General Iraqi history
Iraq (ee RAHK) is an Arab republic in southwestern Asia which is slightly larger than California. The country is bordered to the north by Turkey, to the west by Syria and Jordan, to the south by Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the Persian Gulf, and to the east by Iran.
Ancient Mesopotamia, the "land between the waters," was located between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers of Iraq. It is part of the "Fertile Crescent" and has been called by anthropologists as the "Cradle of Civilization," possibly the site of the Garden of Eden. One of the first civilizations of the world, Sumer, evolved here more than 5,000 years ago. The first Sumerians are believed to have been immigrants from the highlands of Turkey and Iran. As the area developed, migrations and invasions became more common and influenced the cultural make-up of the region. By the mid-24th century B.C., the Sumerians were overrun by the Akkadians and thus began the rising and falling of a long series of empires in the area. With the spread of iron new weapons of war were developed and the Kingdom of Ashur--or Assyrian, as it is usually called-from the northern part of this region began dominating its neighbors. After the Assyrians fell in the seventh century B.C. the Babylonians reestablished their empire in the region and they were followed by the Medes, Persians, Greeks, and Romans.
Following the seventh century A.D., Islam became entrenched in what is now Iraq. Baghdad, the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate (Islamic Empire), was the leading city of the world for five centuries and was the acknowledged leader of the Arab and Muslim world. In 1258 Baghdad was devastated by the Mongols and was later occupied by the Ottoman Turks. After World War I, the Turks were driven from the area by the British. Britain then created a mandate from three former Ottoman provinces and called this new country Al Iraq (the origin), the name formerly applied to only the southern region of the province of Basra. In 1932, Britain gave independence to this mandate and Iraq became a sovereign, independent state. However, Britain still maintained troops in Iraq and greatly influenced the government.
In 1933, Iraq's King Feisal died. His death coincided with political unrest and dissatisfaction with the government. In 1936, Iraq experienced its first attempted coup d'etat and between 1936 and 1941 there were six more abortive coup attempts. All of these attempted coups were motivated by personal goals rather than political issues. In January 1943, pro-British Iraq declared war on the World War II Axis powers (Germany, Italy, and Japan) under the terms of a treaty with Britain. In 1945 Iraq became a founding member of the League of Arab States. Postwar Iraq, however, did not regain the stature it enjoyed in the pre-World War II Arab world. After joining the United Nations (UN) in December 1945, Iraq bitterly opposed the UN partition of Palestine and in 1948 entered the war against Israel.
In 1958 King Faisal II of Iraq was executed in a coup by army officers. The leaders of the new regime declared their nation a republic committed to a foreign policy of nonalignment. Iraq's foreign policy, however, moved from a pro-West stance to one of friendly relations with the communist powers. Relations with the US were severed in 1967 after the US provided aid to Israel in the Six Day War.
The Iraqi Baath (Resurgence) Party came to power through a coup in 1968 and Saddam Hussein became the number two man in the regime. By 1976 Hussein had in reality become the power in the regime and in 1979 he took complete control. The Baath regime closely parallels those that have existed since the overthrow of King Feisal II in 1958. The Government is controlled by Sunni Arab military elements who have succeeded in avoiding commitments to a political union with other Arab states. Hussein's Baath Party dominates both military and civilian communities.
During the 1960s and 1970s Iraq had become increasingly more dependent on the former Soviet Union for military assistance. However, after the Soviets reneged on some military aid deals and provided inferior replacement equipment for war losses, the Iraqis began to improve relations with the West and decrease their dependence on the Soviets. During the late 1970s several border clashes with Iran increased tensions between the two countries. In 1979 Saddam Hussein expelled the Ayatollah Khomeini from Iraq, where he had been in exile since 1961. Removed from the seat of Shiite learning in Iraq, Khomeini vowed he would have Hussein's head brought to him on a platter. In February 1980 the Shah's caretaker's government fell and Khomeini returned to Iran via France vowing to spread the Islamic Revolution to the whole world. In September 1980, before Khomeini could consolidate his power, Iraq invaded Iran and the two countries were locked in war until September 1988, when a cease fire was agreed to, but no peace settlement has yet been achieved.
In August 1990 Iraqi troops occupied Kuwait. The United Nations passed 12 resolutions and urged Iraq to leave Kuwait by 15 January 1991, but to no avail. United States and multi-national forces were rushed into Saudi-Arabia in response to an urgent call from the rulers of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. On 16 January 1991 the Gulf War started with thousands of bombing raids in an effort to evict Saddam Hussein and his Iraqi forces from Kuwait. On 23 February 1991 the ground war started; it ended in a US and multi-national forces victory after 100 hours fighting by ground forces. Kuwait was liberated and fighting erupted between Iraqi troops and Shiite and Kurd rebels.
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