"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">1.000.000</span></td> </tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size:100%;"><span><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"><br /></span></a></b></span></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><br /></a></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"><br /></span></a></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">27 March 2008</span></a></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> Announcement No.(</span></a></b></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_">1134</a>)</b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b> D.G. of Foreign Exchange Control </b></span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: justify;"> <span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" >T</span><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;color:black;" >he <span lang="en-us">1</span>134 daily currency auction was held in the Central Bank of Iraq day Thursday<span lang="en-us"> </span> 2008/3/<span lang="en-us">2</span>7 so the results were as follows:</span><span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" > <span lang="en-us"> </span></span></p> </blockquote> <table style="width: 443px; height: 184px;" class="ms-grid8-main" border="1"><tbody><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-tl" style="text-align: center;" colspan="2" width="415" height="22"> <span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Details </b></span></td> </tr> <tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289" height="22"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Number of banks</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="21"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">12</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price selling dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="en-us" style="font-size:100%;">12</span><span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">06</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price buying<span lang="en-us"> </span>dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">------</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Amount sold at auction price (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="19"> <span style="font-size:100%;">93.270.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style="font-size:100%;">Amount purchased at Auction price (US $) </span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">------</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for buying (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">93.270.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for selling (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="20"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">------</span></td> </tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"></a></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">19 March 2008<br /></span></a></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">Announcement No.(</span></a></b></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b><a name="Announcement_No.(190)_">1129</a>)</b></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;" align="center"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);font-size:100%;" ><b> D.G. of Foreign Exchange Control </b></span></p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: justify;"> <span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" >T</span><span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;color:black;" >he <span lang="en-us">1</span>129 daily currency auction was held in the Central Bank of Iraq day <span lang="en-us">Wednesday </span> 2008/3/1<span lang="en-us">9</span> so the results were as follows:</span><span style=";font-size:100%;color:black;" > <span lang="en-us"> </span></span></p> </blockquote> <table style="width: 442px; height: 184px;" class="ms-grid8-main" border="1"><tbody><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-tl" style="text-align: center;" colspan="2" width="415" height="22"> <span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Details </b></span></td> </tr> <tr><td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289" height="22"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Number of banks</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="21"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">14</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price selling dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="en-us" style="font-size:100%;">12</span><span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">08</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Auction price buying<span lang="en-us"> </span>dinar / US $</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-----</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Amount sold at auction price (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="19"> <span style="font-size:100%;">130.705.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style="font-size:100%;">Amount purchased at Auction price (US $) </span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-----</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for buying (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122"> <span style="font-size:100%;">130.705.000</span></td> </tr><tr> <td class="ms-grid8-left" style="text-align: center;" width="289"> <span style=";font-family:Tahoma;font-size:100%;" >Total offers for selling (US $)</span></td> <td style="text-align: center;" class="ms-grid8-left" width="122" height="20"> <span lang="ar-iq" style="font-size:100%;">-----</span></td> </tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:85%;" ><br />Iraq Completes Early Repayment of Entire Outstanding Obligations to the IMF</span><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div><span style="font-size:85%;"> Press Release No. 07/288<br /></span> <span style="font-size:85%;"><a rel="nofollow">December 14, 2007</a></span> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">On December 12, 2007, <span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1197974206_0">Iraq</span> completed the early repayment of its entire outstanding obligations to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) amounting to SDR 297.1 million (about US$470.5 million). The outstanding obligations of <span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1197974206_1">Iraq</span> had been contracted under the Emergency Post-Conflict Assistance that was approved by the Executive Board on September 29, 2004 (see <a rel="nofollow">Press Release No 04/206</a>).</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">The repayment was made in advance of Iraq\'s request for a new Stand-By Arrangement, which is scheduled for discussion at the IMF\'s Executive Board on December 19, 2007. Under the original schedule, the final repayment of Iraq\'s outstanding obligations to the IMF would have taken place in 2009.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;">IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn commended the Iraqi authorities for the implementation of their macroeconomic policies and reforms over the last several years, noting that "Iraq\'s ability to repay the IMF ahead of schedule reflects its strong international reserve position against a background of high oil prices."</span></p> </div> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span> <div> <h2><span style="font-size:85%;">IMF EXTERNAL RELATIONS DEPARTMENT</span></h2> <table> <tbody> <tr> <th><span style="font-size:85%;">Public Affairs</span></th> <td> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span></td> <th><span style="font-size:85%;">Media Relations</span></th> </tr> <tr> <td><span style="font-size:85%;">Phone:</span></td> <td><span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;font-size:85%;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1197974206_2" >202-623-7300</span></td> <td><span style="font-size:85%;">Phone:</span></td> <td><span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;font-size:85%;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1197974206_3" >202-623-7100</span></td> </tr> <tr> <td><span style="font-size:85%;">Fax:</span></td> <td><span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;font-size:85%;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1197974206_4" >202-623-6278</span></td> <td><span style="font-size:85%;">Fax:</span></td> <td><span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;font-size:85%;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1197974206_5" >202-623-6772</span></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p><span style="font-size:85%;"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2007/pr07288.htm"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1197974206_6">http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2007/pr07288.htm</span></a></span></p> </div><pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);"><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:100%;" ><br />06 Desember 2007<br />Iraq dinar & VND Exchange rates.<br /><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 51);">The 1065 daily currency auction was held in the Central Bank of Iraq day Thursday 2007/12/6 </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 51);">Number of banks 10 </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">Auction price selling dinar / US $ 1216</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">Auction price buying dinar / US $ 1214 </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">Amount sold at auction price (US $) 13.560.000</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">Amount purchased at Auction price (US $) 5.000.000 </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">Total offers for buying (US $) 13.560.000 </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">Total offers for selling (US $) 5.000.000</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">The Iraqi dinar rate is <blink>1214</blink> dinar to $1<br /><br /></span></span></span></tt></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);"><br />28 November 2007</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">Dear Customer,</span><br /><br /></span></tt></span></pre><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">Are you getting sick of hearing the good news?? I hope not!!</span></span></tt></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">The Dinar has gone up again yesterday and again today from 1224 to 1223 to <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">1222</span> to 1 USD</span></span></tt></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">If you want to see a full History of the strengthening Iraqi Dinar click on the following link ==></span></span></tt></span><br /><tt><tt><a target="_blank" href="http://www.cbiraq.org/C.B.I.%20FOREIGN%20EXCHANGE%20AUCTIONS.pdf"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1196229948_0">http://www.cbiraq.org/C.B.I.%20FOREIGN%20EXCHANGE%20AUCTIONS.pdf</span></a> <==</tt></tt><br /></div><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);"><br /></span></span><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);font-size:85%;" ><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">Kind Regards,<br />Martin</span></span></span></span><br /></span><pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><br /><br /><tt style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><span style="font-family:Arial;">22 November 2007<o:p></o:p><br />Dear Customer,<o:p></o:p></span></tt><tt><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">When I checked again today, I wasn't surprised to see the Dinar has</span><o:p style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"></o:p><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">gone up in value yet AGAIN!!</span><o:p style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><br /></o:p><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">It has risen from 1227 Dinar to</span> <blink style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">1226</blink> <span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);">Dinar to 1 USD.</span><o:p style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><br /></o:p><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);">I know I keep saying it...but really...the price is going up on the</span><o:p style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"></o:p><span style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"> website.</span><span style=""> </span><o:p><br /></o:p></span></tt><span style=";font-family:Arial;color:black;" ><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><br />Kind Regards,</span><br /><br /><u1:p style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"></u1:p><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">Martin</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">061-77492185</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">081973136058</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">081534751557</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">Email & YM: </span><a style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);" href="mailto:martin_evb@yahoo.com">martin_evb@yahoo.com</a><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">Address: Jln Brig.Katamso No.23 - </span><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on" style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on" style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"><st1:place st="on">Medan</st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></span><br /><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><br />13 November 2007<br />Dear customer,<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p><br /><br /></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">This is just a super quick email to let you know<br />the Dinar has risen in<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">value yet again. It has risen from 1229<br />Dinar to 1228 Dinar to 1 USD.<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">A small change, however it just<br />keeps going up which is a great thing<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">for investors.<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">As soon as<br />I get a spare moment I am going to raise the prices on the<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">website.<br />So if you have been on the edge on whether to invest or not,<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">you<br />should get in now before we change the prices.<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><br />If the Dinar keeps going as it is, frequent price rises on the<br />site will<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">soon become the norm.<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">If you would like to invest click<br />on the following link:<o:p></o:p></tt><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);" class="yshortcuts"><u><br /><a href="http://www.new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com/">http://WWW.NEW-DINAR-IRAQ.BLOGSPOT.COM</a> or</u></span><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> <o:p></o:p></tt><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);" class="yshortcuts"><u><br /><a href="http://www.new-dinar-iraqi.blogspot.com/">http://WWW.NEW-DINAR-IRAQI.BLOGSPOT.COM</a></u></span><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> <==<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Hurry!<br />Starting from now, we will be raising the prices at any given<o:p></o:p></tt><tt style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">moment.<br />We look forward to supplying you with your New Iraqi Dinar<o:p></o:p></tt><tt><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">investment.</span><o:p></o:p></tt><tt><o:p> </o:p></tt><tt><br /></tt><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Kind Regards,</span><o:p style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"></o:p><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Martin</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">061-77492185</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">081973136058</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">081534751557</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Email & YM: </span><a style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);" href="mailto:martin_evb@yahoo.com">martin_evb@yahoo.com</a><o:p></o:p><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Address: Jln Brig.Katamso No.23 - </span><st1:city st="on" style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Medan</st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></span></span><tt><o:p></o:p></tt><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />08 November 2007<o:p></o:p><br />Dear Customers<o:p></o:p></span></pre> <pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p></o:p>I meant to let you know 2 days ago that the Dinar went UP in value but I have been so busy<br />getting ready some new and exciting things that we are launching soon.<o:p></o:p><br />(From 1232 Dinar to 1231 Dinar = 1 USD)* And then yesterday, the Dinar went UP again<br />in value.<o:p></o:p></span></pre> <pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" >I got distracted again and forgot to send out an email. (From 1231 Dinar to 1230 Dinar= 1 USD)*<o:p></o:p></span></pre> <pre style="margin-right: 0.5in;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;" ><o:p></o:p>And now today, the Dinar has yet AGAIN gone UP in value, so I just had to let you know.<br />(From 1230 Dinar to 1229 Dinar = 1 USD)*<br /><br /><o:p></o:p>*Note: As the value of the Dinar goes down in numerical value, it is in fact Increasing in value.<o:p><br /></o:p>Please note that we will be forced to increase the prices on the website very soon without<br />notice, as our<o:p></o:p> contacts in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region></st1:place></st1:country-region> have already done to us.<o:p><br /><br /></o:p>Kind Regards,<o:p></o:p><br />Martin<br />061-77492185<br />081973136058<br />081534751557<br />Email & YM: <a href="mailto:martin_evb@yahoo.com">martin_evb@yahoo.com</a><o:p></o:p><br />Address: Jln Brig.Katamso No.23 - <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Medan</st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></span></pre> </div><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:8;" ><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"></st1:place></st1:city></st1:place></st1:city></span><o:p></o:p></div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">Dear Customer New-Dinar-Iraq & New-Dinar-Iraqi,<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p></o:p>More good news coming from <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region>:<o:p><br /></o:p>International expectations of economic growth in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region><o:p><br /></o:p>Deputy Prime Minister, Dr. Barham Salih, said that the economic<o:p></o:p> situation continues to improve and international estimates expect high rates<o:p></o:p> of growth in the Iraqi economy, about 6%, and inflation was brought<o:p></o:p> under control by hitting another level of about 33% this year and 16% for<o:p></o:p> this month.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p></o:p>This came during a media symposium held in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">London</st1:place></st1:city> recently on the<o:p></o:p> sidelines of his official visit to <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Britain</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Dr. Barham Salih, Head of the<o:p></o:p> economic file said that the Iraqi government decided to allocate about<o:p></o:p> two and a half billion, for the development of provinces distributed<o:p></o:p> among regions according to population.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">Source:<st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region> Directory<o:p></o:p><br />INTERVIEW-Iraq sees $42 bln 2008 budget, up $1 bln on 2007<o:p></o:p><br />Check out this link for the article (MUST READ):<o:p></o:p><br /><a style="color: rgb(51, 204, 255);" href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKKAR43809320071008?pageNumber=1&sp=true">http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKKAR43809320071008?pageNumber=1&sp=true</a><o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-size:85%;">Kind Regards,<o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span><span style="font-size:85%;">Martin<o:p></o:p></span> </div><p style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p></o:p>P.S.Customer, in the coming weeks you are going to be hearing some<o:p></o:p><br />exciting news from<br /><a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);" href="http://www.new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com/">WWW.NEW-DINAR-IRAQ.BLOGSPOT.COM</a> or<br /><a style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);" href="http://www.new-dinar-iraqi.blogspot.com/">WWW.NEW-DINAR-IRAQI.BLOGSPOT.COM</a><br />Stay tuned because it could change<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="text-align: justify; color: rgb(204, 102, 204);"> </div><span style="font-size:8;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 102, 204);font-size:85%;" >your life!</span></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2825069221616283036-4893721796508969047?l=new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>nogo dininoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2825069221616283036.post-29071046872327824962007-11-28T23:26:00.000-08:002007-12-06T23:15:30.759-08:00About Saddam HusseinFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia <div id="contentSub">(Redirected from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Saddam_Husein&redirect=no" title="Saddam Husein">Saddam Husein</a>)</div> <div id="jump-to-nav">Jump to: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#column-one">navigation</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#searchInput">search</a></div> <!-- start content --> <table class="infobox vcard" style="width: 23em; font-size: 90%; text-align: left; padding-left: 0.5em; padding-right: 0.5em;"> <tbody><tr> <td colspan="2" class="fn" style="text-align: center; font-size: 140%; font-weight: bold;"><span class="fn">Saddam Hussein al-Majid al-Tikriti<br /><span lang="ar" lang="ar">صدام حسين المجيد التكريتي</span></span></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq%2C_Saddam_Hussein_%28222%29.jpg" class="image" title="Saddam Hussein"><img alt="Saddam Hussein" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f1/Iraq%2C_Saddam_Hussein_%28222%29.jpg/193px-Iraq%2C_Saddam_Hussein_%28222%29.jpg" border="0" height="250" width="193" /></a><br /><p><small>Saddam Hussein, c. 2000</small></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2" style="text-align: center; font-size: 110%;"> <hr /> <div style="background: lavender none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chairman" title="Chairman">Chairman</a> of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Revolutionary_Command_Council" title="Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council">Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council</a><br />5th <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_Iraq" title="President of Iraq">President of Iraq</a></div> </th> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="border-bottom: medium none; text-align: center;"><b>In office</b><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_16" title="July 16">July 16</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979" title="1979">1979</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_9" title="April 9">April 9</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th>Preceded by</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Hassan_al-Bakr" title="Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr">Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th>Succeeded by</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Garner" title="Jay Garner">Jay Garner</a>, as Head of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_Provisional_Authority" title="Coalition Provisional Authority">Coalition Provisional Authority</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2" style="text-align: center; font-size: 110%;"> <hr /> <div style="background: lavender none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_Iraq" title="Prime Minister of Iraq">Prime Minister of Iraq</a></div> </th> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="border-bottom: medium none; text-align: center;"><b>In office</b><br />1979 – 1991</td> </tr> <tr> <th>Preceded by</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Hassan_al-Bakr" title="Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr">Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th>Succeeded by</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sa%27dun_Hammadi" title="Sa'dun Hammadi">Sa'dun Hammadi</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="border-bottom: medium none; text-align: center;"><b>In office</b><br />1994 – 2003</td> </tr> <tr> <th>Preceded by</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmad_Husayn_Khudayir_as-Samarrai" title="Ahmad Husayn Khudayir as-Samarrai">Ahmad Husayn Khudayir as-Samarrai</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th>Succeeded by</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iyad_Allawi" title="Iyad Allawi">Iyad Allawi</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <hr /></td> </tr> <tr> <th>Born</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_28" title="April 28">April 28</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1937" title="1937">1937</a><span style="display: none;">(<span class="bday">1937-04-28</span>)</span><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Awja" title="Al-Awja">Al-Awja</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th>Died</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">December 30</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a> (aged 69) (executed)<br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kadhimiya" title="Kadhimiya">Kadhimiya</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th>Political party</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ba%27ath_Arab_Socialist_Party" title="Ba'ath Arab Socialist Party">Ba'ath Arab Socialist Party</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th>Spouse</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sajida_Talfah" title="Sajida Talfah">Sajida Talfah</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th>Religion</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunni_Islam" title="Sunni Islam">Sunni Muslim</a></td> </tr> </tbody></table> <p><b>Saddam Hussein al-Majid al-Tikriti</b> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_alphabet" title="Arabic alphabet">Arabic</a>: <span lang="ar" lang="ar">صدام حسين المجيد التكريتي</span> <i><span title="DIN 31635 Arabic" class="Unicode" style="white-space: normal; text-decoration: none;" lang="ar-Latn" lang="ar-Latn">Ṣaddām Ḥusayn ʿAbd al-Majīd al-Tikrītī</span></i><sup id="_ref-ref1_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-ref1" title="">[1]</a></sup>; <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_28" title="April 28">April 28</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1937" title="1937">1937</a><sup id="_ref-ref2_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-ref2" title="">[2]</a></sup> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">December 30</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a><sup id="_ref-0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-0" title="">[3]</a></sup>), was the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_Iraq" title="President of Iraq">President</a> of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq" title="Iraq">Iraq</a> from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_16" title="July 16">July 16</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979" title="1979">1979</a>, until <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_9" title="April 9">April 9</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a>.<sup id="_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-1" title="">[4]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-2" title="">[5]</a></sup></p> <p>A leading member of the revolutionary <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ba%27ath_Party" title="Ba'ath Party">Ba'ath Party</a>, which espoused secular <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan-Arabism" title="Pan-Arabism">pan-Arabism</a>, economic modernization, and socialism, Saddam played a key role in the 1968 coup that brought the party to long-term power. As vice president under the ailing General <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Hassan_al-Bakr" title="Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr">Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr</a>, Saddam tightly controlled conflict between the government and the armed forces — at a time when many other groups were considered capable of overthrowing the government — by creating repressive security forces. In the early 1970s, Saddam spearheaded Iraq's nationalization of the Western-owned <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Petroleum_Company" title="Iraq Petroleum Company">Iraq Petroleum Company</a>, which had long held a monopoly on the country's oil. Through the 1970s, Saddam cemented his authority over the apparatuses of government as Iraq's economy grew at a rapid pace.<sup id="_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-3" title="">[6]</a></sup></p> <p>As president, Saddam maintained power through the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-Iraq_War" title="Iran-Iraq War">Iran-Iraq War</a> (1980-1988) and the first <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Gulf_War" title="Persian Gulf War">Persian Gulf War</a> (1991). During these conflicts, Saddam repressed movements he deemed threatening to the stability of Iraq, particularly <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shi%27a_Muslim" title="Shi'a Muslim">Shi'a</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdish" title="Kurdish">Kurdish</a> movements seeking to overthrow the government or gain independence, respectively. While he remained a popular hero among many disaffected Arabs everywhere for standing up to the West and for his support for the Palestinians,<sup id="_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-4" title="">[7]</a></sup> U.S. leaders continued to view Saddam with deep suspicion following the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Saddam was deposed by the U.S. and its allies during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 invasion of Iraq">2003 invasion of Iraq</a>.</p> <p>Captured by U.S. forces on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_13" title="December 13">December 13</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a>, Saddam was brought to trial under the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Interim_Government" title="Iraqi Interim Government">Iraqi interim government set up by U.S.-led forces</a>. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_5" title="November 5">November 5</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>, he was convicted of charges related to the executions of 148 Iraqi Shi'ites suspected of planning an assassination attempt against him, and was sentenced to death by hanging. Saddam was <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Execution of Saddam Hussein">executed</a> on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">December 30</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>.<sup id="_ref-BBCexecution_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-BBCexecution" title="">[8]</a></sup></p> <table id="toc" class="toc" summary="Contents"> <tbody><tr> <td> <div id="toctitle"> <h2>Contents</h2> <span class="toctoggle">[<a href="javascript:toggleToc()" class="internal" id="togglelink">hide</a>]</span></div> <ul><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Youth"><span class="tocnumber">1</span> <span class="toctext">Youth</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Rise_to_power"><span class="tocnumber">2</span> <span class="toctext">Rise to power</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Modernization_program"><span class="tocnumber">2.1</span> <span class="toctext">Modernization program</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Succession"><span class="tocnumber">2.2</span> <span class="toctext">Succession</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Modernisation"><span class="tocnumber">3</span> <span class="toctext">Modernisation</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Foreign_affairs"><span class="tocnumber">4</span> <span class="toctext">Foreign affairs</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Beginning_of_Iran-Iraq_War"><span class="tocnumber">4.1</span> <span class="toctext">Beginning of Iran-Iraq War</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Mass_murder_and_genocide"><span class="tocnumber">4.2</span> <span class="toctext">Mass murder and genocide</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Conclusion_of_the_Iran-Iraq_War"><span class="tocnumber">4.3</span> <span class="toctext">Conclusion of the Iran-Iraq War</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Tensions_with_Kuwait"><span class="tocnumber">4.4</span> <span class="toctext">Tensions with Kuwait</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Gulf_War_of_1990"><span class="tocnumber">5</span> <span class="toctext">Gulf War of 1990</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Postwar_period"><span class="tocnumber">6</span> <span class="toctext">Postwar period</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#2003_invasion_of_Iraq"><span class="tocnumber">7</span> <span class="toctext">2003 invasion of Iraq</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Incarceration_and_trial"><span class="tocnumber">8</span> <span class="toctext">Incarceration and trial</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Capture_and_incarceration"><span class="tocnumber">8.1</span> <span class="toctext">Capture and incarceration</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Trial"><span class="tocnumber">8.2</span> <span class="toctext">Trial</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Execution"><span class="tocnumber">9</span> <span class="toctext">Execution</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Marriage_and_family_relationships"><span class="tocnumber">10</span> <span class="toctext">Marriage and family relationships</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#List_of_government_positions_held"><span class="tocnumber">11</span> <span class="toctext">List of government positions held</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Book_References"><span class="tocnumber">12</span> <span class="toctext">Book References</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#Footnotes"><span class="tocnumber">13</span> <span class="toctext">Footnotes</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#See_also"><span class="tocnumber">14</span> <span class="toctext">See also</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#External_links"><span class="tocnumber">15</span> <span class="toctext">External links</span></a></li></ul> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> <script type="text/javascript"> //<![CDATA[ if (window.showTocToggle) { var tocShowText = "show"; var tocHideText = "hide"; showTocToggle(); } //]]> </script> <p><a name="Youth" id="Youth"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Youth</span></h2> <div class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:SaddamCairo.jpg" class="image" title="Saddam Hussein and the Ba'ath Party student cell in Cairo in the 1959-1963 period"><img alt="Saddam Hussein and the Ba'ath Party student cell in Cairo in the 1959-1963 period" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/SaddamCairo.jpg/180px-SaddamCairo.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="103" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:SaddamCairo.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Saddam Hussein and the Ba'ath Party student cell in Cairo in the 1959-1963 period</div> </div> </div> <p>Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was born in the town of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Awja" title="Al-Awja">Al-Awja</a>, 13 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kilometre" title="Kilometre">km</a> (8 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mile" title="Mile">mi</a>) from the Iraqi town of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tikrit" title="Tikrit">Tikrit</a>, to a family of shepherds from the al-Begat tribal group.<sup class="noprint Template-Fact"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources since December 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed">citation needed</a></i>]</span></sup> His mother, Subha Tulfah al-Mussallat, named her newborn son <i>Saddam</i>, which in Arabic means "One who confronts." He never knew his father, Hussein 'Abid al-Majid, who disappeared six months before Saddam was born. Shortly afterward, Saddam's thirteen-year-old brother died of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cancer" title="Cancer">cancer</a>. The infant Saddam was sent to the family of his maternal uncle, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khairallah_Talfah" title="Khairallah Talfah">Khairallah Talfah</a>, until he was three.<sup id="_ref-ref5_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-ref5" title="">[9]</a></sup></p> <p>His mother remarried, and Saddam gained three half-brothers through this marriage. His stepfather, Ibrahim al-Hassan, treated Saddam harshly after his return. At around ten, Saddam fled the family and returned to live in Baghdad with his uncle, Kharaillah Tulfah. Tulfah, the father of Saddam's future wife, was a devout <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunni" title="Sunni">Sunni</a> Muslim and a veteran from the 1941 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Iraqi_War" title="Anglo-Iraqi War">Anglo-Iraqi War</a> between Iraqi nationalists and Britain, which remained a major colonial power in the region.<sup id="_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-5" title="">[10]</a></sup> Later in his life, relatives from his native Tikrit would become some of his closest advisors and supporters. According to Saddam, he learned many things from his uncle, a militant Iraqi nationalist. Under the guidance of his uncle, he attended a nationalistic high school in Baghdad. After secondary school, Saddam studied at an Iraqi law school for three years, prior to dropping out in 1957, at the age of twenty, to join the revolutionary pan-Arab Ba'ath Party, of which his uncle was a supporter. During this time, Saddam apparently supported himself as a secondary school teacher.<sup id="_ref-ref6_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-ref6" title="">[11]</a></sup></p> <p>Revolutionary sentiment was characteristic of the era in Iraq and throughout the Middle East. In Iraq progressives and socialists assailed traditional political elites (colonial era bureaucrats and landowners, wealthy merchants and tribal chiefs, monarchists).<sup id="_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-6" title="">[12]</a></sup> Moreover, the pan-Arab nationalism of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamal_Abdel_Nasser" title="Gamal Abdel Nasser">Gamal Abdel Nasser</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt" title="Egypt">Egypt</a> would profoundly influence young Ba'athists like Saddam. The rise of Nasser foreshadowed a wave of revolutions throughout the Middle East in the 1950s and 1960s, which would see the collapse of the monarchies of Iraq, Egypt, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libya" title="Libya">Libya</a>. Nasser inspired nationalists throughout the Middle East for standing up to the British and the French during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suez_Crisis" title="Suez Crisis">Suez Crisis of 1956</a>, and for striving to modernize Egypt and unite the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_world" title="Arab world">Arab world</a> politically. (Humphreys, 68)</p> <p>In 1958, a year after Saddam had joined the Ba'ath party, army officers led by General <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul_Karim_Qassim" title="Abdul Karim Qassim">Abdul Karim Qassim</a> overthrew <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faisal_II_of_Iraq" title="Faisal II of Iraq">Faisal II of Iraq</a>. The Ba'athists opposed the new government, and in 1959, Saddam was involved in the attempted United States-backed plot to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination" title="Assassination">assassinate</a> Qassim.<sup id="_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-7" title="">[13]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Rise_to_power" id="Rise_to_power"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Rise to power</span></h2> <p>Army officers with ties to the Ba'ath Party overthrew Qassim in a coup in 1963. Ba'athist leaders were appointed to the cabinet and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul_Salam_Arif" title="Abdul Salam Arif">Abdul Salam Arif</a> became president. Arif dismissed and arrested the Ba'athist leaders later that year. Saddam returned to Iraq, but was imprisoned in 1964. Just prior to his imprisonment and until 1968, Saddam held the position of Ba'ath party secretary.<sup id="_ref-Hanna_Batatu_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-Hanna_Batatu" title="">[14]</a></sup> He escaped prison in 1967 and quickly became a leading member of the party. In 1968, Saddam participated in a bloodless coup led by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmad_Hassan_al-Bakr" title="Ahmad Hassan al-Bakr">Ahmad Hassan al-Bakr</a> that overthrew <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul_Rahman_Arif" title="Abdul Rahman Arif">Abdul Rahman Arif</a>. Al-Bakr was named president and Saddam was named his deputy, and deputy chairman of the Baathist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolutionary_Command_Council" title="Revolutionary Command Council">Revolutionary Command Council</a>. According to biographers, Saddam never forgot the tensions within the first Ba'athist government, which formed the basis for his measures to promote Ba'ath party unity as well as his resolve to maintain power and programs to ensure social stability.</p> <p>Although Saddam was al-Bakr's deputy, he was a strong behind-the-scenes party politician. Al-Bakr was the older and more prestigious of the two, but by 1969 Saddam Hussein clearly had become the moving force behind the party.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template"><span title="The material in the vicinity of this tag may use weasel words or too-vague attribution since November 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Avoid_weasel_words" title="Wikipedia:Avoid weasel words">attribution needed</a></i>]</span></sup></p> <p><a name="Modernization_program" id="Modernization_program"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Modernization program</span></h3> <p>In the late 1960s and early 1970s, as vice chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council, formally the al-Bakr's second-in-command, Saddam built a reputation as a progressive, effective politician.<sup id="_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-8" title="">[15]</a></sup> At this time, Saddam moved up the ranks in the new government by aiding attempts to strengthen and unify the Ba'ath party and taking a leading role in addressing the country's major domestic problems and expanding the party's following.</p> <p>After the Baathists took power in 1968, Saddam focused on attaining stability in a nation riddled with profound tensions. Long before Saddam, Iraq had been split along social, ethnic, religious, and economic fault lines: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunni_Islam" title="Sunni Islam">Sunni</a> versus <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shi%27a_Islam" title="Shi'a Islam">Shi'ite</a>, Arab versus <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurds" title="Kurds">Kurd</a>, tribal chief versus urban merchant, nomad versus peasant. (Humphreys, 78) Stable rule in a country rife with factionalism required both massive repression and the improvement of living standards. (Humphreys, 78)</p> <p>Saddam actively fostered the modernization of the Iraqi economy along with the creation of a strong security apparatus to prevent coups within the power structure and insurrections apart from it. Ever concerned with broadening his base of support among the diverse elements of Iraqi society and mobilizing mass support, he closely followed the administration of state welfare and development programs.</p> <p>At the center of this strategy was Iraq's oil. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_1" title="June 1">June 1</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1972" title="1972">1972</a>, Saddam oversaw the seizure of international oil interests, which, at the time, dominated the country's oil sector. A year later, world oil prices rose dramatically as a result of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973_energy_crisis" title="1973 energy crisis">1973 energy crisis</a>, and skyrocketing revenues enabled Saddam to expand his agenda.</p> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddam1970s.jpg" class="image" title="Promoting women's literacy and education in the 1970s"><img alt="Promoting women's literacy and education in the 1970s" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Saddam1970s.jpg/180px-Saddam1970s.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="134" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddam1970s.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Promoting women's literacy and education in the 1970s</div> </div> </div> <p>Within just a few years, Iraq was providing social services that were unprecedented among Middle Eastern countries. Saddam established and controlled the "National Campaign for the Eradication of Illiteracy" and the campaign for "Compulsory Free Education in Iraq," and largely under his auspices, the government established universal free schooling up to the highest education levels; hundreds of thousands learned to read in the years following the initiation of the program. The government also supported families of soldiers, granted free hospitalization to everyone, and gave subsidies to farmers. Iraq created one of the most modernized public-health systems in the Middle East, earning Saddam an award from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Educational%2C_Scientific_and_Cultural_Organization" title="United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization">United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization</a> (UNESCO).<sup id="_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-9" title="">[16]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-10" title="">[17]</a></sup></p> <p>To diversify the largely oil-based <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Iraq" title="Economy of Iraq">Iraqi economy</a>, Saddam implemented a national infrastructure campaign that made great progress in building roads, promoting <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mining" title="Mining">mining</a>, and developing other industries. The campaign revolutionized Iraq's energy industries. Electricity was brought to nearly every city in Iraq, and many outlying areas.