Editing History of Iraq (section)

== U.S. invasion and the aftermath (2003–present) ==
{{Campaignbox Iraq War}}

=== 2003 U.S. invasion ===
{{Main|2003 invasion of Iraq}}

After the [[September 11 attacks|terrorist attacks on New York and Washington in the United States in 2001]] were linked to the group formed by the multi-millionaire Saudi [[Osama bin Laden]], American foreign policy began to call for the removal of the Ba'ath government in Iraq. Neoconservative think-tanks in Washington had for years been urging [[regime change]] in Baghdad. On 14 August 1998, President Clinton signed Public Law 105–235, which declared that ‘‘the Government of Iraq is in material and unacceptable breach of its international obligations.’’ It urged the President ‘‘to take appropriate action, in accordance with the Constitution and relevant laws of the United States, to bring Iraq into compliance with its international obligations.’’ Several months later, Congress enacted the [[Iraq Liberation Act|Iraq Liberation Act of 1998]] on 31 October 1998. This law stated that it "should be the policy of the United States to support efforts to remove the regime headed by Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq and to promote the emergence of a democratic government to replace that regime." It was passed 360 - 38 by the [[United States House of Representatives]] and 99–0 by the [[United States Senate]] in 1998.

The US urged the [[United Nations]] to take military action against Iraq. American president [[George W. Bush]] stated that Saddām had repeatedly violated 16 UN Security Council resolutions. The Iraqi government rejected Bush's assertions. A team of U.N. inspectors, led by Swedish diplomat [[Hans Blix]] was admitted, into the country; their final report stated that Iraqis capability in producing "weapons of mass destruction" was not significantly different from 1992 when the country dismantled the bulk of their remaining arsenals under terms of the ceasefire agreement with U.N. forces, but did not completely rule out the possibility that Saddam still had weapons of mass destruction. The [[United States]] and the [[United Kingdom]] charged that Iraq was hiding WMD and opposed the team's requests for more time to further investigate the matter. [[UN Security Council Resolution 1441|Resolution 1441]] was passed unanimously by the [[UN Security Council]] on 8 November 2002, offering Iraq "a final opportunity to comply with its disarmament obligations" that had been set out in several previous UN resolutions, threatening "serious consequences" if the obligations were not fulfilled. The UN Security Council did not issue a resolution authorizing the use of force against Iraq.

In March 2003, the [[United States]] and the [[United Kingdom]], with military aid from other nations, invaded Iraq.

Over the following years in the [[Occupation of Iraq (2003–2011)|U.S. occupation of Iraq]], Iraq disintegrated into a [[Iraqi civil war (2006–2008)|civil war]] from 2006 to 2008, and the situation deteriorated in 2011 which later escalated into a [[War in Iraq (2013–2017)|renewed war]] following ISIL gains in the country in 2014. [[History of Iraq (2011–present)|By 2015]], Iraq was effectively divided, the central and southern part being controlled by the [[government of Iraq|government]], the northwest by the [[Kurdistan Regional Government]] and the western part by the [[Islamic State]]. IS was expelled from Iraq in 2017, but a low-intensity [[ISIL insurgency in Iraq (2017–present)|ISIL insurgency]] continues mostly in the rural parts of northern western parts of the country, due to Iraq's long border with Syria.<ref>{{citation |title=Timeline&ndash;Rise, fall and spread of the Islamic State |url=https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/timeline-the-rise-spread-and-fall-the-islamic-state |access-date=14 December 2020 |archive-date=8 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210208025300/https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/timeline-the-rise-spread-and-fall-the-islamic-state |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Occupation (2003–11) ===
{{Main|Occupation of Iraq (2003–2011)}}

