Kurds Need More Than Arms: Kurdish Military Analysis

The Iraq War, also known as Operation Iraqi Freedom, took place in 2003 and dragged on for almost nine years, until the withdrawal of US troops in December 2011. The invasion was justified by the US using the new National Security Strategy that was proposed by the Bush administration. One of the key features of the National Security strategy was the justification that the US could preemptively strike targets nations that it deemed a threat to the security of the US. In order to justify the invasion of Iraq, the governmental leaders in the US claimed that Saddam Hussein had ties to Al-Qaeda and other terror groups, as well as using Saddam’s use of chemical weapons as legitimization for the war. Once the war began on March 20, 2003, the original

* The removal of Saddam Hussein and a U.S. backed Iraqi government was considered proof of political stability, especially in the Kurdistan area, which was considered safer than the rest of Iraq.

Hussein was a ruthless dictator who ruled Iraq from 1979 to 2003 (Porter, 2017). On 2 August 1990, he invaded Kuwait; he subsequently occupied the country for six months, intentionally ignoring the UN Security Council’s demand for withdrawal until Operation Desert Storm expelled his forces on 27 February 1991 (Yoo, 2003, p. 2). Operation Desert Storm was “a massive U.S.-led air offensive” which attacked Iraq’s air forces, “communications networks, weapons plants, oil refineries and more” (History.com, 2009). On 3 April 1991, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 678, which was authorised by Chapter VII of the UN

Nevertheless, the Kurds believe that the threat of intolerant Shiite Arabs coming into power requires a formidable response to ensure their security (Source C). Even though the foreign affairs pose a threat to the Kurds,

Iraq is very attractive to colonizers due to its high amounts of oil and other natural resources. this made it the perfect target for a post world war one great britain, who needed oil to supply their machinery and troops after they had used so much of it. after the ottoman empire fell after WWI, Iraq became a mandate of the British empire in 1919 and was used primarily for oil and gas. when they took over many arab states after the ottomans, they drew random borders, which mixed ethnicities and beliefs. This resulted in many conflicts between cultures, the kurds and sunnis, and made life for many in the country hard. The anti colonial movement began the next year in 1920, during the Iraqi revolts, which were

“If Saddam Hussein does not fully disarm, we will lead a coalition to disarm him.” These were the first words spoken that would give any inclination towards what was soon to come. In George Bush’s 2002 State of the Union address, he referred to the Middle East as an “axis of evil,” a term that would be used for the next ten years, throughout the devastating war with Iraq. Millions of American’s views on Iraq were clouded by the malicious actions of the few nineteen suicide bombers on September 11, 2001, and other preconceptions about the Muslim people. Consequently, today many people think that the U.S.’s involvement in Iraq was successful, removing Hussein’s regime and restoring freedom in Iraq. However, they probably aren’t aware of the massive impacts the war has had on Iraq and less importantly, America. The U.S./Iraq war has had a devastating impact on the social and economic states of Iraq, and has contributed to the U.S. pouring billions of dollars of taxpayer money into the military.

In March 2003, President George W. Bush announced that Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) began: a mission to rid Iraq of Saddam Hussein, ensure that Hussein has no ability to develop weapons of mass destruction, and pledge to employ direct, pre-emptive strikes against Iraq to protect the United States. The United States government claimed they wanted the Iraqi people to achieve a united, stable and free country which would require our “sustained commitment” (History). After the United States’ Government deposed the Ba’athist government of Saddam Hussein, the divide between the Kurds, Sunnis, and Shi’is deepened. As the government disappeared, so did the control between the Iraqi groups. Violent conflict ensued for years as the groups competed for power (Iraq Timeline). Despite Iraq’s recognized borders, exercised sovereignty, and international recognition, the people remained segregated, and even pitted against each other.

During the 1980’s, Saddam Hussein and the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party controlled the Iraqi government. During their rule, Iraq had and unprecedented amount of high economic growth and soaring prosperity, but they also faced social and political stagnation. The annual income for an average citizen had decreased because of foreign sanctions, and several Ba’ath party economic policies. Hussein surrounded himself with those who were most loyal to him and became the father of the nation to the Iraqi people. During this period, Iraq was considered a stable state and considering the fact that many horrific criminal acts were committed by the regime, the state of Iraq was a functional one. As history has shown us many developing countries with dictator’s states tend to be more successful under an oppressive regime than having a democratic society. The Ba 'ath Party also created what would become a propaganda center for pro-Saddam literature, Movies, songs, and more. It was said that the propaganda campaign created a common sense of

The 2003 U.S. led invasion removed Saddam Hussein, an authoritarian from the Sunni minority who governed over a Shia-majority country. After the American invasion, Phase IV, the occupation of Iraq was established to aid Iraq in developing a new democratic regime. Iraqi inhabitants were strongly opposed to having American forces rehabilitate their country, especially after Operation Peninsula Strike. The operation involved the U.S. troops pursuing members of the Fedayeen Saddam militia, an aggressive power devoted to Hussein alongside high-ranking members of the Baath Party and former Iraqi security agencies. Together policy and actions dictated by the U.S. civil and military agents alongside Iraq’s preexisting social conditions, communitarian

