The British Army, 'Understanding', and the Illusion of Control
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UK Land Operations in Iraq 2007
House of Commons Defence Committee UK land operations in Iraq 2007 First Report of Session 2007–08 Report, together with formal minutes, oral and written evidence Ordered by The House of Commons to be printed 20 November 2007 HC 110 [Incorporating HC 727-i & ii, Session 2006–07] Published on 3 December 2007 by authority of the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £15.50 The Defence Committee The Defence Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration, and policy of the Ministry of Defence and its associated public bodies. Current membership Rt Hon James Arbuthnot MP (Conservative, North East Hampshire) (Chairman) Mr David S Borrow MP (Labour, South Ribble) Mr David Crausby MP (Labour, Bolton North East) Linda Gilroy MP (Labour, Plymouth Sutton) Mr David Hamilton MP (Labour, Midlothian) Mr Mike Hancock MP (Liberal Democrat, Portsmouth South) Mr Dai Havard MP (Labour, Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney) Mr Adam Holloway MP (Conservative, Gravesham) Mr Bernard Jenkin MP (Conservative, North Essex) Mr Brian Jenkins MP (Labour, Tamworth) Mr Kevan Jones MP (Labour, Durham North) Robert Key MP (Conservative, Salisbury) Willie Rennie MP (Liberal Democrat, Dunfermline and West Fife) John Smith MP (Labour, Vale of Glamorgan) The following Members were also Members of the Committee during the Parliament. Mr Colin Breed MP (Liberal Democrat, South East Cornwall) Derek Conway MP (Conservative, Old Bexley and Sidcup) Mr Mark Lancaster MP (Conservative, North East Milton Keynes) Mr Desmond Swayne MP (Conservative, New Forest West) Powers The Committee is one of the departmental select committees, the powers of which are set out in House of Commons Standing Orders, principally in SO No 152. -
Iraqi Force Development and the Challenge of Civil War
Center for Strategic and International Studies Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy 1800 K Street, N.W. • Suite 400 • Washington, DC 20006 Phone: 1 (202) 775-3270 • Fax: 1 (202) 457-8746 Web: http://www.csis.org/burke Iraqi Force Development and the Challenge of Civil War: The Critical Problems The US Must Address if Iraqi Forces Are to Do the Job Anthony Cordesman Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy With the Assistance of Adam Mausner Revised, May 10, 2007 Cordesman: Iraqi Force Development 5/10/07 Page ii Executive Summary Iraq has moved far beyond a Sunni Islamist or Ba’ath-driven insurgency. It is already in a state of limited civil war, and may well be escalating to the level of a major civil conflict. What began as a small resistance movement centered on loyalists to the Ba’ath and Saddam Hussein has expanded to include neo-Salafi Sunni terrorism, a broadly based Sunni insurgency, and now a series of broader sectarian and ethnic conflicts. The current combination of Sunni Neo-Salafi extremist insurgency, Sunni Arab versus Shi’ite Arab sectarian conflict, Shi’ite versus Shi’ite power struggles, and Arab versus Kurdish ethnic conflict could easily cause the collapse of the current political structure. In the best case, it could lead to a Shi’ite or Shi’ite-Kurdish dominated government, with strong local centers of power, and an ongoing fight with Iraq’s Sunnis. In the worst case, it could escalate to the break up of the country, far more serious ethnic and sectarian conflict, or violent paralysis. -
Where Is Iraq Heading? Lessons from Basra
WHERE IS IRAQ HEADING? LESSONS FROM BASRA Middle East Report N°67 – 25 June 2007 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...................................................................................................... i I. CHARACTERISTICS ................................................................................................... 1 A. DIVERSITY ............................................................................................................................1 B. “SOUTHERNISM”...................................................................................................................4 C. FOREIGN INTERFERENCE ........................................................................................................7 II. OIL, MILITIAS AND THE SCRAMBLE FOR RESOURCES ................................ 9 A. SUBVERTING THE STATE .....................................................................................................11 B. CIRCUMVENTING THE STATE...............................................................................................14 III. OPERATION SINBAD ................................................................................................ 16 IV. CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................. 18 APPENDICES A. MAP OF IRAQ ......................................................................................................................19 B. ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP .......................................................................20 -
Iraq Situation Report