[[File:Iraq 2003 occupation.png|thumb|250px|Occupation zones in Iraq in September 2003]]
In 2003, after the American and British invasion, Iraq was occupied by U.S.-led [[Multi-National Force – Iraq|Coalition forces]]. On 23 May 2003, the UN Security Council unanimously approved a resolution lifting all economic sanctions against Iraq. As the country struggled to rebuild after three wars and a decade of sanctions, it was plagued by violence between a growing [[Iraqi insurgency (2003–11)|Iraqi insurgency]] and occupation forces. Saddam Hussein, who vanished in April, was captured on 13 December 2003 in [[ad-Dawr]], [[Saladin Governorate]].[[File:A U.S. Soldier searches an Iraqi boy before allowing him access to the Basra Operations Center during a Medical Civic Assistance Program in Basra, Iraq, March 7, 2011 110307-A-WO967-008.jpg|thumb|[[U.S. Army]] soldier searches an Iraqi boy, March 2011.]] [[Jay Garner]] was appointed Interim Civil Administrator with three deputies, including [[Tim Cross]]. Garner was replaced in May 2003 by [[Paul Bremer]], who was himself replaced by [[John Negroponte]] on 19 April 2004. Negroponte was the last US interim administrator and left Iraq in 2005. [[Iraqi parliamentary election, January 2005|A parliamentary election was held in January 2005]], followed by the drafting and ratification of [[Constitution of Iraq|a constitution]] and [[Iraqi parliamentary election, December 2005|a further parliamentary election in December 2005]].

Terrorism emerged as a threat to Iraq's people not long after the invasion of 2003. [[Al Qaeda]] now had a presence in the country, in the form of several terrorist groups formerly led by [[Abu Musab Al Zarqawi]]. Al Zarqawi was a Jordanian militant Islamist who ran a militant training camp in Afghanistan. He became known after going to Iraq and being responsible for a series of bombings, beheadings and attacks during the Iraq war. Al Zarqawi was killed on 7 June 2006. Many foreign fighters and former Ba'ath Party officials also joined the insurgency, which was mainly aimed at attacking American forces and Iraqis who worked with them. The most dangerous insurgent area was the [[Sunni Triangle]], a mostly Sunni-Muslim area just north of Baghdad.

Reported acts of violence conducted by an uneasy tapestry of insurgents steadily increased by the end of 2006.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Gordon |first1=Michael R. |last2=Mazzetti |first2=Mark |last3=Shanker |first3=Thom |date=17 August 2006 |title=Bombs Aimed at G.I.'s in Iraq Are Increasing |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/17/world/middleeast/17military.html |work=[[nytimes.com]] |access-date=27 March 2014 |archive-date=16 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140716055723/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/17/world/middleeast/17military.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Sunni jihadist forces including [[Al Qaeda in Iraq]] continued to target Shia civilians, notably in the 23 February 2006 attack on the [[Al Askari Mosque]] in [[Samarra]], one of Shi'ite Islam's holiest sites leading to a [[Iraqi civil war (2006–2008)|civil war]] between Sunni and Shia militants in Iraq. Analysis of the attack suggested that the [[Mujahideen Shura Council (Iraq)|Mujahideen Shura Council]] and Al-Qaeda in Iraq were responsible, and that the motivation was to provoke further violence by outraging the Shia population.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/22/AR2006022200454.html|title=Bombing Shatters Mosque In Iraq|first=Ellen Knickmeyer and K. I.|last=Ibrahim|date=23 February 2006|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=3 December 2017|archive-date=14 February 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110214033507/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/22/AR2006022200454.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In mid-October 2006, a statement was released stating that the Mujahideen Shura Council had been disbanded and was replaced by the "[[Islamic State of Iraq]]". It was formed to resist efforts by the U.S. and Iraqi authorities to win over Sunni supporters of the insurgency. Shia militias, some of whom were associated with elements in the Iraq government, reacted with reprisal acts against the Sunni minority. A cycle of violence thus ensued whereby Sunni insurgent attacks were followed reprisals by Shiite militias, often in the form of Shi'ite death squads that sought out and killed Sunnis. Following a surge in U.S. troops in 2007 and 2008, violence in Iraq began to decrease. The U.S. ended their main military presence in 2011, however, resulting in [[War in Iraq (2013–2017)|renewed escalation into war]].<ref name="reuters 2011">{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-withdrawal-idUSTRE7BH03320111218 |title=Last U.S. troops leave Iraq, ending war |work=Reuters |date=18 December 2011 |access-date=12 August 2014 |author=Logan, Joseph |archive-date=25 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525214722/http://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-withdrawal-idUSTRE7BH03320111218 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Insurgency and war (2011–2017) ===
{{Main|History of Iraq (2011–present)}}
{{Campaignbox Iraq War (2014–present)}}
{{further|Iraqi insurgency (2011–2013)|War in Iraq (2013–2017)|Northern Iraq offensive (June 2014)|Northern Iraq offensive (August 2014)|Battle of Mosul (2016–2017)}}

