Battle of Baghdad (2003)
Three weeks into the invasion of Iraq, Coalition Forces Land Component Command elements, led by the U.S. Army 3rd Infantry Division, captured Baghdad.The United States officially declared victory against the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein on April 15, and President George W. Bush gave his Mission Accomplished Speech on May 1.[8] The invasion of the city commenced three days after Allied forces led by Major General Buford Blount and the 3rd Infantry Division had secured the Baghdad airport.[11] On March 24, retired US Army general Barry McCaffrey, told BBC Newsnight: "If [the Iraqis] actually fight, clearly it's going to be brutal, dangerous work and we could take, bluntly, a couple to 3,000 casualties".By seizing only critical nodes and infrastructure in a rapid manner, it was believed such targeted assaults would weaken the regime of Saddam Hussein and hasten its collapse, all the while avoiding the deployment of troops to clear every single block of Baghdad.[14] These forces, supported by American and British aircraft including B-52s, Harrier GR7s and A10 Warthogs,[12] confronted 36,000 soldiers of the Iraqi Special Republican Guard protected in sprawling bunkers 30 miles (48 km) outside Baghdad, armed with Asad Babil tanks and heavy artillery.[20][21] On April 4, 2003, the 2nd Tank Battalion Marine Corps had a stiff fight with the Al Nida Division of the Republican Guards and foreign Islamist fighters on the outskirts of Baghdad.By the end of the day, the Al Nida was considered rendered "combat-ineffective", but three US Marines (1st Lieutenant Brian McPhillips, Sergeant Duane Rios and Corporal Bernard Gooden[22]) were killed in the At Tuwayhah fighting and a tank lost.[23] That day, the 5th Regimental Combat Team reported that two supporting Abrams tanks were destroyed battling the Fedayeen and Al Nida Republican Guards, the latter attempting to use anti-aircraft guns in the ground role.[24] After several hours of combat, the First Brigade, Third Infantry Division succeeded in taking control of Baghdad International Airport, which would become the hub of American logistics in Iraq for the next seven years.Sergeant 1st Class Wilbert Davis is also reported to have been killed along with American journalist Michael Kelly on April 3 after coming under fire, during operations to secure Baghdad Airport.[27][28] On April 5, Task Force 1–64 Armor of the US Army's 3rd Infantry Division, 2nd Brigade, executed a raid, later called the "Thunder Run", to test remaining Iraqi defenses.The unit was forced to abandon one tank due to a recoilless rifle or RPG strike in the rear that penetrated a fuel cell and set the engine on fire.Colonel David Perkins, the brigade's commander, followed the original Thunder Run route north into Baghdad, but then veered east into the government districts instead of west towards the airport.[37] Notwithstanding the chaos brought by the invasion, South African Lawrence Anthony and some of the zoo keepers cared for the animals and fed the carnivores with donkeys they had bought locally.[citation needed] As the U.S. forces were occupying the Republican Palace and other central landmarks and ministries on April 9, Saddam Hussein had emerged from his command bunker beneath the Al A'Zamiyah district of northern Baghdad, and greeted excited members of the local public.Before a conglomerate of international press (and small crowd of around 100 U.S.-supported Iraqi militia[39][40]), a 39-foot-tall (12 m) statue of Saddam in Firdus Square was toppled by a U.S. Marine Corps M88 Recovery Vehicle.
Battle of Baghdad (2006–2008)Battle of Baghdad (disambiguation)invasion of IraqStatue of Saddam Hussein being toppledFirdos SquareBaghdadSaddam HusseinBa'ath PartyUnited StatesUnited KingdomGeorge W. BushTommy FranksDavid D. McKiernanTony BlairBrian BurridgeQusay HusseinSaif Al-Din Al-RawiRa'ad al-HamdaniA-10 Thunderbolt IIAbrams tanksIraq WarOutlineTimelineInvasion (2003)Umm QasrAl Faw1st BasraNasiriyahRaid on KarbalaHaditha Dam1st NajafNorthern DelayViking HammerSamawah1st KarbalaAl KutHillahKarbala GapDebecka PassPost-invasion insurgency (2003–2006)Al AnbarKilling of Qusay & Uday Hussein1st RamadanLatifiyaCapture of Saddam HusseinSpring 2004City HallIron Saber1st FallujahSadr City1st RamadiGood FridayHusaybahDanny Boy2nd NajafCIMIC-HouseSamarra2nd FallujahLake ThartharAl Qa'imHadithaSteel CurtainTal Afar2nd RamadiTogether ForwardDiwaniyaCivil war (2006–2008)2nd RamadanSinbadAmarahDiyalaHaifa StreetKarbala Raid3rd NajafImposing LawU.K. basesBlack EagleBaghdad beltsAlljahBaqubahDonkey IslandShurta NasirPhantom Strike2nd KarbalaPhantom PhoenixInsurgency (2008–2011)2008 Day of AshuraNinevehSpring 20082nd Basra2008 al-Qaeda OffensiveAugurs of ProsperityAbu KamalPalm GroveCamp AshrafUS withdrawal violenceList of bombings during the Iraq War1st Baghdad2nd Baghdad3rd Baghdad1st Nasiriyah‡ 1st Erbil‡ Ashoura1st Mosul4th Baghdad5th BaghdadKarbala & Najaf1st BaqubahSuwaira bombing‡ 1st Al Hillah2nd Erbil‡ Musayyib6th Baghdad‡ 7th Baghdad1st BaladKhanaqin‡ Karbala-Ramadi1st Samarra8th Baghdad9th Baghdad‡ 10th Baghdad11th Baghdad12th Baghdad‡ 13th Baghdad14th Baghdad15th Baghdad