Iraq War

Also known as the Second Gulf War, the Iraq War consisted of two phases. The first was a brief conventionally fought war in March-April of 2003 when a coalition was formed with the US, Great Britain and five other countries to disarm Iraq of suspected weapons of mass destruction. The coalition forces invaded Iraq and defeated the Iraqi military. This was known as Operation Iraqi Freedom. The invasion included the securing of Baghdad. It was followed by a longer second period in which an additional 21,500 US troops launched a surge offensive to deal with insurgencies and to allow Iraq's new government to establish itself. The US and approximately 30 other countries were involved in the Iraq War. The US withdrew most of its troops in 2011 after training Iraqi Armed forces. What remained was a small stability force until President Biden removed them in 2020. Close to 130,000 American soldiers served in the war and it is estimated that close to 4,431 American soldiers were killed and 32,226 were wounded.

East Glenville, New York · United States