The [[Withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq (2007–2011)|departure of US troops]] from Iraq in 2011 triggered [[Iraqi insurgency (2011–2013)|a renewed insurgency]] and by a spillover of the [[Syrian civil war]] into Iraq. By 2013, the insurgency escalated into a state renewed [[War in Iraq (2013–2017)|war]], the central [[government of Iraq]] being opposed by various factions, primarily radical Sunni forces.

The [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant]]   [[Anbar campaign (2013–14)|invaded Iraq]] in 2013–14 and seized the majority of [[Al Anbar Governorate]],<ref name="auto">{{cite news|title=John Kerry holds talks in Iraq as more cities fall to ISIS militants|url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/23/world/meast/iraq-crisis/|agency=CNN|date=23 June 2014|access-date=14 June 2015|archive-date=19 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119055306/http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/23/world/meast/iraq-crisis/|url-status=live}}</ref> including the cities of [[Fallujah]],<ref name="auto1">{{cite web|url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/al-qaeda-linked-militants-capture-fallujah-during-violent-outbreak/|title=Al Qaeda-linked militants capture Fallujah during violent outbreak|publisher=Fox News|date=4 January 2014|access-date=14 June 2015|archive-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924184811/http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/01/04/iraq-army-battles-al-qaeda-linked-militants-to-regain-control-in-key-cities/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Al-Qa'im (town)|Al Qaim]],<ref name="21iraqi">{{cite web|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/militants-kills-21-leaders-iraq-article-1.1839547|title=Militants kill 21 Iraqi leaders, capture 2 border crossings|work=NY Daily News|date=22 June 2014 |access-date=14 October 2014|archive-date=27 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141227031549/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/militants-kills-21-leaders-iraq-article-1.1839547|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Abu Ghraib]] and (in May 2015) [[Ramadi]],<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/isis-seizes-ramadi-massacres-reported-as-iraq-considers-sending-in-iranbacked-shia-militias-10257314.html |title=Isis seizes Ramadi |date=18 May 2015 |work=The Independent |access-date=3 December 2017 |archive-date=25 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925193548/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/isis-seizes-ramadi-massacres-reported-as-iraq-considers-sending-in-iranbacked-shia-militias-10257314.html |url-status=live }}</ref> leaving them in control of 90% of Anbar.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.juancole.com/2015/04/shiite-mammoth-taking.html|title=Iraq: Shiite Gov't faces Mammoth Task in taking Sunni al-Anbar from ISIL|work=Informed Comment|date=19 April 2015|access-date=11 June 2015|archive-date=13 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150613144921/http://www.juancole.com/2015/04/shiite-mammoth-taking.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="overruns">{{cite web |url=http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2014/07/islamic_state_overru.php |title=Islamic State overruns Camp Speicher, routs Iraqi forces |work=Long War Journal |date=19 July 2014 |access-date=14 October 2014 |archive-date=26 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150326164552/http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2014/07/iraqi_military_says_it_retakes.php |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Tikrit]], [[Mosul]] and most of the Nineveh province, along with parts of Salahuddin, Kirkuk and Diyala provinces, were seized by insurgent forces in the [[Northern Iraq offensive (June 2014)|June 2014 offensive]].