Iraqi Army

The AOI strategy was based on six essential elements that derived from a proposal meeting with senior Iraqi officials; let the Iraqis lead, help Iraqis protect the population, isolate extremists, create space for political progress, diversify political and economic efforts, and situate the strategy in a regional approach (Mansoor 2013). The rapid deployment of five additional Brigades, in support of surge operations, spanned over a five-month period, from January to May of 2007. The implementation of tour extensions took effect in order to facilitate a shared understanding between presently deployed Brigades and the influx of the allotted 28,000 additional U.S. troops. These additional troops would later support Operation Phantom Thunder, Operation Phantom Strike, and Operation Phantom Phoenix. Surge operations, commanded under the authority of General David Petraeus, acted utilizing the concept of Counterinsurgency (COIN). General Petraeus…

terrorists took advantage of the fact that the police were poorly equipped and trained poorly, they were killed abruptly. The second problem was a shattered state. Before and after the war Iraq has always been split due to the different racial groups and their beliefs. Fixing the state was difficult due to the United States firm group on being in control of the reconstruction. Hardly allowing the UN to come forth and help out. The United State did not understand how politics worked in Iraq. So…

Yezidi Kurds in northern Iraq never transcended their religious beliefs or identity in order to partake in Kurdish nationalist movements. Nelida Fuccaro, professor at University of Exeter, in her essay “Ethnicity, State Formation, and Conscription in Postcolonial Iraq” examines the complexities of state attempts to conscript Yezidi Kurds into the Iraqi army in the 1930s. While discussing the tribal identities of Jabal Sinjar, she notes how the relationship between the Yezidi Kurds and Sunni…

The holding concept allowed indigenous police or military to police the area. In order for the holding concept to be effective, a cleared neighborhood needed large force to police an area. A large force is necessary against insurgent intimidation and threats. At this point, US forces helped reestablished critical and basics services. Market shops and school were to be opened again. Over time, Iraqis controlled more and more of the projects, returning their society to normalcy. The holding…

Imagine a small, yet strong group of people living in mountainous regions in the Middle East. For centuries, these people have developed their own culture and identity. Yet, they are not acknowledged as their own sovereign and the nation that lays claim to them viciously persecutes them. For the Kurdish people of northern Iraq, the disdain of their neighbors has plagued them for centuries. On March 16, 1988, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein ordered a series of chemical attacks on the Kurdish…

After Saddam Hussein 's regime was toppled, the denationalization of the oil companies began. This was in opposition to economic development because many Iraqis depended on these jobs that were not being outsourced to companies for a fraction of the cost. An example of this is the story she tells of the man named Mahmud where a fight broke out in the factory he worked in over privatization. Once, the privatization was completed the contractors failed consistently to provide the services they…

He too mentions oil exports from the Kurdistan region but relates Anti Kurd-Iraqi Oil Minister Hussain al -Shahristani approved of the pipelines, (Gunter 2011, 1626-1627). Thus, Gunter would disagree with Stansfield, in that it was more national than international issues, which caused prevention of a Kurdish state. A major issue for the Kurds was the enforcement of both the Iraqi Constitution and Federalism. Gunter points out, while the Kurds initially had a majority of the seats in their region…

Manuel 3-24 was put into practice when the US’s commitment to COIN was confirmed in 2007 when US President George W. Bush announced “The New Way Forward”, or the infamous “surge” of troops in Iraq by 30 000 soldiers to protect civilians and occupy new positions in 4GW. Under the objective of providing security for civilians and building democracy and government infrastructure (as studied in Biddle, Friedman and Shapiro), the main goal of COIN was focused on protecting civilian populations and…

Similarly many academics have theorized about the role to which Islam played in the ethnic and nationalist formations of the Kurds. In his essay “The Impact of Islam on Kurdish Identity in the Middle East,” Hakan Ozoglu argues that Kurdish identity evolved through various, overlapping phases with Islam at the core of its formation process, a process he calls “dialectical, dialogical, and monological” (18). First, while the term “Kurd” was not ethnically associated with the modern term Kurd,…

As stated by US diplomat Henry Kissinger, “The conventional army loses if it does not win. The guerrilla wins if he does not lose.” The strategic aim of al-Barnawi, once gaining rapport with local leaders and improving his troops’ competency, would do well to consolidate his position in the Sambisa Forest in which Boko Haram is presently confined. The forest, already heavily mined, could become the Nigerian army’s Vietnam War; by booby trapping, mining and otherwise sabotaging roads and trails…