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Amanda Roraback's World in a Nutshell |
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Articles Samarra (3/7/07) Possible Consequences of Failure Flag (1/22/08) Iraq Study Group (coming soon) Documents |
IRAQ |
Iraq in a Nutshell |
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2008 JANUARY Iraq adopts a new interim flag. 2007 MARCH In March 2007, Sunni insurgents stepped up attacks on Iraqi Shi'as preparing for the Shi'a Muslim commemoration of Ashura. The attacks are intended to rekindle the sectarian civil war triggered by the bombing of the Samarra Mosque in February 2006 in order to destabilize the Shi'ite-dominated Iraqi government. FEBRUARY The whereabouts of radical cleric Muqtada Sadr is debated. Rumors have been circulating that he is out of the country. His absence could lead to a drop in morale among members of the Mahdi Army. Security plan, dubbed Operation Law and Order put into effect including the implementation of "intelligence-focused searches" and raids in several parts of Baghdad. The plan aims to place US troops in neighborhood security stations. The Bush administration has agreed to increase aid to neighboring countries to deal with the rising number of refugees. The US will also increase the number of Iraqi refugees allowed in the country to about 7,000 (only 202 were allowed in last year). About 2 million Iraqis have left the country since the 2003 invasion. Another 1.8 million have relocated in Iraq. JANUARY Members of an obscure messianic group called Heaven's Army were decimated in a 24-hour US and Iraqi offensive that left more than 200 members dead and 210 injured. The cost of the Iraq war will reach $8.4 billion a month in 2007. The cost increase (from $4.4 billion in 2003) is mostly due to equipment replacement costs for damaged or lost helicopters, planes and armored vehicles. Saudi Arabia has suggested that it might send troops to Iraq to protect its interests. The Sunni-Muslim Saudis fear that the new Shi'ite-dominant government isn't capable of protecting the Sunni Arab Muslims. 1/13 - Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki appointed Lt. General Abud Qanbar to the post of Iraqi commander for Baghdad over the objections of the US and Iraqi officials. 1/10 The Bush administration is announced a plan to increased the number of troops stationed in Iraq by 21,500. 1/10 - Iraq's national security adviser said that the country's most senior Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, gave his blessing to government efforts to disarm militants as it prepares to implement a major new security plan for Baghdad. 1/6 Iraq Prime Minister Nuri Maliki announced that he planned a major security plan to retore order in Baghdad, the epicenter of violence in IRaq. Iraq plans inquiry into Hussein execution. Former Baath Party Vice President, Izzat Ibrahim, has been appointed as the new party leader upon the execution of Saddam Hussein. Iraq reports that 12,000 Iraqi civilians were killed in 2006. Vigils are held in the U.S. to commemorate the deaths of 3,000 American troops since the start of the war. 2006 DECEMBER Saddam Hussein was sentenced to death and hanged on December 30. US may increase military in Iraq -- perhaps adding 6,000-7,000 soldiers per year. There are currently 512,000 US soldiers stationed in Iraq. Some experts suggest that the Army should grow annually by one division, about 20,000 people, until it reaches 750,000 soldiers NOVEMBER |
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