“At about 2 a.m. local time, Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait, Iraq’s tiny, oil-rich neighbor. Kuwait’s defense forces were rapidly overwhelmed, and those that were not destroyed retreated to Saudi Arabia”(“Iraq Invades Kuwait”). Nidali’s family had to flee to Egypt and then later on to Texas. “During the next six weeks, the allied force engaged in an intensive air war against Iraq’s military and civil infrastructure and encountered little effective resistance from the Iraqi air force or air defenses”(“Iraq
ethnicity on the planet without a state to this day. This paper will focus on the Iraqi part of Kurdistan, for it has come the closest to a state-like notion as per Weber’s definition. Iraqi Kurdistan is a region characterized by many diplomatic issues due to lack of acceptance as a state. The region was established through an autonomy agreement with Iraqi government in 1970 after decades of disputes between the Iraqi government and the Kurds in the north. The region had already established a government
I was deployed to Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo when Operation Iraqi Freedom kicked off. I remember wondering how this war would affect my life or the direction of my career and unit. In March of 2003 I found out. Because of the war, our replacements, already having been trained for real world action, were sent to Iraq, extending my already long six month tour to ten. The start and end of that war, as a whole, had its effects on not just me and my unit, as I was deployed there twice, but on the whole
oppressive reign was considered a victory for many of the Iraqi people, the Sunnis of the Ba’ath Party refused to accept his demise. Although the Sunnis were in the minority, the city of Fallujah would remain home to many of the Ba’ath Party supporters. On March 31, 2004, almost a year to date from the end of Hussein’s reign, four American Blackwater contactors working in Fallujah were attacked, brutally beaten, burned and dismembered by a group of Iraqi insurgents. Two of the bodies were hung from a bridge
On the month of April in 2004, in the city of Habbaniyah, Iraq, a brutal and terrible act took place which ignited one of the bloodiest battles in the history of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Four Black Water security members were killed and publicly maimed. The resulting battle left a high casualty rate as well as hundreds of American service members being wounded. This is the story of the events that took place after the events in the city of Habbaniyah. On the 31st of March, 2004, a convoy was
Introduction This is a historical examination of the first battle fought for Fallujah, Iraq: Operation Vigilant Resolve. We will examine the history, location, composition, and social background of Fallujah. Analysis of Operation Vigilant Resolve will identify participating units, basic strategy, why Vigilant Resolve failed and lessons learned. Most scholars agree that future battlefields will be urbanized; with lessons learned from this operation we will be better suited for similar, future conflicts
ethnic group without a nation state. This paper seeks to shed light on whom the Kurds are, the territory they claim being a part of their right, and more on the status of their struggle for nationhood, an independent Kurdistan with its main focus on Iraqi Kurdistan. It also establishes the relationship with the nation-states in which they (Kurds) live. The study also explores the challenges, and resolutions, of and by the Kurds. For Kurds to face their plight and get solutions, they have had to take
Introduction The first battle in Fallujah during Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) is known as Operation Vigilant Resolve. This battle is regarded as one of the biggest single defeats that the United States Military has suffered throughout all its campaigns during OIF. The United States and international media outlets exploited this defeat, which in turn, bolstered Al Qaeda recruiting in Fallujah. This offensive failure and retreat was backed by a huge public outcry for troop withdrawal and successful
Media Manipulation Exposed in George Orwell's “Shooting an Elephant” The phrase “the power of the press” is used often, but what exactly is the power of the press? Since the beginning of news reporting, it’s been known that what actually gets into the news reports is monitored and carefully picked by higher authorities. What isn’t widely known, however, is that the media can use specific wording and phrases that, on the surface, look like normal news coverage, but are actually a technique of
Ruling a country effectively is executed through a variety of methods. Lao-Tzu, a follower of Taoism, expresses his belief on the most efficient way to govern. "The more prohibitions you have, the less virtuous people will be. The more weapons you have, the less secure people will be. The more subsidies you have, the less self-reliant people will be" (25). This quote from Lao-Tzu can be interpreted many different ways. The author discusses what he feels the role of a leader should be, the restrictions