</p> <p>Before the 1970s, most of Iraq's people lived in the countryside, where Saddam himself was born and raised, and roughly two-thirds were peasants. But this number would decrease quickly during the 1970s as the country invested much of its oil profits into industrial expansion.</p> <p>Nevertheless, Saddam focused on fostering loyalty to the Ba'athist government in the rural areas. After nationalizing foreign oil interests, Saddam supervised the modernization of the countryside, mechanizing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriculture" title="Agriculture">agriculture</a> on a large scale, and distributing land to peasant farmers.<sup id="_ref-ref6_1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-ref6" title="">[11]</a></sup> The Ba'athists established farm <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooperative" title="Cooperative">cooperatives</a>, in which profits were distributed according to the labors of the individual and the unskilled were trained. The government's commitment to agrarian reform was demonstrated by the doubling of expenditures for agricultural development in 1974-1975. Moreover, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agrarian_reform" title="Agrarian reform">agrarian reform</a> in Iraq improved the living standard of the peasantry and increased production, though not to the levels for which Saddam had hoped.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template"><span title="The material in the vicinity of this tag may use weasel words or too-vague attribution since November 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Avoid_weasel_words" title="Wikipedia:Avoid weasel words">attribution needed</a></i>]</span></sup></p> <p>Saddam became personally associated with Ba'athist welfare and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_development" title="Economic development">economic development</a> programs in the eyes of many Iraqis, widening his appeal both within his traditional base and among new sectors of the population. These programs were part of a combination of "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrot_and_stick" title="Carrot and stick">carrot and stick</a>" tactics to enhance support in the working class, the peasantry, and within the party and the government bureaucracy.</p> <p>Saddam's organizational prowess was credited with Iraq's rapid pace of development in the 1970s; development went forward at such a fevered pitch that two million persons from other Arab countries and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yugoslavia" title="Yugoslavia">Yugoslavia</a> worked in Iraq to meet the growing demand for labor.</p> <p><a name="Succession" id="Succession"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Succession</span></h3> <p>In 1976, Saddam rose to the position of general in the Iraqi armed forces, and rapidly became the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strongman_%28politics%29" title="Strongman (politics)">strongman</a> of the government. As the weak, elderly al-Bakr became unable to execute his duties, Saddam took on an increasingly prominent role as the face of the government both internally and externally. He soon became the architect of Iraq's foreign policy and represented the nation in all diplomatic situations. He was the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De-facto" title="De-facto">de-facto</a> leader of Iraq some years before he formally came to power in 1979. He slowly began to consolidate his power over Iraq's government and the Ba'ath party. Relationships with fellow party members were carefully cultivated, and Saddam soon accumulated a powerful circle of support within the party.</p> <p>In 1979 al-Bakr started to make treaties with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria" title="Syria">Syria</a>, also under Ba'athist leadership, that would lead to unification between the two countries. Syrian President <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hafez_al-Assad" title="Hafez al-Assad">Hafez al-Assad</a> would become deputy leader in a union, and this would drive Saddam to obscurity. Saddam acted to secure his grip on power. He forced the ailing al-Bakr to resign on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_16" title="July 16">July 16</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979" title="1979">1979</a>, and formally assumed the presidency.</p> <p>Shortly afterwards, he convened an assembly of Ba'ath party leaders on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_22" title="July 22">July 22</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979" title="1979">1979</a>. During the assembly, which he ordered videotaped, Saddam claimed to have found spies and conspirators within the Ba'ath Party and read out the names of 68 members that he alleged to be such <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_column" title="Fifth column">fifth columnists</a>. These members were labelled "disloyal" and were removed from the room one by one and taken into custody. After the list was read, Saddam congratulated those still seated in the room for their past and future loyalty. The 68 people arrested at the meeting were subsequently put on trial, and 22 were sentenced to death for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treason" title="Treason">treason</a>.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template"><span title="The material in the vicinity of this tag may use weasel words or too-vague attribution since November 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Avoid_weasel_words" title="Wikipedia:Avoid weasel words">attribution needed</a></i>]</span></sup></p> <p><a name="Modernisation" id="Modernisation"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Modernisation</span></h2> <p>Saddam saw himself as a social revolutionary and a modernizer, following the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamal_Abdel_Nasser" title="Gamal Abdel Nasser">Nasser</a> model. To the consternation of Islamic <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservatism" title="Conservatism">conservatives</a><sup class="noprint Template-Fact"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources since September 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed">citation needed</a></i>]</span></sup>, his government gave women added freedoms and offered them high-level government and industry jobs. Saddam also created a Western-style legal system, making Iraq the only country in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Gulf" title="Persian Gulf">Persian Gulf</a> region not ruled according to traditional Islamic law (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharia" title="Sharia">Sharia</a>). Saddam abolished the Sharia <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Court" title="Court">law courts</a>, except for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_injury" title="Personal injury">personal injury</a> claims.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template"><span title="The material in the vicinity of this tag may use weasel words or too-vague attribution since November 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Avoid_weasel_words" title="Wikipedia:Avoid weasel words">attribution needed</a></i>]</span></sup></p> <p>Domestic conflict impeded Saddam's modernizing projects. Iraqi society is divided along lines of language, religion and ethnicity; Saddam's government rested on the support of the 20% minority of largely working class, peasant, and lower <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_class" title="Middle class">middle class</a> Sunnis, continuing a pattern that dates back at least to the British <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandate" title="Mandate">mandate</a> authority's reliance on them as administrators.</p> <p>The Shi'a majority were long a source of opposition to the government's secular policies, and the Ba'ath Party was increasingly concerned about potential Sh'ia Islamist influence following the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Revolution" title="Iranian Revolution">Iranian Revolution</a> of 1979. The Kurds of northern Iraq (who are Sunni Muslims but not Arabs) were also permanently hostile to the Ba'athist party's pan-Arabism. To maintain power Saddam tended either to provide them with benefits so as to co-opt them into the government, or to take repressive measures against them. The major instruments for accomplishing this control were the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paramilitary" title="Paramilitary">paramilitary</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Police" title="Police">police</a> organizations. Beginning in 1974, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taha_Yassin_Ramadan" title="Taha Yassin Ramadan">Taha Yassin Ramadan</a>, a close associate of Saddam, commanded the People's Army, which was responsible for internal security. As the Ba'ath Party's paramilitary, the People's Army acted as a counterweight against any coup attempts by the regular armed forces. In addition to the People's Army, the Department of General Intelligence (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Intelligence_Service" title="Iraqi Intelligence Service">Mukhabarat</a>) was the most notorious arm of the state security system, feared for its use of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torture" title="Torture">torture</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination" title="Assassination">assassination</a>. It was commanded by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barzan_Ibrahim_al-Tikriti" title="Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti">Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti</a>, Saddam's younger <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sibling" title="Sibling">half-brother</a>. Since 1982, foreign observers believed that this department operated both at home and abroad in their mission to seek out and eliminate Saddam's perceived opponents.<sup id="_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-11" title="">[18]</a></sup></p> <p>Saddam claimed a unique role of Iraq in the history of the Arab world. As president, Saddam made frequent references to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbasid" title="Abbasid">Abbasid</a> period, when Baghdad was the political, cultural, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_capital" title="Economic capital">economic capital</a> of the Arab world. He also promoted Iraq's pre-Islamic role as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesopotamia" title="Mesopotamia">Mesopotamia</a>, the ancient <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cradle_of_Civilization" title="Cradle of Civilization">cradle of civilization</a>, alluding to such historical figures as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebuchadrezzar_II" title="Nebuchadrezzar II">Nebuchadrezzar II</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammurabi" title="Hammurabi">Hammurabi</a>. He devoted resources to archaeological explorations. In effect, Saddam sought to combine pan-Arabism and Iraqi nationalism, by promoting the vision of an Arab world united and led by Iraq. Saddam was also a great admirer of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_Union" title="Soviet Union">Soviet</a> leader, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Stalin" title="Joseph Stalin">Joseph Stalin</a>. During the 1970s, he visited all fifteen of Stalin's seaside <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dachas" title="Dachas">dachas</a></i> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abkhazia" title="Abkhazia">Abkhazia</a> which dotted along the coast of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Sea" title="Black Sea">Black Sea</a>.<sup id="_ref-Fisk_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-Fisk" title="">[19]</a></sup> In a meeting with Saddam in 1979, Kurdish politician Mahmoud Othman recalled that his office included a library of solely books on the Soviet leader.<sup id="_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-12" title="">[20]</a></sup> Saddam's visit to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dachas" title="Dachas">dachas</a> was said to be one of the inspirations for Saddam's construction of the grand palaces built in Baghdad and Iraq.<sup id="_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-13" title="">[21]</a></sup></p> <p>As a sign of his consolidation of power, Saddam's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult_of_personality" title="Cult of personality">cult of personality</a> pervaded Iraqi society. Thousands of portraits, posters, statues and murals were erected in his honor all over Iraq. His face could be seen on the sides of office buildings, schools, airports, and shops, as well as on Iraqi currency. Saddam's personality cult reflected his efforts to appeal to the various elements in Iraqi society. He appeared in the costumes of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bedouin" title="Bedouin">Bedouin</a>, the traditional clothes of the Iraqi peasant (which he essentially wore during his childhood), and even <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdish_clothing" title="Kurdish clothing">Kurdish clothing</a>, but also appeared in Western suits, projecting the image of an urbane and modern leader. Sometimes he would also be portrayed as a devout Muslim, wearing full headdress and robe, praying toward <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mecca" title="Mecca">Mecca</a>.</p> <p><a name="Foreign_affairs" id="Foreign_affairs"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Foreign affairs</span></h2> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddam_rumsfeld.jpg" class="image" title="Former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld meeting Saddam Hussein on 19-20 December 1983. During the 1980s, the United States maintained cordial relations with Saddam as a bulwark against Iran."><img alt="Former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld meeting Saddam Hussein on 19-20 December 1983. During the 1980s, the United States maintained cordial relations with Saddam as a bulwark against Iran." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Saddam_rumsfeld.jpg/180px-Saddam_rumsfeld.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="120" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddam_rumsfeld.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Secretary_of_Defense" title="United States Secretary of Defense">Former US Secretary of Defense</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Rumsfeld" title="Donald Rumsfeld">Donald Rumsfeld</a> meeting Saddam Hussein on 19-20 December 1983. During the 1980s, the United States maintained cordial relations with Saddam as a bulwark against Iran.</div> </div> </div> <p>In foreign affairs, Saddam sought to have Iraq play a leading role in the Middle East. Iraq signed an aid pact with the Soviet Union in 1972, and arms were sent along with several thousand advisers. However, the 1978 crackdown on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Communist_Party" title="Iraqi Communist Party">Iraqi Communists</a> <sup id="_ref-14" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-14" title="">[22]</a></sup> and a shift of trade toward the West strained Iraqi relations with the Soviet Union; Iraq then took on a more Western orientation until the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Gulf_War" title="Persian Gulf War">Persian Gulf War</a> in 1991.</p> <p>After the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973_oil_crisis" title="1973 oil crisis">oil crisis</a> of 1973, France had changed to a more pro-Arab policy and was accordingly rewarded by Saddam with closer ties. He made a state visit to France in 1976, cementing close ties with some French business and ruling political circles. In 1975 Saddam negotiated an accord with Iran that contained Iraqi concessions on border disputes. In return, Iran agreed to stop supporting opposition Kurds in Iraq.</p> <p>Saddam led Arab opposition to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_David_Accords" title="Camp David Accords">Camp David Accords</a> between Egypt and Israel (1979).</p> <p>Saddam initiated Iraq's nuclear enrichment project in the 1980s, with French assistance. The first Iraqi nuclear reactor was named by the French <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osirak" title="Osirak">Osirak</a>. Osirak was destroyed on June 7, 1981<sup id="_ref-Osirak_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-Osirak" title="">[23]</a></sup> by an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel" title="Israel">Israeli</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_strike" title="Air strike">air strike</a> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Opera" title="Operation Opera">Operation Opera</a>).</p> <p>In 1970, Saddam had negotiated an agreement with Kurdish separatist leaders, giving them autonomy, but the agreement broke down. The result was brutal fighting between the government and Kurdish groups and even Iraqi bombing of Kurdish villages in Iran, which caused Iraqi relations with Iran to deteriorate. However, after Saddam had negotiated the 1975 treaty with Iran, the Shah withdrew support for the Kurds, who suffered a total defeat.</p> <p><a name="Beginning_of_Iran-Iraq_War" id="Beginning_of_Iran-Iraq_War"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Beginning of Iran-Iraq War</span></h3> <dl><dd><span class="boilerplate seealso"><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-Iraq_War" title="Iran-Iraq War">Iran-Iraq War</a></i></span></dd></dl> <p>In 1979 Iran's Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was overthrown by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Iran#Islamic_Revolution" title="History of Iran">Islamic Revolution</a>, thus giving way to an Islamic republic led by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruhollah_Khomeini" title="Ruhollah Khomeini">Ayatollah Khomeini</a>. The influence of revolutionary Shi'ite Islam grew apace in the region, particularly in countries with large Shi'ite populations, especially Iraq. Saddam feared that radical Islamic ideas — hostile to his secular rule — were rapidly spreading inside his country among the majority Shi'ite population.</p> <p>There had also been bitter enmity between Saddam and Khomeini since the 1970s. Khomeini, having been <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exile" title="Exile">exiled</a> from Iran in 1964, took up residence in Iraq, at the Shi'ite holy city of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Najaf" title="An Najaf">An Najaf</a>. There he involved himself with Iraqi Shi'ites and developed a strong, worldwide religious and political following. Under pressure from the Shah, who had agreed to a rapprochement between Iraq and Iran in 1975, Saddam agreed to expel Khomeini in 1978. After the Islamic Revolution, Khomeini perhaps regarded toppling Saddam's government as a goal second only to consolidating power in Iran.</p> <p>After Khomeini gained power, skirmishes between Iraq and revolutionary Iran occurred for ten months over the sovereignty of the disputed Shatt al-Arab waterway, which divides the two countries. Iraq entered into open warfare with Iran on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_22" title="September 22">September 22</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1980" title="1980">1980</a>. The pretext for hostilities with Iran was this territorial dispute, but the war was more likely an attempt by Saddam, supported by both the United States and the Soviet Union, to have Iraq form a bulwark against the expansion of radical Iranian-style revolution.</p> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:MurphySaddam.JPG" class="image" title="U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Richard Murphy, visiting Iraq in 1986, explains Iran-Contra scandal to him."><img alt="U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Richard Murphy, visiting Iraq in 1986, explains Iran-Contra scandal to him." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/6/69/MurphySaddam.JPG/180px-MurphySaddam.JPG" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="96" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:MurphySaddam.JPG" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Richard Murphy, visiting Iraq in 1986, explains <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-Contra" title="Iran-Contra">Iran-Contra</a> scandal to him.</div> </div> </div> <p>In the first days of the war, there was heavy ground fighting around strategic ports as Iraq launched an attack on Iran's oil-rich, Arab-populated province of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khuzestan" title="Khuzestan">Khuzestan</a>. After making some initial gains, Iraq's troops began to suffer losses from human-wave attacks by Iran. By 1982 Iraq was looking for ways to end the war.</p> <p><a name="Mass_murder_and_genocide" id="Mass_murder_and_genocide"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Mass murder and genocide</span></h3> <p>During the war, Iraq used chemical weapons against Iranian forces and Kurdish separatists. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Anfal_Campaign" title="Al-Anfal Campaign">al-Anfal Campaign</a> was a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genocide" title="Genocide">genocidal</a> campaign against <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_minority" title="Iraqi minority">Kurds</a> led by Saddam Hussein and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Hasan_al-Majid" title="Ali Hasan al-Majid">Ali Hasan al-Majid</a>, between 1986 and 1989. The Anfal campaign included the use of ground <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offensive" title="Offensive">offensives</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerial_bombing" title="Aerial bombing">aerial bombing</a>, systematic destruction of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Town" title="Town">settlements</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_deportation" title="Mass deportation">mass deportation</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concentration_camps" title="Concentration camps">concentration camps</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firing_squad" title="Firing squad">firing squads</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_warfare" title="Chemical warfare">chemical warfare</a>, which earned al-Majid the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickname" title="Nickname">nickname</a> of "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_Ali" title="Chemical Ali">Chemical Ali</a>".</p> <p>Thousands of civilians were killed during chemical and conventional bombardments stretching from the spring of 1987 through the fall of 1988. The attacks were part of a long-standing campaign that destroyed almost every Kurdish village in a vast areas of northern Iraq -- along with a centuries-old way of life -- and displaced at least a million of the country's estimated 3.5 million Kurdish population. Independent sources estimate 100,000 to more than 200,000 deaths and as many as 100,000 widows and an even greater number of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orphans" title="Orphans">orphans</a><sup id="_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-15" title="">[24]</a></sup> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amnesty_International" title="Amnesty International">Amnesty International</a> collected the names of more than 17,000 people who had "disappeared" during 1988<sup id="_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-16" title="">[25]</a></sup>. The campaign has been legally characterized as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genocide" title="Genocide">genocidal</a> in nature, notably before a court in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hague" title="The Hague">The Hague</a>, as well as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gendercide" title="Gendercide">gendercidal</a>, because "battle-age" men were the primary targets, according to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Rights_Watch" title="Human Rights Watch">Human Rights Watch</a>/Middle East<sup id="_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-17" title="">[26]</a></sup>. According to the Iraqi prosecutors, as many as 180,000 people were killed<sup id="_ref-18" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-18" title="">[27]</a></sup>. (<i>see</i> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Anfal_Campaign" title="Al-Anfal Campaign">al-Anfal Campaign</a>)</p> <div class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Halabja1.jpg" class="image" title="Photo taken in the aftermath of Halabja poison gas attack"><img alt="Photo taken in the aftermath of Halabja poison gas attack" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a7/Halabja1.jpg/180px-Halabja1.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="119" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Halabja1.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Photo taken in the aftermath of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halabja_poison_gas_attack" title="Halabja poison gas attack">Halabja poison gas attack</a></div> </div> </div> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_16" title="March 16">March 16</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988" title="1988">1988</a> Iraqi troops, on orders from Saddam to stop a Kurdish uprising, attacked the Kurdish town of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halabjah" title="Halabjah">Halabjah</a> with a mix of poison gas and nerve agents killing 5,000 people, mostly women and children. (<i>see</i> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halabja_poison_gas_attack" title="Halabja poison gas attack">Halabja poison gas attack</a>) Historically separate from the al-Anfal campaign, this <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poison_gas" title="Poison gas">poison gas</a> attack on the Iraqi town of Halabja, defined itself as an act of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genocide" title="Genocide">genocide</a> by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Rights_Watch" title="Human Rights Watch">Human Rights Watch</a>, was the largest-scale <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_weapons" title="Chemical weapons">chemical weapons (CW)</a> attack against a civilian <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Population" title="Population">population</a> in modern times. It began early in the evening of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_16" title="March 16">March 16</a>, when a group of eight <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aircraft" title="Aircraft">aircraft</a> began dropping chemical bombs, and the chemical bombardment continued all night. The Halabja attack involved multiple <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_agents" title="Chemical agents">chemical agents</a>, including <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustard_gas" title="Mustard gas">mustard gas</a>, and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerve_agent" title="Nerve agent">nerve agents</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarin" title="Sarin">sarin</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabun_%28nerve_agent%29" title="Tabun (nerve agent)">tabun</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VX_%28nerve_agent%29" title="VX (nerve agent)">VX</a>, and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_agent" title="Blood agent">blood agent</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen_cyanide" title="Hydrogen cyanide">hydrogen cyanide</a>.</p> <p><a name="Conclusion_of_the_Iran-Iraq_War" id="Conclusion_of_the_Iran-Iraq_War"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Conclusion of the Iran-Iraq War</span></h3> <p>As the war progressed, Saddam reached out to other Arab governments for cash and political support. The Iranians, hoping to bring down Saddam's secular government and instigate a Shi'ite rebellion in Iraq, refused a cease-fire until 1988.</p> <p>The bloody eight-year war, one of the longest and most destructive <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_attrition" title="War of attrition">wars of attrition</a> of the twentieth century, ended in a stalemate. There were hundreds of thousands of casualties with estimates of up to one million dead for both sides total. Both economies, previously healthy and expanding, were left in ruins.</p> <p>Iraq was also stuck with a war debt of roughly $75 billion. Borrowing money from the U.S. was making Iraq dependent on outside loans, embarrassing a leader who had sought to define Arab nationalism. Saddam also borrowed a tremendous amount of money from other Arab states during the 1980s to fight Iran. Faced with rebuilding Iraq's infrastructure, Saddam desperately sought out cash once again, this time for postwar reconstruction.</p> <p><a name="Tensions_with_Kuwait" id="Tensions_with_Kuwait"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Tensions with Kuwait</span></h3> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddam1990.jpg" class="image" title="Saddam Hussein with national Ba'ath Party leadership in 1990."><img alt="Saddam Hussein with national Ba'ath Party leadership in 1990." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Saddam1990.jpg/180px-Saddam1990.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="140" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddam1990.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Saddam Hussein with national Ba'ath Party leadership in 1990.</div> </div> </div> <p>The end of the war with Iran served to deepen latent tensions between Iraq and its wealthy neighbor <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuwait" title="Kuwait">Kuwait</a>. Saddam saw his war with Iran as having spared Kuwait from the imminent threat of Iranian domination. Since the struggle with Iran had been fought for the benefit of the other Persian Gulf Arab states as much as for Iraq, he argued, a share of Iraqi debt should be forgiven. Saddam urged the Kuwaits to forgive the Iraqi debt accumulated in the war, some $30 billion, but the Kuwaitis refused. (Humphreys, 105)</p> <p>Also to raise money for postwar reconstruction, Saddam pushed oil-exporting countries to raise oil prices by cutting back oil production. Kuwait refused to cut production. In addition to refusing the request, Kuwait spearheaded the opposition in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OPEC" title="OPEC">OPEC</a> to the cuts that Saddam had requested. Kuwait was pumping large amounts of oil, and thus keeping prices low, when Iraq needed to sell high-priced oil from its wells to pay off a huge debt.</p> <p>On another compelling level, Saddam Hussein and many Iraqis considered the boundary line between Iraq and Kuwait, cutting Iraq off from the sea, a historical wrong imposed by British imperial officials in 1922. (Humphreys, 105) Saddam was not alone in this belief. For at least half a century, Iraqi nationalists were espousing emphatically the belief that Kuwait was historically an integral part of Iraq, and that Kuwait had only come into being through the maneuverings of British imperialism. Indeed, this belief was one of the few articles of faith uniting the political scene in a nation rife with sharp social, ethnic, religious, and ideological divides. (Humphreys, 105)</p> <p>The colossal extent of Kuwaiti oil reserves also intensified tensions in the region. The oil reserves of Kuwait (with a population of a mere 2 million next to Iraq's 25) were roughly equal to those of Iraq. Taken together Iraq and Kuwait sat on top of some 20 percent of the world's known oil reserves; as an article of comparison, Saudi Arabia holds 25 percent. (Humphreys, 105)</p> <p>Furthermore Saddam argued that the Kuwaiti monarchy had slant drilled oil out of wells that Iraq considered to be within its disputed border with Kuwait. Given that at the time Iraq was not regarded as a pariah state, Saddam was able to complain about the slant drilling to the U.S. State Department. Although this had continued for years, Saddam now needed oil money to stem a looming economic crisis. Saddam still had an experienced and well-equipped army, which he used to influence regional affairs. He later ordered troops to the Iraq – Kuwait border.</p> <p>As Iraq-Kuwait relations rapidly deteriorated, Saddam was receiving conflicting information about how the U.S. would respond to the prospects of an invasion. For one, Washington had been taking measures to cultivate a constructive relationship with Iraq for roughly a decade. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_Reagan" title="Ronald Reagan">Reagan administration</a> gave Saddam roughly $40 billion in aid in the 1980s to fight Iran, nearly all of it on credit. The U.S. also sent billions of dollars to Saddam to keep him from forming a strong alliance with the Soviets.<sup id="_ref-19" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-19" title="">[28]</a></sup> Saddam's Iraq became " the third-largest recipient of US assistance."<sup id="_ref-20" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-20" title="">[29]</a></sup></p> <p>U.S. ambassador to Iraq <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_Glaspie" title="April Glaspie">April Glaspie</a> met with Saddam in an emergency meeting on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_25" title="July 25">July 25</a>, where the Iraqi leader stated his intention to continue talks. U.S. officials attempted to maintain a conciliatory line with Iraq, indicating that while <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_H._W._Bush" title="George H. W. Bush">George H. W. Bush</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Baker" title="James Baker">James Baker</a> did not want force used, they would not take any position on the Iraq – Kuwait boundary dispute and did not want to become involved. Whatever Glapsie did or did not say in her interview with Saddam, the Iraqis assumed that the United States had invested too much in building relations with Iraq over the 1980s to sacrifice them for Kuwait. (Humphreys, 106) Later, Iraq and Kuwait then met for a final negotiation session, which failed. Saddam then sent his troops into Kuwait.</p> <p>Although no reliable first-hand information on Saddam's appraisal of the situation exists, we can surmise from the prewar standpoint of the Iraqi leader and his interests and the conflicting prewar signals from Washington that the invasion was likely born out of Iraq's postwar debt problem and faltering attempts to gain the resources needed for postwar reconstruction, rebuild the devastated Iraqi economy, and stabilize the domestic political situation.<sup id="_ref-21" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-21" title="">[30]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Gulf_War_of_1990" id="Gulf_War_of_1990"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Gulf War of 1990</span></h2> <dl><dd><span class="boilerplate seealso"><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War" title="Gulf War">Gulf War</a></i></span></dd></dl> <p>On August 2, 1990, Saddam invaded and annexed Kuwait, thus sparking an international crisis. The annexation of Kuwait gave Iraq, with its own substantial oil fields, control of 20 percent of the Persian Gulf reserves. The U.S. provided assistance to Saddam Hussein in the war with Iran, but with Iraq's seizure of the oil-rich emirate of Kuwait in August 1990 the United States led a United Nations coalition that drove Iraq's troops from Kuwait in February 1991.</p> <p>U.S. President <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_H._W._Bush" title="George H. W. Bush">George H. W. Bush</a> responded cautiously for the first several days. On one hand, Kuwait, prior to this point, had been a virulent enemy of Israel and was the Persian Gulf monarchy that had had the most friendly relations with the Soviets.<sup id="_ref-22" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-22" title="">[31]</a></sup> On the other hand, Washington foreign policymakers, along with Middle East experts, military critics, and firms heavily invested in the region, were extremely concerned with stability in this region.<sup id="_ref-23" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-23" title="">[32]</a></sup> The invasion immediately triggered fears that the world's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crude_oil#Pricing" title="Crude oil">price of oil</a>, and therefore the control of the world economy, was at stake. Britain profited heavily from billions of dollars of Kuwaiti investments and bank deposits. President Bush was perhaps swayed while meeting with the tough British prime minister <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Thatcher" title="Margaret Thatcher">Margaret Thatcher</a>, who happened to be in the U.S. at the time.<sup id="_ref-24" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-24" title="">[33]</a></sup></p> <p>Co-operation between the United States and the Soviet Union made possible the passage of resolutions in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council" title="United Nations Security Council">United Nations Security Council</a> giving Iraq a deadline to leave Kuwait and approving the use of force if Saddam did not comply with the timetable. U.S. officials feared Iraqi retaliation against oil-rich <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saudi_Arabia" title="Saudi Arabia">Saudi Arabia</a>, since the 1940s a close ally of Washington, for the Saudis' opposition to the invasion of Kuwait. Accordingly, the U.S. and a group of allies, including countries as diverse as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt" title="Egypt">Egypt</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria" title="Syria">Syria</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czechoslovakia" title="Czechoslovakia">Czechoslovakia</a>, deployed massive amounts of troops along the Saudi border with Kuwait and Iraq in order to encircle the Iraqi army, the largest in the Middle East.</p> <p>During the period of negotiations and threats following the invasion, Saddam focused renewed attention on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestinian" title="Palestinian">Palestinian</a> problem by promising to withdraw his forces from Kuwait if <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel" title="Israel">Israel</a> would relinquish the occupied territories in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Bank" title="West Bank">West Bank</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golan_Heights" title="Golan Heights">Golan Heights</a>, and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaza_Strip" title="Gaza Strip">Gaza Strip</a>. Saddam's proposal further split the Arab world, pitting U.S.- and Western-supported Arab states against the Palestinians. The allies ultimately rejected any linkage between the Kuwait crisis and Palestinian issues.</p> <p>Saddam ignored the Security Council deadline. Backed by the Security Council, a U.S.-led coalition launched round-the-clock missile and aerial attacks on Iraq, beginning <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_16" title="January 16">January 16</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991" title="1991">1991</a>. Israel, though subjected to attack by Iraqi missiles, refrained from retaliating in order not to provoke Arab states into leaving the coalition. A ground force comprised largely of U.S. and British armoured and infantry divisions ejected Saddam's army from Kuwait in February 1991 and occupied the southern portion of Iraq as far as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphrates" title="Euphrates">Euphrates</a>.</p> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_6" title="March 6">March 6</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991" title="1991">1991</a>, Bush announced: "What is at stake is more than one small country, it is a big idea — a new world order, where diverse nations are drawn together in common cause to achieve the universal aspirations of mankind: peace and security, freedom, and the rule of law."</p> <p>In the end, the over-manned and under-equipped Iraqi army proved unable to compete on the battlefield with the highly mobile coalition land forces and their overpowering air support. Some 175,000 Iraqis were taken prisoner and casualties were estimated at over 85,000. As part of the cease-fire agreement, Iraq agreed to scrap all poison gas and germ weapons and allow UN observers to inspect the sites. UN trade sanctions would remain in effect until Iraq complied with all terms. Saddam publically claimed victory at the end of the war.</p> <p><a name="Postwar_period" id="Postwar_period"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Postwar period</span></h2> <p>Iraq's ethnic and religious divisions, together with the violence of the conflict that this had engendered, laid the groundwork for postwar rebellions. In the aftermath of the fighting, social and ethnic unrest among Shi'ite Muslims, Kurds, and dissident military units threatened the stability of Saddam's government. Uprisings erupted in the Kurdish north and Shi'a southern and central parts of the Iraq, but were repressed.</p> <p>The United States, which had urged Iraqis to rise up against Saddam, did little to assist the rebellions. U.S. ally <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey" title="Turkey">Turkey</a> opposed any prospect of Kurdish independence, and the Saudis and other conservative Arab states feared an Iran-style Shi'ite revolution. Saddam, having survived the immediate crisis in the wake of defeat, was left in control of Iraq, although the country never recovered either economically or militarily from the Gulf War. Saddam routinely cited his survival as "proof" that Iraq had in fact won the war against America. This message earned Saddam a great deal of popularity in many sectors of the Arab world.</p> <p>Saddam increasingly portrayed himself as a devout <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim" title="Muslim">Muslim</a>, in an effort to co-opt the conservative religious segments of society. Some elements of Sharia law were re-introduced, and the ritual phrase "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allahu_Akbar" title="Allahu Akbar">Allahu Akbar</a>" ("God is great"), in Saddam's handwriting, was added to the national flag.</p> <p>Relations between the United States and Iraq remained tense following the Gulf War. The U.S. launched a missile attack aimed at Iraq's intelligence headquarters in Baghdad <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_26" title="June 26">June 26</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993" title="1993">1993</a>, in retaliation for Iraq's sponsorship of a plot to kill former President George H. W. Bush.<sup id="_ref-25" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-25" title="">[34]</a></sup></p> <p>The UN sanctions placed upon Iraq when it invaded Kuwait were not lifted, blocking Iraqi oil exports. This caused hardship in Iraq and greatly impacted the Iraqi economy and state infrastructure. Only smuggling across the Syrian border, and humanitarian aid ameliorated the humanitarian crisis.<sup id="_ref-26" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-26" title="">[35]</a></sup> On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_9" title="December 9">December 9</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996" title="1996">1996</a> the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations" title="United Nations">United Nations</a> allowed Saddam's government to begin selling limited amounts of oil for food and medicine. Limited amounts of income from the United Nations started flowing into Iraq through the UN <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_for_Food_program" title="Oil for Food program">Oil for Food program</a>.</p> <p>U.S. officials continued to accuse Saddam of violating the terms of the Gulf War's cease fire, by developing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Weapons of mass destruction">weapons of mass destruction</a> and other banned weaponry, and violating the UN-imposed sanctions and "no-fly zones." Isolated military strikes by U.S. and British forces continued on Iraq sporadically, the largest being <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Desert_Fox" title="Operation Desert Fox">Operation Desert Fox</a> in 1998. Western charges of Iraqi resistance to UN access to suspected weapons increased tensions between 1997 and 1998, culminating in intensive U.S. and British missile strikes on Iraq, December 16-19, 1998. After two years of intermittent activity, U.S. and British warplanes struck harder at sites near Baghdad in February, 2001.</p> <p>Saddam's support base of Tikriti tribesmen, family members, and other supporters was divided after the war, and in the following years, contributing to the government's increasingly repressive and arbitrary nature. Domestic repression inside Iraq grew worse, and Saddam's sons, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uday_Hussein" title="Uday Hussein">Uday Hussein</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qusay_Hussein" title="Qusay Hussein">Qusay Hussein</a>, became increasingly powerful and carried out a private reign of terror. They likely had a leading hand when, in August 1995, two of Saddam Hussein's sons-in-law (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hussein_Kamel" title="Hussein Kamel">Hussein Kamel</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Kamel" title="Saddam Kamel">Saddam Kamel</a>), who held high positions in the Iraqi military, defected to Jordan. Both were killed after returning to Iraq the following February.</p> <p>Iraqi co-operation with UN weapons inspection teams was intermittent throughout the 1990s.</p> <p><a name="2003_invasion_of_Iraq"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">2003 invasion of Iraq</span></h2> <dl><dd><span class="boilerplate seealso"><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_Invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 Invasion of Iraq">2003 Invasion of Iraq</a></i></span></dd></dl> <div class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:SaddamBaghdadwalkabout.jpg" class="image" title="Satellite channels broadcasting the besieged Iraqi leader among cheering crowds as U.S.-led troops push toward the capital city.April 4, 2003."><img alt="Satellite channels broadcasting the besieged Iraqi leader among cheering crowds as U.S.-led troops push toward the capital city.April 4, 2003." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a4/SaddamBaghdadwalkabout.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="205" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:SaddamBaghdadwalkabout.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Satellite channels broadcasting the besieged Iraqi leader among cheering crowds as U.S.-led troops push toward the capital city.<sup id="_ref-27" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-27" title="">[36]</a></sup><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_4" title="April 4">April 4</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a>.