Iraq A MODERN HISTORY. Background The land known as Iraq has seen violence throughout history Fertile soil between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.

IraqA MODERN HISTORY

Background

The land known as Iraq has seen violence throughout history

Fertile soil between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers (Mesopotamia) makes this valuable land

During the Golden Age of Islam, Baghdad was the greatest city in the world until it was destroyed by Mongols

Conquered by Ottoman Empire, then the British after World War I

Iraq has the fifth most oil of any country in the world

British Rule & Monarchy

The British drew the boundaries of modern Iraq, and handed power to Sunnis, even though more Iraqis were Shiite

The borders also included a large ethnic minority, the Kurds

When the British left, they created a monarchy which they supported with their military

Iraqi Republic

In 1958, the military overthrew the monarchy and created the Iraqi Republic

Many different group came to power over the next 10 years

1968: The Ba’ath Party rises to power

The Ba’ath Party was a secular, pan-Arabist, socialist, anti-European party

Saddam Hussein

In 1979, General Saddam Hussein took control of Iraq

Hussein modernized Iraq’s oil industry, bringing in $$$ to the country

He denounced the Jews of Israel and Persians of Iran as enemies of Arabs

Hussein created brutal secret police and a “cult of personality”

Like the British, he promoted and protected the Sunni minority

Iraq-Iran War

Iran began arming Iraqi Kurds and Shiites, and both sides launched cross border raids against each other

The war lasted 8 years and ended in stalemate

Somewhere between 0.5 million and 1.5 million people died

Hussein used chemical weapons launched a genocidal campaign against the Kurds, killing 50,000-100,000 of them

The USA supported Hussein and Iraq during this war

Invasion of Kuwait

In 1990, Hussein invaded Kuwait He claimed Kuwait was a part of historical

Iraq

He claimed Kuwait was “slant drilling” Iraq’s oil

He wanted more Persian Gulf coastline for himself

The USA led an international coalition to force Iraq out of Kuwait

After the war, the USA and other countries placed economic sanctions on Iraq and created “No Fly Zones” to protect Kurds and Shiites from Hussein’s bombings

Iraq War II

In 2003, the USA invaded Iraq

Reasons: Claimed Iraq had weapons of mass

destruction and would give them to terrorists

Wanted to create a democracy and American ally in the Middle East (with lots of oil)

Hussein was quickly defeated, captured, and executed

Iraq became a democracy, and was soon controlled by Shiites

Aftermath

Shiites, Sunnis, and Kurds quickly began fighting and the country descended into civil war

With no strong government or feeling of national unity, it has been impossible for the Iraqi government to stop the fighting

Civil war has also spread into neighboring Syria

The Rise of ISIS/ISIL/Islamic State

ISIS is an Islamist group made up of Sunni Muslims

Many members of ISIS follow a very conservative branch of Islamic thought known as Wahhabism

ISIS rejects the national boundaries set up by the British

The group wants to create a caliphate, ruled by a caliph, under sharia law