Haditha
Encyclopedia
Haditha is a city in the western Iraq
i Al Anbar Governorate, about 240 km northwest of Baghdad
. It is a farming town situated on the Euphrates River at 34°08′23"N 42°22′41"E. Its population of around 100,000 people is predominantly Sunni Muslim Arabs. The city lies near the Buhayrat al Qadisiyyah, an artificial lake which was created by the building of the Haditha Dam
, the largest hydroelectric facility in Iraq.
The Haditha Dam and surrounding areas were initially secured by U.S.
troops
in April 2003 as part of the invasion of Iraq
. An attack on the dam would have severely flooded towns along the Euphrates
downstream from Haditha, as well as eliminating an important source of electricity.
As the fighting continued following the fall of Saddam Hussein
, Haditha became a center for insurgent
activity. It lies between Al-Qaim
, an insurgent entry point, and Baghdad.
On July 16, 2003 Mohammed Nayil Jurayfi, mayor of Haditha, and his youngest son, Ahmed, were assassinated.
In 2004, U.S. troops left a local police force in charge of the city and insurgents rounded up dozens of local police officers and publicly executed them in a soccer stadium.
In May 2005, U.S. forces launched Operation New Market
in Haditha against the insurgents controlling the city. However, resistance continued. On August 1, 2005, an ambush killed 6 United States Marine snipers, (who were operating in two two-man teams with an additional marine per team for security) in the city; on August 3, a roadside bomb killed another 14 Marines and their interpreter
.
According to an August 2005 report by The Guardian
, the town was controlled by insurgents
, with US forces making only fleeting visits every few months. Like Al-Qa'im, it had come under a Taliban-like rule, with Western
-style items banned and insurgents collecting the salaries
of government employees. This insurgent dominance has continued into 2006.
The mayor of Haditha in November 2005 was Emad Jawad Hamza.
from 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines. The US military is investigating these actions, a captain and a lieutenant colonel
have been relieved of duty (another captain was relieved on the same day but not for the same incident. Ali Hamdani and Ned Parker, Marines and the 'massacre': a neighbor tells of aftermath, 29 May 2006 Some allege the massacre was in retribution for an incident earlier in the day in which US Marine Lance Corporal Miguel Terrazas was killed in a roadside bomb
attack on Marines from Kilo Company.
In August 2006 a commission reviewing the killings found probable cause for charging the Marines. The same day, one of the accused Marines sued Rep. John P. Murtha
(D-Pa.) for libel because of Murtha's characterization of the incident saying the Marines killed the civilians "in cold blood." Depending on where and in what context Murtha's comments were made, he may be immune from suit. The Speech and Debate Clause of the United States Constitution protects Congressmen from liability for comments made during Congressional Debate.
A court martial on Wednesday acquitted a US Marine for any role in covering up the deaths of 24 civilians in Haditha in Iraq in 2005, while charges were dropped against five other marines in the affair. Lieutenant Andrew Grayson, 27, was declared "not guilty on all charges" by a jury, said a spokesman for the Camp Pendleton military base in southern California where the hearing started on May 28. Grayson had been charged with making false statements and attempting to fraudulently separate from the Marine Corps. He was also charged with obstruction of justice, but the military judge dismissed this charge Tuesday.
Charges of murder against squad leader Frank Wuterich were changed to the lesser offense of manslaughter. Wuterich's trial has been delayed due to ongoing litigation regarding the prosecution's access to unaired footage from 60 Minutes
interview with Wuterich. Lt Colonel Jeffrey Chessani
, the highest ranking officer accused over the incident, had been charged with dereliction of duty and violation of a lawful order. On June 17, 2008 Military Judge Colonel Steven Folsom dismissed all charges against Lt Colonel Jeffrey Chessani on the grounds that General James Mattis, who approved the filing of charges against Chessani, was improperly influenced by an investigator probing the incident. The ruling was without prejudice, which allows the prosecution to refile.
The change in U.S. strategy in late 2006 brought quick results to the Hadithah Triad. The U.S. Marines and their Iraqi and coalition allies had largely driven out insurgents by the summer of 2007.
Hadithah was much more secure and had recovered some of its prosperity by the summer of 2008. The progress was evident when an American Congressional Delegation visited the town in August and found full shops and friendly people.
on the western side of the Euphrates and Barwannah on the East side during Operation Al Majid
.
Marine units rotated in and out of the area detaining numerous persons. Iraqi Police were firmly established by 2007 and violence fell. In contrast to previous years, the Ramadan period of 2007 came and went in Haditha with no insurgent attacks.