</div> </div> </div> <p>Saddam continued to loom large in American consciousness as a major threat to Western allies such as oil-rich Saudi Arabia and Israel, to Western oil supplies from the Gulf states, and to Middle East stability generally. Bush's successor, U.S. President <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Clinton" title="Bill Clinton">Bill Clinton</a> (1993-2001), maintained sanctions and made occasional air strikes in the Iraqi no-fly zones or other restrictions, in the hope that Saddam would be overthrown by his many political enemies. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress" title="United States Congress">United States Congress</a> passed the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Liberation_Act" title="Iraq Liberation Act">Iraq Liberation Act</a> in 1998, an official statement of US policy calling for political change in Iraq.</p> <p>The situation changed in the U.S. after the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11%2C_2001_attacks" title="September 11, 2001 attacks">September 11, 2001 attacks</a>. In his January 2002 state-of-the-union message to Congress, President <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush" title="George W. Bush">George W. Bush</a> spoke of an "axis of evil" comprising Iran, North Korea, and Iraq. Moreover, Bush announced that he would possibly take action to topple the Iraqi government, because of the threat of its <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Weapons of mass destruction">weapons of mass destruction</a>, further stating that "The Iraqi regime has plotted to develop anthrax, nerve gas, and nuclear weapons for over a decade." "Iraq continues to flaunt its hostility toward America and to support terror," said Bush.<sup id="_ref-28" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-28" title="">[37]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-29" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-29" title="">[38]</a></sup> No substantive evidence to support these allegations has ever been produced.</p> <p>As the war was looming on February 24, 2003, Saddam Hussein talked with CBS News reporter <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Rather" title="Dan Rather">Dan Rather</a> for more than three hours — his first interview with a U.S. reporter in over a decade.<sup id="_ref-30" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-30" title="">[39]</a></sup> CBS aired the taped interview later that week.</p> <p>The Iraqi government and military collapsed within three weeks of the beginning of the U.S.-led 2003 invasion of Iraq on March 20. The United States made at least two attempts to kill Saddam with targeted air strikes, but both failed to hit their target. By the beginning of April, U.S.-led forces occupied much of Iraq. The resistance of the much-weakened Iraqi Army either crumbled or shifted to guerrilla tactics, and it appeared that Saddam had lost control of Iraq. His last appearance in this period was in a video that purported to show him in the Baghdad suburbs surrounded by supporters. When Baghdad fell to U.S-led forces on April 9, Saddam was nowhere to be found.</p> <p><a name="Incarceration_and_trial" id="Incarceration_and_trial"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Incarceration and trial</span></h2> <p><a name="Capture_and_incarceration" id="Capture_and_incarceration"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Capture and incarceration</span></h3> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddamcapture.jpg" class="image" title="Shortly after capture"><img alt="Shortly after capture" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/07/Saddamcapture.jpg/180px-Saddamcapture.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="247" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddamcapture.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Shortly after capture</div> </div> </div> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddam_Hussein_captured_%26_shaven_DD-SD-05-01885.jpg" class="image" title="Shaven to confirm identity"><img alt="Shaven to confirm identity" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Saddam_Hussein_captured_%26_shaven_DD-SD-05-01885.jpg/180px-Saddam_Hussein_captured_%26_shaven_DD-SD-05-01885.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="233" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddam_Hussein_captured_%26_shaven_DD-SD-05-01885.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Shaven to confirm identity</div> </div> </div> <p>In April 2003, Saddam's whereabouts remained in question during the weeks following the fall of Baghdad and the conclusion of the major fighting of the war. Various sightings of Saddam were reported in the weeks following the war but none were authenticated. At various times Saddam released audio tapes promoting popular resistance to the U.S.-led occupation.</p> <p>Saddam was placed at the top of the U.S. list of "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._list_of_most-wanted_Iraqis" title="U.S. list of most-wanted Iraqis">most-wanted Iraqis</a>." In July 2003, his sons <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uday_Hussein" title="Uday Hussein">Uday</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qusai_Hussein" title="Qusai Hussein">Qusay</a> and 14-year-old grandson <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustapha_Hussein" title="Mustapha Hussein">Mustapha</a> were killed in a three-hour<sup id="_ref-31" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-31" title="">[40]</a></sup> gunfight with U.S. forces.</p> <p>On December 14, 2003, U.S. administrator in Iraq <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Bremer" title="Paul Bremer">Paul Bremer</a> announced that Saddam Hussein had been captured at a farmhouse in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad-Dawr" title="Ad-Dawr">ad-Dawr</a> near Tikrit.<sup id="_ref-32" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-32" title="">[41]</a></sup> Bremer presented video footage of Saddam in custody.</p> <p>Saddam was shown with a full beard and hair longer than his familiar appearance. He was described by U.S. officials as being in good health. Bremer reported plans to put Saddam on trial, but claimed that the details of such a trial had not yet been determined. Iraqis and Americans who spoke with Saddam after his capture generally reported that he remained self-assured, describing himself as a 'firm but just leader.'</p> <p>According to U.S. military sources, following his capture by U.S. forces on December 13, Saddam was transported to a U.S. base near Tikrit, and later taken to the U.S. base near Baghdad. The day after his capture he was reportedly visited by longtime opponents such as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Chalabi" title="Ahmed Chalabi">Ahmed Chalabi</a>. It is believed he remained there in high security during most of the time of his detention. Details of his interrogations remain unclear.</p> <p>A British tabloid named <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sun_%28newspaper%29" title="The Sun (newspaper)">The Sun</a></i> posted a picture of Saddam wearing white <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Briefs" title="Briefs">briefs</a> on the front cover of a newspaper. Other photographs inside the paper show Saddam washing his trousers, shuffling, and sleeping. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Government" title="United States Government">United States Government</a> stated that it considers the release of the pictures a violation of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Convention" title="Geneva Convention">Geneva Convention</a>, and that it would investigate the photographs.<sup id="_ref-33" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-33" title="">[42]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-34" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-34" title="">[43]</a></sup></p> <p>U.S. guards watching Saddam revealed that during incarceration, Saddam developed a taste for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raisin_Bran" title="Raisin Bran">Raisin Bran Crunch</a> cereal, but detested <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fruit_Loops" title="Fruit Loops">Fruit Loops</a>, and would snack during the day on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doritos" title="Doritos">Doritos</a> corn chips (which he preferred to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheetos" title="Cheetos">Cheetos</a>).<sup id="_ref-35" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-35" title="">[44]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Trial" id="Trial"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Trial</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint relarticle mainarticle"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trial_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Trial of Saddam Hussein">Trial of Saddam Hussein</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_30" title="June 30">June 30</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004" title="2004">2004</a>, Saddam Hussein, held in custody by U.S. forces at the U.S. base "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Cropper" title="Camp Cropper">Camp Cropper</a>," along with 11 other senior Baathist leaders, were handed over legally (though not physically) to the interim Iraqi government to stand trial for alleged "crimes against humanity" and other offences.</p> <p>A few weeks later, he was charged by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Special_Tribunal" title="Iraqi Special Tribunal">Iraqi Special Tribunal</a> with crimes committed against residents of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dujail" title="Dujail">Dujail</a> in 1982, following a failed assassination attempt against him. Specific charges included the murder of 148 people, torture of women and children and the illegal arrest of 399 others.<sup id="_ref-36" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-36" title="">[45]</a></sup> Among the many challenges of the trial were:</p> <ul><li>Saddam and his lawyers’ contesting the court's authority and maintaining that he was still the President of Iraq.<sup id="_ref-37" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-37" title="">[46]</a></sup></li><li>The assassinations and attempts on the lives of several of Saddam's lawyers.</li><li>Midway through the trial, the chief presiding judge was replaced.</li></ul> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_5" title="November 5">November 5</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>, Saddam Hussein was found guilty of crimes against humanity and sentenced to death by hanging. Saddam's half brother, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barzan_Ibrahim" title="Barzan Ibrahim">Barzan Ibrahim</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Awad_Hamed_al-Bandar" title="Awad Hamed al-Bandar">Awad Hamed al-Bandar</a>, head of Iraq's Revolutionary Court in 1982, were convicted of similar charges as well. The verdict and sentencing were both appealed but subsequently affirmed by Iraq's Supreme Court of Appeals.<sup id="_ref-38" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-38" title="">[47]</a></sup> On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">December 30</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>, Saddam was <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Execution of Saddam Hussein">hanged</a>.<sup id="_ref-BBCexecution_1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-BBCexecution" title="">[8]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Execution" id="Execution"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Execution</span></h2> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein_December_30%2C_2006.JPG" class="image" title="Saddam at his execution"><img alt="Saddam at his execution" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/48/Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein_December_30%2C_2006.JPG/180px-Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein_December_30%2C_2006.JPG" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="133" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein_December_30%2C_2006.JPG" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Saddam at his execution</div> </div> </div> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint relarticle mainarticle"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Execution of Saddam Hussein">Execution of Saddam Hussein</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>Saddam was hanged on the first day of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eid_ul-Adha" title="Eid ul-Adha">Eid ul-Adha</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">December 30</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>, despite his wish to be shot (which he felt would be more dignified).<sup id="_ref-39" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-39" title="">[48]</a></sup> The execution was carried out at "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Justice" title="Camp Justice">Camp Justice</a>," an Iraqi army base in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kadhimiya" title="Kadhimiya">Kadhimiya</a>, a neighborhood of northeast Baghdad. The execution was videotaped on a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_phone" title="Mobile phone">mobile phone</a>, showing Saddam being taunted before his hanging. The video was leaked to electronic media, becoming the subject of global controversy.<sup id="_ref-40" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-40" title="">[49]</a></sup></p> <p>Not long before the execution, Saddam's lawyers released his last letter:</p> <table style="border-style: none; border-collapse: collapse; background-color: transparent;" class="cquote2" align="center"> <tbody><tr> <td style="padding: 10px; color: rgb(178, 183, 242); font-size: 40px; font-family: serif; font-weight: bold; text-align: left;" valign="top" width="20">“</td> <td style="padding: 4px 10px;" valign="top">To the great nation, to the people of our country, and humanity, <p>Many of you have known the writer of this letter to be faithful, honest, caring for others, wise, of sound judgment, just, decisive, careful with the wealth of the people and the state ... and that his heart is big enough to embrace all without discrimination.</p> <p>You have known your brother and leader very well and he never bowed to the despots and, in accordance with the wishes of those who loved him, remained a sword and a banner.</p> <p>This is how you want your brother, son or leader to be ... and those who will lead you (in the future) should have the same qualifications.</p> <p>Here, I offer my soul to God as a sacrifice, and if He wants, He will send it to heaven with the martyrs, or, He will postpone that ... so let us be patient and depend on Him against the unjust nations.</p> <p>Remember that God has enabled you to become an example of love, forgiveness and brotherly coexistence ... I call on you not to hate because hate does not leave a space for a person to be fair and it makes you blind and closes all doors of thinking and keeps away one from balanced thinking and making the right choice.</p> <p>I also call on you not to hate the peoples of the other countries that attacked us and differentiate between the decision-makers and peoples. Anyone who repents - whether in Iraq or abroad - you must forgive him.</p> <p>You should know that among the aggressors, there are people who support your struggle against the invaders, and some of them volunteered for the legal defence of prisoners, including Saddam Hussein ... some of these people wept profusely when they said goodbye to me.</p> <p>Dear faithful people, I say goodbye to you, but I will be with the merciful God who helps those who take refuge in him and who will never disappoint any faithful, honest believer ... God is Great ... God is great ... Long live our nation ... Long live our great struggling people ... Long live Iraq, long live Iraq ... Long live Palestine ... Long live jihad and the mujahedeen (the insurgency).</p> <p>Saddam Hussein President and Commander in Chief of the Iraqi Mujahed Armed Forces</p> <p>Additional clarification note:</p> <p>I have written this letter because the lawyers told me that the so-called criminal court — established and named by the invaders — will allow the so-called defendants the chance for a last word. But that court and its chief judge did not give us the chance to say a word, and issued its verdict without explanation and read out the sentence — dictated by the invaders — without presenting the evidence. I wanted the people to know this.<sup id="_ref-Hussein.27s_last_letter_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-Hussein.27s_last_letter" title="">[50]</a></sup></p> </td> <td style="padding: 10px; color: rgb(178, 183, 242); font-size: 40px; font-family: serif; font-weight: bold; text-align: right;" valign="bottom" width="20">”</td> </tr> <tr> <td> </td> <td valign="top"> <div style="line-height: 1em; text-align: right;"><cite style="font-style: normal;">— Letter by Saddam Hussein</cite></div> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> <p>A transcript of the dialogue between Saddam and his executioners was published by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC" title="BBC">BBC</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Jazeera" title="Al Jazeera">Al Jazeera</a>:</p> <p>[Saddam] <b>God is Great. Palestine is Arab</b><br />[Voices] May God's blessings be upon Muhammad and his household.<br />[Voices] And may God hasten their appearance and curse their enemies.<br />[Voices] <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muqtada" title="Muqtada">Muqtada</a> [Al-Sadr]...Muqtada...Muqtada.<br />[Saddam] <b>Muqtuda? (laughs) Are you men? Is this the bravery of Arabs?</b><br />[Voice] Long live Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr.<br />[Voice] To hell.<br />[Saddam] <b>The hell that is Iraq?</b> ((<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_alphabet" title="Arabic alphabet">Arabic</a>: <span lang="ar" lang="ar">جحينب هو عراق</span> Ghihyneb hew A'raq)<br />[Voice] You have destroyed us, killed all of us, our nation is ruined.<br />[Saddam] <b>I helped you survive. Iraq is nothing without me!</b><br />[Voice] Please do not. The man is being executed. Please no, I beg you to stop.<br />[Saddam] <b>(Recites <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahada" title="Shahada">Shahada</a>) There is no God but Allah and I testify that Muhammad is the messenger of God. There is no God but Allah and I testify that Muhammad...</b><br /></p> <p>At this point Saddam Hussein is seen dropping through the trap door and the sound of the trapdoor opening is heard in the background.</p> <p>A second unofficial video, apparently showing Saddam's body on a trolley, emerged several days later. It sparked speculation that the execution was carried out incorrectly as Saddam Hussein had a massive gaping hole in his neck.<sup id="_ref-newvideo_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-newvideo" title="">[51]</a></sup></p> <p>Saddam was buried at his birthplace of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Awja" title="Al-Awja">Al-Awja</a> in Tikrit, Iraq, 3 km (2 mi) from his sons <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uday_Hussein" title="Uday Hussein">Uday</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qusay_Hussein" title="Qusay Hussein">Qusay Hussein</a>, on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_31" title="December 31">December 31</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>.<sup id="_ref-burial_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-burial" title="">[52]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Marriage_and_family_relationships" id="Marriage_and_family_relationships"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Marriage and family relationships</span></h2> <p>Saddam married his cousin <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sajida_Talfah" title="Sajida Talfah">Sajida Talfah</a> in 1963. Sajida is the daughter of Khairallah Talfah, Hussein's uncle and mentor. Their marriage was arranged for Hussein at age five when Sajida was seven; however, the two never met until their wedding. They were married in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt" title="Egypt">Egypt</a> during his exile. Together they had two sons, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uday_Saddam_Hussein" title="Uday Saddam Hussein">Uday</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qusay_Hussein" title="Qusay Hussein">Qusay</a>, and three daughters, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rana_Hussein" title="Rana Hussein">Rana</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raghad_Hussein" title="Raghad Hussein">Raghad</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hala_Hussein" title="Hala Hussein">Hala</a>. Qusay ran the elite Republican Guard.</p> <p>Saddam's two sons Uday and Qusay were both killed in a violent three hour gun battle against U.S. forces on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_22" title="July 22">July 22</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a>.</p> <p>Saddam is reported to have married two other women: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samira_Shahbandar" title="Samira Shahbandar">Samira Shahbandar</a>,<sup id="_ref-41" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-41" title="">[53]</a></sup> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nidal_al-Hamdani" title="Nidal al-Hamdani">Nidal al-Hamdani</a>, the general manager of the Solar Energy Research Center in the Council of Scientific Research.<sup id="_ref-42" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-42" title="">[54]</a></sup> There have apparently been no political issues from these latter two marriages. Saddam's third son, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Hussein" title="Ali Hussein">Ali</a>, is from Samira.</p> <p>In August 1995, Rana and her husband <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hussein_Kamel" title="Hussein Kamel">Hussein Kamel al-Majid</a> and Raghad and her husband, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Kamel" title="Saddam Kamel">Saddam Kamel al-Majid</a>, defected to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan" title="Jordan">Jordan</a>, taking their children with them. They returned to Iraq when they received assurances that Saddam would pardon them. Within three days of their return in February 1996, both of the Majid brothers were attacked and killed in a gunfight with other clan members who considered them traitors. Saddam had made it clear that although pardoned, they would lose all status and would not receive any protection.</p> <p>Saddam's daughter Hala is married to Jamal Mustafa Sultan al-Tikriti, the deputy head of Iraq's Tribal Affairs Office. Neither has been known to be involved in politics. Jamal surrendered to U.S. troops in April 2003. Another cousin, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Hassan_al-Majid" title="Ali Hassan al-Majid">Ali Hassan al-Majid</a> is now in U.S. custody.</p> <p>In August 2003, Saddam's daughters Raghad and Rana received sanctuary in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amman" title="Amman">Amman</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan" title="Jordan">Jordan</a>, where they are currently staying with their nine children. That month, they spoke with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CNN" title="CNN">CNN</a> and the Arab satellite station <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Arabiya" title="Al-Arabiya">Al-Arabiya</a> in Amman. When asked about her father, Raghad told CNN, "He was a very good father, loving, has a big heart." Asked if she wanted to give a message to her father, she said: "I love you and I miss you." Her sister Rana also remarked, "He had so many feelings and he was very tender with all of us."<sup id="_ref-daughtersinterview_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_note-daughtersinterview" title="">[55]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="List_of_government_positions_held" id="List_of_government_positions_held"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">List of government positions held</span></h2> <ul><li>Head of Security (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Intelligence_Service" title="Iraqi Intelligence Service">Iraqi Intelligence Service</a>), 1963</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vice_President_of_Iraq" title="Vice President of Iraq">Vice President of the Republic of Iraq</a>, 1968 – 1979</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_Iraq" title="President of Iraq">President of the Republic of Iraq</a>, 1979 – 2003</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_Iraq" title="Prime Minister of Iraq">Prime Minister of the Republic of Iraq</a>, (various non-continuous dates)</li><li>Head of the Revolutionary Command Council, 1979 – 2003</li></ul> <p><br /></p> <p><a name="Book_References" id="Book_References"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Book References</span></h2> <ul><li><i>The Old Social Classes and New Revolutionary Movements of Iraq</i>, Hanna Batatu, London, al-Saqi Books, 2000. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0863565204" class="internal">ISBN 0863565204</a></li><li><i>The Iraq-Iran Conflict</i>, NY Firzli, Paris, EMA, 1981. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=2865840026" class="internal">ISBN 2-86584-002-6</a></li><li><i>Al-Baath wal Watan Al-Arabi</i> [Arabic, with French translation] ("The Baath and the Arab Homeland"), Qasim Sallam, Paris, EMA, 1980. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=2865840034" class="internal">ISBN 2-86584-003-4</a></li></ul> <p><a name="Footnotes" id="Footnotes"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Footnotes</span></h2> <div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count: 2;"> <ol class="references"><li id="_note-ref1"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-ref1_0" title="">^</a></b> <i>Saddam</i>, pronounced <span title="Pronunciation in IPA" class="IPA">[sˁɑd'dæːm]</span> (see <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_phonology" title="Arabic phonology">Arabic phonology</a> for details), is his personal name, means <i>the stubborn one</i> or <i>he who confronts</i> in Arabic (in Iraq also a term for a car's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bumper" title="Bumper">bumper</a>). <i>Hussein</i> (Sometimes also transliterated as <i><b>Hussayn</b></i> or <i><b>Hussain</b></i>) is not a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_name" title="Family name">surname</a> in the Western sense but a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patronymic" title="Patronymic">patronymic</a>, his father's given personal name; <i>Abid al-Majid</i> his grandfather's; <i>al-Tikriti</i> means he was born and raised in (or near) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tikrit" title="Tikrit">Tikrit</a>. He was commonly referred to as <i>Saddam Hussein</i>, or <i>Saddam</i> for short. The observation that referring to the deposed Iraqi president as only <i>Saddam</i> may be derogatory or inappropriate is based on the mistaken assumption that Hussein is a family name: thus, the <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Times" title="New York Times">New York Times</a></i> incorrectly refers to him as "Mr. Hussein"<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/02/international/middleeast/02IRAQ.html?8br" class="external autonumber" title="http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/02/international/middleeast/02IRAQ.html?8br" rel="nofollow">[1]</a>, while <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica" title="Encyclopædia Britannica">Encyclopædia Britannica</a> prefers simply to use <i>Saddam</i> <a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?eu=42559" class="external autonumber" title="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?eu=42559" rel="nofollow">[2]</a>. A full discussion can be found <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/indepth/words/saddam_hussein.html" class="external text" title="http://www.cbc.ca/news/indepth/words/saddam_hussein.html" rel="nofollow">here</a> (Blair Shewchuk, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Broadcasting_Corporation" title="Canadian Broadcasting Corporation">CBC News Online</a>).</li><li id="_note-ref2"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-ref2_0" title="">^</a></b> Under his government, this date was his official date of birth. His real date of birth was never recorded, but it is believed to be a date between 1935 and 1939. From Con Coughlin, <i>Saddam The Secret Life</i> Pan Books, 2003 (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0330393103" class="internal">ISBN 0-330-39310-3</a>).</li><li id="_note-0"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-0" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_in_Iraq" title="Capital punishment in Iraq">executed</a> by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanging" title="Hanging">hanging</a> after being convicted of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime_against_humanity" title="Crime against humanity">crimes against humanity</a> following <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trial_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Trial of Saddam Hussein">his trial and conviction</a></li><li id="_note-1"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-1" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://usgovinfo.about.com/library/weekly/aasaddambio.htm" class="external free" title="http://usgovinfo.about.com/library/weekly/aasaddambio.htm" rel="nofollow">http://usgovinfo.about.com/library/weekly/aasaddambio.htm</a></li><li id="_note-2"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-2" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/baghdad_04-09-03.html" class="external free" title="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/baghdad_04-09-03.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/baghdad_04-09-03.html</a></li><li id="_note-3"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-3" title="">^</a></b> See PBS Frontline (2003), "The survival of Saddam: secrets of his life and leadership: interview with Saïd K. Aburish" at <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/saddam/interviews/aburish2.html" class="external autonumber" title="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/saddam/interviews/aburish2.html" rel="nofollow">[3]</a>.</li><li id="_note-4"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-4" title="">^</a></b> BBC News, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_16" title="October 16">October 16</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000" title="2000">2000</a> <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/974987.stm" class="external autonumber" title="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/974987.stm" rel="nofollow">[4]</a></li><li id="_note-BBCexecution">^ <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-BBCexecution_0" title=""><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-BBCexecution_1" title=""><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> "<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6218485.stm" class="external text" title="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6218485.stm" rel="nofollow">Saddam Hussein executed in Iraq</a>", BBC News, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">12-30</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.title=Saddam+Hussein+executed+in+Iraq&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.bbc.co.uk%2F2%2Fhi%2Fmiddle_east%2F6218485.stm&rft.publisher=BBC+News&rft.date=2006-12-30"> </span></li><li id="_note-ref5"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-ref5_0" title="">^</a></b> Elisabeth Bumiller (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004" title="2004">2004</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_15" title="May 15">05-15</a>). <a href="http://hnn.us/roundup/entries/5225.html" class="external text" title="http://hnn.us/roundup/entries/5225.html" rel="nofollow">Was a Tyrant Prefigured by Baby Saddam?</a>. The New York Times. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2" title="January 2">01-02</a>.</li><li id="_note-5"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-5" title="">^</a></b> Eric Davis, <i>Memories of State: Politics, History, and Collective Identity in Modern Iraq</i>, University of California Press, 2005.</li><li id="_note-ref6">^ <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-ref6_0" title=""><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-ref6_1" title=""><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <cite class="book" style="font-style: normal;" id="Reference-Batatu-1979"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanna_Batatu" title="Hanna Batatu">Batatu, Hanna</a> (1979). <i>The Old Social Classes & The Revolutionary Movement In Iraq</i>. Princeton University Press. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0691052417" class="internal">ISBN 0691052417</a>.</cite><span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+Old+Social+Classes+%26+The+Revolutionary+Movement+In+Iraq&rft.aulast=Batatu&rft.aufirst=Hanna&rft.pub=Princeton+University+Press&rft.isbn=0691052417"> </span></li><li id="_note-6"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-6" title="">^</a></b> R. Stephen Humphreys, <i>Between Memory and Desire: The Middle East in a Troubled Age</i>, University of California Press, 1999, p. 68.</li><li id="_note-7"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-7" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/4/10/205859.shtml" class="external text" title="http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/4/10/205859.shtml" rel="nofollow">Saddam Key in Early CIA Plot</a>, NewsMax.com, April 11, 2003</li><li id="_note-Hanna_Batatu"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-Hanna_Batatu_0" title="">^</a></b> , <i>The Old Social Classes and the Revolutionary Movements of Iraq</i> (Princeton 1978)."</li><li id="_note-8"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-8" title="">^</a></b> CNN, "Hussein was symbol of autocracy, cruelty in Iraq," December, 30, 2003. <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/12/29/hussein.obit/index.html" class="external autonumber" title="http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/12/29/hussein.obit/index.html" rel="nofollow">[5]</a></li><li id="_note-9"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-9" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/iraq/saddam_hussein.html" class="external text" title="http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/iraq/saddam_hussein.html" rel="nofollow">Saddam Hussein</a>, CBC News, December 29, 2006</li><li id="_note-10"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-10" title="">^</a></b> Jessica Moore, <a href="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/iraq/war/player1.html" class="external text" title="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/iraq/war/player1.html" rel="nofollow">The Iraq War player profile: Saddam Hussein's Rise to Power</a>, PBS Online Newshour</li><li id="_note-11"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-11" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query" class="external free" title="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query" rel="nofollow">http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query</a></li><li id="_note-Fisk"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-Fisk_0" title="">^</a></b> <cite class="book" style="font-style: normal;" id="Reference-Fisk-2005"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Fisk" title="Robert Fisk">Fisk, Robert</a> (2005). <i>The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East</i>. London: Alfred Knopf, 160. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=1400075173" class="internal">ISBN 1-4000-7517-3</a>.</cite><span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+Great+War+for+Civilisation%3A+The+Conquest+of+the+Middle+East&rft.aulast=Fisk&rft.aufirst=Robert&rft.pub=Alfred+Knopf&rft.place=London&rft.pages=160&rft.isbn=1-4000-7517-3"> </span></li><li id="_note-12"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-12" title="">^</a></b> <cite class="book" style="font-style: normal;" id="Reference-Bremmer-2006"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Bremmer" title="Ian Bremmer">Bremmer, Ian</a> (2006). <i>The J Curve: A New Way to Understand Why Nations Rise and Fall</i>. New York: Simon & Schuster, 64. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0743274725" class="internal">ISBN 0-7432-7472-5</a>.</cite><span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+J+Curve%3A+A+New+Way+to+Understand+Why+Nations+Rise+and+Fall&rft.aulast=Bremmer&rft.aufirst=Ian&rft.pub=Simon+%26+Schuster&rft.place=New+York&rft.pages=64&rft.isbn=0-7432-7472-5"> </span></li><li id="_note-13"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-13" title="">^</a></b> One of Saddam's biographers, historian <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Sebag_Montefiore" title="Simon Sebag Montefiore">Simon Sebag Montefiore</a> found other similarities between him and Stalin: "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gori" title="Gori">Gori</a>, Stalin's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_%28country%29" title="Georgia (country)">Georgian</a> birthplace, was barely 800 kilometres north of Saddam's hometown of Tikrit. Both men were raised by strong, ambitious mothers, abused by their fathers; both were promoted by revered potentates whom they ultimately betrayed": Fisk. <i>Great War for Civilisation</i>, 160n</li><li id="_note-14"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-14" title="">^</a></b> Dead link: <a href="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?cstdy:5:./temp/%7Efrd_srWv::" class="external autonumber" title="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?cstdy:5:./temp/~frd_srWv::" rel="nofollow">[6]</a></li><li id="_note-Osirak"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-Osirak_0" title="">^</a></b> BBC, <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/7/newsid_3014000/3014623.stm" class="external text" title="http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/7/newsid_3014000/3014623.stm" rel="nofollow">1981: Israel bombs Baghdad nuclear reactor</a>, <i>BBC On This Day 7June 1981</i> referenced Jan 6, 2007</li><li id="_note-15"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-15" title="">^</a></b> David McDowall, <i>A Modern History of the Kurds</i>, 504 pp., I.B. Tauris, 2004, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=1850434166" class="internal">ISBN 1850434166</a>, pp. 359, 391.</li><li id="_note-16"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-16" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://web.amnesty.org/pages/irq-article_6-eng" class="external autonumber" title="http://web.amnesty.org/pages/irq-article_6-eng" rel="nofollow">[7]</a></li><li id="_note-17"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-17" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://www.hrw.org/reports/1991/IRAQ913.htm" class="external text" title="http://www.hrw.org/reports/1991/IRAQ913.htm" rel="nofollow">Human Rights Watch Report, 1991.</a></li><li id="_note-18"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-18" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://www.sptimes.com/2007/06/25/Worldandnation/Iraq_to_hang__Chemica.shtml" class="external free" title="http://www.sptimes.com/2007/06/25/Worldandnation/Iraq_to_hang__Chemica.shtml" rel="nofollow">http://www.sptimes.com/2007/06/25/Worldandnation/Iraq_to_hang__Chemica.shtml</a></li><li id="_note-19"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-19" title="">^</a></b> A free-access on-line archive relating to U.S. – Iraq relations in the 1980s is offered by <i>The National Security Archive</i> of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington_University" title="George Washington University">George Washington University</a>. It can be read on line at <a href="http://www.gwu.edu/%7Ensarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB82/" class="external autonumber" title="http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB82/" rel="nofollow">[8]</a>. The Mount Holyoke International Relations Program also provides a free-access document briefing on U.S. – Iraq relations (1904 – present); this can be accessed on line at <a href="http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/iraq.htm" class="external autonumber" title="http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/iraq.htm" rel="nofollow">[9]</a>.</li><li id="_note-20"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-20" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2006/08/31/the_true_iraq_appeasers/" class="external text" title="http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2006/08/31/the_true_iraq_appeasers/" rel="nofollow">The true Iraq appeasers</a> <i>Galbraith, Peter</i> Boston Globe August 2006</li><li id="_note-21"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-21" title="">^</a></b> For a discussion of Saddam's decision to invade Kuwait, see R. Stephen Humphreys, <i>Between Memory and Desire: The Middle East in a Troubled Age</i>, University of California Press, 1999, pp. 104-112.</li><li id="_note-22"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-22" title="">^</a></b> Walter LaFeber, <i>Russia, America, and the Cold War, McGraw-Hill, 2002, p. 358.</i></li><li id="_note-23"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-23" title="">^</a></b> For a statement asserting the overriding importance of oil to U.S. national security and the U.S. economy, see, e.g., the declassified document, "Responding to Iraqi Aggression in the Gulf," The White House, National Security Directive (NSD 54), top secret, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_15" title="January 15">January 15</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991" title="1991">1991</a>. This document can be read on line in <a href="http://www.gwu.edu/%7Ensarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB21/" class="external text" title="http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB21/" rel="nofollow">George Washington University's National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 21</a> at <a href="http://www.gwu.edu/%7Ensarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB21/06-01.htm" class="external autonumber" title="http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB21/06-01.htm" rel="nofollow">[10]</a>.</li><li id="_note-24"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-24" title="">^</a></b> See Margaret Thatcher, <i>The Downing Street Years</i> (1979-1990), 817.</li><li id="_note-25"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-25" title="">^</a></b> David Von Drehle and R. Jeffrey Smith (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993" title="1993">1993</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_27" title="June 27">06-27</a>). <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/iraq/timeline/062793.htm" class="external text" title="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/iraq/timeline/062793.htm" rel="nofollow">U.S. Strikes Iraq for Plot to Kill Bush</a>. Washington Post. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_7" title="August 7">08-07</a>.</li><li id="_note-26"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-26" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://www.alternet.org/story/11933" class="external free" title="http://www.alternet.org/story/11933" rel="nofollow">http://www.alternet.org/story/11933</a></li><li id="_note-27"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-27" title="">^</a></b> Oliver Moore. "<a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20030404.wmain0404_5/BNPrint/International" class="external text" title="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20030404.wmain0404_5/BNPrint/International" rel="nofollow">Hussein does Baghdad walkabout</a>", globeandmail.com, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004" title="2004">2004</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_3" title="April 3">04-03</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2" title="January 2">01-02</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.au=Oliver+Moore&rft.title=Hussein+does+Baghdad+walkabout&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.theglobeandmail.com%2Fservlet%2Fstory%2FRTGAM.20030404.wmain0404_5%2FBNPrint%2FInternational&rft.publisher=globeandmail.com&rft.date=2004-04-03"> </span></li><li id="_note-28"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-28" title="">^</a></b> <cite style="font-style: normal;">Bush, George W.. <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/stateoftheunion/2002/index.html" class="external text" title="http://www.whitehouse.gov/stateoftheunion/2002/index.html" rel="nofollow">Speech</a> Washington, D.C. (2002-01-29). Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_31" title="December 31">12-31</a></cite></li><li id="_note-29"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-29" title="">^</a></b> George W. Bush. "<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1790537.stm" class="external text" title="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1790537.stm" rel="nofollow">Full text: State of the Union address</a>", BBC News, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002" title="2002">2002</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_30" title="January 30">01-30</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_31" title="December 31">12-31</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.au=George+W.