<ref>{{cite web |agency=Reuters |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/insurgents-in-iraq-overrun-mosul-provincial-government-headquarters/1933170.html |title=Insurgents in Iraq Overrun Mosul Provincial Government Headquarters |publisher=Voice of America |date=9 June 2014 |access-date=31 July 2014 |archive-date=26 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151226071905/http://www.voanews.com/content/insurgents-in-iraq-overrun-mosul-provincial-government-headquarters/1933170.html |url-status=live }} {{cite web|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/iraq-city-of-mosul-falls-into-hands-of-isis-jihadists-after-police-army-abandon-posts/|title=Iraqi city of Mosul falls to jihadists|publisher=CBS|date=10 June 2014|access-date=14 June 2015|archive-date=18 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218212324/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/iraq-city-of-mosul-falls-into-hands-of-isis-jihadists-after-police-army-abandon-posts/|url-status=live}}</ref> ISIL also captured [[Sinjar]] and a number of other towns in the [[Northern Iraq offensive (August 2014)|August 2014 offensive]], but were halted by the [[December 2014 Sinjar offensive|Sinjar offensive]] launched in December 2014 by Kurdish [[Peshmerga]] and [[People's Protection Units|YPG]] forces. The war ended with a government victory in December 2017.<ref name="end of war">{{cite news |last=Mostafa |first=Nehal |date=9 December 2017 |title=Iraq announces end of war against IS, liberation of borders with Syria: Abadi |url=https://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/iraq-announces-end-war-liberation-borders-syria-abadi/ |work=Iraqi News |access-date=9 December 2017 |archive-date=9 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171209235658/https://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/iraq-announces-end-war-liberation-borders-syria-abadi |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Pre-referendum, pro-Kurdistan, pro-independence rally in Erbil, Kurdistan Region of Iraq 25.jpg|thumb|Pro-independence rally in [[Iraqi Kurdistan]] in 2017. The [[Kurdistan Regional Government]] announced it would respect the Supreme Federal Court's ruling that no Iraqi province is allowed to secede.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-kurds/iraqs-kurdistan-says-to-respect-court-decision-banning-secession-idUSKBN1DE0XD|title=Iraq's Kurdistan says to respect court decision banning secession|date=14 November 2017|work=Reuters}}</ref>]]
On 30 April 2016, [[2015–2016 Iraqi protests|thousands of protesters]] entered the [[Green Zone]] in Baghdad and occupied the [[Council of Representatives of Iraq|Iraqi parliament]] building. This happened after the Iraqi parliament did not approve new government ministers. The protesters included supporters of Shia cleric [[Muqtada Al Sadr]]. Although Iraqi security forces were present, they did not attempt to stop the protesters from entering the parliament building.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.afp.com/en/news/15/thousands-protesters-storm-iraq-parliament-green-zone|title=Thousands of protesters storm Iraq parliament green zone|website=AFP|date=16 January 2012|access-date=30 August 2018|archive-date=1 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160501095441/https://www.afp.com/en/news/15/thousands-protesters-storm-iraq-parliament-green-zone|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Continued ISIL insurgency and protests (2017–present) ===
{{Main|Islamic State insurgency in Iraq (2017–present)|2019–2021 Iraqi protests}}

Tensions between the federal Iraqi government and [[Kurdistan Region]]  arising from the [[2017 Kurdistan Region independence referendum|Kurdistan Region independence referendum]] of 25 September 2017 [[2017 Iraqi–Kurdish conflict|escalated into armed conflict in October 2017]]. As a result of the conflict, Kurdistan Region lost a fifth of the land mass it had administered prior to the conflict and was forced to cancel the results of the referendum.