In the next few months two bridges across the Euphrates were rebuilt, the area hospital was reopened and re-equipped, the K3 Oil refinery south of the area was brought back online, and life began to take on the air of normalcy.
Haditha is officially a political district subordinate to the Al Anbar Province. The Haditha District consist of the Sub-Districts of Haditha [City], the Haqlaniyah Sub-District, and the Barwannah Sub-District. Each district is governed by a Mayor and a Sub-District Council. The twenty member sub-district councils elect one of their own to serve as the Council Chairman. They also employ other municipal managers such as a Municipal Engineer.
The Haditha District is of growing importance in respect to Iraq's energy infrastructure. See the Haditha Dam
article for details. Natural political competition within the district exists between the "Haditha City" and Haqlaniyah
Sub District Councils.
The Haditha District is served by a hospital that has some modern equipment and physicians who are adept at stabilizing severe trauma cases and addressing routine illnesses and injuries. Serious, chronic, or congenital health problems usually require moving the patient to a larger hospital in Ramadi
, Baghdad
, or Syria
.
Situated less than a days drive from Syria
, many citizens of Haditha have deep connections with persons living in Syria
. Commercial traffic entering Iraq from Syria find the first government fuel station past their point of entry in Haqlaniyah
.
The riverbank in the Haditha District is occupied by well irrigated farm plots that produce a large amount of food. Substantial sheep and goat flocks are also kept in the area. Further food sources come from fishing the river or the nearby Lake Qadisiya. Even at the height of the war, according to locals, food was one thing they never lacked.
Entering the Haditha Sub District, one is likely to see municipal signs illustrated with a water wheel. These are displayed as a reference to the area's history. Locals suggest that the ancient looking structures on or near the Euphrates River were part of a water wheel structure that dates back to a period of Roman
occupation. They claim locals built water wheels to establish a limited aqueduct system similar to the one that served Rome
. Whether or not soldiers or citizens of the Roman Empire
ever resided in Haditha is an open question.
The insurgency in Haditha was taken further than anywhere else in Iraq. Insurgent forces established attempted to replicate many municipal services, establish courts, and of course back up their laws and institutions with force. Significant events adverse to Coalition Forces, such as the Haditha Trials, the loss of 6 Marine Snipers, and the widely reported destruction of a Marine vehicle carrying over a dozen men were all squarely placed in the public eye.
Less well publicized has been the ability of local Iraqis to keep their hydro-electric dam functioning and rebuild capacity with the help of US led coalition forces, to re-open a local oil refinery, again with significant funding and technical advice from Coalition forces and provincial reconstruction teams headquartered in Ramadi and Al Asad, to rebuild two dams over the Euphrates River, man a large (and apparently effective) police force, establish regular ambulance service, re-equip and run their hospital, open an asphalt factory, re-open schools with basic refurbishments complete, fill the offices of their local government, expand their local markets, begin rebuilding a local marble factory, and move on despite a war that set some in the community against one another. Despite casualties, Marines inside the Haditha District in 2008 serve in a community where little evidence for the long term success of insurgent forces exist.
Case for the Combat Squad Leader
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
i Al Anbar Governorate, about 240 km northwest of 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...
. It is a farming town situated on the Euphrates River at 34°08′23"N 42°22′41"E. Its population of around 100,000 people is predominantly Sunni Muslim Arabs. The city lies near the Buhayrat al Qadisiyyah, an artificial lake which was created by the building of the Haditha Dam
Haditha Dam
The Haditha Dam or Qadisiya Dam is an earth-fill dam on the Euphrates, north of Haditha , creating Lake Qadisiyah . The dam is just over long and high. The purpose of the dam is to generate hydroelectricity, regulate the flow of the Euphrates and provide water for irrigation...
, the largest hydroelectric facility in Iraq.
Haditha during the Iraqi Invasion
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
troops
Military of the United States
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
in April 2003 as part of the 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...
. An attack on the dam would have severely flooded towns along the Euphrates
Euphrates
The Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia...
downstream from Haditha, as well as eliminating an important source of electricity.
As the fighting continued following the fall of Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
, Haditha became a center for insurgent
Iraqi insurgency
The Iraqi Resistance is composed of a diverse mix of militias, foreign fighters, all-Iraqi units or mixtures opposing the United States-led multinational force in Iraq and the post-2003 Iraqi government...
activity. It lies between Al-Qaim
Al-Qa'im (town)
Al-Qa'im is an Iraqi town on the Euphrates River in Al-Anbar province, close to the Syrian border....
, an insurgent entry point, and Baghdad.
On July 16, 2003 Mohammed Nayil Jurayfi, mayor of Haditha, and his youngest son, Ahmed, were assassinated.