+Bush&rft.title=Full+text%3A+State+of+the+Union+address&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.bbc.co.uk%2F1%2Fhi%2Fworld%2Famericas%2F1790537.stm&rft.publisher=BBC+News&rft.date=2002-01-30"> </span></li><li id="_note-30"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-30" title="">^</a></b> "<a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/02/24/eveningnews/main541817.shtml" class="external text" title="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/02/24/eveningnews/main541817.shtml" rel="nofollow">Behind The Scenes With Saddam</a>", CBS News, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_24" title="February 24">02-24</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_31" title="December 31">12-31</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.title=Behind+The+Scenes+With+Saddam&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cbsnews.com%2Fstories%2F2003%2F02%2F24%2Feveningnews%2Fmain541817.shtml&rft.publisher=CBS+News&rft.date=2003-02-24"> </span></li><li id="_note-31"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-31" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1004168,00.html" class="external text" title="http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1004168,00.html" rel="nofollow">Dead: the sons of Saddam</a> The Guardian July 2003</li><li id="_note-32"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-32" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/12/14/sprj.irq.saddam.operation/" class="external text" title="http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/12/14/sprj.irq.saddam.operation/" rel="nofollow">Saddam 'caught like a rat' in a hole</a> CNN December 2003</li><li id="_note-33"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-33" title="">^</a></b> <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4565505.stm" class="external text" title="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4565505.stm" rel="nofollow">Saddam underwear photo angers US</a> BBC May 2005</li><li id="_note-34"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-34" title="">^</a></b> "<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/05/20/saddam.photos/" class="external text" title="http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/05/20/saddam.photos/" rel="nofollow">Pentagon vows to probe Saddam photos</a>", <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CNN" title="CNN">CNN</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005" title="2005">2005</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_21" title="May 21">05-21</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_22" title="October 22">10-22</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.title=Pentagon+vows+to+probe+Saddam+photos&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F2005%2FWORLD%2Fmeast%2F05%2F20%2Fsaddam.photos%2F&rft.publisher=%5B%5BCNN%5D%5D&rft.date=%5B%5B2005-05-21%5D%5D"> </span></li><li id="_note-35"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-35" title="">^</a></b> Brian Todd. "<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/06/20/saddam.behind.bars/index.html" class="external text" title="http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/06/20/saddam.behind.bars/index.html" rel="nofollow">Guards reveal details of Saddam's life behind bars</a>", CNN, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005" title="2005">2005</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_20" title="June 20">06-20</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_13" title="June 13">06-13</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.au=Brian+Todd&rft.title=Guards+reveal+details+of+Saddam%27s+life+behind+bars&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F2005%2FUS%2F06%2F20%2Fsaddam.behind.bars%2Findex.html&rft.publisher=CNN&rft.date=2005-06-20"> </span></li><li id="_note-36"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-36" title="">^</a></b> "<a href="http://news.softpedia.com/news/Saddam-Formally-Charged-23683.shtml" class="external text" title="http://news.softpedia.com/news/Saddam-Formally-Charged-23683.shtml" rel="nofollow">Saddam Formally Charged</a>", Softpedia, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_15" title="May 15">05-15</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2" title="January 2">01-02</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.title=Saddam+Formally+Charged&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.softpedia.com%2Fnews%2FSaddam-Formally-Charged-23683.shtml&rft.publisher=Softpedia&rft.date=2006-05-15"> </span></li><li id="_note-37"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-37" title="">^</a></b> "<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,187923,00.html" class="external text" title="http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,187923,00.html" rel="nofollow">Judge Closes Trial During Saddam Testimony</a>", Fox News, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_15" title="March 15">03-15</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_31" title="December 31">12-31</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.title=Judge+Closes+Trial+During+Saddam+Testimony&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fstory%2F0%2C2933%2C187923%2C00.html&rft.publisher=Fox+News&rft.date=2006-03-15"> </span></li><li id="_note-38"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-38" title="">^</a></b> Christopher Torcia. "<a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061226/ap_on_re_mi_ea/saddam_s_sentence" class="external text" title="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061226/ap_on_re_mi_ea/saddam_s_sentence" rel="nofollow">Iraq court upholds Saddam death sentence</a>", The Associated Press, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_26" title="December 26">12-26</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">12-30</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.au=Christopher+Torcia&rft.title=Iraq+court+upholds+Saddam+death+sentence&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.yahoo.com%2Fs%2Fap%2F20061226%2Fap_on_re_mi_ea%2Fsaddam_s_sentence&rft.publisher=The+Associated+Press&rft.date=2006-12-26"> </span></li><li id="_note-39"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-39" title="">^</a></b> Sky News. "<a href="http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1228824,00.html" class="external text" title="http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1228824,00.html" rel="nofollow">"I Want a Firing Squad", Web</a>", <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_5" title="November 5">11-05</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_7" title="March 7">03-07</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.au=Sky+News&rft.title=%22I+Want+a+Firing+Squad%22%2C+Web&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.sky.com%2Fskynews%2Farticle%2F0%2C%2C30000-1228824%2C00.html&rft.date=%5B%5B2006-11-05%5D%5D"> </span></li><li id="_note-40"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-40" title="">^</a></b> Bauder, David. "<a href="http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20070102/saddam-web-tv.htm" class="external text" title="http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20070102/saddam-web-tv.htm" rel="nofollow">Saddam Execution Images Shown on TV, Web</a>", <i>International Business Times</i>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2" title="January 2">01-02</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2" title="January 2">01-02</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.au=Bauder%2C+David&rft.title=Saddam+Execution+Images+Shown+on+TV%2C+Web&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ibtimes.com%2Farticles%2F20070102%2Fsaddam-web-tv.htm&rft.source=International+Business+Times&rft.date=%5B%5B2007-01-02%5D%5D"> </span></li><li id="_note-Hussein.27s_last_letter"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-Hussein.27s_last_letter_0" title="">^</a></b> "<a href="http://www9.sbs.com.au/theworldnews/region.php?id=133764&region=6" class="external text" title="http://www9.sbs.com.au/theworldnews/region.php?id=133764&region=6" rel="nofollow">Read Saddam Hussein's letter</a>", <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Broadcasting_Service" title="Special Broadcasting Service">SBS</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_28" title="December 28">12-28</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2" title="January 2">01-02</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.title=Read+Saddam+Hussein%27s+letter&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww9.sbs.com.au%2Ftheworldnews%2Fregion.php%3Fid%3D133764%26region%3D6&rft.publisher=%5B%5BSpecial+Broadcasting+Service%7CSBS%5D%5D&rft.date=%5B%5B2006-12-28%5D%5D"> </span></li><li id="_note-newvideo"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-newvideo_0" title="">^</a></b> Qassum Abdul-Zahra. "<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6331584,00.html" class="external text" title="http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6331584,00.html" rel="nofollow">New Video of Saddam's Corpse on Internet</a>", <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Associated_Press" title="Associated Press">Associated Press</a></i>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_9" title="January 9">01-09</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_9" title="January 9">01-09</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.au=Qassum+Abdul-Zahra&rft.title=New+Video+of+Saddam%27s+Corpse+on+Internet&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.guardian.co.uk%2Fworldlatest%2Fstory%2F0%2C%2C-6331584%2C00.html&rft.source=%5B%5BAssociated+Press%5D%5D&rft.date=%5B%5B2007-01-09%5D%5D"> </span></li><li id="_note-burial"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-burial_0" title="">^</a></b> "<a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11669236/" class="external text" title="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11669236/" rel="nofollow">Tribal chief: Saddam buried in native village</a>", <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reuters" title="Reuters">Reuters</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">12-30</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">12-30</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.title=Tribal+chief%3A+Saddam+buried+in+native+village&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.msnbc.msn.com%2Fid%2F11669236%2F&rft.publisher=%5B%5BReuters%5D%5D&rft.date=%5B%5B2006-12-30%5D%5D"> </span></li><li id="_note-41"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-41" title="">^</a></b> Martha Sherrill. "<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/iraq/stories/bride012591.htm" class="external text" title="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/iraq/stories/bride012591.htm" rel="nofollow">Bride of Saddam, Matched Since Childhood</a>", The Washington Post, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_25" title="January 25">25 January</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991" title="1991">1991</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_6" title="January 6">01-06</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.au=Martha+Sherrill&rft.title=Bride+of+Saddam%2C+Matched+Since+Childhood&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.washingtonpost.com%2Fwp-srv%2Finatl%2Flongterm%2Firaq%2Fstories%2Fbride012591.htm&rft.publisher=The+Washington+Post&rft.date=%5B%5B25+January%5D%5D+%5B%5B1991%5D%5D"> </span></li><li id="_note-42"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-42" title="">^</a></b> Michael Harvey. "Saddam's billions", The Herald Sun, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2" title="January 2">2 January</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_6" title="January 6">01-06</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.au=Michael+Harvey&rft.title=Saddam%27s+billions&rft.publisher=The+Herald+Sun&rft.date=%5B%5B2+January%5D%5D+%5B%5B2007%5D%5D"> </span></li><li id="_note-daughtersinterview"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Husein#_ref-daughtersinterview_0" title="">^</a></b> "<a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2003-08-01-saddams-daughters_x.htm" class="external text" title="http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2003-08-01-saddams-daughters_x.htm" rel="nofollow">Saddam's daughters express love for dad</a>", USA Today, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_1" title="August 1">08-01</a>. Retrieved on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_31" title="December 31">12-31</a>.<span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.type=newspaperArticle&rft.subject=News&rft.title=Saddam%27s+daughters+express+love+for+dad&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.usatoday.com%2Fnews%2Fworld%2Firaq%2F2003-08-01-saddams-daughters_x.htm&rft.publisher=USA+Today&rft.date=2003-08-01"><br /></span></li></ol> </div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2825069221616283036-2907104687232782496?l=new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>nogo dininoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2825069221616283036.post-10669523243964363852007-11-28T22:46:00.000-08:002007-11-28T22:59:26.951-08:00CENTRAL BANK OF IRAQFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia <div id="jump-to-nav">Jump to: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Bank_of_Iraq#column-one">navigation</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Bank_of_Iraq#searchInput">search</a></div> <!-- start content --> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Baghdad-bank-hires.jpg" class="image" title="The Central Bank of Iraq, guarded by U.S. troops. June 2003."><img style="width: 231px; height: 154px;" alt="The Central Bank of Iraq, guarded by U.S. troops. June 2003." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/Baghdad-bank-hires.jpg/180px-Baghdad-bank-hires.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Baghdad-bank-hires.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> The Central Bank of Iraq, guarded by U.S. troops. June 2003.</div> </div> </div> <p>The <b>Central Bank of Iraq</b> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_language" title="Arabic language">Arabic</a>: بنك العراق المركزي) is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq" title="Iraq">Iraq</a>'s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_bank" title="Central bank">central bank</a>. The current Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinan_Al-Shibibi" title="Sinan Al-Shibibi">Sinan Al-Shibibi</a>.</p> <p>The bank is in charge of:</p> <ul><li>maintaining <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation" title="Inflation">inflation</a> stability</li><li>implementing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monetary_policy" title="Monetary policy">monetary policy</a> (including <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exchange_rate" title="Exchange rate">exchange rate</a> policies)</li><li>managing the state's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gold_reserve&action=edit" class="new" title="Gold reserve">reserves</a></li><li>issuing and managing the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar" title="Iraqi dinar">Iraqi dinar</a></li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulate" title="Regulate">regulating</a> private <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank" title="Bank">banks</a>.</li></ul><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2825069221616283036-1066952324396436385?l=new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>nogo dininoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2825069221616283036.post-80385129347965683442007-11-28T22:16:00.000-08:002007-11-28T22:21:10.543-08:00HISTORY OF IRAQI DINARHistorical value of the Iraqi Dinar, from 1932 to 1982, has fluctuated between $4.86 US and $3.22 US <u>PER DINAR</u>. On October 15, 2003 a New Iraqi Dinar was introduced to replace the old ‘Saddam pictured’ Dinar. It has unified Iraq under one currency which reflects great history and strength in Iraq and avoids any religious or political images. Prior to the war in Iraq, the official international exchange rate for the Dinar was $0.33 US per Dinar. In 2006, it is now at its lowest point in history at <strong>$0.00067 US.</strong> <p>Iraq’s situation is similar to that of Japan and Germany after World War II. Their economies were at rock bottom so you could buy up lots of their currency at a very cheap price. Once their economies were back on track, anyone who had taken advantage of the situation became extremely wealthy, almost overnight! </p> <p>The New Iraqi Dinar is not a traded currency at this present time, but it is expected that the international exchange rate should be set in <strong>the near future</strong>. Once this is set, you will be able to take your Dinar to any international bank or money exchange and turn it into dollars!</p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span></p> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <!-- start content --> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><table class="infobox geography" style="width: 27em; text-align: left; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"> <tbody><tr> <td colspan="2" class="mergedtoprow" style="line-height: 1.2em; font-size: 1.35em;" align="center"><b>Iraqi dinar</b><br /><b>دينار عراقي <small><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(85, 85, 85);font-size:0;" >(Arabic)</span></small></b></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow"> <td colspan="2" class="maptable" style="padding: 0.3em 0.6em;" align="center"> <table style="margin: 0pt auto; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; text-align: center;" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Dinar-25000.jpg" class="image" title="25,000 dinars banknotes"><img alt="25,000 dinars banknotes" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/ff/Dinar-25000.jpg/126px-Dinar-25000.jpg" border="0" height="127" width="126" /></a></td> <td style="vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Unknown_origin_coin3.JPG" class="image" title="1972 25 fils coin"><img alt="1972 25 fils coin" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Unknown_origin_coin3.JPG/126px-Unknown_origin_coin3.JPG" border="0" height="61" width="126" /></a></td> </tr> <tr style="font-size: 95%;"> <td>25,000 dinars banknotes</td> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1972" title="1972">1972</a> 25 fils coin</td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <th><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_4217" title="ISO 4217">ISO 4217 Code</a></th> <td><tt>IQD</tt></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th>User(s)</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq" title="Iraq">Iraq</a></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation" title="Inflation">Inflation</a></th> <td>64.8%</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow"> <td style="padding-top: 0.2em;">Source</td> <td style="padding-top: 0.2em;"><i><a href="https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2092.html" class="external text" title="https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2092.html" rel="nofollow">The World Factbook</a></i>, 2006 est.</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th>Subunit</th> <td><br /></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow"> <td style="padding-top: 0.2em;">1/1000</td> <td style="padding-top: 0.2em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fils_%28currency%29" title="Fils (currency)">fils</a></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Currency_sign" title="Currency sign">Symbol</a></th> <td>ع.د</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th>Coins</th> <td>25, 100 dinar</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th>Banknotes</th> <td>50, 250, 500, 1000, 5000, 10000, 25000 dinar</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th><span style="white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_bank" title="Central bank">Central bank</a></span></th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Bank_of_Iraq" title="Central Bank of Iraq">Central Bank of Iraq</a></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedbottomrow"> <td>Website</td> <td><a href="http://www.cbiraq.org/" class="external text" title="http://www.cbiraq.org" rel="nofollow">www.cbiraq.org</a></td> </tr> </tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">The <b>dinar</b> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_language" title="Arabic language">Arabic</a>: دينار, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_4217" title="ISO 4217">ISO 4217</a>: IQD, pronounced: di-'när) is the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Currency" title="Currency">currency</a> of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq" title="Iraq">Iraq</a>. It is issued by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Bank_of_Iraq" title="Central Bank of Iraq">Central Bank of Iraq</a> and is subdivided into 1000 fils (فلس), although inflation has rendered the fils obsolete.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><table style="text-align: left; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;" id="toc" class="toc" summary="Contents"> <tbody><tr> <td> <div id="toctitle"> <h2>Contents</h2> <span class="toctoggle">[<a href="javascript:toggleToc()" class="internal" id="togglelink">hide</a>]</span></div> <ul><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#History"><span class="tocnumber">1</span> <span class="toctext">History</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#Speculation"><span class="tocnumber">2</span> <span class="toctext">Speculation</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#Coins"><span class="tocnumber">3</span> <span class="toctext">Coins</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#Banknotes"><span class="tocnumber">4</span> <span class="toctext">Banknotes</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#See_also"><span class="tocnumber">5</span> <span class="toctext">See also</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#References"><span class="tocnumber">6</span> <span class="toctext">References</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#External_links"><span class="tocnumber">7</span> <span class="toctext">External links</span></a></li></ul> </td> </tr> </tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"> <script type="text/javascript"> //<![CDATA[ if (window.showTocToggle) { var tocShowText = "show"; var tocHideText = "hide"; showTocToggle(); } //]]> </script> </div><p style="text-align: justify;"><a name="History" id="History"></a></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span class="mw-headline">History</span></h2><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">The dinar was introduced into circulation in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1931" title="1931">1931</a>, replacing the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_rupee" title="Indian rupee">Indian rupee</a>, which had been the official currency since the British occupation of the country in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I" title="World War I">World War I</a>, at a rate of 1 dinar = 13⅓ rupees. The dinar was pegged at par with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_pound" title="British pound">British pound</a> until 1959 when, without changing its value, the peg was switched to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._dollar" title="U.S. dollar">U.S. dollar</a> at the rate of 1 dinar = 2.8 dollars. By not following the devaluations of the U.S. currency in 1971 and 1973, the dinar rose to a value of US$3.3778, before a 5% devaluation reduced the value of the dinar to US$3.2169, a rate which remained until the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War" title="Gulf War">Gulf War</a>, although in late 1989, the black market rate was reported as being five to six times (1.86 dinars for US$1) higher than the official rate.<sup id="_ref-0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#_note-0" title="">[1]</a></sup></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">After the Gulf War in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991" title="1991">1991</a>, and due to the economic blockade, the previously used Swiss printing technology was no longer available. A new, inferior quality notes issue was produced. The previous issue became known as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_dinar" title="Swiss dinar">Swiss dinar</a> and continued to circulate in the Kurdish region of Iraq. Due to excessive government printing of the new notes issue, the dinar devalued quickly, and in late <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1995" title="1995">1995</a>, US$1 equalled 3000 dinars.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Following the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deposition_%28politics%29" title="Deposition (politics)">deposition</a> of Saddam Hussein in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 invasion of Iraq">2003 invasion of Iraq</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Governing_Council" title="Iraqi Governing Council">Iraqi Governing Council</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_for_Reconstruction_and_Humanitarian_Assistance" title="Office for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance">Office for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance</a> began printing more Saddam dinar notes as a stopgap measure to maintain the money supply until new currency could be introduced.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Between <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_15" title="October 15">October 15</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_15" title="January 15">January 15</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004" title="2004">2004</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_Provisional_Authority" title="Coalition Provisional Authority">Coalition Provisional Authority</a> issued new Iraqi dinar coins and notes, with the notes printed by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_La_Rue" title="De La Rue">De La Rue</a> using modern anti-forgery techniques, to "create a single unified currency that is used throughout all of Iraq and will also make money more convenient to use in people’s everyday lives."<sup id="_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#_note-1" title="">[2]</a></sup> Old banknotes were exchanged for new at a one-to-one rate, except for the Swiss dinars, which were exchanged at a rate of 150 new dinars for one Swiss dinar.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Although the value of the dinar appreciated following the introduction of the new banknotes from 4000 dinars per U.S. dollar, at the time of their introduction, to a high of 980 dinars per dollar, it is now held at a "program" <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exchange_rate" title="Exchange rate">exchange rate</a>, as specified by the International Monetary Fund<sup class="noprint Template-Fact"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources since February 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">citation needed</a></i>]</span></sup>, of 1230 <a href="http://www.cbiraq.org/cbs6.htm" class="external text" title="http://www.cbiraq.org/cbs6.htm" rel="nofollow">dinars per US dollar at the Central Bank of Iraq</a>. However, there is not yet a set international exchange rate and so international banks do not yet exchange Iraqi dinar. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exchange_rate" title="Exchange rate">exchange rate</a> available on the streets of Iraq is currently around 1500 dinars per US dollar (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_2006" title="April 2006">April 2006</a>).</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;"><a name="Speculation" id="Speculation"></a></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span class="mw-headline">Speculation</span></h2><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_3" title="May 3">May 3</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Monetary_Fund" title="International Monetary Fund">IMF</a> released a statement in relation to the international compact with Iraq, which has turned the tide in regards to speculation on the Iraq dinar. The contents of the article discuss changes made in Iraq on the economic front of how the Iraq government had eliminated fuel subsidies. The article also stated that the Central Bank of Iraq had raised interest rates in an attempt to allow a gradual appreciation of the dinar in an attempt to fight <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dollarization" title="Dollarization">dollarization</a> of the Iraq economy. Although there are claims of wide-spread optimism of some language used later in the press release among some dinar speculators, there have been no publicly released statements or analysis by any news sources or governments.<sup id="_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#_note-2" title="">[3]</a></sup> The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utah" title="Utah">Utah</a> Division of Securities lists Iraqi currency trading as the #2 most common scam for investors.<sup id="_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar#_note-3" title="">[4]</a></sup></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;"><a name="Coins" id="Coins"></a></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span class="mw-headline">Coins</span></h2><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Coins were introduced in 1931 and 1932 in denominations of 1, 2, 4, 10, 20, 50 and 200 fils, with the 200 fils known as a <i>rial</i>. The 20, 50 and 200 fils were minted in silver. In 1953, silver 100 fils coins were introduced.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Following the establishment of the Iraqi Republic, a new series of coins was introduced in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 and 100 fils, with the 25, 50 and 100 fils in silver until 1969. In 1970, 250 fils pieces were introduced, followed by 500 fils and 1 dinar coins in 1982. Coin production ceased after 1990.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">In 2004, new 25 and 100 dinars coins were introduced:</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><table class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%; text-align: left; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"> <tbody><tr> <th>Value</th> <th>Diameter</th> <th>Weight</th> <th>Composition</th> <th>Obverse</th> <th>Reverse</th> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#bf7f43"> <td>25 dinars</td> <td>17.5 mm</td> <td>2 g</td> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copper" title="Copper">Copper</a> plated <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel" title="Steel">steel</a></td> <td>Enscriptions: "Central Bank of Iraq" and "25 dinars"</td> <td>Outline map of Iraq</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#f9f9f9"> <td>100 dinars</td> <td>22 mm</td> <td>4.3 g</td> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickel" title="Nickel">Nickel</a> plated <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel" title="Steel">steel</a></td> <td>Enscriptions: "Central Bank of Iraq" and "100 dinars"</td> <td>Outline map of Iraq</td> </tr> </tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;"><a name="Banknotes" id="Banknotes"></a></p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span class="mw-headline">Banknotes</span></h2><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;" class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 202px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:5dinar.jpg" class="image" title="Old five-dinars note featuring Saddam Hussein"><img alt="Old five-dinars note featuring Saddam Hussein" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/8f/5dinar.jpg/200px-5dinar.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="185" width="200" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:5dinar.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Old five-dinars note featuring <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a></div> </div> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">In 1931, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banknotes" title="Banknotes">banknotes</a> were issued by the government in denominations of ¼, ½, 1, 5, 10 and 100 dinar. The notes were printed in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom" title="United Kingdom">United Kingdom</a>. From 1931 to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1947" title="1947">1947</a>, the banknotes were issued by the Iraqi currency board for the government of Iraq and banknotes were convertible into pound sterling. From 1947, the banknotes were issued by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=National_Bank_of_Iraq&action=edit" class="new" title="National Bank of Iraq">National Bank of Iraq</a>, then after <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1954" title="1954">1954</a> by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Bank_of_Iraq" title="Central Bank of Iraq">Central Bank of Iraq</a>.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">100 dinars notes ceased production in the 1940s but otherwise, the same denominations were issued until 1978, when 25 dinars notes were introduced. In 1991, 50 and 100 dinars were introduced, followed by 250 dinars notes in 1995 and 10,000 dinars notes in 2002.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Banknotes issued between <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1990" title="1990">1990</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_2003" title="October 2003">October 2003</a>, along with a 25-dinars note issued in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1986" title="1986">1986</a>, bear an idealized engraving of former Iraqi President <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a>. Following the 1991 Gulf War, Iraq's currency was printed both locally and in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China" title="China">China</a>, using poor grade <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_pulp" title="Wood pulp">wood pulp</a> paper (rather than <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton" title="Cotton">cotton</a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linen" title="Linen">linen</a>) and inferior quality <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithography" title="Lithography">lithography</a> (some notes were reputedly printed on presses designed for printing newspapers).</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterfeit" title="Counterfeit">Counterfeited</a> banknotes often appeared to be of better quality than real notes. Despite the collapse in the value of the Iraqi dinar, the highest denomination printed until <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002" title="2002">2002</a> was 250 dinars. In 2002, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Bank_of_Iraq" title="Central Bank of Iraq">Central Bank of Iraq</a> issued a 10,000-dinars banknote to be used for "larger, and inter-bank transactions". This note was rarely accepted in practice due to fears of looting and counterfeiting. This forced people to carry around stacks of 250-dinars notes for everyday use. The other, smaller bills were so worthless that they largely fell into disuse. This situation meant that Iraq, for the most part, had only one denomination of banknote in wide circulation.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Currency printed before the Gulf War was often called the <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_dinar" title="Swiss dinar">Swiss dinar</a></i>. It got its name from the Swiss printing technology that produced banknotes of a considerably higher quality than those later produced under the economic sanctions that were imposed after the first Gulf War. After a change-over period, this currency was disendorsed by the Iraqi government. However, this old currency still circulated in the Kurdish regions of Iraq until it was replaced with the new dinar after the second Gulf War. During this time the Swiss dinar retained its value, whilst the new currency consistently lost value (sometimes at 30% per annum).</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">In 2003, new banknotes were issued consisting of six denominations: 50, 250, 1000, 5000, 10,000, and 25,000 dinar. The notes were similar in design to notes issued by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Bank_of_Iraq" title="Central Bank of Iraq">Central Bank of Iraq</a> in the 1970s and 1980s. A 500 dinars note was issued a year later, in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_2004" title="October 2004">October 2004</a>. In the Kurdish regions of Iraq, the 50 dinar note is not in circulation. All prices are rounded to the nearest 250 dinar.</p> <p>Current banknotes are:</p> <table class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"> <tbody><tr> <th colspan="6">2003 Series</th> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2">Image</th> <th rowspan="2">Value</th> <th rowspan="2">Main Colour</th> <th colspan="2">Description</th> </tr> <tr> <th>Obverse</th> <th>Reverse</th> <th>Obverse</th> <th>Reverse</th> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#aa6caa"> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:50dinarsfront_%28Small%29.jpg" class="image" title="50 dinars"><img alt="50 dinars" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/95/50dinarsfront_%28Small%29.jpg/100px-50dinarsfront_%28Small%29.jpg" border="0" height="52" width="100" /></a></td> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:50dinarsback_%28Small%29.jpg" class="image" title="50 dinars"><img alt="50 dinars" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/e0/50dinarsback_%28Small%29.jpg/100px-50dinarsback_%28Small%29.jpg" border="0" height="50" width="100" /></a></td> <td>50 dinars</td> <td>Purple</td> <td>Grain silos at Basra</td> <td>Date palms</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#99a3ce"> <td><br /></td> <td><br /></td> <td>250 dinars</td> <td>Blue</td> <td>An astrolabe</td> <td>Spiral minaret at Samarra</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#32cd99"> <td><br /></td> <td><br /></td> <td>500 dinars</td> <td>Bluish-Green</td> <td>Ducan Dam on the Al Zab river</td> <td>Assyrian carving of a winged bull</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#e7c6a5"> <td><br /></td> <td><br /></td> <td>1,000 dinars</td> <td>Brown</td> <td>A gold dinar coin</td> <td>Al-Mustansirya University, Baghdad</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#009acd"> <td><br /></td> <td><br /></td> <td>5,000 dinars</td> <td>Dark blue</td> <td>Gully Ali Beg and its waterfall</td> <td>Desert fortress at Al-Ukhether</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#00cd66"> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Ibn_haithem.jpg" class="image" title="10000 dinars"><img alt="10000 dinars" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/90/Ibn_haithem.jpg/100px-Ibn_haithem.jpg" border="0" height="46" width="100" /></a></td> <td><br /></td> <td>10,000 dinars</td> <td>Green</td> <td>Abu Ali Hasan Ibn al-Haitham</td> <td>Hadba Minaret at the Great Nurid Mosque, Mosul</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#ed5e66"> <td><br /></td> <td><br /></td> <td>25,000 dinars</td> <td>Red</td> <td>A Kurdish farmer holding a sheaf of wheat</td> <td>Carving of King Hammurabi</td> </tr> </tbody></table><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2825069221616283036-8038512934796568344?l=new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>nogo dininoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2825069221616283036.post-1908725695970517712007-11-28T21:25:00.000-08:002007-11-28T21:28:52.311-08:00BUY IRAQI DINAR<div style="text-align: justify;">We are a Professional, Experienced and Trusted source for the New Iraqi Dinar. Our aim is to provide you with quality customer service that we know you deserve. You will feel comfortable investing in the New Iraqi Dinar with New-Dinar-Iraq.blogspot.com. Your satisfaction is guaranteed!</div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;"><br /></p><div> </div><div> </div><br /><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_myX4pcjBkU8/RyGBCguBg9I/AAAAAAAAAL4/ZgW5hEbIBRA/s1600-h/tiki.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 154px; height: 61px;" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_myX4pcjBkU8/RyGBCguBg9I/AAAAAAAAAL4/ZgW5hEbIBRA/s400/tiki.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5125519731067028434" border="0" /></a>We deliver <b>anywhere in the world</b> where there is a courier or postal delivery service. For a complete list of countries please <a href="http://www.turndinartodollars.com/postage_locations.html"><span style="color:black;">click here</span></a>. All international shipping is done through Tiki Jne Courier International. A fast, reliable and secure way to receive your Dinar. You will receive a unique identification number with which you can track your order online or by phone.<br /></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_myX4pcjBkU8/RvnoL0pKYbI/AAAAAAAAAFE/EFMWeYMbwhQ/s1600-h/All+NID+100+guarantee.bmp"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_myX4pcjBkU8/RvnoL0pKYbI/AAAAAAAAAFE/EFMWeYMbwhQ/s400/All+NID+100+guarantee.bmp" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5114374141663404466" border="0" /></a></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: right; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span></p> <h4 style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-weight: normal; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:130%;">Payment Method</span></h4> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">All payments to New-Dinar-Iraq.blogspot.com must be made via Wire Transfer / Electronic Bank Transfer. After you have placed an order, an email with payment instructions will be sent to you.</p><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://ibank.klikbca.com/"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 108px; height: 37px;" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_EupKHZ0Qw6g/RsGRxGNAi1I/AAAAAAAAAGQ/O6ornnMiGXQ/s320/BCA+logo.bmp" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5098516525824904018" border="0" /></a><br /></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 15.5pt; text-indent: -13.5pt; line-height: normal; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); text-align: center;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" > <span style="font-weight: bold;"> A/N</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">: Martin Halim</span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 15.5pt; text-indent: -13.5pt; line-height: normal; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); text-align: center;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:100%;" > </span><span style="line-height: 115%; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" >Bank<span style=""> </span>: BCA KCP Iska</span><span style="line-height: 115%; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:100%;" >ndar Muda</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><span style="">, Medan</span></st1:place></st1:city></span><span style="color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:100%;" ><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 15.5pt; text-indent: -13.5pt; line-height: normal; color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-weight: bold; text-align: center;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"> No Rek</span><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><span style="font-size:100%;">: 349 085 27 69</span></p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2825069221616283036-190872569597051771?l=new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>nogo dininoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2825069221616283036.post-49797989437167357852007-11-28T03:32:00.001-08:002007-11-28T23:23:53.969-08:00AUTHENTICITY GUARANTEE<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_myX4pcjBkU8/RyGztwuBhDI/AAAAAAAAAMg/lUB-4w89vB0/s1600-h/satifaction+guarantee1.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_myX4pcjBkU8/RyGztwuBhDI/AAAAAAAAAMg/lUB-4w89vB0/s400/satifaction+guarantee1.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5125575449677759538" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><h4 style="text-align: center; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><span style="font-size:130%;">New-Dinar-Iraq Authenticity Guarantee</span></h4><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><p style="text-align: center;">The authenticity of every one of our Dinar notes is 100% money back guaranteed. We double check every one of our notes to ensure this before it is shipped. The security features of the New Iraqi Dinar, as shown below, are state of the art and are considered to be counterfeit proof. A few more security features not listed below are the embossing of the paper, the multi-colored hued links, and serial numbers. All denominations of the dinar contain the same security features. All notes were printed by DeLaRue in <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Lond</st1:city></st1:place><st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">on</st1:city>, <st1:country-region st="on">England</st1:country-region></st1:place>. They are the world’s largest currency and securities printer, printing currencies and securities for over 150 Countries in the world. All orders come with a signed Certificate of Authenticity.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_myX4pcjBkU8/RyGz-guBhEI/AAAAAAAAAMo/70OtK3Tfowk/s1600-h/gbr+keaslian+25000+dan+10000.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_myX4pcjBkU8/RyGz-guBhEI/AAAAAAAAAMo/70OtK3Tfowk/s400/gbr+keaslian+25000+dan+10000.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5125575737440568386" border="0" /></a></p><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2825069221616283036-4979798943716735785?l=new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>nogo dininoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2825069221616283036.post-84526370171307558502007-11-28T03:29:00.000-08:002007-11-28T03:31:16.878-08:00ABOUT IRAQ<p style="text-align: justify;">The <b>Republic of Iraq</b>, usually known as <b>Iraq</b> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic" title="Arabic">Arabic</a>: <span class="unicode audiolink"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Ar-al_Gumhuriyah_al_Iraqiya.ogg" class="internal" title="Ar-al Gumhuriyah al Iraqiya.ogg">العراق</a></span> <span class="metadata audiolinkinfo"><small>(<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Media_help" title="Wikipedia:Media help">help</a>·<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Ar-al_Gumhuriyah_al_Iraqiya.ogg" title="Image:Ar-al Gumhuriyah al Iraqiya.ogg">info</a>)</small></span>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Phonetic_Alphabet" title="International Phonetic Alphabet">IPA</a>: <span title="Pronunciation in IPA" class="IPA">ʕiˈrɑːq</span>), is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country" title="Country">country</a> in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East" title="Middle East">Middle East</a> spanning most of the northwestern end of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zagros_Mountains" title="Zagros Mountains">Zagros mountain range</a>, the eastern part of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_Desert" title="Syrian Desert">Syrian Desert</a> and the northern part of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabian_Desert" title="Arabian Desert">Arabian Desert</a>. It shares borders with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuwait" title="Kuwait">Kuwait</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saudi_Arabia" title="Saudi Arabia">Saudi Arabia</a> to the south, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan" title="Jordan">Jordan</a> to the west, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria" title="Syria">Syria</a> to the northwest, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey" title="Turkey">Turkey</a> to the north, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran" title="Iran">Iran</a> to the east. It has a very narrow section of coastline at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umm_Qasr" title="Umm Qasr">Umm Qasr</a> on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Gulf" title="Persian Gulf">Persian Gulf</a>. There are two major flowing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rivers" title="Rivers">rivers</a>: the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tigris" title="Tigris">Tigris</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphrates" title="Euphrates">Euphrates</a>. These provide Iraq with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriculture" title="Agriculture">agriculturally</a> capable land and contrast with the desert landscape that covers most of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East" title="Middle East">Middle East</a>.