David Galula’s first of four “Laws of Counterinsurgency” is the utmost reflected in the United States counterinsurgency strategy in Afghanistan, which most closely resembled the theory of “Hearts and Minds.” The President Obama’s speech and General Petraeus’s guidance outlined the United States counterinsurgency strategy in Afghanistan. Galual’s first law of counterinsurgency stands incorporated as the prevailing theme of the United States counterinsurgency strategy in Afghanistan. Moreover, the
Analysis of Kurdish Geopolitics Past and Present Who are the Kurds? Most of us have heard about them but don’t know who they are. Are they a race, a religion, a country? As we see from the following example, even Europeans who are much closer to the Kurds still do not have a complete understanding of the Kurds or the middle east in general: In the West, the left and liberal minded people in general, especially in the Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon countries, have usually supported or at least expressed
Organizing Insurgency by Paul Staniland, introduces the question, “Do resources like diamonds, drugs, and state sponsors turn insurgent groups into thuggish people or do they help build a more disciplined organization?” The reason this question is asked is because in some cases it suggests that “resource wealth encourages the degeneration of armed groups into greed and criminality” and other evidence shows that “external sponsorship and criminal activity can help leaders build organizations in the
The presence of English has indeed increased steadily from the beginning of the 2013. Along with its increased visibility, its status has changed dramatically. The period from the 1991 to the 2003, a period of major social, cultural and political change, was particularly important in this process. Until 2007, all students began learning English in Kurdistan in elementary school at approximately 11 years old (grade 5). In September 2007, the Ministry of Education held the second conference which concluded
merely 40 years, but recently it’s made its way to the forefront of many scholars list and huge supporters such as Gen. David Petraeus. Many believe that counterinsurgency is an ethical and successful way of warfare as it was for the French and British armies, but Porch, who teaches at the Naval Postgraduate School on the subject
their people are expected to follow, no matter how inhumane or difficult they can be. In the small village in The Lottery, the citizens are expected to randomly draw names and kill whoever is picked, whereas in the Iraqi culture portrayed in the article An American Honor Killing, the Iraqi people are expected to live and abide by the traditions and lifestyles. These completely different cultures show that tradition plays a very big role in society, but some traditions can be violent and outrageous.
The 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, a unit known as the Rakkasans, were conducting Operation Iron Triangle in 2006 in Iraq when soldiers killed eight unarmed Iraqi men. The US military severely reprimanded the Commander of the Rakkasans, COL Michael Steele, for the unethical command climate his leadership allowed to exist within the unit at that time. This unit will need a new commander that can set and maintain an effective, ethical command climate through his leadership. That new commander
Long Term Effects of War Even though , many people have been effected by the Iraq and Afghanistan war because the number of displaced Iraqis internally and externally are estimated to be between 3.5 million and 5 million people (Iraq: The Human Cost , 2014). According to the Iraq Body Count website, there have been 186 thousand deaths due to violence in the war. Violence Deliberate killings, human bombs, dozens of vicious groups, and a growing sense of insecurity trouble Iraq (Tirman). Cluster bombs
The holocaust was the reason for about 6 million people to have lost their lives but what if you found out the much more torture and terror was created than just in 1933-1945. Almost 2 million people perished in the 3 major genocides that occurred after the holocaust.The Kurdish Genocide took the lives of almost 200,000 people by Saddam Hussein. The East Timor Genocide, when Indonesia invaded which resulted in 400,000 deaths. The Rwandan Genocide although was very short it killed about 1 million
Introduction Urbanization: The process by which more and more people leave the countryside to live in cities (Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary). Sustainable development: The ability of an activity or development to continue in the long term without undermining that part of the environment which sustains it (Scottish Natural Heritage, 1993). The process of urbanization and the population growth across the world has been increasing over the last 40 years, and it is expected to happen in the