By 2018, violence in Iraq was at its lowest level in ten years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cdobs.com/archive/featured/violence-in-iraq-at-lowest-level-in-10-years/|title=Violence in Iraq at Lowest Level in 10 years|access-date=9 September 2018|archive-date=22 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180822045957/http://www.cdobs.com/archive/featured/violence-in-iraq-at-lowest-level-in-10-years/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[2018–19 Iraqi protests|Protests over deteriorating economic conditions and state corruption]] started in July 2018 in [[Baghdad]] and other major Iraqi cities, mainly in the central and southern provinces. The latest nationwide protests, erupting in October 2019, had a death toll of at least 93 people, including police.<ref name="I1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/03/middleeast/iraq-economic-protests-intl/index.html|title=Iraq Prime Minister calls protesters' demands 'righteous,' as 93 killed in demonstrations|last1=Alkhshali|first1=Hamdi|last2=Tawfeeq|first2=Mohammed|date=5 October 2019|website=CNN|access-date=5 October 2019|last3=Qiblawi|first3=Tamara|archive-date=27 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191027075324/https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/03/middleeast/iraq-economic-protests-intl/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In November 2021, Iraqi Prime Minister [[Mustafa Al-Kadhimi|Mustafa al-Kadhimi]] survived a failed assassination attempt.<ref>{{cite news |title=Iraq PM says his would-be assassins have been identified |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-59205758 |work=BBC News |date=8 November 2021 |access-date=24 December 2021 |archive-date=19 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211119134720/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-59205758 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's [[Sadrist Movement]] was the biggest winner in the 2021 [[2021 Iraqi parliamentary election|parliamentary elections]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Iraq's Surprise Election Results |url=https://www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-north-africa/gulf-and-arabian-peninsula/iraq/iraqs-surprise-election-results |website=Crisis Group |language=en |date=16 November 2021 |access-date=27 December 2021 |archive-date=13 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313064428/https://www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-north-africa/gulf-and-arabian-peninsula/iraq/iraqs-surprise-election-results |url-status=live }}</ref> Governmental stalemate lead to the [[2022 Iraqi political crisis]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 June 2022 |title=Iraqi leaders vow to move ahead after dozens quit parliament |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/muqtada-alsadr-ap-iran-baghdad-shiite-b2099824.html |access-date=13 June 2022 |website=The Independent |language=en |archive-date=13 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220613233829/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/muqtada-alsadr-ap-iran-baghdad-shiite-b2099824.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In October 2022, [[Abdul Latif Rashid]] was elected as the new [[President of Iraq]] after winning the parliamentary election against incumbent [[Barham Salih]], who was running for a second term. The presidency is largely ceremonial and is traditionally held by a Kurd.<ref>{{cite news |last1=National |first1=The |title=Who are Iraq's new president Abdul Latif Rashid and PM nominee Mohammed Shia Al Sudani? |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/iraq/2022/10/14/who-are-iraqs-new-president-abdul-lateef-rasheed-and-pm-nominee-mohammad-al-sudani/ |work=The National |date=14 October 2022 |language=en |access-date=25 October 2022 |archive-date=17 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117024740/https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/iraq/2022/10/14/who-are-iraqs-new-president-abdul-lateef-rasheed-and-pm-nominee-mohammad-al-sudani/ |url-status=live }}</ref>  On 27 October 2022, [[Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani|Mohammed Shia al-Sudani]], close ally of former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, took the office to succeed  Mustafa al-Kadhimi as new [[Prime Minister of Iraq]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Iraq gets a new government after a year of deadlock – DW – 10/28/2022 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/iraq-gets-a-new-government-after-a-year-of-deadlock/a-63581601 |work=dw.com |language=en |access-date=31 October 2022 |archive-date=10 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230210075414/https://www.dw.com/en/iraq-gets-a-new-government-after-a-year-of-deadlock/a-63581601 |url-status=live }}</ref>