The war ranged from 1980-1988 with both countries taking over 400 billion dollars in damage in both oil wells and cities. Iraq began the war by using "indiscriminate ballistic-missile attacks, extensive use of chemical weapons and attacks on third-country oil tankers in the Persian Gulf." -History.com. At this point Iraq had used the ban chemical weapons and began to push into the Iranian land. By 1988 cities along the border were in rubble and over 1,000,000 soldiers had died collectively. It was after the war that Saddam Hussein began to claim the nearing of a Nuclear Warhead. Some Americans thought he was bluffing while others grew worried of MAD coming back from the Cold War. As a result of the mismanaged and neglected cities and countries in the MIddle East, terror groups began to form so that order could be in the land, but they only caused terror and fear in the citizens. Flashforward to 2001 and the terrorism has grown to the outskirts of the capital city and everywhere else In Iraq. Saddam Hussein had made little to no effort to remove the threat from the country. Saddam was more focused on suppressing the Kurdish uprising, which had been and ongoing fight since the eighties. The UN had implemented sanctions against the Iraqi government for using deadly force on the nations own citizens. The UN had been keeping a close eye on Iraq, but now more than ever, Saddam had announced the Lethal Arms Program which was to develop nuclear and biological WMD. Later in 2002 George Bush stated the vulnerability of a Iraq nuclear strike and the collaboration between Iraq and the

US support and agendas within the Middle East have been extremely complicated in the last century. Starting with the backing of the Shah of Iran in the early 1950s to the present-day conflict in Syria, there appears to be no decision without adverse secondary and tertiary effects. Since the Persian Gulf War, US policy has been fully supportive of the Arabs and Turks while limiting official support for the Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, and Syria. Nevertheless, unofficially, the US has fully supported the Kurds militarily through the establishment of long-term partnerships between military forces. While always a point of contention with Turkey and the Government of Iraq (GOI), the recent increase in support for Kurdish forces in Syria to oppose the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) brought the issue to the forefront. The time for US policy to withhold support for the Kurds is past due to their critical role in the campaign against ISIL. The US attempted to establish a coalition amongst the Turks and the Arabs but this has largely failed to turn the tide of ISIL’s advance. However, following the consistent successes of the Kurds advance wresting control of northeastern Syria away from ISIL, it is a foregone conclusion that the US requires an alliance with the Kurds if they wish to establish some semblance of stability in the Middle East. In the end, can the US ethically and morally provide support to the Kurds, ignoring requests from US allies in the region?

government officials that were identified as conspirators against the Ba’ath party. (5) His ruthless and brutal dictatorship would bring his country to war with neighboring Iran from 1980 to 1988. Initially a territorial dispute, Hussein would cite Iran’s Islamic fundamentalism as his motives for continued combat and Iraq’s use of chemical weapons. (6) The war resulted in more than 100,000 combat deaths and drove Iraq deep into debt. The military annex of Kuwait in 1991 was intended to absolve Iraq of this financial responsibility to it’s neighbor. (7) The United Nations Security Council, in particular the United States, responded with force to drive Saddam Hussein’s army

After the gulf wars, a ceasefire was negotiated between the United Nations coalition and Iraq. During the ceasefire, the United Nations became aware that Iraq had started a biological warfare program in the 1980s, as well as a chemical warfare program. Upon further investigation, they found that these programs had not continued after the war. As a result, the United States main focus moving forward was the removal of the Saddam regime, their official foreign policy for years to come focused on this goal. With the suspicions that Saddam Hussein had the abilities to acquire weapons of mass destruction, the Bush administration going as far as to claim he already had them, the United States and other countries began devising a plan of action. These countries strongly believed that Iraq was a treat to its neighbors and the rest of the world, and that the only solution was to invade Iraq. The United States invading Iraq in 2003 was a turning point in the reason why relationship between Iraq and the United States is the way it is today.

In order to fully interpret the nation of Iraq’s holistic condition during and after the Saddam Era, Social, Political, and Economic factors must be weighed accordingly and in contrast to each other. In order to do this, the span of years leading up to 1989, and

Kurdistan is a region that has existed in turmoil and is the “never was” country. The Kurds are the fourth largest ethnic group of the Middle East, numbering between 20 and 25 million. Approximately 15 million live in the regions of Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria, an area they called Kurdistan, yet they do not have a country of their own. Formal attempts to establish such a state were crushed by the larger and more powerful countries in the region after both world wars. When the Ottoman Empire collapsed after World War I, the Kurds were promised their own independent nation under the Treaty of Sevres. In 1923 however, the treaty was broken allowing Turkey to maintain its status and not allowing the Kurdish people to have a nation to call