Iraq Situation Report Kimberly Kagan, Marisa Cochrane, Eric Hamilton, Farook Ahmed, Andrea So, Wesley Morgan February 7, 2008 1 Executive Summary Operations by Coalition and Iraqi Forces throughout 2007 have transformed the security situation in Iraq. Violence decreased dramatically in the second half of 2007. The number of enemy attacks in Iraq, the number of attacks against Iraqi civilians, and the number of murders in Baghdad, dropped to levels last seen in early 2006.1 The mission shift to an aggressive counterinsurgency strategy, with an emphasis on population security, which occurred in January 2007, solidified these gains more quickly than many had predicted. Unexpected developments, like the emergence of Awakening movements and the unilateral Sadrist ceasefire, further helped to accelerate the ground level improvements in security. By late 2007, Al-Qaeda in Iraq had been defeated in Anbar, and its network and safe havens in Baghdad and the belts were largely disrupted. Al-Qaeda in Iraq has been steadily pushed north, into isolated pockets, often far from population centers. Coalition Forces have also aggressively targeted Shi’a militia extremists and Iranian-backed Special Groups, with encouraging results. The Institute for the Study of War has created this situation report to document the dramatic changes from January 2007 to December 2007. This report details the organization of Coalition and Iraqi Forces, the various enemy groups in Iraq, and operations across Iraq over the last year to defeat these enemy actors and improve security throughout the country. Key Points: • In 2007, the enemy groups in Iraq were al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), Sunni rejectionists, Ansar al- Sunna, the Kurdish Workers Party, Shi’a extremists, and Iranian-backed Special Groups. -
The Missing Link
THE MISSING LINK CIVIL-MILITARY ASPECTS OF EFFECTIVENESS IN COMPLEX IRREGULAR WARFARE Claes Robert Egnell Word count: 99,889 Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the PhD King’s College London September 2007 1 ABSTRACT Traditional analyses of operational effectiveness and combat power often lack consideration of civil-military aspects. However, in operations with complex and ambitious political aims, such as democratization, economic development and respect for human rights, the co-ordination of military, diplomatic and economic means is essential. These are issues that have increasingly become obvious since the end of the Cold War, and even more so during the operations in Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq in the new millennium. The aim of the thesis is to increase the understanding of how different patterns of civil-military relations affect the way operations are conducted. In general terms the impact is twofold: a direct impact by providing the highest levels in the chain of command – the level where strategic aims are set and operational plans made, and an indirect impact by being the arena in which decisions regarding size, culture, equipment and doctrine of the armed forces are made. Without properly functioning civil-military relations, structurally as well as culturally, effectiveness in complex irregular warfare is therefore unlikely. More specifically, the thesis compares the divided, radical civil-military approach, as promoted by Samuel Huntington and his followers, and the integrated, pragmatic approach, as advocated by the Janowitzean, sociological school. In practical terms, this involves a comparative study of US and British patterns of civil-military relations, their strategic cultures, as well as their operations in Iraq. -
The Trade-Off Between Force and Casualties in Democracies at War a Study of the American, British and Israeli Militaries
The Trade-off between Force and Casualties in Democracies at War A Study of the American, British and Israeli Militaries By Yonatan Freeman & Yagil Levy The United States, United Kingdom and Israel in recent years have been involved in military campaigns in Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq and Gaza. At the same time, sensitivity to casualties has remained paramount to liberal worldviews. This outlook has led to the use of aggressive force to shift the mission risk from a nation’s soldier to the enemy civilian, possibly leading to an increase in collateral damage. The result has been the development 1 of a force/ casualty trade-off (FCT) – the use of operational methods to reduce risks to soldiers, under specific conditions of legitimacy for using force, at the expense of inflicting more damage on the enemy civilians. Thus, the aversion to exposing soldiers to greater risk has challenged the sensitivity to enemy civilian casualties. This article seeks to evaluate how FCT has been legitimized through the legitimization of aggressiveness. Certainly, as will be shown below, legitimacy was not just about the use of force, but about backing for the operation. At times, by using greater force, leaders chose to risk enemy civilians to satisfy public desires for the protection their soldiers. The structure of this article is as follows. First, the study will be situated within the current literature, and the latter’s gap identified. Next, the main line of argument and methodology will be presented. This will be followed by a section detailing the empirical analysis offered to back it. Lastly, conclusions will duly be provided. -