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Iraq is a developing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_democracy" title="Parliamentary democracy">parliamentary democracy</a> composed of 18 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Governorates_of_iraq" title="Governorates of iraq">governorates</a> (known as <i>muhafadhat</i>). The capital city, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad" title="Baghdad">Baghdad</a>, is in the center-east. Iraq's rich <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Iraq" title="History of Iraq">history</a> dates back to ancient <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesopotamia" title="Mesopotamia">Mesopotamia</a>. The region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers is identified as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fertile_Crescent" title="Fertile Crescent">Fertile Crescent</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cradle_of_civilization" title="Cradle of civilization">cradle of civilization</a>, and the birthplace of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Writing" title="Writing">writing</a>. During its long history, Iraq has been the center of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akkad" title="Akkad">Akkadian</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyria" title="Assyria">Assyrian</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-Babylonian_Empire" title="Neo-Babylonian Empire">Babylonian</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbasid" title="Abbasid">Abbasid</a> empires, and part of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achaemenid_Empire" title="Achaemenid Empire">Achaemenid</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_the_Great" title="Alexander the Great">Macedonian</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthia" title="Parthia">Parthian</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umayyad" title="Umayyad">Umayyad</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sassanid_Empire" title="Sassanid Empire">Sassanid</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Empire" title="Ottoman Empire">Ottoman</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Empire" title="British Empire">British</a> empires.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Since an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 invasion of Iraq">invasion in 2003</a>, a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_Force_Iraq" title="Multinational Force Iraq">multinational coalition of forces</a>, mainly American and British, has occupied Iraq. The invasion has had wide-reaching consequences: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_war" title="Iraq war">increased civil violence</a>, political breakdown, the removal and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Execution of Saddam Hussein">execution</a> of former president <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a>, and national problems in the development of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Iraq" title="Politics of Iraq">political balance</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Iraq" title="Economy of Iraq">economy</a>, infrastructure, and use of the country's huge <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_reserves#Iraq" title="Oil reserves">reserves of oil</a>. These have led to major setbacks for Iraq, and thus given it increased attention from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_world" title="Western world">West</a>. According to the 2007 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Failed_States_Index" title="Failed States Index">Failed States Index</a>, produced by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnegie_Endowment_for_International_Peace" title="Carnegie Endowment for International Peace">Carnegie Endowment for International Peace's</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_Policy" title="Foreign Policy">Foreign Policy</a> magazine and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fund_for_Peace" title="Fund for Peace">Fund for Peace</a>, Iraq has recently emerged as the world's second most unstable country,<sup id="_ref-0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-0" title="">[1]</a></sup> after <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudan" title="Sudan">Sudan</a>.<sup id="_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-1" title="">[2]</a></sup></p><table class="infobox geography vcard" style="width: 329px; margin-top: 0.75em; height: 1406px; text-align: left; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><tbody><tr class="adr"><th colspan="3" class="mergedtoprow fn org country-name" style="padding: 0.25em 0.33em 0.33em; line-height: 1.2em; font-size: 1.25em;" align="center"><br /><i>Jumhūriyyat ul-ʿIrāq</i><br /><i>Jomhūrī-ye Īrāq</i> <div style="padding-top: 0.25em;"><span style="">Republic of Iraq</span></div> </th> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <td class="maptable" colspan="3" style="padding: 0.5em 0pt;" align="center"> <table style="background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 100%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="center"> <tbody><tr> <td style="width: 58%; vertical-align: middle;" align="center"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_Iraq.svg" class="image" title="Flag of Iraq"><img alt="Flag of Iraq" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Flag_of_Iraq.svg/125px-Flag_of_Iraq.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="83" width="125" /></a></td> <td style="width: auto; vertical-align: middle;" align="center"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:COA_of_Iraq.svg" class="image" title="Coat of arms of Iraq"><img alt="Coat of arms of Iraq" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9f/COA_of_Iraq.svg/85px-COA_of_Iraq.svg.png" border="0" height="116" width="85" /></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"><small><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Iraq" title="Flag of Iraq">Flag</a></small></td> <td align="center"><small><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coat_of_arms_of_Iraq" title="Coat of arms of Iraq">Coat of arms</a></small></td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="3" style="line-height: 1.2em; text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motto" title="Motto">Motto</a></b><br />الله أكبر <span style="white-space: nowrap;"> </span><small>(<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_language" title="Arabic language">Arabic</a>)</small><br /><i>"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takbir" title="Takbir">Allahu Akbar</a>"</i><span style="white-space: nowrap;"> </span><small>(<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transliteration" title="Transliteration">transliteration</a>)<br />"God is the Greatest"</small></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="3" style="line-height: 1.2em; text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_anthem" title="National anthem">Anthem</a></b><br /><i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mawtini" title="Mawtini">Mawtini</a></i><span style="white-space: nowrap;"> </span><small>(new)</small><br /><i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ardh_Alforatain" title="Ardh Alforatain">Ardh Alforatain</a></i><span style="white-space: nowrap;"> </span><small>(previous)<sup><small>1</small></sup></small><br /></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="3" style="padding: 0.6em 0em; text-align: center;"> <div class="center"> <div class="floatnone"><span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:LocationIraq.svg" class="image" title="Location of Iraq"><img alt="Location of Iraq" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/LocationIraq.svg/250px-LocationIraq.svg.png" border="0" height="125" width="250" /></a></span></div> </div> </td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <td colspan="2"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital" title="Capital">Capital</a></b><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Iraq" title="Demographics of Iraq">(and largest city)</a></td> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad" title="Baghdad">Baghdad</a><sup><small>2</small></sup><br /><small><span style="white-space: nowrap;"><span class="plainlinksneverexpand"><img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9a/Erioll_world.svg/18px-Erioll_world.svg.png" style="padding: 0px 3px 0px 0px; cursor: pointer;" title="show location on an interactive map" /><a href="http://tools.wikimedia.de/%7Emagnus/geo/geohack.php?pagename=Iraq&params=33_20_N_44_26_E_type:country%28438,317%29" class="external text" title="http://tools.wikimedia.de/~magnus/geo/geohack.php?pagename=Iraq&params=33_20_N_44_26_E_type:country(438,317)" rel="nofollow"><span title="Maps, aerial photos, and other data for this location">33°20′N, 44°26′E</span></a></span></span></small></td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2" style="vertical-align: middle; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Official_language" title="Official language">Official languages</a></th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_language" title="Arabic language">Arabic</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdish_language" title="Kurdish language">Kurdish</a><sup><small>3</small></sup>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aramaic_language" title="Aramaic language">Aramaic</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demonym" title="Demonym">Demonym</a></th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_people" title="Iraqi people">Iraqi</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government" title="Government">Government</a></th> <td>Developing <span style="white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_democracy" title="Parliamentary democracy">parliamentary democracy</a></span></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_Iraq" title="President of Iraq">President</a></td> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jalal_Talabani" title="Jalal Talabani">Jalal Talabani</a></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedbottomrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_Iraq" title="Prime Minister of Iraq">Prime Minister</a></td> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nouri_al-Maliki" title="Nouri al-Maliki">Nouri al-Maliki</a></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th colspan="3"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independence" title="Independence">Independence</a></th> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;">from the <span style="white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Empire" title="Ottoman Empire">Ottoman Empire</a></span></td> <td><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_1" title="October 1">October 1</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1919" title="1919">1919</a> </td> </tr> <tr class="mergedbottomrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;">from the <span style="white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom" title="United Kingdom">United Kingdom</a></span></td> <td><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_3" title="October 3">October 3</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1932" title="1932">1932</a> </td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th colspan="3"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Area" title="Area">Area</a></th> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;">Total</td> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1_E11_m%C2%B2" title="1 E11 m²">438,317 km²</a> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_and_outlying_territories_by_area" title="List of countries and outlying territories by area">58th</a>)<br />169,234 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Square_mile" title="Square mile">sq mi</a> </td> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water" title="Water">Water</a> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percent" title="Percent">%</a>)</td> <td>1.1</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th colspan="3"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Population" title="Population">Population</a></th> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;">2006 estimate</td> <td>26,783,383<sup><small>4</small></sup> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_population" title="List of countries by population">40th</a>)</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedbottomrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Population_density" title="Population density">Density</a></td> <td>66/km² (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_population_density" title="List of countries by population density">125th</a>)<br />171/sq mi</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <td colspan="2"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gross_domestic_product" title="Gross domestic product">GDP</a></b> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purchasing_power_parity" title="Purchasing power parity">PPP</a>)</td> <td>2006 estimate</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;">Total</td> <td>$89.8 billion (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_%28PPP%29" title="List of countries by GDP (PPP)"><small>61st</small></a>)</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedbottomrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Per_capita" title="Per capita">Per capita</a></td> <td>$2,900 (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_%28PPP%29_per_capita" title="List of countries by GDP (PPP) per capita"><small>130th</small></a>)</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2" style="vertical-align: middle;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Currency" title="Currency">Currency</a></th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_dinar" title="Iraqi dinar">Iraqi dinar</a> (<code><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_4217" title="ISO 4217">IQD</a></code>)</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedtoprow"> <th colspan="2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_zone" title="Time zone">Time zone</a></th> <td>AST <span style="white-space: nowrap;">(<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coordinated_Universal_Time" title="Coordinated Universal Time">UTC</a>+3)</span></td> </tr> <tr class="mergedbottomrow"> <td style="padding: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6em; width: 1em;"> - </td> <td style="padding-left: 0em;">Summer (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daylight_saving_time" title="Daylight saving time">DST</a>)</td> <td>ADT (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coordinated_Universal_Time" title="Coordinated Universal Time">UTC</a>+4)</td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country_code_top-level_domain" title="Country code top-level domain">Internet TLD</a></th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.iq" title=".iq">.iq</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_country_calling_codes" title="List of country calling codes">Calling code</a></th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%2B964&action=edit" class="new" title="+964">+964</a></td> </tr> <tr style="font-size:80%;"> <td align="right"><span style="position: relative; top: 0.3em;"><sup>1</sup></span></td> <td colspan="2" style="padding-left: 0em;">The Kurds use <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ey_Req%C3%AEb" title="Ey Reqîb">Ey Reqîb</a></i>.</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow" style="font-size:80%;"> <td align="right"><span style="position: relative; top: 0.3em;"><sup>2</sup></span></td> <td colspan="2" style="padding-left: 0em;">The capital of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Kurdistan" title="Iraqi Kurdistan">Iraqi Kurdistan</a> is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbil" title="Arbil">Arbil</a>.</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedrow" style="font-size:80%;"> <td align="right"><span style="position: relative; top: 0.3em;"><sup>3</sup></span></td> <td colspan="2" style="padding-left: 0em;">Arabic and Kurdish are the official languages of the Iraqi government. According to Article 4, Section 4 of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_Iraq" title="Constitution of Iraq">Iraqi Constitution</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyrian_Neo-Aramaic" title="Assyrian Neo-Aramaic">Assyrian (Syriac)</a> (a dialect of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aramaic" title="Aramaic">Aramaic</a>) and Iraqi Turkmen (a dialect of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azerbaijani_language" title="Azerbaijani language">Southern Azerbaijani</a>) languages are official in areas where the respective populations they constitute density of population.</td> </tr> <tr class="mergedbottomrow" style="font-size:80%;"> <td align="right"><span style="position: relative; top: 0.3em;"><sup>4</sup></span></td> <td colspan="2" style="padding-left: 0em;">[<a href="https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/iz.html" class="external text" title="https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/iz.html" rel="nofollow">CIA World Factbook</a>]</td></tr></tbody></table><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span class="mw-headline">Etymology</span></h2><div style="text-align: justify;">The origin of the name "Iraq" (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic" title="Arabic">Arabic</a>: العراق <span title="DIN 31635 Arabic" class="Unicode" style="white-space: normal; text-decoration: none;" lang="ar-Latn">'al-‘Irāq</span>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkish_language" title="Turkish language">Turkish</a>: Irak, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyrian_Neo-Aramaic" title="Assyrian Neo-Aramaic">Assyrian</a>: <b>ܥܪܐܩ</b>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdish_language" title="Kurdish language">Kurdish</a>: <b>عيَراق</b>) is disputed. There are several suggested origins for the name. One dates to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumer" title="Sumer">Sumerian</a> city of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uruk" title="Uruk">Uruk</a> (or Erech); another maintains that <i>Iraq</i> comes from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aramaic_language" title="Aramaic language">Aramaic language</a>, meaning "the land along the banks of the rivers"; another that <i>Iraq</i> refers to the root of a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arecaceae" title="Arecaceae">palm tree</a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"> numerous in the country.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Under the Persian <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sassanid_dynasty" title="Sassanid dynasty">Sassanid dynasty</a>, there was a region called "Erak Arabi," referring to the part of the south western region of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Empire" title="Persian Empire">Persian Empire</a> that is now part of southern Iraq. The name <i>Al-Iraq</i> was used by the Arabs themselves, from the 6th century, for the land Iraq covers.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">In English, there are several ways of pronouncing Iraq.(1) <span title="Pronunciation in IPA" class="IPA">[ɪ.ˈɹɑ(ː)k]</span>, (2) <span title="Pronunciation in IPA" class="IPA">[ɪ.ˈɹæk]</span>], (3) <span title="Pronunciation in IPA" class="IPA">[aɪ.ˈɹæk]</span>. (1) is the preferred pronunciation in most dictionaries, and the only pronunciation listed in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary" title="Oxford English Dictionary">Oxford English Dictionary</a>. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macquarie_Dictionary" title="Macquarie Dictionary">MQD</a> lists (2) first. (3) is closer to the Arabic than (2) is. The original <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_phonology" title="Arabic phonology">Arabic pronunciation</a> is <span title="Pronunciation in IPA" class="IPA">[ʕiˈrɑːq]</span>.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: justify;"><span class="mw-headline">Geography</span></h2><div style="text-align: justify;"> <i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Iraq" title="Geography of Iraq">Geography of Iraq</a></i> </div><div style="text-align: justify;" class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 177px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq_Topography.png" class="image" title="Topography of Iraq"><img alt="Topography of Iraq" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Iraq_Topography.png/175px-Iraq_Topography.png" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="169" width="175" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq_Topography.png" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Topography of Iraq</div> </div> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;" class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 177px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq_map.png" class="image" title="A scaled map of Iraq showing major cities, the Euphrates & the Tigris, the unnamed peak, and the surrounding area."><img alt="A scaled map of Iraq showing major cities, the Euphrates & the Tigris, the unnamed peak, and the surrounding area." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Iraq_map.png/175px-Iraq_map.png" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="188" width="175" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq_map.png" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> A scaled map of Iraq showing major cities, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphrates" title="Euphrates">Euphrates</a> & the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tigris" title="Tigris">Tigris</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheekah_Dar" title="Cheekah Dar">unnamed peak</a>, and the surrounding <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_east" title="Middle east">area</a>.</div> </div> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Iraq is located at <span class="plainlinksneverexpand"><img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9a/Erioll_world.svg/18px-Erioll_world.svg.png" style="padding: 0px 3px 0px 0px; cursor: pointer;" title="show location on an interactive map" /><a href="http://tools.wikimedia.de/%7Emagnus/geo/geohack.php?pagename=Iraq&params=33_00_N_44_00_E_type:country" class="external text" title="http://tools.wikimedia.de/~magnus/geo/geohack.php?pagename=Iraq&params=33_00_N_44_00_E_type:country" rel="nofollow"><span title="Maps, aerial photos, and other data for this location">33°00′N, 44°00′E</span></a></span>. Spanning 437,072 km² (168,743 sq mi), it is the 58th-largest country in the world. It is comparable in size to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US_state" title="US state">US state</a> of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California" title="California">California</a>, and somewhat larger than <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraguay" title="Paraguay">Paraguay</a>.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Iraq mainly consists of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert" title="Desert">desert</a>, but between the two major rivers (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphrates" title="Euphrates">Euphrates</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tigris" title="Tigris">Tigris</a>) the area is fertile, the rivers carrying about 60 million <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cubic_metre" title="Cubic metre">cubic metres</a> (78 million <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cubic_yard" title="Cubic yard">cu. yd</a>) of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silt" title="Silt">silt</a> annually to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_delta" title="River delta">delta</a>. The north of the country is mostly composed of mountains; the highest point being at 3,611 metres (11,847 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_%28unit_of_length%29" title="Foot (unit of length)">ft</a>) point, unnamed on the map opposite, but known locally as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheekah_Dar" title="Cheekah Dar">Cheekah Dar</a> (black tent). Iraq has a small coastline along the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Gulf" title="Persian Gulf">Persian Gulf</a>. Close to the coast and along the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shatt_al-Arab" title="Shatt al-Arab">Shatt al-Arab</a> (known as <i>arvandrūd</i>: اروندرود among Iranians) there used to be marshlands, but many were drained in the 1990s.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">The local <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate" title="Climate">climate</a> is mostly <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert" title="Desert">desert</a>, with mild to cool winters and dry, hot, cloudless summers. The northern mountainous regions have cold winters with occasional heavy snows, sometimes causing extensive flooding.</p><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><p style="text-align: justify;">Comprising 112 billion barrels of proven oil, Iraq ranks second in the world behind <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saudi_Arabia" title="Saudi Arabia">Saudi Arabia</a> in the amount of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_reserves" title="Oil reserves">Oil reserves</a>; the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Energy" title="United States Department of Energy">United States Department of Energy</a> estimates that up to 90% of the country remains unexplored. These regions could yield an additional 100 billion barrels. Iraq's oil production costs are among the lowest in the world but only about 2,000 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_well" title="Oil well">oil wells</a> have been drilled in Iraq, compared with about 1 million wells in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas" title="Texas">Texas</a> alone.<sup id="_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-2" title="">[3]</a></sup></p><br /><h2><span class="mw-headline">History</span></h2> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Iraq" title="History of Iraq">History of Iraq</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p><a name="Ancient_Mesopotamia" id="Ancient_Mesopotamia"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Ancient Mesopotamia</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesopotamia" title="Mesopotamia">Mesopotamia</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <div class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 152px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Milkau_Oberer_Teil_der_Stele_mit_dem_Text_von_Hammurapis_Gesetzescode_369-2.jpg" class="image" title="The upper part of the stela of Hammurabi's code of laws"><img alt="The upper part of the stela of Hammurabi's code of laws" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/Milkau_Oberer_Teil_der_Stele_mit_dem_Text_von_Hammurapis_Gesetzescode_369-2.jpg/150px-Milkau_Oberer_Teil_der_Stele_mit_dem_Text_von_Hammurapis_Gesetzescode_369-2.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="204" width="150" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Milkau_Oberer_Teil_der_Stele_mit_dem_Text_von_Hammurapis_Gesetzescode_369-2.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> The upper part of the stela of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammurabi" title="Hammurabi">Hammurabi</a>'s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Code_of_Hammurabi" title="Code of Hammurabi">code of laws</a></div> </div> </div> <p>The region of Iraq was historically known as Mesopotamia (Greek: "between the rivers"). It was home to the world's first known civilization, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumer" title="Sumer">Sumerian</a> culture, followed by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akkadia" title="Akkadia">Akkadian</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylon" title="Babylon">Babylonian</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyria" title="Assyria">Assyrian</a> cultures, whose influence extended into neighboring regions as early as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5th_millennium_BC" title="5th millennium BC">5000 BC</a>. These civilizations produced the earliest <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Writing" title="Writing">writing</a> and some of the first <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science" title="Science">sciences</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mathematics" title="Mathematics">mathematics</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law" title="Law">laws</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy" title="Philosophy">philosophies</a> of the world; hence its common epithet, the "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cradle_of_Civilization" title="Cradle of Civilization">Cradle of Civilization</a>".</p> <p>In the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sixth_century_BC" title="Sixth century BC">sixth century BC</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrus_the_Great" title="Cyrus the Great">Cyrus the Great</a> conquered the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-Babylonian_Empire" title="Neo-Babylonian Empire">Neo-Babylonian Empire</a>, and Mesopotamia was subsumed in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achaemenid_Empire" title="Achaemenid Empire">Achaemenid</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Empire" title="Persian Empire">Persian Empire</a> for nearly four centuries. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_the_Great" title="Alexander the Great">Alexander the Great</a> conquered the region again, putting it under <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hellenistic_civilization" title="Hellenistic civilization">Hellenistic</a> rule for nearly two centuries. A <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asian" title="Central Asian">Central Asian</a> tribe of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Iranian_peoples" title="Ancient Iranian peoples">ancient Iranian peoples</a> known as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthia" title="Parthia">Parthians</a> later annexed the region, followed by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sassanid_dynasty" title="Sassanid dynasty">Sassanid</a> Persians. The region remained a province of the Persian Empire for nine centuries, until the 7th century.</p> <p><a name="Islamic_Caliphate" id="Islamic_Caliphate"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Islamic Caliphate</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caliphate" title="Caliphate">Caliphate</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Empire" title="Arab Empire">Arab Empire</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_Golden_Age" title="Islamic Golden Age">Islamic Golden Age</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 222px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Age-of-caliphs.png" class="image" title="The Arab empire and the caliphs during their greatest extent. Under Prophet Mohammad, 622-632 Under the Patriarchal Caliphate, 632-661 Under the Umayyad Caliphate, 661-750"><img alt="The Arab empire and the caliphs during their greatest extent. Under Prophet Mohammad, 622-632 Under the Patriarchal Caliphate, 632-661 Under the Umayyad Caliphate, 661-750" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Age-of-caliphs.png/220px-Age-of-caliphs.png" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="107" width="220" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Age-of-caliphs.png" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_empire" title="Arab empire">Arab empire</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caliphate" title="Caliphate">caliphs</a> during their greatest extent. <span style="margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 1px; display: block;font-size:90;" ><span style="border: medium none rgb(161, 88, 78); background-color: rgb(161, 88, 78); color: rgb(161, 88, 78);"> </span> Under Prophet Mohammad, 622-632</span> <span style="margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 1px; display: block;font-size:90;" ><span style="border: medium none rgb(239, 144, 112); background-color: rgb(239, 144, 112); color: rgb(239, 144, 112);"> </span> Under the Patriarchal Caliphate, 632-661</span> <span style="margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 1px; display: block;font-size:90;" ><span style="border: medium none rgb(250, 208, 125); background-color: rgb(250, 208, 125); color: rgb(250, 208, 125);"> </span> Under the Umayyad Caliphate, 661-750</span></div> </div> </div> <p>Beginning in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7th_century" title="7th century">seventh century AD</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam" title="Islam">Islam</a> spread to what is now Iraq during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_conquest_of_Persia" title="Islamic conquest of Persia">Islamic conquest of Persia</a>, led by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim" title="Muslim">Muslim</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab" title="Arab">Arab</a> commander <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khalid_ibn_al-Walid" title="Khalid ibn al-Walid">Khalid ibn al-Walid</a>. Under the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashidun" title="Rashidun">Rashidun</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caliphate" title="Caliphate">Caliphate</a>, the prophet <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammed" title="Mohammed">Mohammed</a>'s cousin and son-in-law <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali" title="Ali">Ali</a> moved his capital to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kufa" title="Kufa">Kufa</a> "fi al-Iraq" when he became the fourth <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caliph" title="Caliph">caliph</a>. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umayyad" title="Umayyad">Umayyad Caliphate</a> ruled the province of Iraq from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damascus" title="Damascus">Damascus</a> in the 7th century. (However, eventually there was a separate, independent <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caliphate_of_Cordoba" title="Caliphate of Cordoba">Caliphate of Cordoba</a>.)</p> <p>The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbasid" title="Abbasid">Abbasid Caliphate</a> built the city of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad" title="Baghdad">Baghdad</a> in the 8th century as their capital, and it became the leading metropolis of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_world" title="Arab world">Arab</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim_world" title="Muslim world">Muslim world</a> for five centuries. Baghdad was the largest <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiculturalism" title="Multiculturalism">multicultural</a> city of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Ages" title="Middle Ages">Middle Ages</a>, peaking at a population of more than a million, and was the centre of learning during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_Golden_Age" title="Islamic Golden Age">Islamic Golden Age</a>. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_Empire" title="Mongol Empire">Mongols</a> destroyed the city during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Baghdad_%281258%29" title="Battle of Baghdad (1258)">sack of Baghdad</a> in the 13th century.</p> <p><a name="Mongol_Conquest" id="Mongol_Conquest"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Mongol Conquest</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Baghdad_%281258%29" title="Battle of Baghdad (1258)">Battle of Baghdad (1258)</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_invasions" title="Mongol invasions">Mongol invasions</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>In 1257, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hulagu_Khan" title="Hulagu Khan">Hulagu Khan</a> amassed an unusually large army, a significant portion of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_Empire" title="Mongol Empire">Mongol Empire</a>'s forces, for the purpose of conquering Baghdad. When they arrived at the Islamic capital, Hulagu demanded surrender but the caliph refused. This angered Hulagu, and, consistent with Mongol strategy of discouraging resistance, Baghdad was decimated. Estimates of the number of dead range from 200,000 to a million.</p> <p>The Mongols destroyed the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbasid" title="Abbasid">Abbasid Caliphate</a> and The Grand Library of Baghdad (Arabic بيت الحكمة Bayt al-Hikma, lit., <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Wisdom" title="House of Wisdom">House of Wisdom</a>), which contained countless, precious, historical documents. The city would never regain its status as major center of culture and influence.</p> <p>In 1401, warlord of Turco-Mongol descent <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamerlane" title="Tamerlane">Tamerlane</a> (Timul Lenk) invaded Iraq. After the capture of Bagdad, 20,000 of its citizens were massacred. Timur ordered that every soldier should return with at least two severed human heads to show him (many warriors were so scared they killed prisoners captured earlier in the campaign just to ensure they had heads to present to Timur).<sup id="_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-3" title="">[4]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Ottoman_Empire" id="Ottoman_Empire"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Ottoman Empire</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Empire" title="Ottoman Empire">Ottoman Empire</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamluk_rule_in_Iraq" title="Mamluk rule in Iraq">Mamluk rule in Iraq</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesopotamian_campaign" title="Mesopotamian campaign">Mesopotamian campaign</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Partitioning_of_the_Ottoman_Empire" title="Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire">Partitioning of the Ottoman Empire</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>Later, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Empire" title="Ottoman Empire">Ottoman Turks</a> took Baghdad from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persians" title="Persians">Persians</a> in 1535. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Dynasty" title="Ottoman Dynasty">The Ottomans</a> lost Baghdad to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_peoples" title="Iranian peoples">Iranian</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safavid" title="Safavid">Safavids</a> in 1609, and took it back in 1632. From 1747 to 1831, Iraq was ruled, with short intermissions, by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamluk" title="Mamluk">Mamluk</a> officers of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_%28country%29" title="Georgia (country)">Georgian</a> origin who enjoyed local autonomy from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sublime_Porte" title="Sublime Porte">Sublime Porte</a>.<sup id="_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-4" title="">[5]</a></sup> In 1831, the direct Ottoman rule was imposed and lasted until <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I" title="World War I">World War I</a>, during which the Ottomans sided with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany" title="Germany">Germany</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Powers" title="Central Powers">Central Powers</a>.</p> <p>During <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I" title="World War I">World War I</a> the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottomans" title="Ottomans">Ottomans</a> were driven from much of the area by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom" title="United Kingdom">United Kingdom</a> during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissolution_of_the_Ottoman_Empire" title="Dissolution of the Ottoman Empire">dissolution of the Ottoman Empire</a>. The British lost 92,000 soldiers in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesopotamian_campaign" title="Mesopotamian campaign">Mesopotamian campaign</a>. Ottoman losses are unknown but the British captured a total of 45,000 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prisoner_of_war" title="Prisoner of war">prisoners of war</a>. By the end of 1918 the British had deployed 410,000 men in the area, though only 112,000 were combat troops.</p> <p>During World War I the British and French divided the Middle East in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sykes-Picot_Agreement" title="Sykes-Picot Agreement">Sykes-Picot Agreement</a>. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_S%C3%A8vres" title="Treaty of Sèvres">Treaty of Sèvres</a>, which was ratified in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Lausanne" title="Treaty of Lausanne">Treaty of Lausanne</a>, led to the advent of the modern <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East" title="Middle East">Middle East</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_Turkey" title="Republic of Turkey">Republic of Turkey</a>. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/League_of_Nations" title="League of Nations">League of Nations</a> granted <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France" title="France">France</a> mandates over <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Mandate_of_Syria" title="French Mandate of Syria">Syria</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Mandate_of_Lebanon" title="French Mandate of Lebanon">Lebanon</a> and granted the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom" title="United Kingdom">United Kingdom</a> mandates over <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Mandate_of_Iraq" title="British Mandate of Iraq">Iraq</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandate_for_Palestine" title="Mandate for Palestine">Palestine</a> (which then consisted of two autonomous regions: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestine" title="Palestine">Palestine</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transjordan" title="Transjordan">Transjordan</a>). Parts of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Empire" title="Ottoman Empire">Ottoman Empire</a> on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabian_Peninsula" title="Arabian Peninsula">Arabian Peninsula</a> became parts of what are today <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saudi_Arabia" title="Saudi Arabia">Saudi Arabia</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yemen" title="Yemen">Yemen</a>.</p> <p><a name="British_Mandate_of_Mesopotamia" id="British_Mandate_of_Mesopotamia"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">British Mandate of Mesopotamia</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Mandate_of_Mesopotamia" title="British Mandate of Mesopotamia">British Mandate of Mesopotamia</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyrian_independence" title="Assyrian independence">Assyrian independence</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 192px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Baghdad-1917.jpg" class="image" title="British troops entering Baghdad."><img alt="British troops entering Baghdad." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/e1/Baghdad-1917.jpg/190px-Baghdad-1917.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="140" width="190" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Baghdad-1917.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom" title="United Kingdom">British</a> troops entering <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad" title="Baghdad">Baghdad</a>.</div> </div> </div> <p>At the end of World War I, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/League_of_Nations" title="League of Nations">League of Nations</a> granted the area to the United Kingdom as a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/League_of_Nations_Mandate" title="League of Nations Mandate">mandate</a>. It initially formed two former <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Empire" title="Ottoman Empire">Ottoman</a> <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vilayet" title="Vilayet">vilayets</a></i> (regions): <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad_Province%2C_Ottoman_Empire" title="Baghdad Province, Ottoman Empire">Baghdad</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basra_Province%2C_Ottoman_Empire" title="Basra Province, Ottoman Empire">Basra</a> into a single country in August 1921. Five years later, in 1926, the northern vilayet of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosul_Province%2C_Ottoman_Empire" title="Mosul Province, Ottoman Empire">Mosul</a> was added, forming the territorial boundaries of the modern Iraqi state.</p> <p>For three out of four centuries of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottomans" title="Ottomans">Ottoman</a> rule, Baghdad was the seat of administration for the vilayets of Baghdad, Mosul, and Basra. During the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Mandate_of_Mesopotamia" title="British Mandate of Mesopotamia">mandate</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Empire" title="British Empire">British colonial</a> administrators ruled the country, and through the use of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Armed_Forces" title="British Armed Forces">British armed forces</a>, suppressed Arab and Kurdish rebellions against the occupation. They established the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hashemite" title="Hashemite">Hashemite</a> king, Faisal, who had been forced out of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria" title="Syria">Syria</a> by the French, as their client ruler. Likewise, British authorities selected Sunni Arab elites from the region for appointments to government and ministry offices.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template"><span title="The text preceeding this tag needs specification since April 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">specify</a></i>]</span></sup><sup id="_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-5" title="">[6]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Hashemite_monarchy" id="Hashemite_monarchy"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Hashemite monarchy</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hashemite" title="Hashemite">Hashemite</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>Britain granted independence to Iraq in 1932, on the urging of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faisal_I_of_Iraq" title="Faisal I of Iraq">King Faisal</a>, though the British retained <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_base" title="Military base">military bases</a> and transit rights for their forces. King <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghazi_of_Iraq" title="Ghazi of Iraq">Ghazi of Iraq</a> ruled as a figurehead after King Faisal's death in 1933, while undermined by attempted military coups, until his death in 1939. The United Kingdom invaded Iraq in 1941, for fear that the government of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashid_Ali" title="Rashid Ali">Rashid Ali</a> might cut oil supplies to Western nations, and because of his strong ideological leanings to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_Germany" title="Nazi Germany">Nazi Germany</a>. A <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_occupation" title="Military occupation">military occupation</a> followed the restoration of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hashemite" title="Hashemite">Hashemite</a> monarchy, and the occupation ended on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_26" title="October 26">October 26</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1947" title="1947">1947</a>. The rulers during the occupation and the remainder of the Hashemite monarchy were <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuri_al-Said" title="Nuri al-Said">Nuri al-Said</a>, the autocratic prime minister, who also ruled from 1930–1932, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%27Abd_al-Ilah" title="'Abd al-Ilah">'Abd al-Ilah</a>, an advisor to the king <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faisal_II" title="Faisal II">Faisal II</a>.