Operation Iraqi Freedom: the Iraq War

  • 9/11

  • Sentate votes

    In a major victory for the White House, the Senate early Friday voted 77-23 to authorize President Bush to attack Iraq if Saddam Hussein refuses to give up weapons of mass destruction as required by U.N. resolutions.
  • UN weapons inspectors return to Iraq

    During the regime of Saddam Hussein, Iraq was believed to have weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Hussein was internationally known for his use of chemical weapons in the 1980s against Iranian and Kurdish civilians during and after the Iran–Iraq War. It is also known that in the 1980s he pursued an extensive biological weapons program and a nuclear weapons program, though no nuclear bomb was built.[citation needed]
  • President Bush announces attack

    In his state of the union address, President Bush announces that he is ready to attack Iraq even without a UN mandate.
  • US Invasion of Iraq

    President Bush starts invasion of Iraq in fear of Iraq having illicit weapons.
  • Saddam Hussein captured

    Hussein was captured from his hiding spot during Operation Red Dawn
  • Duelfer Report

    On September 30th 2004, ISG released the Duelfer Report. Written by Charles Duelfer it stated that Iraq’s WMD program was destroyed in 1991 and Saddam ended Iraq’s nuclear program after the 1991 Gulf War and never it, as well as discontinuing all biological weapons research by 1996. Although it also stated that Saddam Hussein intended to resume production of WMD’s in the future, the report essentially summed up that Iraq had no WMD’s and hadn’t for quite some time.
  • Assault on Fallujah

    US forces launched the largest single military offensive in more then a year in Iraq. Over 15000 American troops, as well as 2000 Iraqi troops commenced an all out assault on Fallujah which had been under the control of insurgents for months. It began with American air bombardment to soften up the targets, followed up by sporadic ground fighting. The objective of the invasion was to deny insurgents a base, keeping them on the move and vulnerable.
  • Elections

    A general election is held to choose the first full-term parliament since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein. More then 7000 Parliamentary candidates compete to fill the 275 seats in Parliament. Over 11 million Iraqis go to the polls to vote to improve their lives and the future of Iraq. Turns out to be an extremley successful and peaceful election.
  • Bombing of Shl'ie Shrine

    The bombing of Shl'ite shrine in Samarra sparks widespread sectarian slaughter, raising fear of Civil War.
  • Execution of Hussein

    Saddam Hussein was executed, which led to numerous conflicts in Iraq.
  • US/Iraqi Security Pact

    The US and Iraqi Security Pact was an agreement to keep American soldiers in Iraq after the war was over. Iran attempted to bribe Iraqi lawmakers to deactivate and get rid of this law to have no US military forces in Iraq.
  • Obama exit plan announced

    President Obama’s exit plan is the attempt to leave Afghanistan under Afghan security and to take US soldiers slowly out of the war zone.
  • Obama Speaks

    Obama says he will pull all US troops out of Iraq at the end of 2011
  • Iraq War Finaly Ends

    For eight years the Iraq War finaly came to an end. Obama thanks all returning troops. U.S lost 4,484 military personnel since 2003 in Iraq and a total of 32,226 U.S soldiers were seriously wounded in the war and may require care for the rest of their lives but those who finaly made it home were Greatful and Happy returing to their family.