Post on 07-Jan-2016
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MARCH 19, 2003: Bush launches invasion of Iraq
The Fighting Began with an Aerial Bombardment
US Ground Troops Quickly Advanced Toward Baghdad
The US Military Topples Saddam: APRIL 9, 2003
APRIL 11, 2003---Massive Looting Begins as US Soldiers Watch
MAY 1, 2003: President Bush Declares Major Combat Operations Over
Summer 2003-Spring of 2004: The Insurgency (rebellion) Grows
AUGUST 20, 2003: The UN Mission in Baghdad is Bombed
Who Were the Insurgents?Ba’athists Who Didn’t Want to Give up Power
Other Sunnis Who Resented the American Occupation of Their Towns and Villages
Al Qaeda in Iraq Led By Zarqawi---They Wanted To Defeat America and Establish a Sunni Islamic State. They Used Car Bombings to Maximize Chaos.
Shiite Militias, Including Sadr’s Mahdi Army`
These Groups fought for control of Iraq’s Govt. and To Protect Shiites Against Sunni Groups. They often randomly abducted and kIlled Sunnis and engaged in criminal behavior
MARCH 31, 2004---4 US Contractors are Murdered in Fallujah, a Sunni Town
In Response: The US Attacks Insurgents in Fallujah, Destroying the
City
SEPTEMBER 7, 2004: Death toll of U.S. soldiers in Iraq reaches 1,000
Desperate to Learn More About the Insurgents, US Soldiers Used Abusive Tactics During Interrogations of Iraqis
APRIL 28, 2004: Pictures of US Soldiers Humiliating, Abusing and Killing Iraqis at
Abu Grhraib Prison Comes to Light
Many (Maybe Most)of the Prisoners Are Innocent Civilians –And These Pictures Were
Soiled America’s Reputation Across the World
The Insurgency Gained Strength, and More Iraqi Civilians and US Soldiers Died
Sunni Militants Increasingly Targeted Shiite Civilians and Shiite Shrines, Hoping to Create Civil War
February 22, 2006: Iraq’s Golden Mosque in Samarra badly damaged in a bomb
attack that fuels sectarian tensions
In 2006, Shiites Increasingly Struck Back, and Sectarian (Shiite vs. Sunni) Violence Soared
JANUARY 10, 2007: Faced with escalating violence in Iraq Bush announces “Troop Surge.”
sending 20,000 additional American soldiers.
The Surge Brought Safety for Many
2006--The Sunni Awakening Began. This involved the US Paying Former Insurgents to Work With the US and
To fight Al Qaeda. Together the Surge and the Awakening Dramatically Reduced Violence
In 2007-2008 Violence Came Dramatically Down