Iraqi Force Development and the Challenge of Civil War
Center for Strategic and International Studies Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy 1800 K Street, N.W. • Suite 400 • Washington, DC 20006 Phone: 1 (202) 775-3270 • Fax: 1 (202) 457-8746 Web: http://www.csis.org/burke Email: [email protected] Iraqi Force Development and the Challenge of Civil War: The Critical Problems and Failures the US Must Address if Iraqi Forces Are to Eventually Do the Job Anthony Cordesman Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy With the Assistance of: Brian Burton George Sullivan Iskandar Jahja William D. Sullivan Revised, November 28, 2006 Cordesman: Iraqi Force Development 11/28/06 Page ii Executive Summary Iraq is already in a state of at least limited civil war, and may well be escalating to the level of a major civil conflict. What began as a small resistance movement centered on loyalists to the Ba’ath and Saddam Hussein has expanded to include neo-Salafi Sunni terrorism, become a broadly based Sunni insurgency, and now a broader sectarian and ethnic conflict. The current combination of insurgency, Sunni Arab versus Shi’ite Arab sectarian conflict, and Arab versus Kurdish ethnic conflict could easily cause the collapse of the current political structure, leading to a Shi’ite or Shi’ite-Kurdish dominated government, with strong local centers of power, and an ongoing fight with Iraq’s Sunnis. It could escalate to the break up of the country, far more serious ethnic and sectarian conflict, or violent paralysis. It has already led to widespread ethnic cleansing in urban areas by militias and death squads of all three major ethnic and religious groups. -
The Report of the Iraq Inquiry
Return to an Address of the Honourable the House of Commons dated 6 July 2016 for The Report of the Iraq Inquiry Report of a Committee of Privy Counsellors Volume VIII Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed on 6 July 2016 HC 265-VIII 46561_29b Viking_Volume VIII Title Page.indd 1 17/06/2016 13:20 © Crown copyright 2016 This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/ version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: [email protected]. Where we have identifi ed any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned. This publication is available at www.gov.uk/government/publications Any enquiries regarding this publication should be sent to us at [email protected] Print ISBN 9781474110136 Web ISBN 9781474110143 ID 23051601 46561 07/16 Printed on paper containing 75% recycled fi bre content minimum Printed in the UK by the Williams Lea Group on behalf of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Offi ce 46561_29b Viking_Volume VIII Title Page.indd 2 17/06/2016 13:20 Volume VIII CONTENTS 9.5 June 2006 to 27 June 2007 1 9.6 27 June 2007 to April 2008 181 9.7 May 2008 to October 2009 381 9.8 Conclusions: The post-conflict period 469 46561_29b Viking_Volume VIII Title Page.indd 3 17/06/2016 13:20 46561_29b Viking_Volume VIII Title Page.indd 4 17/06/2016 13:20 SECTION 9.5 JUNE 2006 TO 27 JUNE 2007 Contents Introduction ..................................................................................................................... -
Where Is Iraq Heading? Lessons from Basra
WHERE IS IRAQ HEADING? LESSONS FROM BASRA Middle East Report N°67 – 25 June 2007 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...................................................................................................... i I. CHARACTERISTICS ................................................................................................... 1 A. DIVERSITY ............................................................................................................................1 B. “SOUTHERNISM”...................................................................................................................4 C. FOREIGN INTERFERENCE ........................................................................................................7 II. OIL, MILITIAS AND THE SCRAMBLE FOR RESOURCES ................................ 9 A. SUBVERTING THE STATE .....................................................................................................11 B. CIRCUMVENTING THE STATE...............................................................................................14 III. OPERATION SINBAD ................................................................................................ 16 IV. CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................. 18 APPENDICES A. MAP OF IRAQ ......................................................................................................................19 B. ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP .......................................................................20 -
Iraq War 1 Iraq War
