How much do you remember about the Iraq War surge and withdrawal?
This volume contains extensive coverage of the Iraq War from 2007-2011 and is a companion to Volume 1 that covered the period from 2003-2006. The text launches into the strategic decision process behind the “Surge” that led to the capture and ultimate hanging of Saddam Hussein. Included are primary source interviews, maps, and photos with expert defense analyses from military leaders that oversaw commands within this war.
The narrative explains that the situation on the ground was in constant flux as Shi’a militants became increasingly engaged. Iraq security forces began to become a more viable force, as General Petraeus, a new U.S Commander took control of command operations and oversight. At that time Iraq became an unstable environment that hindered America’s ability to withdraw from the theater.
Events of major consequence that featured this period of the war include:
- The Awakening Gathers Momentum
- Operation PHANTOM THUNDER
- Al-Qaeda in Iraq Loses the Initiative
- Maliki Against the Sadrists
- Operation DEFEAT AL-QAEDA IN THE NORTH
- From Surge to Withdrawal
- Toward the Defeat of AQI
- Operation NEW DAWN
- The Unraveling of Iraqi Politics
- The Ascendancy of ISIS
- From Surge to Withdrawal
The authors note these volumes represent a concerted effort by the Strategic Studies Institute (SSI) and U.S. Army War College (USAWC) to fully document the nature of this war while recognizing the process is ongoing, as information and history bring greater clarity to the conflict.
Foreword by the 39th Chief of Staff, U.S. Army xxix
Foreword by the 38th Chief of Staff, U.S. Army xxxi
Preface xxxiii
Acknowledgments xxxvii
Part I: The Surge, 2007-2008 1
Chapter 1 Strategy in Crisis, October-December 2006 3
Strategy Options 3
The Surge Decision 19
Endnotes - Chapter 1 33
Chapter 2 The Eve of the Surge, December 2006-February 2007 43
The Hanging of Saddam Hussein 43
The Baghdad Security Plan 45
MNC-I, AQI, and the Baghdad Belts 56
The Shi’a Militants on the Eve of the Surge 65
The Northern Iraq Conflict Before the Surge 80
Endnotes - Chapter 2 85
Chapter 3 The New Way Forward, February 2007-April 2007 95
Petraeus Takes Command 95
The Iraqi Security Forces in Early 2007 112
Economies of Force, South and North 117
Toward a New Joint Campaign Plan 125
Endnotes - Chapter 3 133
Chapter 4 The Awakening Gathers Momentum 145
The Expansion of the Anbar Awakening 145
The Awakening in the Baghdad Belts 161
The Awakening Reaches Baghdad 172
Endnotes - Chapter 4 182
Chapter 5 Summer 2007—The Surge of Operations 195
Regaining the Initiative: Operation PHANTOM THUNDER 196
Summer of the Awakening 215
The War Against Iran’s Militant Proxies 222
xiv MNF-I and the Opposition to the Surge 232
Endnotes - Chapter 5 240
Chapter 6 “The Darkness Has Become Pitch Black” 251
Al-Qaeda in Iraq Loses the Initiative 251
The Awakening, the Maliki Government, and AQI 267
The War Against the Shi’a Militants 273
The Iraqi Surge 278
Planning for Drawdown 286
Iraqi Political Tensions and Progress 288
Endnotes - Chapter 6 295
Chapter 7 Enabling the Surge, 2007-2008 307
Generating Unity of Effort 307
Enabling the Close Fight 311
The Intelligence War 318
Money as a Weapon System 319
Detention and Rule of Law 324
Endnotes - Chapter 7 333
Chapter 8 Crescendo: Maliki Against the Sadrists 341
Operation PHANTOM PHOENIX 341
The Battle for Basrah 350
The Battle for Sadr City 368
Endnotes - Chapter 8 382
Chapter 9 The Surge Culminates, Summer 2008 391
The End of the Surge 391
Operation DEFEAT AL-QAEDA IN THE NORTH 392
Consolidating Victory Against the Shi’a Militant Groups 398
The Unfinished Business of the Surge 404
Maliki’s Warning Signs: Diyala, the ISOF, and the SOFA 411
Endnotes - Chapter 9 420
Chapter 10 Conclusion: The Surge, 2007-2008 429
Part II: From Surge to Withdrawal 433
Chapter 11 Zero Attacks, September-December 2008 435
Odierno Takes Command 435
xv The Northern Iraq Problem 440
The Quest for Stabilization 445
Endnotes - Chapter 11 452
Chapter 12 Out of the Cities, January-June 2009 457 A New Iraq Policy for the United States 457
Political Culmination of the Surge: The January 2009 Provincial Elections 458
Drawdown and Change of Operating Posture for MNF-I 459
Iraqi Security Forces Development 461
The Continuing Pursuit of AQI 463
The Challenge of Reconciliation 470
The Iran Problem 473
Leaving the Cities 477
Endnotes - Chapter 12 480
Chapter 13 Toward the Defeat of AQI, August 2009-July 2010 487
The Autumn 2009 Bombings 487
The “Responsible Drawdown” 491
The Combined Security Mechanism 497
The Evisceration of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, January-May 2010 502
The Iraqi Political Crisis 507
Endnotes - Chapter 13 512
Chapter 14 From NEW DAWN to Zero, August 2010-December 2011 519
The Interregnum 520
Operation NEW DAWN and the “Responsible Drawdown of Forces” 522
Iraq’s Political Destabilization 532
The Path to Zero 541
Preparing for Exit 544
The Retrograde 548
Endnotes - Chapter 14 557
Chapter 15 Epilogue: The Office of Security Cooperation and the Return of the Iraq War, 2012-2014 569
After U.S. Forces-Iraq (USF-I): Crackdowns and Disarray 569
The Unraveling of Iraqi Politics 576
The Spillover of the Syrian Civil War 579
Return of the Sunni Insurgency 582
xvi The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) 585
The Deterioration of the Iraqi Security Forces, 2012-2014 588
The Ascendancy of ISIS 592
The Start of Operation INHERENT RESOLVE 599
Endnotes - Chapter 15 601
Chapter 16 Conclusion: From Surge to Withdrawal 609
Part III: Final Conclusions 613
Chapter 17 Conclusion: Lessons of the Iraq War 615
Selected Strategic Implications for Future Wars 615
Operational Lessons 622
Tactical and Operational Innovations 637
Endnotes - Chapter 17 641
Afterword 643
Select Bibliography 645
Interviews 645
Books 647
Articles 649
Monographs and Reports 653
Unpublished Papers 657
News Outlets and Newspapers 658
Abbreviations 659
Map Symbols 665
About the Contributors 667
Members of the military, Veterans and Veteran organizations, military historians, students and teachers engaged in military/warfare studies, and members of the general public interested in military operations would find this publication useful.
Product Details
- Iraq War
- Army history
- Military History
- Surge and Withdrawal