</p> <p><a name="Republic_of_Iraq" id="Republic_of_Iraq"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Republic of Iraq</span></h3> <p>The reinstated <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hashemite" title="Hashemite">Hashemite</a> monarchy lasted until 1958, when it was overthrown by a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coup_d%27etat" title="Coup d'etat">coup d'etat</a> of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Army" title="Iraqi Army">Iraqi Army</a>, known as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14_July_Revolution" title="14 July Revolution">14 July Revolution</a>. The coup brought <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigadier_General" title="Brigadier General">Brigadier General</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul_Karim_Qassim" title="Abdul Karim Qassim">Abdul Karim Qassim</a> to power. He withdrew from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad_Pact" title="Baghdad Pact">Baghdad Pact</a> and established friendly relations with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_Union" title="Soviet Union">Soviet Union</a>, but his government lasted only until 1963, when it was overthrown by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonel" title="Colonel">Colonel</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul_Salam_Arif" title="Abdul Salam Arif">Abdul Salam Arif</a>. Salam Arif died in 1966 and his brother, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdul_Rahman_Arif" title="Abdul Rahman Arif">Abdul Rahman Arif</a>, assumed the presidency. In 1968, Rahman Arif was overthrown by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_socialism" title="Arab socialism">Arab Socialist</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baath_Party" title="Baath Party">Baath Party</a>. This movement gradually came under the control of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein al-Majid al Tikriti</a>, who acceded to the presidency and control of the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC), then Iraq's supreme executive body, in July 1979, while killing many of his opponents.</p> <p><a name="Saddam_Hussein" id="Saddam_Hussein"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Saddam Hussein</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>Saddam's regime lasted throughout the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-Iraq_War" title="Iran-Iraq War">Iran-Iraq War</a> (1980–1988), during which Iraqi forces attacked <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_of_Iran" title="Military of Iran">Iranian soldiers</a> and civilians with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_warfare" title="Chemical warfare">chemical weapons</a>. This period is notorious for the Saddam regime's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_Saddam_Hussein%27s_Iraq" title="Human rights in Saddam Hussein's Iraq">human rights abuses</a>, for instance, during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Anfal_campaign" title="Al-Anfal campaign">Al-Anfal campaign</a>.<sup id="_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-6" title="">[7]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-7" title="">[8]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-8" title="">[9]</a></sup> The war ended in stalemate, largely due to American and Western support for Iraq. This was part of the US policy of "dual containment" of Iraq and Iran.</p> <p>In 1977, the Iraqi government ordered the construction of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osirak" title="Osirak">Osirak</a> (also spelled Osiraq) at the Al Tuwaitha Nuclear Research Center, 18 km (11 miles) south-east of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad" title="Baghdad">Baghdad</a>. It was a 40 MW <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_water" title="Light water">light-water</a> nuclear materials testing reactor (MTR). In 1981, Israeli aircraft <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Opera" title="Operation Opera">bombed the facility</a>, in order to prevent the country from using the reactor for creation of nuclear weapons.</p> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War" title="Gulf War">Gulf War</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>In 1990, Iraq <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Kuwait" title="Invasion of Kuwait">invaded</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuwait" title="Kuwait">Kuwait</a>, resulting in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War" title="Gulf War">Gulf War</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_sanctions" title="Economic sanctions">economic sanctions</a> imposed by the United Nations at the behest of the U.S. The economic sanctions were intended to compel Saddam to dispose of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Weapons of mass destruction">weapons of mass destruction</a>.<sup id="_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-9" title="">[10]</a></sup> Critics estimate that more than 500,000 Iraqi children died as a result of the sanctions.<sup id="_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-10" title="">[11]</a></sup> The U.S. and the UK declared <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No-fly_zone" title="No-fly zone">no-fly zones</a> over Kurdish northern and Shiite southern Iraq to oversee the Kurds and southern Shiites.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template"><span title="The text preceeding this tag needs specification since April 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">specify</a></i>]</span></sup></p> <p><a name="Invasion_by_American-led_Coalition_forces" id="Invasion_by_American-led_Coalition_forces"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Invasion by American-led Coalition forces</span></h3> <div class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 252px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:BaghdadSign.jpg" class="image" title="Downtown Baghdad monument of Saddam Hussein vandalized by Iraqis shortly after the Occupation of Coalition Forces in April 2003."><img alt="Downtown Baghdad monument of Saddam Hussein vandalized by Iraqis shortly after the Occupation of Coalition Forces in April 2003." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/62/BaghdadSign.jpg/250px-BaghdadSign.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="178" width="250" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:BaghdadSign.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Downtown <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad" title="Baghdad">Baghdad</a> monument of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a> vandalized by Iraqis shortly after the Occupation of Coalition Forces in April 2003.</div> </div> </div> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 invasion of Iraq">2003 invasion of Iraq</a></i></div> </dd><dd><i>Further information: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_War" title="Iraq War">Iraq War</a></i></dd></dl> <p>In March 2003, a United States-organized coalition <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 invasion of Iraq">invaded</a> Iraq, with the stated reason that Iraq had failed to abandon its nuclear and chemical weapons development program in violation of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations" title="United Nations">United Nations</a> <b>resolution 687</b>. When Iraq invaded Kuwait during the first Gulf War, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council" title="United Nations Security Council">United Nations Security Council</a>, under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, adopted <b>resolution 678</b>, authorizing U.N. member states to use <i>"all necessary means"</i> to "restore <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peacekeeping" title="Peacekeeping">international peace and security</a> in the area." After Iraq was expelled from Kuwait the United Nations passed a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceasefire" title="Ceasefire">cease-fire</a> resolution 687. The agreement included provisions obligating Iraq to discontinue its <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon" title="Nuclear weapon">nuclear weapons</a> program. The United States asserted that because Iraq was in "material breach" of resolution 687, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armed_forces" title="Armed forces">armed forces</a> authorization of resolution 678 was revived.</p> <p>The United States gave further justification for the invasion of Iraq in claims that Iraq had <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Weapons of mass destruction">weapons of mass destruction</a> and the opportunity to remove an oppressive dictator from power and bring democracy to Iraq. In his State of Union Address on January 29, 2002, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_the_United_States" title="President of the United States">the American President</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush" title="George W. Bush">George W. Bush</a> declared that Iraq was a member of the "axis of evil", and that, like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korea" title="North Korea">North Korea</a> and Iran, Iraq's attempt to acquire weapons of mass destruction gave credence to the claim that the Iraqi government posed a serious threat to America's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_security" title="National security">national security</a>. He added, "Iraq continues to flaunt its hostilities toward America and to support terror. The Iraqi regime has plotted to develop anthrax, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerve_agent" title="Nerve agent">nerve gas</a>, and nuclear weapons for over a decade... This is a regime that agreed to international inspections—then kicked out inspectors. This is a regime that has something to hide from the civilized world... By seeking weapons of mass destruction, these regimes [Iran, Iraq and North Korea] pose a grave and growing danger. They could provide these arms to terrorists, giving them the means to match their hatred."<sup id="_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-11" title="">[12]</a></sup> No weapons of mass destruction were ever found. <sup id="_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-12" title="">[13]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Post-invasion" id="Post-invasion"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Post-invasion</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-invasion_Iraq%2C_2003%E2%80%93present" title="Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–present">Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–present</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 252px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq_2003_occupation.png" class="image" title="Occupation zones in Iraq after invasion."><img alt="Occupation zones in Iraq after invasion." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/d1/Iraq_2003_occupation.png/250px-Iraq_2003_occupation.png" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="182" width="250" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq_2003_occupation.png" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_force_in_Iraq" title="Multinational force in Iraq">Occupation zones</a> in Iraq after invasion.</div> </div> </div> <p>Following the invasion, the United States established the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_Provisional_Authority" title="Coalition Provisional Authority">Coalition Provisional Authority</a> to govern Iraq.<sup id="_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-13" title="">[14]</a></sup> Government authority was transferred to an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Interim_Government" title="Iraqi Interim Government">Iraqi Interim Government</a> in June 2004 and a permanent government was elected in October 2005. More than 140,000 Coalition troops remain in Iraq.</p> <p>Studies have placed the number of civilians deaths as high as 655,000 (see <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancet_surveys_of_mortality_before_and_after_the_2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="Lancet surveys of mortality before and after the 2003 invasion of Iraq">The Lancet study</a>), although most studies have put the number much lower: the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Body_Count_project" title="Iraq Body Count project">Iraq Body Count project</a> has a figure of less than 10% of The Lancet Study. The website of the Iraq body count however states, "Our maximum therefore refers to reported deaths - which can only be a sample of true deaths unless one assumes that every civilian death has been reported. It is likely that many if not most <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_casualties" title="Civilian casualties">civilian casualties</a> will go unreported by the media." <sup id="_ref-14" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-14" title="">[15]</a></sup>.</p> <p>After the invasion, al-Qaeda took advantage of the insurgency to entrench itself in the country concurrently with an Arab-Sunni led insurgency and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sectarian_violence" title="Sectarian violence">sectarian violence</a>.</p> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">December 30</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>, Saddam Hussein was hanged <sup id="_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-15" title="">[16]</a></sup>. Hussein's half-brother and former intelligence chief <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barzan_Ibrahim_al-Tikriti" title="Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti">Barzan Hassan</a> and former <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chief_judge" title="Chief judge">chief judge</a> of the Revolutionary Court <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Awad_Hamed_al-Bandar" title="Awad Hamed al-Bandar">Awad Hamed al-Bandar</a> were likewise executed on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_15" title="January 15">January 15</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>;<sup id="_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-16" title="">[17]</a></sup> as was <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taha_Yassin_Ramadan" title="Taha Yassin Ramadan">Taha Yassin Ramadan</a>, Saddam's former deputy and former vice-president (originally sentenced to life in prison but later to death by hanging), on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_20" title="March 20">March 20</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a><sup id="_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-17" title="">[18]</a></sup>. Ramadan was the fourth and last man in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trial_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Trial of Saddam Hussein">al-Dujail trial</a> to die by hanging for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime_against_humanity" title="Crime against humanity">crimes against humanity</a>.</p> <p>At the Anfal genocide trial, Saddam's cousin <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Hassan_al-Majid" title="Ali Hassan al-Majid">Ali Hassan al-Majid</a> (aka Chemical Ali), former defense minister <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sultan_Hashim_Ahmed" title="Sultan Hashim Ahmed">Sultan Hashim Ahmed</a> al-Tay, and former deputy Hussein Rashid Mohammed were sentenced to hang for their role in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Anfal_Campaign" title="Al-Anfal Campaign">Al-Anfal Campaign</a> against the Kurds on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_24" title="June 24">June 24</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a><sup class="noprint Template-Fact"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources since August 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">citation needed</a></i>]</span></sup>.</p> <p>Acts of sectarian violence have led to claims of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_cleansing" title="Ethnic cleansing">ethnic cleansing</a> in Iraq, and there have been many attacks on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_minorities" title="Iraqi minorities">Iraqi minorities</a> such as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yezidi" title="Yezidi">Yezidis</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandean" title="Mandean">Mandeans</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyrian" title="Assyrian">Assyrians</a> and others.<sup id="_ref-18" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-18" title="">[19]</a></sup></p> <p>In 2007 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_Policy_Magazine" title="Foreign Policy Magazine">Foreign Policy Magazine</a> named Iraq as the second most unstable nation in the world after <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudan" title="Sudan">Sudan</a><sup id="_ref-19" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-19" title="">[20]</a></sup>.</p> <p>The U.N. reported recently of a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Iraq_cholera_outbreak" title="2007 Iraq cholera outbreak">cholera outbreak in Iraq</a>.<sup id="_ref-20" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-20" title="">[21]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Iraqi_diaspora" id="Iraqi_diaspora"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Iraqi diaspora</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_diaspora" title="Iraqi diaspora">Iraqi diaspora</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugees_of_Iraq" title="Refugees of Iraq">Refugees of Iraq</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>The dispersion of native Iraqis to other countries is known as the Iraqi diaspora. There have been many large-scale waves of emigration from Iraq, beginning early in the regime of Saddam Hussein and continuing through to 2007. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN_High_Commission_for_Refugees" title="UN High Commission for Refugees">UN High Commission for Refugees</a> has estimated that nearly two million Iraqis have fled the country in recent years, mostly to Jordan and Syria<sup id="_ref-21" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-21" title="">[22]</a></sup>. Although some expatriates returned to Iraq after the 2003 invasion, the flow had virtually stopped by 2006<sup id="_ref-22" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-22" title="">[23]</a></sup>.</p> <p>In addition to the 2 million Iraqis who fled to neighbouring countries, the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre estimates the number of people currently displaced within the country at 1.9 million<sup id="_ref-23" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-23" title="">[24]</a></sup>.</p> <p>Roughly 40% of Iraq's middle class is believed to have fled, the U.N. said. Most are fleeing systematic persecution and have no desire to return.<sup id="_ref-24" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-24" title="">[25]</a></sup> Refugees are mired in poverty as they are generally barred from working in their host countries.<sup id="_ref-25" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-25" title="">[26]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-26" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq#_note-26" title="">[27]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Governorates_and_districts" id="Governorates_and_districts"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">Governorates and districts</span></h2> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Governorates_of_Iraq" title="Governorates of Iraq">Governorates of Iraq</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Districts_of_Iraq" title="Districts of Iraq">Districts of Iraq</a></i></div> </dd><dd><i>Further information: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federalism_in_Iraq" title="Federalism in Iraq">Federalism in Iraq</a></i></dd></dl> <p>Iraq is divided into eighteen <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Governorate" title="Governorate">governorates</a> (or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Province" title="Province">provinces</a>) (Arabic: <i>muhafadhat</i>, singular - <i>muhafadhah</i>, Kurdish: پاریزگه <i>Pârizgah</i>). The governorates are subdivided into <i>districts</i> (or <i>qadhas</i>).</p> <div class="floatright"><span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:IraqNumberedRegions.png" class="image" title="IraqNumberedRegions.png"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/IraqNumberedRegions.png/200px-IraqNumberedRegions.png" border="0" height="201" width="200" /></a></span></div> <table align="center" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/2825069221616283036-8452637017130755850?l=new-dinar-iraq.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>nogo dininoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2825069221616283036.post-11777343198099190522007-11-28T03:22:00.000-08:002007-12-08T01:18:12.282-08:00IRAQ WAR<span style="font-size: 100%;"><tt><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">If you want to see a full History of the strengthening Iraqi Dinar click on the following link ==></span></span></tt></span><br /><tt><tt><a target="_blank" href="http://www.cbiraq.org/C.B.I.%20FOREIGN%20EXCHANGE%20AUCTIONS.pdf"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1196229948_0">http://www.cbiraq.org/C.B.I.%20FOREIGN%20EXCHANGE%20AUCTIONS.pdf</span></a><br /><br /></tt></tt><h3 style="font-weight: normal; font-style: italic;" id="siteSub"><span style="font-size:78%;">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</span></h3><div class="dablink">This article is about the war beginning in 2003. For other uses, see <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_war_%28disambiguation%29" title="Iraq war (disambiguation)">Iraq war (disambiguation)</a>.</div> <table style="float: right;"> <tbody><tr> <td> <table class="infobox" style="width: 315px; border-spacing: 2px; text-align: left; font-size: 90%;"> <tbody><tr> <th colspan="2" style="background: lightsteelblue none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Iraq War</th> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); text-align: center; font-size: 90%; line-height: 1.25em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq_header_2.jpg" class="image" title="Iraq header 2.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Iraq_header_2.jpg" border="0" height="278" width="300" /></a><br />Clockwise, starting at top left: a joint patrol in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samarra" title="Samarra">Samarra</a>; the toppling of the Saddam Hussein statue in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firdos_Square" title="Firdos Square">Firdos Square</a>; an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Army" title="Iraqi Army">Iraqi Army</a> soldier readies his rifle during an assault; an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Improvised_explosive_device" title="Improvised explosive device">IED</a> detonates in South Baghdad.</td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <table class="infobox" style="border: 0pt none ; margin: 0pt; padding: 0pt;" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <th style="padding-right: 1em;">Date</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_20" title="March 20">March 20</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a> – present</td> </tr> <tr> <th style="padding-right: 1em;">Location</th> <td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq" title="Iraq">Iraq</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th style="padding-right: 1em;">Result</th> <td>Occupation <ul><li>Overthrow of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baath_Party" title="Baath Party">Baath Party</a> government and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Execution of Saddam Hussein">execution of Saddam Hussein</a>.</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Worsening_humanitarian_crisis" title="">Humanitarian crisis</a> in Iraq.</li><li>Emergence of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_insurgency" title="Iraqi insurgency">Iraqi insurgency</a> and outbreak of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_war_in_Iraq" title="Civil war in Iraq">civil war in Iraq</a>.<sup id="_ref-0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-0" title="">[1]</a></sup></li><li>Widespread infrastructure damage<sup id="_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-1" title="">[2]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-2" title="">[3]</a></sup></li><li>Privatisation of Iraqi services</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_occupied_Iraq" title="Human rights in occupied Iraq">Human rights abuses</a> in Iraq</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_legislative_election%2C_December_2005" title="Iraqi legislative election, December 2005">Election</a> of a new <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Iraq_from_2006" title="Government of Iraq from 2006">government</a></li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda" title="Al-Qaeda">Al-Qaeda</a> terror operations in Iraq.<sup id="_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-3" title="">[4]</a></sup></li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Iraq_War" title="Casualties of the Iraq War">Tens to hundreds of thousands of Iraqis killed</a><sup id="_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-4" title="">[5]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-5" title="">[6]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-6" title="">[7]</a></sup></li><li>~<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugees_of_Iraq" title="Refugees of Iraq">4 million displaced</a></li></ul> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2" style="background: lightsteelblue none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Combatants</th> </tr> <tr> <td style="border-right: 1px dotted rgb(170, 170, 170);" width="50%"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_Iraq%2C_1991-2004.svg" class="image" title="Flag of Iraq, 1991-2004.svg"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Flag_of_Iraq%2C_1991-2004.svg/22px-Flag_of_Iraq%2C_1991-2004.svg.png" border="0" height="15" width="22" /></a> Baathist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq" title="Iraq">Iraq</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_Ba%27ath_Party.png" class="image" title="Flag of the Ba'ath Party.png"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Flag_of_the_Ba%27ath_Party.png/22px-Flag_of_the_Ba%27ath_Party.png" border="0" height="15" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baath_Party" title="Baath Party">Baath Party Loyalists</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahdi_Army" title="Mahdi Army">Mahdi Army</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg" class="image" title="Flag of al-Qaeda.svg"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg/22px-Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg.png" border="0" height="13" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda_in_Iraq" title="Al-Qaeda in Iraq">al-Qaeda in Iraq</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_insurgency" title="Iraqi insurgency">Other Insurgent groups</a></td> <td style="padding-left: 0.25em;" width="50%"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg" class="image" title="Flag of the United States"><img alt="Flag of the United States" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="12" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States" title="United States">United States</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_Iraq.svg" class="image" title="Flag of Iraq"><img alt="Flag of Iraq" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Flag_of_Iraq.svg/22px-Flag_of_Iraq.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="15" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Iraqi_Army" title="New Iraqi Army">New Iraqi Army</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_Kurdistan.svg" class="image" title="Flag of Kurdistan.svg"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/35/Flag_of_Kurdistan.svg/22px-Flag_of_Kurdistan.svg.png" border="0" height="15" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Kurdistan" title="Iraqi Kurdistan">Iraqi Kurdistan</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:MultinationalForce-IraqDUI.jpg" class="image" title="MultinationalForce-IraqDUI.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/MultinationalForce-IraqDUI.jpg/22px-MultinationalForce-IraqDUI.jpg" border="0" height="22" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_force_in_Iraq" title="Multinational force in Iraq">Other Coalition forces</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2" style="background: lightsteelblue none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Commanders</th> </tr> <tr> <td style="border-right: 1px dotted rgb(170, 170, 170);" width="50%"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_Iraq%2C_1991-2004.svg" class="image" title="Flag of Iraq, 1991-2004.svg"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Flag_of_Iraq%2C_1991-2004.svg/22px-Flag_of_Iraq%2C_1991-2004.svg.png" border="0" height="15" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrender_%28military%29" title="Surrender (military)"><sup>#</sup></a><sup id="_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-7" title="">[8]</a></sup><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_Iraq.svg" class="image" title="Flag of Iraq"><img alt="Flag of Iraq" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Flag_of_Iraq.svg/22px-Flag_of_Iraq.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="15" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muqtada_al-Sadr" title="Muqtada al-Sadr">Muqtada al-Sadr</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_Ba%27ath_Party.png" class="image" title="Flag of the Ba'ath Party.png"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Flag_of_the_Ba%27ath_Party.png/22px-Flag_of_the_Ba%27ath_Party.png" border="0" height="15" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izzat_Ibrahim_ad-Douri" title="Izzat Ibrahim ad-Douri">Izzat Ibrahim ad-Douri</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:IAILogo.gif" class="image" title="IAILogo.gif"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/2c/IAILogo.gif/22px-IAILogo.gif" border="0" height="17" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishmael_Jubouri" title="Ishmael Jubouri">Ishmael Jubouri</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg" class="image" title="Flag of al-Qaeda.svg"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg/22px-Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg.png" border="0" height="13" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Musab_al-Zarqawi" title="Abu Musab al-Zarqawi">Abu Musab al-Zarqawi</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killed_in_action" title="Killed in action"><span class="Unicode">☠</span></a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg" class="image" title="Flag of al-Qaeda.svg"><img alt="" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg/22px-Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg.png" border="0" height="13" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Ayyub_al-Masri" title="Abu Ayyub al-Masri">Abu Ayyub al-Masri</a></td> <td style="padding-left: 0.25em;" width="50%"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg" class="image" title="Flag of the United States"><img alt="Flag of the United States" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="12" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush" title="George W. Bush">George W. Bush</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg" class="image" title="Flag of the United States"><img alt="Flag of the United States" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="12" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Franks" title="Tommy Franks">Tommy Franks</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg" class="image" title="Flag of the United States"><img alt="Flag of the United States" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="12" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ricardo_Sanchez" title="Ricardo Sanchez">Ricardo Sanchez</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg" class="image" title="Flag of the United States"><img alt="Flag of the United States" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="12" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Casey" title="George Casey">George Casey</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg" class="image" title="Flag of the United States"><img alt="Flag of the United States" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="12" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Petraeus" title="David Petraeus">David Petraeus</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg" class="image" title="Flag of the United Kingdom"><img alt="Flag of the United Kingdom" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="11" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Blair" title="Tony Blair">Tony Blair</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg" class="image" title="Flag of the United Kingdom"><img alt="Flag of the United Kingdom" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="11" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Brown" title="Gordon Brown">Gordon Brown</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg" class="image" title="Flag of the United Kingdom"><img alt="Flag of the United Kingdom" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="11" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Burridge" title="Brian Burridge">Brian Burridge</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_Iraq.svg" class="image" title="Flag of Iraq"><img alt="Flag of Iraq" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Flag_of_Iraq.svg/22px-Flag_of_Iraq.svg.png" class="thumbborder" border="0" height="15" width="22" /></a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nouri_al-Maliki" title="Nouri al-Maliki">Nouri al-Maliki</a></td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2" style="background: lightsteelblue none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Strength</th> </tr> <tr> <td style="border-right: 1px dotted rgb(170, 170, 170);" width="50%"><b>Iraqi</b> (under Saddam Hussein):<br />375,000+ regular forces. <sup class="noprint Template-Fact"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources since March 2007" style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">citation needed</a></i>]</span></sup> <hr /> <p>Post-Baathist government, multi-sided conflict:<br /><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_insurgency#Sunni_Islamists" title="Iraqi insurgency">Sunni Insurgents</a></b><br />Unknown<b><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahdi_Army" title="Mahdi Army">Mahdi Army</a></b><br />~60,000<sup id="_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-8" title="">[9]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-9" title="">[10]</a></sup><br /><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Qaeda" title="Al Qaeda">al Qaeda</a>/others</b><br />1,300+<sup id="_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-10" title="">[11]</a></sup></p> </td> <td style="padding-left: 0.25em;" width="50%"><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_Force_Iraq" title="Multinational Force Iraq">Coalition</a></b><br />~300,000 invasion<br />~177,000 current<br /><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_military_company" title="Private military company">Contractors</a></b><sup>*</sup><br />~182,000 (118,000 Iraqi, 43,000 Other, 21,000 US)<sup id="_ref-LATcontractors_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-LATcontractors" title="">[12]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-contractorsguardian_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-contractorsguardian" title="">[13]</a></sup><br /><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshmerga" title="Peshmerga">Kurdish Army</a></b><br />50,000 invasion<br />175,000 current<br /><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Iraqi_Army" title="New Iraqi Army">New Iraqi Army</a></b><br />165,000<br /><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Police" title="Iraqi Police">Iraqi Police</a></b><br />227,000<sup id="_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-11" title="">[14]</a></sup></td> </tr> <tr> <th colspan="2" style="background: lightsteelblue none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Casualties</th> </tr> <tr> <td style="border-right: 1px dotted rgb(170, 170, 170);" width="50%"><b>Iraqi combatant dead</b> (during invasion period before <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baath_Party" title="Baath Party">Baathist</a> government fell): 7,600 to 10,800<sup id="_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-12" title="">[15]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-13" title="">[16]</a></sup> <hr /> <p><b>Insurgents dead</b> (After <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a>'s Baathist government fell): 13,962-20,266 listed on a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_insurgents_killed_in_Iraq" title="List of insurgents killed in Iraq">representative list of reports</a>.<br />19,429 According to U.S. military (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_26" title="September 26">26 September</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a>) <sup id="_ref-insurgents_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-insurgents" title="">[17]</a></sup></p> <hr /> <p><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detainee" title="Detainee">Detainees</a> (held by Coalition):</b> 23,000<sup id="_ref-brookings_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-brookings" title="">[18]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-14" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-14" title="">[19]</a></sup><br /><b>Detainees (held by Iraq):</b> 37,000<sup id="_ref-brookings_1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-brookings" title="">[18]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-15" title="">[20]</a></sup></p> </td> <td style="padding-left: 0.25em;" width="50%"><b>Iraqi Security Forces</b> (After Saddam. Allied with Coalition). Total police and military killed: 7,479<sup id="_ref-brookings_2" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-brookings" title="">[18]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-16" title="">[21]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-icasualties-iraqi_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-icasualties-iraqi" title="">[22]</a></sup> <p><b>Coalition dead</b> (3,839 US, 171 UK, 132 other): 4,142<sup id="_ref-icasualties_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-icasualties" title="">[23]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-mil_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-mil" title="">[24]</a></sup></p> <p><b>Coalition missing or captured</b> (US): 4<sup id="_ref-mil_1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-mil" title="">[24]</a></sup></p> <p><b>Coalition <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wounded_in_action" title="Wounded in action">wounded</a>:</b> 28,171 US, ~300 UK.<sup id="_ref-mil_2" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-mil" title="">[24]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-antiwarcasualties_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-antiwarcasualties" title="">[25]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-ukcasualties_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-ukcasualties" title="">[26]</a></sup></p> <p><b>Coalition injured, diseased, or other medical:</b>** 28,645 US, 1,155 UK.<sup id="_ref-mil_3" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-mil" title="">[24]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-icasualties_1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-icasualties" title="">[23]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-ukcasualties_1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-ukcasualties" title="">[26]</a></sup></p> <p><b>Contractors dead</b> (US 231): 1,003<sup id="_ref-contractors7_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-contractors7" title="">[27]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-contractors1_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-contractors1" title="">[28]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-17" title="">[29]</a></sup></p> <p><b>Contractors <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_hostages_in_Iraq" title="Foreign hostages in Iraq">missing or captured</a></b> (US 9): 17</p> <p><b>Contractors wounded & injured</b>: 10,569<sup id="_ref-contractors7_1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-contractors7" title="">[27]</a></sup></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="border-top: 1px dotted rgb(170, 170, 170); text-align: center;"><b>All Iraqi violent deaths, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ORB_survey_of_casualties_of_the_Iraq_War" title="ORB survey of casualties of the Iraq War">Opinion Research Business</a>.</b> As of August 2007: <b>1,220,580</b> (range of 733,158 to 1,446,063). Causes were gunshots (48%), car bombs (20%), aerial bombing (9%), accidents (6%), another blast/ordnance (6%). <sup id="_ref-ORB_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-ORB" title="">[30]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-LAtimes_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-LAtimes" title="">[31]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-observer_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-observer" title="">[32]</a></sup> <p><b>***Total deaths (all excess deaths) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancet_surveys_of_casualties_of_the_Iraq_War" title="Lancet surveys of casualties of the Iraq War">Johns Hopkins (Lancet)</a></b> - As of June 2006: <b>654,965</b> (range of 392,979 to 942,636). 601,027 were violent deaths (31% attributed to Coalition, 24% to others, 46% unknown)<sup id="_ref-Second_Lancet_Study_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-Second_Lancet_Study" title="">[33]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-Lancet_supplement_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-Lancet_supplement" title="">[34]</a></sup></p> <p><b>War-related & criminal violence deaths (all Iraqis) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_al-Shemari" title="Ali al-Shemari">Iraq Health Minister</a>.</b> Through early November 2006: <b>100,000-150,000</b><sup id="_ref-taipei_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-taipei" title="">[35]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-tribune_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-tribune" title="">[36]</a></sup></p> <p><b>War-related & criminal violence deaths (civilians) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Body_Count_project" title="Iraq Body Count project">Iraq Body Count</a></b> - English language media only: <b>69,045-75,495</b><sup id="_ref-18" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-18" title="">[37]</a></sup></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" style="border-top: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); font-size: 90%;"><b>*</b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_military_company" title="Private military company">Contractors</a> (U.S. government) perform "often highly dangerous duties almost identical to those performed by many U.S. troops."<sup id="_ref-contractorsguardian_1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-contractorsguardian" title="">[13]</a></sup><br /><b>**</b> "injured, diseased, or other medical" - all required medical air transport. UK number includes wounded, too ("aeromed evacuations"). <sup id="_ref-mil_4" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-mil" title="">[24]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-icasualties_2" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-icasualties" title="">[23]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-ukcasualties_2" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-ukcasualties" title="">[26]</a></sup><br />***<b>Total deaths</b> include all additional deaths due to increased lawlessness, degraded infrastructure, poorer healthcare, etc.