Iraq War 1 Iraq War Further information: 2003 invasion of Iraq and Post-invasion Iraq The Iraq War (or War in Iraq) began on March 20, 2003[1] [2] with the invasion of Iraq by the United States under the administration of President George W. Bush and the United Kingdom under Prime Minister Tony Blair.[3] The war is also referred to as the Occupation of Iraq, the Second Gulf War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom by the US military. Prior to the invasion, the governments of the United States and the United Kingdom asserted that the possibility of Iraq employing weapons of mass destruction (WMD) threatened their security and that of their coalition/regional allies.[4] [5] [6] In 2002, the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 1441 which called for Iraq to completely cooperate with UN weapon inspectors to verify that it was not in possession of weapons of mass destruction and cruise missiles. The United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) was given access by Iraq under provisions of the UN resolution but found no evidence of weapons of mass destruction. Additional months of inspection to conclusively verify Iraq's compliance with the UN disarmament requirements were not undertaken.[7] [8] [9] [10] Head weapons inspector Hans Blix advised the UN Security Council that while Iraq's cooperation was "active", it was not "unconditional" and not "immediate". Iraq's declarations with regards to weapons of mass destruction could not be verified at the time, but unresolved tasks concerning Iraq's disarmament could be completed in "not years, not weeks, but months".[7] [11] Following the invasion, the U.S.-led Iraq Survey Group concluded that Iraq had ended its nuclear, chemical, and biological programs in 1991 and had no active programs at the time of the invasion but that Iraq intended to resume production once sanctions were lifted.[12] Although some degraded remnants of misplaced or abandoned chemical weapons from before 1991 were found, they were not the weapons which had been the main argument to justify the invasion.[13] Some U.S. -
Diis Report 2009:13: Civil-Military Relations In
DIIS REPORT 2009:13 DIIS REPORT THE CIVIL-MILITARY AGENDA CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS IN IRAQ 2003-7 THE DANISH EXPERIENCE Kasper Hoffmann DIIS REPORT 2009:13 DIIS REPORT DIIS . DANISH INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDIES 1 DIIS REPORT 2009:13 © Copenhagen 2009 Danish Institute for International Studies, DIIS Strandgade 56, DK-1401 Copenhagen, Denmark Ph: +45 32 69 87 87 Fax: +45 32 69 87 00 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.diis.dk Cover Design: Carsten Schiøler Layout: Allan Lind Jørgensen Printed in Denmark by Vesterkopi AS ISBN 978-87-7605-317-8 Price: DKK 50.00 (VAT included) DIIS publications can be downloaded free of charge from www.diis.dk Hardcopies can be ordered at www.diis.dk Kasper Hoffmann, Research Assistant, research units on Defence and security and Migration, DIIS. 2 DIIS REPORT 2009:13 Tables of Contents List of Abbreviations 5 Executive Summary 7 1. Introduction 11 1.1 The Object of Analysis and Approach 13 1.1.1 Method 14 1.2 Structure of the Report 15 2. Operational Context 17 2.1 Socio-economic Situation 17 2.2 The Political Landscape in Iraq, 2003-2007 17 2.2.1 A Change of Power 19 2.2.2 The Insurgency 20 2.2.3 The ‘Surge’ and its Impact 21 2.3 The Coalition and Shiite Political Factions in Basra 21 3. Danish Civil-military Cooperation in Iraq – The Strategic Level 26 3.1 The Broad Strategy for Iraq 26 3.2 The Reconstruction and Humanitarian Aid 28 3.3 The Danish Armed Force’s Strategy in Iraq 31 3.4 The Concerted Planning and Action Initiative 32 4. -
Reassessing British Counterinsurgency in Iraq
Why Did It All Go Wrong? Reassessing British Counterinsurgency in Iraq Warren Chin Britain has a relatively good track record in counterinsurgency (COIN).1 But as one journalist commented in 2008: “the war in Iraq has been one of the most disastrous wars ever fought by Britain. It has been small, but we achieved nothing.”2 Although this view can be contested, it is clear that, if judged in terms of the original aim, Britain’s achievements fell far short of expectations set in 2003. A fundamental reason for this failure was the ap parent ineffectiveness of Britain’s COIN campaign. The aim of this article is to explain why a strategy used so effectively in the past unraveled in Iraq. Specifically, it challenges the view that British failure in Iraq was inevitable or that it was the product of an outdated COIN strategy.3 Although the British accounted for only five percent of the entire coali tion force, such an analysis is warranted for two reasons. First, British ex perience of insurgency in Iraq proved to be very different from that of the Americans, and it is important to address this divergence if only because it reveals a different aspect of the campaign to stabilize the country. Initially at least, the British area of operations in the Multi-National Division (South- East) [MND(SE)] presented a relatively benign environment: there were no global insurgents, little sectarian conflict, and the six million people liv ing in the MND(SE) were primarily Shia Arabs, most of whom welcomed the downfall of Saddam Hussein.