In 2004, U.S. troops left a local police force in charge of the city and insurgents rounded up dozens of local police officers and publicly executed them in a soccer stadium.
In May 2005, U.S. forces launched Operation New Market
Operation New Market
After the handover of sovereignty, Operation New Market was a sweep of an area near Haditha in western Iraq conducted by one thousand coalition and Iraqi Security Forces to rid the Euphrates river bank of anti-coalition forces. It was launched on 24 May 2005 and followed Operation Squeeze Play. New...
in Haditha against the insurgents controlling the city. However, resistance continued. On August 1, 2005, an ambush killed 6 United States Marine snipers, (who were operating in two two-man teams with an additional marine per team for security) in the city; on August 3, a roadside bomb killed another 14 Marines and their interpreter
Interpreting
Language interpretation is the facilitating of oral or sign-language communication, either simultaneously or consecutively, between users of different languages...
.
According to an August 2005 report by The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, the town was controlled by insurgents
Iraqi insurgency
The Iraqi Resistance is composed of a diverse mix of militias, foreign fighters, all-Iraqi units or mixtures opposing the United States-led multinational force in Iraq and the post-2003 Iraqi government...
, with US forces making only fleeting visits every few months. Like Al-Qa'im, it had come under a Taliban-like rule, with Western
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
-style items banned and insurgents collecting the salaries
Salary
A salary is a form of periodic payment from an employer to an employee, which may be specified in an employment contract. It is contrasted with piece wages, where each job, hour or other unit is paid separately, rather than on a periodic basis....
of government employees. This insurgent dominance has continued into 2006.
The mayor of Haditha in November 2005 was Emad Jawad Hamza.
2005 Haditha Killings
On 19 November 2005, 24 Iraqi noncombatants, including 11 women and children, were killed by 12 MarinesUnited States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
from 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines. The US military is investigating these actions, a captain and a lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
have been relieved of duty (another captain was relieved on the same day but not for the same incident. Ali Hamdani and Ned Parker, Marines and the 'massacre': a neighbor tells of aftermath, 29 May 2006 Some allege the massacre was in retribution for an incident earlier in the day in which US Marine Lance Corporal Miguel Terrazas was killed in a roadside bomb
Improvised explosive device
An improvised explosive device , also known as a roadside bomb, is a homemade bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action...
attack on Marines from Kilo Company.
In August 2006 a commission reviewing the killings found probable cause for charging the Marines. The same day, one of the accused Marines sued Rep. John P. Murtha
John Murtha
John Patrick "Jack" Murtha, Jr. was an American politician from the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Murtha, a Democrat, represented Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1974 until his death in 2010....
(D-Pa.) for libel because of Murtha's characterization of the incident saying the Marines killed the civilians "in cold blood." Depending on where and in what context Murtha's comments were made, he may be immune from suit. The Speech and Debate Clause of the United States Constitution protects Congressmen from liability for comments made during Congressional Debate.
A court martial on Wednesday acquitted a US Marine for any role in covering up the deaths of 24 civilians in Haditha in Iraq in 2005, while charges were dropped against five other marines in the affair. Lieutenant Andrew Grayson, 27, was declared "not guilty on all charges" by a jury, said a spokesman for the Camp Pendleton military base in southern California where the hearing started on May 28. Grayson had been charged with making false statements and attempting to fraudulently separate from the Marine Corps. He was also charged with obstruction of justice, but the military judge dismissed this charge Tuesday.
Charges of murder against squad leader Frank Wuterich were changed to the lesser offense of manslaughter. Wuterich's trial has been delayed due to ongoing litigation regarding the prosecution's access to unaired footage from 60 Minutes
60 Minutes
60 Minutes is an American television news magazine, which has run on CBS since 1968. The program was created by producer Don Hewitt who set it apart by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation....
interview with Wuterich. Lt Colonel Jeffrey Chessani
Jeffrey Chessani
Jeffrey R. Chessani is a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Marine Corps, and was the commanding officer 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines during the November 2005 urban combat in Haditha, Iraq. In that event, known as the Haditha killings, marines in his battalion were accused of having...
, the highest ranking officer accused over the incident, had been charged with dereliction of duty and violation of a lawful order. On June 17, 2008 Military Judge Colonel Steven Folsom dismissed all charges against Lt Colonel Jeffrey Chessani on the grounds that General James Mattis, who approved the filing of charges against Chessani, was improperly influenced by an investigator probing the incident. The ruling was without prejudice, which allows the prosecution to refile.