<br />For explanations of the wide variation in casualty estimates, see: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Iraq_War" title="Casualties of the Iraq War">Casualties of the Iraq War</a></td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <table id="collapsibleTable0" class="navbox collapsible autocollapse nowraplinks" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.5em 1em; float: right; clear: right; width: 315px;"> <tbody><tr> <th colspan="1" style="background: lightsteelblue none repeat scroll 0% 50%; text-align: center; width: 100%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;font-size:90%;"><span style="float: right; font-weight: normal; text-align: right; width: 6em;">[<a href="javascript:collapseTable(0);" id="collapseButton0">show</a>]</span> <span style="font-size:110;"><strong class="selflink">Iraq War</strong></span></th> </tr> <tr style="display: none;"> <td colspan="1" style="text-align: center; width: 100%; font-size: 95%;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 invasion of Iraq">Invasion</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-invasion_Iraq%2C_2003%E2%80%93present" title="Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–present">Post-invasion</a> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_insurgency" title="Iraqi insurgency">Insurgency</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_war_in_Iraq" title="Civil war in Iraq">Civil war</a>) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_military_operations_of_the_Iraq_War" title="Coalition military operations of the Iraq War">Battles & operations</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorist_attacks_of_the_Iraq_War" title="Terrorist attacks of the Iraq War">Bombings and terrorist attacks</a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <table id="collapsibleTable1" class="navbox collapsible autocollapse nowraplinks" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.5em 1em; float: right; clear: right; width: 315px;"> <tbody><tr> <th colspan="1" style="background: lightsteelblue none repeat scroll 0% 50%; text-align: center; width: 100%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;font-size:90%;"><span style="float: right; font-weight: normal; text-align: right; width: 6em;">[<a href="javascript:collapseTable(1);" id="collapseButton1">show</a>]</span> <div style="float: left; width: 6em; text-align: left;"> <div class="noprint plainlinksneverexpand" style="padding: 0pt; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-size: xx-small; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Campaignbox_Persian_Gulf_Wars" title="Template:Campaignbox Persian Gulf Wars"><span title="View this template">v</span></a> <span style="font-size:80;">•</span> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template_talk:Campaignbox_Persian_Gulf_Wars" title="Template talk:Campaignbox Persian Gulf Wars"><span title="Discussion about this template">d</span></a> <span style="font-size:80;">•</span> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Campaignbox_Persian_Gulf_Wars&action=edit" class="external text" title="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Campaignbox_Persian_Gulf_Wars&action=edit" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: rgb(0, 43, 184);" title="You can edit this template. Please use the preview button before saving.">e</span></a></div> </div> <span style="font-size:110;">Recent wars in the</span> <p style="margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 1px;"><span style="font-size:110;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Gulf" title="Persian Gulf">Persian Gulf</a></span></p> </th> </tr> <tr style="display: none;"> <td colspan="1" style="text-align: center; width: 100%; font-size: 95%;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-Iraq_War" title="Iran-Iraq War">Iran-Iraq War</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War" title="Gulf War">Gulf War</a> – <strong class="selflink">Iraq War</strong><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <table id="collapsibleTable2" class="navbox collapsible autocollapse nowraplinks" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0.5em 1em; float: right; clear: right; width: 315px;"> <tbody><tr> <th colspan="1" style="background: lightsteelblue none repeat scroll 0% 50%; text-align: center; width: 100%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;font-size:90%;"><span style="float: right; font-weight: normal; text-align: right; width: 6em;">[<a href="javascript:collapseTable(2);" id="collapseButton2">show</a>]</span> <div style="float: left; width: 6em; text-align: left;"> <div class="noprint plainlinksneverexpand" style="padding: 0pt; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-size: xx-small; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Campaignbox_War_on_Terror" title="Template:Campaignbox War on Terror"><span title="View this template">v</span></a> <span style="font-size:80;">•</span> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template_talk:Campaignbox_War_on_Terror&action=edit" class="new" title="Template talk:Campaignbox War on Terror"><span style="color: rgb(0, 43, 184);" title="Discussion about this template">d</span></a> <span style="font-size:80;">•</span> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Campaignbox_War_on_Terror&action=edit" class="external text" title="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Campaignbox_War_on_Terror&action=edit" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: rgb(0, 43, 184);" title="You can edit this template. Please use the preview button before saving.">e</span></a></div> </div> <span style="font-size:110;">Campaigns of the</span> <p style="margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 1px;"><span style="font-size:110;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_Terrorism" title="War on Terrorism">War on Terrorism</a></span></p> </th> </tr> <tr style="display: none;"> <td colspan="1" style="text-align: center; width: 100%; font-size: 95%;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_in_Afghanistan_%282001%E2%80%93present%29" title="War in Afghanistan (2001–present)">Afghanistan</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_insurgency_in_Algeria_%282002%E2%80%93present%29" title="Islamic insurgency in Algeria (2002–present)">Algeria</a> – <strong class="selflink">Iraq</strong> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insurgency_in_Saudi_Arabia" title="Insurgency in Saudi Arabia">Saudi Arabia</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_in_Waziristan" title="War in Waziristan">Waziristan</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Thailand_insurgency" title="South Thailand insurgency">Thailand</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Lebanon_War" title="2006 Lebanon War">Israel and Lebanon</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatah-Hamas_conflict" title="Fatah-Hamas conflict">Palestinian Territories</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_in_Somalia_%282006%E2%80%93present%29" title="War in Somalia (2006–present)">Somalia</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Lebanon_conflict" title="2007 Lebanon conflict">Lebanon</a><br /><b>Contemporaneous Wars</b>:<br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_insurgency_in_the_Philippines" title="Islamic insurgency in the Philippines">Philippines</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Chechen_War" title="Second Chechen War">Chechnya</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Aqsa_Intifada" title="Al-Aqsa Intifada">Israel and the Palestinian Territories</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darfur_conflict" title="Darfur conflict">Darfur</a> – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sa%27dah_conflict" title="Sa'dah conflict">Yemen</a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> <p>The <b>Iraq War</b>, also known as the <b>Occupation of Iraq</b>,<sup id="_ref-19" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-19" title="">[38]</a></sup> the <b>Second Gulf War</b>,<sup id="_ref-20" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-20" title="">[39]</a></sup> or <b>Operation Iraqi Freedom</b>,<sup id="_ref-21" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-21" title="">[40]</a></sup> is an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ongoing_conflicts" title="Ongoing conflicts">ongoing conflict</a> which began on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_20" title="March 20">March 20</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a> with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States" title="United States">United States</a>-led <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 invasion of Iraq">invasion of Iraq</a>.</p> <p>The main <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rationale_for_the_Iraq_War" title="Rationale for the Iraq War">rationale for the Iraq War</a> offered by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_the_United_States" title="President of the United States">U.S. President</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush" title="George W. Bush">George W. Bush</a>, former <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_the_United_Kingdom" title="Prime Minister of the United Kingdom">Prime Minister of the United Kingdom</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Blair" title="Tony Blair">Tony Blair</a>, former <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_Spain" title="Prime Minister of Spain">Prime Minister of Spain</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Mar%C3%ADa_Aznar" title="José María Aznar">José María Aznar</a> and their domestic and foreign supporters, was the allegation that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq" title="Iraq">Iraq</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Iraq and weapons of mass destruction">possessed and was actively developing</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Weapons of mass destruction">weapons of mass destruction</a> (WMD).<sup id="_ref-22" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-22" title="">[41]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-23" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-23" title="">[42]</a></sup> Leaders and diplomats from countries on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.N._Security_Council" title="U.N. Security Council">U.N. Security Council</a> that opposed the war made statements that contested this view.<sup id="_ref-24" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-24" title="">[43]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-25" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-25" title="">[44]</a></sup> These weapons, it was argued, posed a threat to the United States, its allies and interests.<sup id="_ref-26" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-26" title="">[45]</a></sup> In the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_State_of_the_Union_Address" title="2003 State of the Union Address">2003 State of the Union Address</a>, Bush claimed that the U.S. could not wait until the threat from Iraqi leader <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a> became imminent.<sup id="_ref-27" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-27" title="">[46]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-28" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-28" title="">[47]</a></sup> After the invasion, however, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Survey_Group#Duelfer_Report" title="Iraq Survey Group">no evidence was found</a> of the WMD or programs the administration claimed existed. Some U.S. officials cited claims of a connection between <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein_and_al-Qaeda" title="Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda">Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda</a>. No evidence of any operational or collaborative relationship with al-Qaeda has been found.<sup id="_ref-29" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-29" title="">[48]</a></sup></p> <p>The war began on March 20, 2003, when a largely <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_force_in_Iraq" title="Multinational force in Iraq">American force</a> supported by small contingents from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Britain" title="Great Britain">Great Britain</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia" title="Australia">Australia</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denmark" title="Denmark">Denmark</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poland" title="Poland">Poland</a> invaded Iraq. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion" title="Invasion">invasion</a> soon led to the defeat and flight of Saddam Hussein. The U.S.-led coalition <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-invasion_Iraq%2C_2003%E2%80%932006" title="Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–2006">occupied Iraq</a> and attempted to establish a new <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy" title="Democracy">democratic</a> government; however it failed to restore order in Iraq. The unrest led to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asymmetric_warfare" title="Asymmetric warfare">asymmetric warfare</a> with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_insurgency" title="Iraqi insurgency">Iraqi insurgency</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_war_in_Iraq" title="Civil war in Iraq">civil war</a> between many <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunni_Islam" title="Sunni Islam">Sunni</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shia_Islam" title="Shia Islam">Shia</a> Iraqis and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda" title="Al-Qaeda">al-Qaeda</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda_in_Iraq" title="Al-Qaeda in Iraq">operations in Iraq</a>.<sup id="_ref-30" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-30" title="">[49]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-31" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-31" title="">[50]</a></sup> Coalition nations have begun to withdraw troops from Iraq as public opinion favoring troop withdrawal increases and as Iraqi forces begin to take responsibility for security.<sup id="_ref-32" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-32" title="">[51]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-33" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-33" title="">[52]</a></sup> The causes and consequences of the war remain controversial.</p> <table id="toc" class="toc" summary="Contents"> <tbody><tr> <td> <div id="toctitle"> <h2>Contents</h2> <span class="toctoggle">[<a href="javascript:toggleToc()" class="internal" id="togglelink">hide</a>]</span></div> <ul><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#1991.E2.80.932003:_U.N._Inspectors_and_the_no-fly_zones"><span class="tocnumber">1</span> <span class="toctext">1991–2003: U.N. Inspectors and the no-fly zones</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#2001.E2.80.932003:_Iraq_disarmament_crisis_and_pre-war_intelligence"><span class="tocnumber">2</span> <span class="toctext">2001–2003: Iraq disarmament crisis and pre-war intelligence</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Alleged_weapons_of_mass_destruction"><span class="tocnumber">2.1</span> <span class="toctext">Alleged weapons of mass destruction</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Authorization_for_the_use_of_force"><span class="tocnumber">2.2</span> <span class="toctext">Authorization for the use of force</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Opposition_to_invasion"><span class="tocnumber">2.3</span> <span class="toctext">Opposition to invasion</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#2003:_Invasion"><span class="tocnumber">3</span> <span class="toctext">2003: Invasion</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Coalition_Provisional_Authority_and_Iraq_Survey_Group"><span class="tocnumber">3.1</span> <span class="toctext">Coalition Provisional Authority and Iraq Survey Group</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Post-invasion_phase"><span class="tocnumber">3.2</span> <span class="toctext">Post-invasion phase</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Saddam_Hussein_captured"><span class="tocnumber">3.3</span> <span class="toctext">Saddam Hussein captured</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#2004:_The_insurgency_expands"><span class="tocnumber">4</span> <span class="toctext">2004: The insurgency expands</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#2005:_Elections_and_sovereignty_transferred"><span class="tocnumber">5</span> <span class="toctext">2005: Elections and sovereignty transferred</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#2006:_Permanent_Iraqi_government_and_civil_war"><span class="tocnumber">6</span> <span class="toctext">2006: Permanent Iraqi government and civil war</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Increased_sectarian_violence"><span class="tocnumber">6.1</span> <span class="toctext">Increased sectarian violence</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#U.S._congressional_elections_and_expanding_violence"><span class="tocnumber">6.2</span> <span class="toctext">U.S. congressional elections and expanding violence</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Iraq_Study_Group_report_and_Saddam.E2.80.99s_execution"><span class="tocnumber">6.3</span> <span class="toctext">Iraq Study Group report and Saddam’s execution</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#2007:_U.S._troop_surge"><span class="tocnumber">7</span> <span class="toctext">2007: U.S. troop surge</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Demands_on_U.S._troops"><span class="tocnumber">7.1</span> <span class="toctext">Demands on U.S. troops</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Effects_of_the_surge_on_security"><span class="tocnumber">7.2</span> <span class="toctext">Effects of the surge on security</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Political_developments"><span class="tocnumber">7.3</span> <span class="toctext">Political developments</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Tensions_with_Iran_and_Turkey"><span class="tocnumber">7.4</span> <span class="toctext">Tensions with Iran and Turkey</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Planned_troop_reduction"><span class="tocnumber">7.5</span> <span class="toctext">Planned troop reduction</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Private_security_firm_controversy"><span class="tocnumber">7.6</span> <span class="toctext">Private security firm controversy</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Coalition_troop_deployment"><span class="tocnumber">8</span> <span class="toctext">Coalition troop deployment</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#United_Nations"><span class="tocnumber">8.1</span> <span class="toctext">United Nations</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Armed_Iraqi_groups"><span class="tocnumber">9</span> <span class="toctext">Armed Iraqi groups</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Insurgents"><span class="tocnumber">9.1</span> <span class="toctext">Insurgents</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Militias"><span class="tocnumber">9.2</span> <span class="toctext">Militias</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Casualty_estimates"><span class="tocnumber">10</span> <span class="toctext">Casualty estimates</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Humanitarian_crises"><span class="tocnumber">11</span> <span class="toctext">Humanitarian crises</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Worsening_humanitarian_crisis"><span class="tocnumber">11.1</span> <span class="toctext">Worsening humanitarian crisis</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Iraqi_health_care_deterioration"><span class="tocnumber">11.2</span> <span class="toctext">Iraqi health care deterioration</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Iraqi_refugees"><span class="tocnumber">11.3</span> <span class="toctext">Iraqi refugees</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Human_rights_abuses"><span class="tocnumber">12</span> <span class="toctext">Human rights abuses</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Coalition_forces_and_private_contractors"><span class="tocnumber">12.1</span> <span class="toctext">Coalition forces and private contractors</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Insurgent_and_terrorist_groups"><span class="tocnumber">12.2</span> <span class="toctext">Insurgent and terrorist groups</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Iraqi_government"><span class="tocnumber">12.3</span> <span class="toctext">Iraqi government</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Relation_to_the_Global_War_on_Terror"><span class="tocnumber">13</span> <span class="toctext">Relation to the Global War on Terror</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Criticism"><span class="tocnumber">14</span> <span class="toctext">Criticism</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Opinions_on_the_war"><span class="tocnumber">15</span> <span class="toctext">Opinions on the war</span></a> <ul><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#International"><span class="tocnumber">15.1</span> <span class="toctext">International</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Iraqi"><span class="tocnumber">15.2</span> <span class="toctext">Iraqi</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#U.S._troops"><span class="tocnumber">15.3</span> <span class="toctext">U.S. troops</span></a></li></ul> </li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#See_also"><span class="tocnumber">16</span> <span class="toctext">See also</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Topical_images"><span class="tocnumber">17</span> <span class="toctext">Topical images</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#Bibliography"><span class="tocnumber">18</span> <span class="toctext">Bibliography</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#References"><span class="tocnumber">19</span> <span class="toctext">References</span></a></li><li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#External_articles"><span class="tocnumber">20</span> <span class="toctext">External articles</span></a></li></ul> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> <script type="text/javascript"> //<![CDATA[ if (window.showTocToggle) { var tocShowText = "show"; var tocHideText = "hide"; showTocToggle(); } //]]> </script> <p><a name="1991.E2.80.932003:_U.N._Inspectors_and_the_no-fly_zones"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">1991–2003: U.N. Inspectors and the no-fly zones</span></h2> <dl><dd><span class="boilerplate seealso"><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Northern_Watch" title="Operation Northern Watch">Operation Northern Watch</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil-for-Food_Programme" title="Oil-for-Food Programme">Oil-for-Food Programme</a></i></span></dd></dl> <p>Following the 1991 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War" title="Gulf War">Gulf War</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_687" title="United Nations Security Council Resolution 687">United Nations Security Council Resolution 687</a> mandated that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Iraq and weapons of mass destruction">Iraqi chemical, biological, nuclear, and long range missile programs</a> be halted and all such weapons destroyed under a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Special_Commission" title="United Nations Special Commission">United Nations Special Commission</a> control. U.N. weapons inspectors inside Iraq were able to verify the destruction of a large amount of WMD-material, but substantial issues remained unresolved after they left Iraq in 1998 due to the lack of cooperation by the Iraqi government.</p> <p>In addition to the inspection regimen, the United States and the United Kingdom (along with France until 1998) engaged in a low-level conflict with Iraq by enforcing northern and southern <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_no-fly_zones" title="Iraqi no-fly zones">Iraqi no-fly zones</a>. These zones were <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_688" title="United Nations Security Council Resolution 688">created following the Persian Gulf War</a> to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Provide_Comfort" title="Operation Provide Comfort">protect</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Kurdistan" title="Iraqi Kurdistan">Iraqi Kurdistan</a> in the north and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Southern_Watch" title="Operation Southern Watch">southern Shia areas</a>, and were seen by the Iraqi government as an infringement of Iraq's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereignty" title="Sovereignty">sovereignty</a>. Iraqi air-defense installations and American and British air patrols regularly exchanged fire during this period.</p> <p>Approximately nine months after the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11%2C_2001_attacks" title="September 11, 2001 attacks">September 11, 2001 attacks</a>, the United States initiated <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Southern_Focus" title="Operation Southern Focus">Operation Southern Focus</a> as a change to its response strategy, by increasing the overall number of missions and selecting targets throughout the no-fly zones in order to disrupt the military command structure in Iraq. The weight of bombs dropped increased from none in March 2002 and 0.3 in April 2002 to between 8 and 14 tons per month in May-August, reaching a pre-war peak of 54.6 tons in September 2002.</p> <p><a name="2001.E2.80.932003:_Iraq_disarmament_crisis_and_pre-war_intelligence"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">2001–2003: Iraq disarmament crisis and pre-war intelligence</span></h2> <dl><dd><span class="boilerplate seealso"><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rationale_for_the_Iraq_War" title="Rationale for the Iraq War">Rationale for the Iraq War</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_relations_preparations_for_2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="Public relations preparations for 2003 invasion of Iraq">Public relations preparations for 2003 invasion of Iraq</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Governments%27_pre-war_positions_on_invasion_of_Iraq" title="Governments' pre-war positions on invasion of Iraq">Governments' pre-war positions on invasion of Iraq</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein_and_al-Qaeda" title="Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda">Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda</a></i></span></dd><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_disarmament_crisis_timeline_2001-2003" title="Iraq disarmament crisis timeline 2001-2003">Iraq disarmament crisis timeline 2001-2003</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_in_Iraq" title="2002 in Iraq">2002 in Iraq</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US_government_position_on_invasion_of_Iraq" title="US government position on invasion of Iraq">original U.S. justification</a> for the Iraq War was Iraq's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Iraq and weapons of mass destruction">weapons of mass destruction</a> program and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a>'s alleged collaboration with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda" title="Al-Qaeda">Al-Qaeda</a> terrorist group. However, the intelligence on both these claims has been criticized and largely discredited post-invasion, with the Bush administration accused of falsely portraying the available intelligence.</p> <p>The issue of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_disarmament_crisis" title="Iraq disarmament crisis">Iraq's disarmament reached a crisis</a> in 2002-2003, when <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_the_United_States" title="President of the United States">President</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush" title="George W. Bush">George W. Bush</a> demanded a complete end to alleged <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Iraq and weapons of mass destruction">Iraqi production of weapons of mass destruction</a> and full compliance with UN Resolutions requiring UN weapons inspectors unfettered access to suspected weapons production facilities. Previously, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Resolutions_concerning_Iraq" title="United Nations Resolutions concerning Iraq">UN had prohibited</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq" title="Iraq">Iraq</a> from developing or possessing such weapons since the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War" title="Gulf War">1991 Gulf War</a> and to permit inspections confirming Iraqi compliance. During 2002, Bush repeatedly backed demands for unfettered inspection and disarmament with threats of military force. In accordance with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1441" title="United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441">UN Security Council Resolution 1441</a> Iraq reluctantly agreed to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Monitoring%2C_Verification_and_Inspection_Commission" title="United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission">new inspections in late 2002</a>. The results of these inspections were mixed with no discovery of WMDs and American skepticism of Iraqi WMD program declarations.</p> <p>In the initial stages of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_terror" title="War on terror">war on terror</a>, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Intelligence_Agency" title="Central Intelligence Agency">Central Intelligence Agency</a>, under <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Tenet" title="George Tenet">George Tenet</a>, was rising to prominence as the lead agency in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghanistan" title="Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a> war. But when Tenet insisted in his personal meetings with President Bush that there was no connection between Al Qaeda and Iraq, V.P. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Cheney" title="Dick Cheney">Dick Cheney</a> and Secretary of Defense <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Rumsfeld" title="Donald Rumsfeld">Donald Rumsfeld</a> initiated a secret program to re-examine the evidence and marginalize the CIA and Tenet. The questionable intelligence acquired by this secret program was "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stovepiping" title="Stovepiping">stovepiped</a>" to the Vice President and presented to the public. In some cases, Cheney’s office would leak the intelligence to reporters, where it would be reported by outlets such as <i>The New York Times</i>. Cheney would subsequently appear on the Sunday political television talk shows to discuss the intelligence, referencing <i>The New York Times</i> as the source to give it credence.<sup id="_ref-34" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-34" title="">[53]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Alleged_weapons_of_mass_destruction" id="Alleged_weapons_of_mass_destruction"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Alleged weapons of mass destruction</span></h3> <div class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Joseph_Wilson.jpg" class="image" title="Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson"><img alt="Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Joseph_Wilson.jpg/180px-Joseph_Wilson.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="135" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Joseph_Wilson.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson</div> </div> </div> <p>In late February 2002, the CIA sent former Ambassador <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_C._Wilson" title="Joseph C. Wilson">Joseph Wilson</a> to investigate <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niger_uranium_forgeries" title="Niger uranium forgeries">dubious claims</a> about Iraq's attempted purchase of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowcake" title="Yellowcake">yellowcake</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uranium" title="Uranium">uranium</a> from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niger" title="Niger">Niger</a>. Wilson returned and informed the CIA that reports of yellowcake sales to Iraq were "unequivocally wrong." However, the Bush administration continued to mention yellowcake purchases as justification for military action--most prominently in the January, 2003, State of the Union when President Bush repeated the allegation, citing British intelligence sources.<sup id="_ref-35" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-35" title="">[54]</a></sup> In response, Wilson wrote a critical <i>The New York Times</i> op-ed in June 2003 explaining that the CIA had investigated these yellowcake claims and believed them to be fraudulent. Shortly after Wilson's op-ed, the identity of Wilson's wife, undercover CIA analyst <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valerie_Plame" title="Valerie Plame">Valerie Plame</a>, was revealed in a column by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Novak" title="Robert Novak">Robert Novak</a>. Since it is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligence_Identities_Protection_Act" title="Intelligence Identities Protection Act">a felony to reveal the identity of a CIA agent</a> Novak's column launched an investigation by the Justice Department into the source of the leak. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Libby" title="Lewis Libby">I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby</a>, Dick Cheney’s Chief of Staff, was convicted of perjury in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plame_affair" title="Plame affair">Plame leak</a> investigation. The source of the leak was found to be <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Armitage" title="Richard Armitage">Richard Armitage</a>. He was never charged.<sup id="_ref-newsweek-ManWhoSaid_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-newsweek-ManWhoSaid" title="">[55]</a></sup></p> <p>A British government memo was published in <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sunday_Times" title="The Sunday Times">The Sunday Times</a></i> on May 1, 2005. Known as the "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downing_Street_memo" title="Downing Street memo">Downing Street memo</a>," it contains an overview of a secret <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_23" title="July 23">July 23</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002" title="2002">2002</a> meeting among <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom" title="United Kingdom">United Kingdom</a> Labour government, defense and intelligence figures, discussing the build-up to the Iraq war—including direct reference to classified U.S. policy of the time. The memo states, "Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. But the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy."<sup id="_ref-36" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-36" title="">[56]</a></sup></p> <p>According to journalist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sidney_Blumenthal" title="Sidney Blumenthal">Sidney Blumenthal</a>, on September 18, 2002, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Tenet" title="George Tenet">George Tenet</a> briefed Bush that Saddam Hussein did not have weapons of mass destruction. Blumenthal says Bush dismissed this top-secret intelligence from Saddam's inner circle which was approved by two senior CIA officers, but it turned out to be completely accurate. The information was never shared with Congress or even CIA agents examining whether Saddam had such weapons.<sup id="_ref-37" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-37" title="">[57]</a></sup></p> <p>In September 2002, the Bush administration said attempts by Iraq to acquire thousands of high-strength <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_aluminum_tubes" title="Iraqi aluminum tubes">aluminum tubes</a> pointed to a clandestine program to make enriched uranium for nuclear bombs. This view was supported by the CIA and DIA but opposed by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Energy" title="United States Department of Energy">Department of Energy</a> (DOE) and INR which was significant because the DOE was the only department in the United States government that had expertise in gas centrifuges and nuclear weapons programs. An effort by the DOE to change Powell's comments before his UN appearance was rebuffed by the administration.<sup id="_ref-38" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-38" title="">[58]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-39" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-39" title="">[59]</a></sup> Iraq was not permitted to import high-strength centrifuge tubes under the U.N. monitoring plan. Indeed, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colin_Powell" title="Colin Powell">Colin Powell</a>, in his address to the U.N. Security Council just prior to the war, made reference to the aluminum tubes. But a report released by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institute_for_Science_and_International_Security" title="Institute for Science and International Security">Institute for Science and International Security</a> in 2002 reported that it was highly unlikely that the tubes could be used to enrich uranium. Powell later admitted he had presented an inaccurate case to the United Nations on Iraqi weapons, and the intelligence he was relying on was, in some cases, "deliberately misleading."<sup id="_ref-40" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-40" title="">[60]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-41" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-41" title="">[61]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-42" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-42" title="">[62]</a></sup></p> <p>Between September, 2002 and June, 2003, Deputy Secretary of Defense <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Wolfowitz" title="Paul Wolfowitz">Paul Wolfowitz</a> created a Pentagon unit known as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of_Special_Plans" title="Office of Special Plans">Office of Special Plans</a> (OSP), headed by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Feith" title="Douglas Feith">Douglas Feith</a>. It was created to supply senior Bush administration officials with raw intelligence pertaining to Iraq, unvetted by intelligence analysts, and circumventing traditional intelligence gathering operations by the CIA. One former CIA officer described the OSP as dangerous for U.S. national security and a threat to world peace, and that it lied and manipulated intelligence to further its agenda of removing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a>. He described it as a group of ideologues with pre-determined notions of truth and reality, taking bits of intelligence to support their agenda and ignoring anything contrary.<sup id="_ref-43" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-43" title="">[63]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Authorization_for_the_use_of_force" id="Authorization_for_the_use_of_force"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Authorization for the use of force</span></h3> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Powell-anthrax-vial.jpg" class="image" title="Colin Powell holding a model vial of anthrax while giving a presentation to the United Nations Security Council"><img alt="Colin Powell holding a model vial of anthrax while giving a presentation to the United Nations Security Council" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/1/12/Powell-anthrax-vial.jpg/180px-Powell-anthrax-vial.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="125" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Powell-anthrax-vial.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Colin Powell holding a model vial of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthrax" title="Anthrax">anthrax</a> while giving a presentation to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council" title="United Nations Security Council">United Nations Security Council</a></div> </div> </div> <p>In October, 2002, a few days before the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate" title="United States Senate">U.S. Senate</a> vote on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joint_Resolution_to_Authorize_the_Use_of_United_States_Armed_Forces_Against_Iraq" title="Joint Resolution to Authorize the Use of United States Armed Forces Against Iraq">Joint Resolution to Authorize the Use of United States Armed Forces Against Iraq</a>, about 75 senators were told in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed_session" title="Closed session">closed session</a> that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a> had the means of attacking the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Coast_of_the_United_States" title="East Coast of the United States">U.S. eastern seaboard</a> with biological or chemical weapons delivered by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unmanned_aerial_vehicle" title="Unmanned aerial vehicle">unmanned aerial vehicles</a> (UAVs).<sup id="_ref-nelson_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-nelson" title="">[64]</a></sup> On February 5, 2003, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colin_Powell" title="Colin Powell">Colin Powell</a> presented further evidence in his Iraqi WMD program presentation to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council" title="United Nations Security Council">Security Council</a> that UAVs were ready to be launched against the U.S. At the time, there was a vigorous dispute within the intelligence community as to whether CIA conclusions about Iraqi UAVs were accurate. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Air_Force" title="U.S. Air Force">U.S. Air Force</a> agency most familiar with UAVs, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Department" title="State Department">State Department</a>'s Bureau of Intelligence and Research, and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_Intelligence_Agency" title="Defense Intelligence Agency">Defense Intelligence Agency</a> denied that Iraq possessed any offensive UAV capability, saying the few they had were designed and intended for surveillance. A majority of the U.S. intelligence committee agreed that the Iraqi UAVs were used only for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reconnaissance" title="Reconnaissance">reconnaissance</a>.<sup id="_ref-44" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-44" title="">[65]</a></sup> In fact, Iraq's UAV fleet was never deployed and consisted of a handful of outdated 24.5-foot wingspan drones with no room for more than a camera and video recorder, and no offensive capability.<sup id="_ref-45" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-45" title="">[66]</a></sup> Despite this controversy, the Senate voted to approve the Joint Resolution on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_11" title="October 11">11 October</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002" title="2002">2002</a> providing the Bush Administration with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legitimacy_of_the_2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="Legitimacy of the 2003 invasion of Iraq">the legal basis for the U.S. invasion</a>.</p> <p>In early 2003, the United States, United Kingdom, and Spain proposed the so-called "eighteenth resolution" to give Iraq a deadline for compliance with previous resolutions enforced by the threat of military action. This proposed resolution was subsequently withdrawn for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_UN_Security_Council_and_the_Iraq_war" title="The UN Security Council and the Iraq war">lack of support on the U.N. Security Council</a>. In particular, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO" title="NATO">NATO</a> members <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France" title="France">France</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany" title="Germany">Germany</a>, together with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia" title="Russia">Russia</a>, were opposed to military intervention in Iraq due to the high level of risk to the international community's security and defended disarmament through diplomacy. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_20" title="January 20">January 20</a>, 2003, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minister_of_Foreign_Affairs_%28France%29" title="Minister of Foreign Affairs (France)">French Foreign Minister</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominique_de_Villepin" title="Dominique de Villepin">Dominique de Villepin</a> declared "...we believe that military intervention would be the worst solution".<sup id="_ref-46" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-46" title="">[67]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Opposition_to_invasion" id="Opposition_to_invasion"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Opposition to invasion</span></h3> <p>Meanwhile <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_anti-war_organizations" title="List of anti-war organizations">anti-war groups</a> across the world organised public protests. According to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_people" title="French people">French</a> academic Dominique Reynié between the 3rd of January and 12th of April 2003, 36 million people across the globe took part in almost 3,000 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protests_against_the_Iraq_War" title="Protests against the Iraq War">protests against war in Iraq</a>, the demonstrations on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_15" title="February 15">February 15</a> 2003 being the largest and most prolific.<sup id="_ref-Difference_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-Difference" title="">[68]</a></sup></p> <p>In March 2003, UN weapons inspector <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Blix" title="Hans Blix">Hans Blix</a> reported in regard to Iraq that, "No evidence of proscribed activities have so far been found," saying that progress was made in inspections which would continue.<sup id="_ref-47" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-47" title="">[69]</a></sup> But the U.S. government announced that "diplomacy has failed" and that it would proceed with a coalition of allied countries, named the "coalition of the willing", to rid Iraq of its alleged weapons of mass destruction. The U.S. government abruptly advised U.N. weapons inspectors to immediately pull out of Baghdad.</p> <p>There are also serious <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legitimacy_of_the_2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="Legitimacy of the 2003 invasion of Iraq">legal questions</a> surrounding the conduct of the war in Iraq and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bush_Doctrine" title="Bush Doctrine">Bush Doctrine</a> of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preemptive_war" title="Preemptive war">preemptive war</a>. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_16" title="September 16">September 16</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004" title="2004">2004</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kofi_Annan" title="Kofi Annan">Kofi Annan</a>, the Secretary General of the United Nations, said of the invasion, "I have indicated it was not in conformity with the UN charter. From our point of view, from the charter point of view, it was illegal."<sup id="_ref-48" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-48" title="">[70]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="2003:_Invasion"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">2003: Invasion</span></h2> <div class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq-War-Map.png" class="image" title="Map of major operations and battles of the Iraq War as of 2007"><img alt="Map of major operations and battles of the Iraq War as of 2007" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/de/Iraq-War-Map.png/180px-Iraq-War-Map.png" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="187" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Iraq-War-Map.png" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Map of major operations and battles of the Iraq War as of 2007</div> </div> </div> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_in_Iraq" title="2003 in Iraq">2003 in Iraq</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_Iraq_war_timeline" title="2003 Iraq war timeline">2003 Iraq war timeline</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_associated_with_the_2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="List of people associated with the 2003 invasion of Iraq">List of people associated with the 2003 invasion of Iraq</a></i></div> </dd><dd><span class="boilerplate seealso"><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_military_operations_of_the_Iraq_War" title="Coalition military operations of the Iraq War">Coalition military operations of the Iraq War</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_War_order_of_battle" title="Iraq War order of battle">Iraq War order of battle</a></i></span></dd></dl> <p>The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 invasion of Iraq">2003 invasion of Iraq</a>, led by General <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Franks" title="Tommy Franks">Tommy Franks</a>, began on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_20" title="March 20">March 20</a>, under the U.S. codename "Operation Iraqi Freedom", the U.K. codename <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Telic" title="Operation Telic">Operation Telic</a>, and the Australian codename <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_contribution_to_the_2003_invasion_of_Iraq" title="Australian contribution to the 2003 invasion of Iraq">Operation Catalyst</a>. Coalition forces also cooperated with Kurdish <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshmerga" title="Peshmerga">peshmerga</a> forces in the north. Approximately forty other nations, the "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_force_in_Iraq" title="Multinational force in Iraq">coalition of the willing</a>," participated by providing equipment, services, security, and special forces. The initial coalition military forces were roughly 300,000, of which 98% were U.S. and U.K. troops.