1st Division (Iraq)
Encyclopedia
Iraqi Army
The Iraqi Army is the land component of the Iraqi military, active in various forms since being formed by the British during their mandate over the country after World War I....
is a formation of the Army formed c.2005-2007.
The 1st Division was originally formed from the battalions of the Iraqi Intervention Force.
"Prime Minister Ayad Allawi of Iraq's interim government announced organizational changes for the country's security forces, along with a plan for taking on Iraq's enemies, at a 20 June 2004 Baghdad news conference. Allawi envisions the Iraqi rapid intervention forces thwarting sabotage elements, "especially those who chose to hide behind innocent Iraqis in our cities and villages." As a first order by Iraq's new Ministry of Defense, the all-Iraqi Intervention Forces began patrolling the streets of Baghdad on 28 June 2004."
Two battalions of the IIF conducted operations in Najaf
Najaf
Najaf is a city in Iraq about 160 km south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2008 is 560,000 people. It is the capital of Najaf Governorate...
between September and December 2004. Those same two battalions plus another IIF battalion, together with other Iraqi units, were present during the Second Battle of Fallujah soon afterwards. The first significant troop increase for the IIF in 2005 was the graduation of 670 soldiers from the Taji military training base (Camp Taji
Camp Taji
Camp Taji is a military installation, also known as Camp Cooke used by coalition forces near Taji or Al Taji , Iraq. The camp is located in a rural region approximately north of the city of Baghdad in the Baghdad Governorate.-History:...
?) on January 18, 2005. The State Department claimed the IIF had 9,159 men assigned as of the Iraq Weekly Status Report for January 12, 2005.
The division was transferred to the Iraqi Ground Forces Command
Iraqi Ground Forces Command
The Ground Forces Command at Victory Base Complex near Baghdad Airport is the most important fighting formation in the Iraqi Army. The headquarters of the Iraqi Ground Forces Command and the Iraqi Joint Forces Command are the same entity....
on February 15, 2007. The February 2007 release said the Division was headquartered in Habbaniyah
Habbaniyah
Al Habbaniyah or Habbaniya is a city in Al-Anbar Province, in central Iraq.-References:...
, Al Anbar and operates from Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
to Ramadi
Ramadi
Ramadi is a city in central Iraq, about west of Baghdad. It is the capital of Al Anbar Governorate.-History:Ramadi is located in a fertile, irrigated, alluvial plain.The Ottoman Empire founded Ramadi in 1869...
. All four brigades of the division were operational when the division was transferred to the IGFC's control. In 2008 a brigade of the division took part in the Battle of Basra (2008)
Battle of Basra (2008)
The Battle of Basra began on March 25, 2008, when the Iraqi Army launched an operation to drive the Mahdi Army militia out of the southern Iraqi city of Basra...
, which was officially designated 'Operation Charge of the Knights.' As of September 2008, the division was commanded by Brigadier General Adel Abbas.
The division now acts as part of the Quick Intervention Corps, the Iraqi Army's strategic reserve.
As such, as of January 2010, they currently have brigades in Mosul and north Diyala.
As of January 2010 the division's dispositions appear to be:
- HQ Camp Fallujah
- 1st Motorized (AAslt) Brigade - HQ (Brigade Special Troops Battalion), Camp Ali, RamadiRamadiRamadi is a city in central Iraq, about west of Baghdad. It is the capital of Al Anbar Governorate.-History:Ramadi is located in a fertile, irrigated, alluvial plain.The Ottoman Empire founded Ramadi in 1869...
. One battalion at Lake ThartharLake ThartharLake Tharthar, known in Iraq as Buhayrat ath Tharthar , is a lake situated 120 kilometers north of Baghdad between the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers. It is the largest lake in Iraq. The construction of several dams has made it an important source for irrigation. Its size shrinks and expands... - 2nd Motorized Brigade - currently battalions at Taji, Fallujah, and Hylateen (Diyala)
- 3rd Motorized Brigade - Previously temporarily assigned to 5th Division in Diyala, now relocated to MosulMosulMosul , is a city in northern Iraq and the capital of the Ninawa Governorate, some northwest of Baghdad. The original city stands on the west bank of the Tigris River, opposite the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on the east bank, but the metropolitan area has now grown to encompass substantial...
- 4th Motorized Brigade - Diyala. Partnered with 34th Peshmerga Bde and US 1st Battalion, 14th Cavalry Regiment since April 2009.
- 1st Field Engineer Regiment - Habbenayah
- 1st Transportation and Provisioning Regiment - Habbenayah
Originally the 1st Division was one of the four initial divisions of the Iraqi Army, active by 1941. It later became the 1st Mechanised Division, and fought in the Iran-Iraq War
Iran-Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the twentieth century...
, including at the Second Battle of Al Faw
Second Battle of Al Faw
The Second Battle of Al-Faw, fought on April 17, 1988, was a battle of the Iran–Iraq War. After their defeat at the First Battle of Al-Faw two years earlier, the newly restructured Iraqi Army conducted a major operation to clear the Iranians out of the peninsula...
. It was in Kuwait during the Persian Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, fought during the Battle of Khafji
Battle of Khafji
The Battle of Khafji was the first major ground engagement of the Gulf War. It took place in and around the Saudi Arabian city of Khafji, from 29 January to 1 February 1991 and marked the culmination of the Coalition's air campaign over Kuwait and Iraq, which had begun on 17 January 1991.Iraqi...
, and was active during the 1990s. At the beginning of the 2003 invasion of Iraq
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
it was part of the 5th Corps in the Mosul
Mosul
Mosul , is a city in northern Iraq and the capital of the Ninawa Governorate, some northwest of Baghdad. The original city stands on the west bank of the Tigris River, opposite the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on the east bank, but the metropolitan area has now grown to encompass substantial...
area. It was disbanded with the rest of the Iraqi Army in May 2003.
External links
- Globalsecurity.orgGlobalSecurity.orgGlobalSecurity.org, launched in 2000, is a public policy organization focusing on the fields of defense, space exploration, intelligence, weapons of mass destruction and homeland security...
, 1st Mechanised Division - LongWarJournal, http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2007/01/habbaniyah_and_the_3.php