Major Battles of the Iraq War

By:Jimmy BDoug DDuke DNick FJohn H

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Battle of Nasiriyah

• March 23-29, 2003• U.S. convoy made wrong turn into the city and is

ambushed– 11 killed

– 6, including Jessica Lynch, were captured

• Bloodiest day was the 23rd, when 18 U.S. soldiers were ambushed and killed around the Saddam Canal

• By the 27th, most of the fighting was done and switched to search operations

Troops entering area where a roadside bombing took place

Battle of Fallujah

• Began in April of 2004

• Killing of 17 Iraqi civilians by U.S. forces caused major violence

• There was a siege and two reinvasions on the city by U.S. forces

• Several U.S. soldiers died due to car bombs

Two soldiers help a third out of the building they ambushed in Fallujah

Battle of Debecka Pass • April 6th, 2003• Purpose was to capture the strategically important

junction between Mosul and Kirkuk• This impeded Iraqi movement in the north, as well as

gave U.S. some momentum to capture Kirkuk oil fields• U.S. teamed up with the Peshmerga resistance

• Started with the bombings by the U.S. B-52 bombers– Became battle between tanks and fighter jets– Iraq forces used trickery to attempt to deceive the U.S.– Attempts failed

• U.S. airstrikes and advanced troops stop the final Iraqi charge

• Strategic victory for the U.S.

Soldier practicing using the Javelin anti-tank missile on a firing range. The javelin was a pivotal weapon in the Battle of Debecka Pass.

Battle of Najaf• January 28th, 2007• Chief of a tribe was killed by security forces

– Wife and driver were also killed– Armed pilgrims alongside the car attacked security

• More Iraqi tribes come into the picture and are being shot at

• al-Qaeda began attacking the tribes and security forces– U.S. gets involved– 1 helicopter is shot down– 2 U.S. soldiers are killed whiling trying to stop the

battle between Security forces and different tribes in Iraq

U.S. soldier looks towards the An Najaf cemetery in Iraq during the Battle of Najaf

The Battle for Basra• March-April of 2008

• Iraqis and Iranian-backed Shia militias fought for control of the city

• Britain troops remained on the sidelines

• U.S. Troops became involved in several raids against al-Sadr's followers

• American jets followed through with airstrikes in support of the Iraqi forces– Tried to oust the Mahdi Army

Members of the Iraqi Army board an Iraqi C-130 Hercules for a flight to Basra, Iraq at New Al Muthana Air Base in Baghdad on Mar. 30

The Dzik-3 was used by the Iraqi Army in Basra.

Uprising of Mahdi Army• Leader: Muqtada al-Sadr • Formed the army in June of 2003• The army kills Iraqi and U.S. forces• Purpose: to take over the land slowly and

spread their beliefs– They are Shi’ites

• Group rose to international prominence on April 4th, 2004

• The army is the number one enemy in Baghdad

The Mahdi Army celebrates and cheers in the street to excite the followers of Al-Sadr

Muqtada Al-Sadr; Leader of the Mahdi Army

Operation Iraqi Freedom• March 20, 2003

– Combined military force of 300,000, primarily US and British troops, entered Iraq through Kuwait

– Purpose was to seek out and destroy chemical, nuclear, and biological WMDs

• No WMDs were ever found

Will McDermott from Phoenix, Az., provides security as Marines from the 1st Battalion 5th Marines break down a door while searching buildings for weapons in Fallujah, Iraq, Monday, April 19, 2004. (AP Photo/John Moore)

Battle in Mosul• September 9-10, 2005• GMLRS rockets were fired in Tal Afar west

of Mosul destroying two separate buildings from over 50 kilometers away with zero advance warning and less collateral damage than a precision bomb.

• Targets were two housing complexes that had been fortified and were known to house many insurgents

• Killing 48 insurgents

An example of a GMLRS rocket that was fired south of Mosul

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