Recovery and Rebuilding
Hadithah was much more secure and had recovered some of its prosperity by the summer of 2008. The progress was evident when an American Congressional Delegation visited the town in August and found full shops and friendly people.
Other
With this turbulent history the future was unpredictable. However, according the website of Multi National Forces - Iraq, progress began after a large berm was erected around the cities of Haditha and HaqlaniyahHaqlaniyah
Al-Haqlaniyah is an Iraqi town on the Euphrates River in Al-Anbar province....
on the western side of the Euphrates and Barwannah on the East side during Operation Al Majid
Operation Al Majid
Operation Al Majid was an operation conducted by both Marines and Iraqi security forces intended to disrupt and defeat insurgent activity throughout more than in western Al Anbar Province. The operation began in November 2006 and resulted in a series of berms being constructed around the cities of...
.
Marine units rotated in and out of the area detaining numerous persons. Iraqi Police were firmly established by 2007 and violence fell. In contrast to previous years, the Ramadan period of 2007 came and went in Haditha with no insurgent attacks.
In the next few months two bridges across the Euphrates were rebuilt, the area hospital was reopened and re-equipped, the K3 Oil refinery south of the area was brought back online, and life began to take on the air of normalcy.
Haditha is officially a political district subordinate to the Al Anbar Province. The Haditha District consist of the Sub-Districts of Haditha [City], the Haqlaniyah Sub-District, and the Barwannah Sub-District. Each district is governed by a Mayor and a Sub-District Council. The twenty member sub-district councils elect one of their own to serve as the Council Chairman. They also employ other municipal managers such as a Municipal Engineer.
The Haditha District is of growing importance in respect to Iraq's energy infrastructure. See the Haditha Dam
Haditha Dam
The Haditha Dam or Qadisiya Dam is an earth-fill dam on the Euphrates, north of Haditha , creating Lake Qadisiyah . The dam is just over long and high. The purpose of the dam is to generate hydroelectricity, regulate the flow of the Euphrates and provide water for irrigation...
article for details. Natural political competition within the district exists between the "Haditha City" and Haqlaniyah
Haqlaniyah
Al-Haqlaniyah is an Iraqi town on the Euphrates River in Al-Anbar province....
Sub District Councils.
The Haditha District is served by a hospital that has some modern equipment and physicians who are adept at stabilizing severe trauma cases and addressing routine illnesses and injuries. Serious, chronic, or congenital health problems usually require moving the patient to a larger hospital in 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...
, 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...
, or Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
.
Situated less than a days drive from Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, many citizens of Haditha have deep connections with persons living in Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
. Commercial traffic entering Iraq from Syria find the first government fuel station past their point of entry in Haqlaniyah
Haqlaniyah
Al-Haqlaniyah is an Iraqi town on the Euphrates River in Al-Anbar province....
.
The riverbank in the Haditha District is occupied by well irrigated farm plots that produce a large amount of food. Substantial sheep and goat flocks are also kept in the area. Further food sources come from fishing the river or the nearby Lake Qadisiya. Even at the height of the war, according to locals, food was one thing they never lacked.
Entering the Haditha Sub District, one is likely to see municipal signs illustrated with a water wheel. These are displayed as a reference to the area's history. Locals suggest that the ancient looking structures on or near the Euphrates River were part of a water wheel structure that dates back to a period of Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
occupation. They claim locals built water wheels to establish a limited aqueduct system similar to the one that served Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. Whether or not soldiers or citizens of the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
ever resided in Haditha is an open question.
The insurgency in Haditha was taken further than anywhere else in Iraq. Insurgent forces established attempted to replicate many municipal services, establish courts, and of course back up their laws and institutions with force. Significant events adverse to Coalition Forces, such as the Haditha Trials, the loss of 6 Marine Snipers, and the widely reported destruction of a Marine vehicle carrying over a dozen men were all squarely placed in the public eye.
Less well publicized has been the ability of local Iraqis to keep their hydro-electric dam functioning and rebuild capacity with the help of US led coalition forces, to re-open a local oil refinery, again with significant funding and technical advice from Coalition forces and provincial reconstruction teams headquartered in Ramadi and Al Asad, to rebuild two dams over the Euphrates River, man a large (and apparently effective) police force, establish regular ambulance service, re-equip and run their hospital, open an asphalt factory, re-open schools with basic refurbishments complete, fill the offices of their local government, expand their local markets, begin rebuilding a local marble factory, and move on despite a war that set some in the community against one another. Despite casualties, Marines inside the Haditha District in 2008 serve in a community where little evidence for the long term success of insurgent forces exist.
Articles
Marines ExoneratedCase for the Combat Squad Leader