<sup id="_ref-49" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-49" title="">[71]</a></sup> During the invasion, the Iraqi Army was quickly overwhelmed with only the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fedayeen_Saddam" title="Fedayeen Saddam">Fedayeen Saddam</a> putting up strong resistance before melting away into the civilian population. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_9" title="April 9">April 9</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad" title="Baghdad">Baghdad</a> fell to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States" title="United States">U.S. forces</a> who seized the deserted <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baath_Party" title="Baath Party">Baath Party</a> ministries and pulled down a huge iron statue of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam</a>, symbolically ending his 24-year rule of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq" title="Iraq">Iraq</a>. The abrupt fall of Baghdad was also symbolized by massive civil disorder through looting of government buildings and drastically increased crime.<sup id="_ref-50" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-50" title="">[72]</a></sup> On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_13" title="April 13">April 13</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tikrit" title="Tikrit">Tikrit</a>, Saddam's home town and the last town not under coalition control, was taken with little resistance by the Marines of Task Force Tripoli. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_15" title="April 15">April 15</a> the coalition partners claimed that the war was effectively over.</p> <p>In the invasion phase of the war (March 20-April 30), 9,200 Iraqi combatants were killed along with 7,299 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Body_Count_project" title="Iraq Body Count project">civilians</a>, primarily by US air and ground forces.<sup id="_ref-51" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-51" title="">[73]</a></sup> Coalition forces reported the death in combat of 139 U.S. military personnel<sup id="_ref-52" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-52" title="">[74]</a></sup> and 33 U.K. military personnel. <sup id="_ref-53" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-53" title="">[75]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Coalition_Provisional_Authority_and_Iraq_Survey_Group" id="Coalition_Provisional_Authority_and_Iraq_Survey_Group"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Coalition Provisional Authority and Iraq Survey Group</span></h3> <dl><dd><span class="boilerplate seealso"><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Governing_Council" title="Iraqi Governing Council">Iraqi Governing Council</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Advisory_and_Monitoring_Board" title="International Advisory and Monitoring Board">International Advisory and Monitoring Board</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_Provisional_Authority_Program_Review_Board" title="Coalition Provisional Authority Program Review Board">CPA Program Review Board</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Development_Fund_for_Iraq" title="Development Fund for Iraq">Development Fund for Iraq</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reconstruction_of_Iraq" title="Reconstruction of Iraq">Reconstruction of Iraq</a></i></span></dd></dl> <p>Shortly after the invasion, the multinational coalition created the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_Provisional_Authority" title="Coalition Provisional Authority">Coalition Provisional Authority</a> (CPA) سلطة الائتلاف الموحدة, based in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Zone" title="Green Zone">Green Zone</a>, as a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transitional_government" title="Transitional government">transitional government</a> of Iraq until the establishment of a democratic government. Citing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1483" title="United Nations Security Council Resolution 1483">United Nations Security Council Resolution 1483</a> (22 May 2003) and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laws_of_war" title="Laws of war">laws of war</a>, the CPA vested itself with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executive_%28government%29" title="Executive (government)">executive</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legislative" title="Legislative">legislative</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judicial" title="Judicial">judicial</a> authority over the Iraqi government from the period of the CPA's inception on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_21" title="April 21">April 21</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a>, until its dissolution on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_28" title="June 28">June 28</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004" title="2004">2004</a>.</p> <p>The CPA was originally headed by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Garner" title="Jay Garner">Jay Garner</a>, a former U.S. military officer, but his appointment lasted only until May 11, 2003. After Garner resigned, President Bush appointed <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L._Paul_Bremer" title="L. Paul Bremer">L. Paul Bremer</a> as the head the CPA and he served until the CPA's dissolution in July 2004. Another group created in the spring of 2003 was the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Survey_Group" title="Iraq Survey Group">Iraq Survey Group</a> (ISG; its final report is commonly called the <a href="https://www.cia.gov/cia/reports/iraq_wmd_2004/index.html" class="external text" title="https://www.cia.gov/cia/reports/iraq_wmd_2004/index.html" rel="nofollow">Duelfer Report</a>.). This was a fact-finding mission sent by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_force_in_Iraq" title="Multinational force in Iraq">multinational force in Iraq</a> after the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_Invasion_of_Iraq" title="2003 Invasion of Iraq">2003 Invasion of Iraq</a> to find <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction" title="Iraq and weapons of mass destruction">weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programmes developed by Iraq</a>. It consisted of a 1,400-member international team organised by the Pentagon and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Intelligence_Agency" title="Central Intelligence Agency">CIA</a> to hunt for suspected stockpiles of WMD, such as chemical and biological agents, and any supporting research programmes and infrastructure that could be used to develop WMD. In 2004 the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Survey_Group" title="Iraq Survey Group">ISG's Duelfer report</a> stated that Iraq did not have a viable WMD program.</p> <p><a name="Post-invasion_phase" id="Post-invasion_phase"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Post-invasion phase</span></h3> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-invasion_Iraq%2C_2003%E2%80%932006" title="Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–2006">Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–2006</a></i></div> </dd><dd><i>Further information: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._list_of_most-wanted_Iraqis" title="U.S. list of most-wanted Iraqis">U.S. list of most-wanted Iraqis</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorist_attacks_of_the_Iraq_War" title="Terrorist attacks of the Iraq War">Terrorist attacks of the Iraq War</a></i></dd></dl> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:USS_Abraham_Lincoln_%28CVN-72%29_Mission_Accomplished.jpg" class="image" title="The USS Abraham Lincoln returning to port carrying its Mission Accomplished banner"><img alt="The USS Abraham Lincoln returning to port carrying its Mission Accomplished banner" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/50/USS_Abraham_Lincoln_%28CVN-72%29_Mission_Accomplished.jpg/180px-USS_Abraham_Lincoln_%28CVN-72%29_Mission_Accomplished.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="129" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:USS_Abraham_Lincoln_%28CVN-72%29_Mission_Accomplished.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Abraham_Lincoln_%28CVN-72%29" title="USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72)">USS <i>Abraham Lincoln</i></a> returning to port carrying its <i>Mission Accomplished</i> banner</div> </div> </div> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_1" title="May 1">May 1</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a>, President Bush staged a dramatic visit to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aircraft_carrier" title="Aircraft carrier">aircraft carrier</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Abraham_Lincoln_%28CVN-72%29" title="USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72)">USS <i>Abraham Lincoln</i></a> operating a few miles west of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego%2C_California" title="San Diego, California">San Diego, California</a> on its way home from a long deployment which had included service in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_Gulf" title="Persian Gulf">Persian Gulf</a>. The visit climaxed at sunset with Bush's now well-known "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_Accomplished" title="Mission Accomplished">Mission Accomplished</a>" speech. In this nationally-televised speech, delivered before the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sailors" title="Sailors">sailors</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airmen" title="Airmen">airmen</a> on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_deck" title="Flight deck">flight deck</a>, Bush effectively declared victory due to the defeat of Iraq's conventional forces. However, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein" title="Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein</a> remained at large and significant pockets of resistance remained.</p> <p>After President Bush's speech, coalition forces noticed a gradually increasing flurry of attacks on its troops in various regions, especially in the "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunni_Triangle" title="Sunni Triangle">Sunni Triangle</a>".<sup id="_ref-54" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-54" title="">[76]</a></sup> In the initial chaos after the fall of the Iraqi government, there was massive looting of infrastructure, including government buildings, official residences, museums, banks, and military depots. According to The Pentagon, 250,000 tons (of 650,000 tons total) of ordnance was looted, providing a significant source of ammunition for the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_insurgency" title="Iraqi insurgency">Iraqi insurgency</a>. The insurgents were further helped by hundreds of weapons caches created prior to the invasion by the conventional Iraqi army and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Special_Republican_Guard" title="Iraqi Special Republican Guard">Republican Guard</a>.</p> <div class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:VS-1.6_anti-tank_mine.jpg" class="image" title="May 18, 2004. Staff Sgt. Kevin Jessen checks the underside of two anti-tank mines found in a village outside Ad Dujayl, Iraq in the Sunni Triangle."><img alt="May 18, 2004. Staff Sgt. Kevin Jessen checks the underside of two anti-tank mines found in a village outside Ad Dujayl, Iraq in the Sunni Triangle." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/VS-1.6_anti-tank_mine.jpg/180px-VS-1.6_anti-tank_mine.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="122" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:VS-1.6_anti-tank_mine.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> May 18, 2004. Staff Sgt. Kevin Jessen checks the underside of two anti-tank mines found in a village outside Ad Dujayl,<sup id="_ref-55" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-55" title="">[77]</a></sup> Iraq in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunni_Triangle" title="Sunni Triangle">Sunni Triangle</a>.</div> </div> </div> <p>Initially, Iraqi resistance (known to the coalition as "Anti-Iraqi Forces") largely stemmed from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fedayeen" title="Fedayeen">fedayeen</a> and Saddam/<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baath_Party" title="Baath Party">Baath Party</a> loyalists, but soon religious radicals and Iraqis angered by the occupation contributed to the insurgency. The three provinces with the highest number of attacks were <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad_Governorate" title="Baghdad Governorate">Baghdad</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Anbar_Governorate" title="Al Anbar Governorate">Al Anbar</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salah_ad_Din_Governorate" title="Salah ad Din Governorate">Salah Ad Din</a>. Those three provinces account for 35% of the population, but are responsible for 73% of U.S. military deaths (as of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_5" title="December 5">December 5</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>), and an even higher percentage of recent U.S. military deaths (about 80%).<sup id="_ref-56" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-56" title="">[78]</a></sup> Insurgents use <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guerrilla_warfare" title="Guerrilla warfare">guerrilla tactics</a> including; mortars, missiles, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_attack" title="Suicide attack">suicide attacks</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juba_%28sniper%29" title="Juba (sniper)">snipers</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Improvised_explosive_device" title="Improvised explosive device">improvised explosive devices</a> (IEDs), car bombs, small arms fire (usually with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_rifle" title="Assault rifle">assault rifles</a>), and RPGs (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_propelled_grenade" title="Rocket propelled grenade">rocket propelled grenades</a>), as well as sabotage against the oil, water, and electrical infrastructure.</p> <p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-invasion_Iraq%2C_2003%E2%80%932007" title="Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–2007">Post-invasion Iraq</a> coalition efforts commenced after the fall of the Hussein regime. The coalition nations, together with the United Nations, began to work to establish a stable <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy" title="Democracy">democratic</a> state capable of defending itself,<sup id="_ref-Soriano_0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-Soriano" title="">[79]</a></sup> holding itself together<sup id="_ref-57" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-57" title="">[80]</a></sup> as well as overcoming insurgent attacks and internal divisions.</p> <p>Meanwhile, coalition military forces launched several operations around the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tigris" title="Tigris">Tigris</a> River peninsula and in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunni_Triangle" title="Sunni Triangle">Sunni Triangle</a>. A series of similar operations were launched throughout the summer in the Sunni Triangle. Toward the end of 2003, the intensity and pace of insurgent attacks began to increase. A sharp surge in guerrilla attacks ushered in an insurgent effort that was termed the "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Iraqi_insurgency#Ramadan_Offensive_.28October-November_2003.29" title="History of Iraqi insurgency">Ramadan Offensive</a>", as it coincided with the beginning of the Muslim holy month of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramadan" title="Ramadan">Ramadan</a>. To counter this offensive, coalition forces begin to use air power and artillery again for the first time since the end of the invasion by striking suspected ambush sites and mortar launching positions. Surveillance of major routes, patrols, and raids on suspected insurgents were stepped up. In addition, two villages, including Saddam’s birthplace of al-Auja and the small town of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Hishma" title="Abu Hishma">Abu Hishma</a> were wrapped in barbed wire and carefully monitored.</p> <p>However, the failure to restore basic services to pre-war levels, where over a decade of sanctions, bombing, corruption, and decaying infrastructure had left major cities barely functioning, contributed to local anger at the IPA government headed by an executive council. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_2" title="July 2">July 2</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a>, President Bush declared that American troops would remain in Iraq in spite of the attacks, challenging the insurgents with "My answer is, bring 'em on", a widely criticized line which Bush later expressed misgivings about.<sup id="_ref-58" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-58" title="">[81]</a></sup> In the summer of 2003, the multinational forces also focused on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Most-wanted_Iraqi_playing_cards" title="Most-wanted Iraqi playing cards">hunting down the remaining leaders</a> of the former regime. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_22" title="July 22">July 22</a>, a raid by the U.S. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/101st_Airborne_Division" title="101st Airborne Division">101st Airborne Division</a> and soldiers from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Task_Force_20" title="Task Force 20">Task Force 20</a> killed Saddam Hussein's sons (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uday_Hussein" title="Uday Hussein">Uday</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qusay_Hussein" title="Qusay Hussein">Qusay</a>) along with one of his grandsons. In all, over 300 top leaders of the former regime were killed or captured, as well as numerous lesser functionaries and military personnel.</p> <p><a name="Saddam_Hussein_captured" id="Saddam_Hussein_captured"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Saddam Hussein captured</span></h3> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 152px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddamcapture.jpg" class="image" title="Saddam Hussein shortly after capture"><img alt="Saddam Hussein shortly after capture" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/07/Saddamcapture.jpg/150px-Saddamcapture.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="206" width="150" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Saddamcapture.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Saddam Hussein shortly after capture</div> </div> </div> <dl><dd><span class="boilerplate seealso"><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_Iraqi_Criminal_Tribunal" title="Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal">Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trial_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Trial of Saddam Hussein">Trial of Saddam Hussein</a></i></span></dd></dl> <p>In the wave of intelligence information fueling the raids on remaining Baath Party members connected to insurgency, Saddam Hussein himself was captured on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_13" title="December 13">December 13</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003" title="2003">2003</a> on a farm near Tikrit in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Red_Dawn" title="Operation Red Dawn">Operation Red Dawn</a>. The operation was conducted by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army" title="United States Army">United States Army</a>'s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4th_Infantry_Division_%28United_States%29" title="4th Infantry Division (United States)">4th Infantry Division</a> and members of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Task_Force_121" title="Task Force 121">Task Force 121</a>.</p> <p>With the capture of Saddam and a drop in the number of insurgent attacks, some concluded the multinational forces were prevailing in the fight against the insurgency. The provisional government began training the New Iraqi Security forces intended to defend the country, and the United States promised over $20 billion in reconstruction money in the form of credit against Iraq's future oil revenues. Oil revenue was also used for rebuilding schools and for work on the electrical and refining infrastructure.</p> <p>Shortly after the capture of Saddam, elements left out of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_Provisional_Authority" title="Coalition Provisional Authority">Coalition Provisional Authority</a> began to agitate for elections and the formation of an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Interim_Government" title="Iraqi Interim Government">Iraqi Interim Government</a>. Most prominent among these was the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shia_Islam" title="Shia Islam">Shia</a> cleric <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Ayatollah_Ali_al-Sistani" title="Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani">Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani</a>. The Coalition Provisional Authority opposed allowing democratic elections at this time, preferring instead to eventually hand-over power to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interim_Iraqi_Government" title="Interim Iraqi Government">Interim Iraqi Government</a>.<sup id="_ref-59" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-59" title="">[82]</a></sup> Due to the internal fight for power in the new Iraqi government more insurgents stepped up their activities. The two most turbulent centers were the area around Fallujah and the poor Shia sections of cities from Baghdad (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadr_City" title="Sadr City">Sadr City</a>) to Basra in the south.</p> <p><a name="2004:_The_insurgency_expands"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">2004: The insurgency expands</span></h2> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_in_Iraq" title="2004 in Iraq">2004 in Iraq</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <dl><dd><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_operations_of_the_Iraq_War" title="Military operations of the Iraq War">Military operations of the Iraq War</a> for a list of all Coalition operations for this period, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_in_Iraq" title="2004 in Iraq">2004 in Iraq</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_coalition_counter-insurgency_operations" title="Iraqi coalition counter-insurgency operations">Iraqi coalition counter-insurgency operations</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Iraqi_insurgency" title="History of Iraqi insurgency">History of Iraqi insurgency</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_occupation_of_Fallujah" title="United States occupation of Fallujah">United States occupation of Fallujah</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Spring_Fighting_of_2004" title="Iraq Spring Fighting of 2004">Iraq Spring Fighting of 2004</a></i></dd></dl> <p>The start of 2004 was marked by a relative lull in violence. Insurgent forces reorganised during this time, studying the multinational forces' tactics and planning a renewed offensive. However, violence did increase during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Spring_Fighting_of_2004" title="Iraq Spring Fighting of 2004">Iraq Spring Fighting of 2004</a> with foreign fighters from around the Middle East as well as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda_in_Iraq" title="Al-Qaeda in Iraq">al-Qaeda in Iraq</a> (an affiliated <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda" title="Al-Qaeda">al-Qaeda</a> group), led by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Musab_al-Zarqawi" title="Abu Musab al-Zarqawi">Abu Musab al-Zarqawi</a> helping to drive the insurgency.</p> <p>As the insurgency grew there was a distinct change in targeting from the coalition forces towards the new Iraqi Security Forces, as hundreds of Iraqi civilians and police were killed over the next few months in a series of massive bombings. An organized Sunni insurgency, with deep roots and both nationalist and Islamist motivations, was becoming more powerful throughout Iraq. The Shia <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahdi_Army" title="Mahdi Army">Mahdi Army</a> also began launching attacks on coalition targets in an attempt to seize control from Iraqi security forces. The southern and central portions of Iraq were beginning to erupt in urban guerrilla combat as multinational forces attempted to keep control and prepared for a counteroffensive.</p> <p>The most serious fighting of the war so far began on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_31" title="March 31">March 31</a>, 2004, when <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_insurgency" title="Iraqi insurgency">Iraqi insurgents</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallujah" title="Fallujah">Fallujah</a> ambushed a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackwater_USA" title="Blackwater USA">Blackwater USA</a> convoy led by four American <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_military_contractor" title="Private military contractor">private military contractors</a> who were providing security for food caterers <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurest_Support_Services" title="Eurest Support Services">Eurest Support Services</a>.<sup id="_ref-60" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-60" title="">[83]</a></sup> The four armed contractors, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Helvenston" title="Scott Helvenston">Scott Helvenston</a>, Jerko Zovko, Wesley Batalona, and Michael Teague, were killed with grenades and small arms fire. Subsequently, their bodies were dragged from their vehicles, beaten, set ablaze, and their burned corpses hung over a bridge crossing the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphrates" title="Euphrates">Euphrates</a>.<sup id="_ref-61" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-61" title="">[84]</a></sup> Photos of the event were released to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/News_agency" title="News agency">news agencies</a> worldwide, causing a great deal of indignation and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_panic" title="Moral panic">moral outrage</a> in the United States, and prompting an unsuccessful "pacification" of the city: the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Battle_of_Fallujah" title="First Battle of Fallujah">First Battle of Fallujah</a> in April 2004.</p> <p>The offensive was resumed in November, 2004 in the bloodiest battle of the war so far: the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Battle_of_Fallujah" title="Second Battle of Fallujah">Second Battle of Fallujah</a>, described by the U.S. military as "the heaviest <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_warfare" title="Urban warfare">urban combat</a> since the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hue_City" title="Battle of Hue City">battle of Hue City</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam" title="Vietnam">Vietnam</a>."<sup id="_ref-62" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-62" title="">[85]</a></sup> During the assault, U.S. forces used <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_phosphorus_use_in_Iraq" title="White phosphorus use in Iraq">white phosphorus</a> as an incendiary weapon against insurgent personnel, attracting controversy. The 10-day battle resulted in a victory for the coalition, with 54 Americans killed and approximately 1000 insurgents. Unfortunately, Fallujah was totally devastated during the fighting, though civilian casualties were low, as they had mostly been evacuated before the fight.<sup id="_ref-63" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-63" title="">[86]</a></sup></p> <div class="thumb tright"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:AG-10.jpg" class="image" title="Iraqi prisoners being abused by US soldiers"><img alt="Iraqi prisoners being abused by US soldiers" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/AG-10.jpg/180px-AG-10.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="135" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:AG-10.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Iraqi prisoners being abused by US soldiers</div> </div> </div> <p>The other major event of this year was the revelation of prisoner abuse at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Ghraib" title="Abu Ghraib">Abu Ghraib</a> which received international media attention in April 2004. First reports of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nature_of_Abu_Ghraib_abuse" title="Nature of Abu Ghraib abuse">the abuse</a>, as well as graphic pictures showing American military personnel in the act of abusing prisoners, came to public attention from a <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/60_Minutes_II" title="60 Minutes II">60 Minutes II</a></i> news report (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_28" title="April 28">April 28</a>) and a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seymour_M._Hersh" title="Seymour M. Hersh">Seymour M. Hersh</a> article in the <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Yorker" title="The New Yorker">The New Yorker</a></i> (posted online on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_30" title="April 30">April 30</a>).<sup id="_ref-64" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-64" title="">[87]</a></sup>. According to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Ricks" title="Thomas Ricks">Thomas Ricks</a>' history of the conflict these revelations dealt a body-blow to the moral justifications for the occupation in the eyes of the Iraqis and the international community and were a turning point in the war<sup id="_ref-65" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-65" title="">[88]</a></sup>.</p> <p><a name="2005:_Elections_and_sovereignty_transferred"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">2005: Elections and sovereignty transferred</span></h2> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main article: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005_in_Iraq" title="2005 in Iraq">2005 in Iraq</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_31" title="January 31">January 31</a>, Iraqis <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_legislative_election%2C_2005" title="Iraqi legislative election, 2005">elected</a> the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Transitional_Government" title="Iraqi Transitional Government">Iraqi Transitional Government</a> in order to draft a permanent constitution. Although some violence and widespread Sunni boycott marred the event, most of the eligible Kurd and Shia populace participated. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_4" title="February 4">February 4</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Wolfowitz" title="Paul Wolfowitz">Paul Wolfowitz</a> announced that 15,000 U.S. troops whose tours of duty had been extended in order to provide election security would be pulled out of Iraq by the next month.<sup id="_ref-66" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-66" title="">[89]</a></sup> February to April proved to be relatively peaceful months compared to the carnage of November and January, with insurgent attacks averaging 30 a day from the prior average of 70.</p> <p>Hopes for a quick end to an insurgency and a withdrawal of U.S. troops were dashed in May, Iraq's bloodiest month since the invasion. Suicide bombers, believed to be mainly disheartened Iraqi Sunni Arabs, Syrians and Saudis, tore through Iraq. Their targets were often Shia gatherings or civilian concentrations mainly of Shias. As a result, over 700 Iraqi civilians died in that month, as well as 79 U.S. soldiers.</p> <p>The summer of 2005 saw fighting around Baghdad and at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tall_Afar" title="Tall Afar">Tall Afar</a> in northwestern Iraq as US forces tried to seal off the Syrian border. This led to fighting in the autumn in the small towns of the Euphrates valley between the capital and the that border <sup id="_ref-67" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-67" title="">[90]</a></sup>.</p> <p>A constitutional referendum was held in October and a national assembly was elected in December <sup id="_ref-68" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-68" title="">[91]</a></sup>.</p> <p>Insurgent attacks increased in 2005 with 34,131 recorded incidents, compared to a total 26,496 for the previous year <sup id="_ref-69" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-69" title="">[92]</a></sup>.</p> <p><a name="2006:_Permanent_Iraqi_government_and_civil_war"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">2006: Permanent Iraqi government and civil war</span></h2> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_in_Iraq" title="2006 in Iraq">2006 in Iraq</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_war_in_Iraq" title="Civil war in Iraq">Civil war in Iraq</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p>The beginning of 2006 was marked by government creation talks, growing sectarian violence, and continuous anti-coalition attacks. Sectarian violence expanded to a new level of intensity following the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Askari_Mosque_bombing_%282006%29" title="Al-Askari Mosque bombing (2006)">al-Askari Mosque bombing</a> in the Iraqi city of Samarra, on February 22, 2006. The explosion at the mosque, one of the holiest sites in Shi'a Islam, is believed to have been caused by a bomb planted by Al-Qaeda in Iraq. Although no injuries occurred in the blast, the mosque was severely damaged and the bombing resulted in violence over the following days. Over 100 dead bodies with bullet holes were found on February 23, and at least 165 people are thought to have been killed. In the aftermath of this attack the US military calculated that the average homicide rate in Baghdad tripled from 11 to 33 deaths per day. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations" title="United Nations">United Nations</a> has since described the environment in Iraq as a "civil war-like situation."<sup id="_ref-70" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-70" title="">[93]</a></sup> A <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancet_surveys_of_casualties_of_the_Iraq_War" title="Lancet surveys of casualties of the Iraq War">2006 study</a> by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johns_Hopkins_Bloomberg_School_of_Public_Health" title="Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health">Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health</a> has estimated that more than 601,000 Iraqis have died in violence since the U.S. invasion and that fewer than one third of these deaths came at the hands of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_forces" title="Coalition forces">Coalition forces</a>.<sup id="_ref-71" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-71" title="">[94]</a></sup> The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_High_Commissioner_for_Refugees" title="United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees">Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees</a> and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Iraq" title="Politics of Iraq">Iraqi government</a> estimate that more than 365,000 Iraqis have been displaced since the bombing of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Askari_Mosque" title="Al-Askari Mosque">al-Askari Mosque</a>, bringing the total number of Iraqi <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugee" title="Refugee">refugees</a> to more than 1.6 million.<sup id="_ref-72" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-72" title="">[95]</a></sup></p> <p>The current government of Iraq took office on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_20" title="May 20">May 20</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a> following approval by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Members_of_the_1st_Iraqi_Council_of_Representatives" title="Members of the 1st Iraqi Council of Representatives">members</a> of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_National_Assembly" title="Iraqi National Assembly">Iraqi National Assembly</a>. This followed the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_legislative_election%2C_December_2005" title="Iraqi legislative election, December 2005">general election in December 2005</a>. The government succeeded the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqi_Transitional_Government" title="Iraqi Transitional Government">Iraqi Transitional Government</a> which had continued in office in a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caretaker#Caretaker_governments" title="Caretaker">caretaker capacity</a> until the new government was agreed.</p> <p><a name="Increased_sectarian_violence" id="Increased_sectarian_violence"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Increased sectarian violence</span></h3> <p>In September 2006, <i>The Washington Post</i> reported that the commander of the Marine forces in Iraq filed "an unusual secret report" concluding that the prospects for securing the Anbar province are dim, and that there is almost nothing the U.S. military can do to improve the political and social situation there.<sup id="_ref-73" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-73" title="">[96]</a></sup></p> <p>Iraq was listed fourth on the 2006 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Failed_States_Index" title="Failed States Index">Failed States Index</a> compiled by the American <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_Policy" title="Foreign Policy">Foreign Policy</a></i> magazine and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fund_for_Peace" title="Fund for Peace">Fund for Peace</a> think-tank. The list was topped by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudan" title="Sudan">Sudan</a>.<sup id="_ref-74" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-74" title="">[97]</a></sup><sup id="_ref-75" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-75" title="">[98]</a></sup></p> <p>As of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_20" title="October 20">October 20</a> the U.S military announced that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Together_Forward" title="Operation Together Forward">Operation Together Forward</a> had failed to stem the tide of violence in Baghdad, and Shiite militants under al-Sadr seized several southern Iraq cities.<sup id="_ref-76" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-76" title="">[99]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="U.S._congressional_elections_and_expanding_violence" id="U.S._congressional_elections_and_expanding_violence"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">U.S. congressional elections and expanding violence</span></h3> <dl><dd><span class="boilerplate seealso"><i>See also: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/23_November_2006_Sadr_City_bombings" title="23 November 2006 Sadr City bombings">23 November 2006 Sadr City bombings</a></i></span></dd></dl> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_7" title="November 7">November 7</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_general_elections%2C_2006" title="United States general elections, 2006">United States midterm elections</a> removed the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_%28United_States%29" title="Republican Party (United States)">Republican Party</a> from control of both chambers of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress" title="United States Congress">United States Congress</a>. The failings in the Iraq war was cited as one of the main causes even though the Bush administration attempted to distance itself from its earlier "stay the course" rhetoric.<sup id="_ref-77" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-77" title="">[100]</a></sup></p> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_23" title="November 23">November 23</a>, the deadliest attack since the beginning of the Iraq war occurred. Suspected Sunni-Arab militants used five suicide car bombs and two mortar rounds on the capital's Shiite Sadr City slum to kill at least 215 people and wound 257. Shiite mortar teams quickly retaliated, firing 10 shells at Sunni Islam's most important shrine in Baghdad, badly damaging the Abu Hanifa mosque and killing one person. Eight more rounds slammed down near the offices of the Association of Muslim Scholars, the top Sunni Muslim organisation in Iraq, setting nearby houses on fire. Two other mortar barrages on Sunni neighborhoods in west Baghdad killed nine and wounded 21, police said.<sup id="_ref-78" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-78" title="">[101]</a></sup></p> <p>On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_28" title="November 28">November 28</a>, another Marine Corps intelligence report was released confirming the previous report on Anbar stating that, "U.S. and Iraqi troops 'are no longer capable of militarily defeating the insurgency in al-Anbar,' and 'nearly all government institutions from the village to provincial levels have disintegrated or have been thoroughly corrupted and infiltrated by Al Qaeda in Iraq.'"<sup id="_ref-79" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-79" title="">[102]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="Iraq_Study_Group_report_and_Saddam.E2.80.99s_execution" id="Iraq_Study_Group_report_and_Saddam.E2.80.99s_execution"></a></p> <h3><span class="mw-headline">Iraq Study Group report and Saddam’s execution</span></h3> <div class="thumb tleft"> <div class="thumbinner" style="width: 182px;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:TrialSaddam.jpg" class="image" title="Hussein at his appearance before the Iraqi Special Tribunal on July 1, 2004."><img alt="Hussein at his appearance before the Iraqi Special Tribunal on July 1, 2004." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1d/TrialSaddam.jpg/180px-TrialSaddam.jpg" class="thumbimage" border="0" height="141" width="180" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"> <div class="magnify" style="float: right;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:TrialSaddam.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"><img src="http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png" alt="" height="11" width="15" /></a></div> Hussein at his appearance before the Iraqi Special Tribunal on July 1, 2004.</div> </div> </div> <dl><dd> <div class="noprint"><i>Main articles: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Study_Group" title="Iraq Study Group">Iraq Study Group</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Execution of Saddam Hussein">Execution of Saddam Hussein</a></i></div> </dd></dl> <p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Study_Group_Report" title="Iraq Study Group Report">Iraq Study Group Report</a> was released on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_6" title="December 6">December 6</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a>. The bipartisan <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Study_Group" title="Iraq Study Group">Iraq Study Group</a> was led by former secretary of state <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Baker" title="James Baker">James Baker</a> and former Democratic congressman <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Hamilton" title="Lee Hamilton">Lee Hamilton</a>, and concludes that "the situation in Iraq is grave and deteriorating" and "U.S. forces seem to be caught in a mission that has no foreseeable end." The report's 79 recommendations include increasing diplomatic measures with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran" title="Iran">Iran</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria" title="Syria">Syria</a> and intensifying efforts to train Iraqi troops. On <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_18" title="December 18">December 18</a>, a Pentagon report finds that attacks on Americans and Iraqis average about 960 a week, the highest since the reports began in 2005.<sup id="_ref-80" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-80" title="">[103]</a></sup></p> <p>Coalition forces formally transferred control of a province to the Iraqi government, the first since the war. Military prosecutors charged 8 Marines with the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haditha" title="Haditha">Haditha</a> in November 2005, 10 of them women and children. Four officers were also charged with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dereliction_of_duty" title="Dereliction of duty">dereliction of duty</a> in relation to the event.<sup id="_ref-81" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-81" title="">[104]</a></sup></p> <p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Execution_of_Saddam_Hussein" title="Execution of Saddam Hussein">Saddam Hussein was hanged</a> on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_30" title="December 30">December 30</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006" title="2006">2006</a> after being found guilty of crimes against humanity by an Iraqi court, after a year-long trial.<sup id="_ref-82" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-82" title="">[105]</a></sup></p> <p><a name="2007:_U.S._troop_surge"></a></p> <h2><span class="mw-headline">2007: U.S. troop surge</span></h2> <dl><dd><i>Further information: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_in_Iraq" title="2007 in Iraq">2007 in Iraq</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_War_troop_surge_of_2007" title="Iraq War troop surge of 2007">Iraq War troop surge of 2007</a></i></dd></dl> <p>In a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_10" title="January 10">January 10</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007" title="2007">2007</a> televised address to the American public, Bush proposed 21,500 more troops for Iraq, a job programme for Iraqis, more reconstruction proposals, and $1.2 billion for these programmes.<sup id="_ref-83" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_iraq#_note-83" title="">[106]</a></sup> Asked why he thought his plan would work this time, Bush said: "Because it has to."<sup id="_ref-84" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of