Iraqi security forces

Iraqi army soldiers from 4th Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 5th Division stand outside an Iraqi army compound in Buhriz, Iraq, Jan. 31, 2007.

Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) is the Multi-National Force-Iraq umbrella name for military, paramilitary and civilian law enforcement entities that serve under the Government of Iraq.

The armed forces are administered by the Ministry of Defense (MOD), and the Iraqi Police is administered by the Ministry of Interior (MOI). Since the toppling of the Saddam Hussein regime, the Iraqi Security Forces have been rebuilt with substantial assistance from Multi-National Security Transition Command - Iraq. Since the implementation of the U.S.-Iraq Status of Forces Agreement on January 1, 2009, the ISF are responsible for providing security and upholding law and order throughout Iraq de jure, with some MNF-I support until late 2011.

The Iraqi Army, in particular, is one of the most trusted national institutions of Iraq. While generally capable in a internal security role, ISF deficiencies have been identified in enabling functions, such as, e.g., logistics and intelligence. In high-end conventional operations, ISF capabilities are currently limited by lack of fire support and air power. There are also concerns regarding corruption and sectarian agendas within the force.

History

The Iran–Iraq War ended with Iraq fielding the world's 4th largest military, with more than 70 army divisions, over 800 aircraft in its air force,^[1] and a small navy, thanks to funding from the surrounding Persian Gulf states and billions in loans and funding given or secured by the US State Department to support Iraq's war with Iran.^[2][3] Losses during the Gulf War from the United Nations coalition resulted in the reduction of Iraq's ground forces to 23 divisions and the air force to less than 300 aircraft. Military and economic sanctions prevented Iraq from rebuilding its military power. Iraq maintained a standing military of about 375,000 troops.

In the 1980s and 1990s Iraq built and used an arsenal of chemical and biological weapons, some of which have been alleged to come from the United States.^[4] These weapons were ordered destroyed by United Nations order. After a protracted and problematic weapons inspection process, the majority of weapons were considered to be destroyed and facilities sealed under UN weapons inspections. A new round of weapons inspections was performed in early 2003 by United Nations weapons inspectors led by Hans Blix, which searched Iraqi sites again, but found no new weapons. In March 2003 a US-led coalition invaded and occupied Iraq. After a year-long investigation by an American weapons inspections team, headed by David Kay, found no large stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction (though a network of UN-inspected and sealed laboratories did exist).

The Iraqi military was disbanded and the Iraqi Military of Defense was dissolved shortly after the toppling of the Saddam Hussein regime regime in 2003 by Coalition Provisional Authority Order 2 May 23, 2003. On June 25, 2003 the Vinnell Corporation was awarded a contract to train the first nine battalions, or 9,000 recruits, of a 44,000 person-strong "New Iraqi Army". In April 2004 an Iraqi battalion refused to fight insurgents in Fallujah, and soon thereafter Major General David Petraeus took over the training mission as he became the commander of the new Multi-National Security Transition Command - Iraq.^[5] A new force generation plan authorized an end-strength of ten Iraqi army divisions.

Iraqi soldiers with Egyptian-made Maadi rifles during a live-fire exercise in Al-Hillah

During 2006 the Coalition's campaign plan for Iraq called for a small Coalition footprint and a rapid handover of security responsibilities to newly generated Iraqi security forces. It turned out, however, that the ISF were not ready and that the time plan was too optimistic. Even though Iraqi forces had been trained and equipped, they hadn't developed the capabilities needed to plan, conduct and sustain effective counter-insurgency operations. There were also challenges at the ministerial level, within the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Defense. The ministries could not sustain its forces in terms of logistics, intelligence, communications and procurement.^[6] A by-product of the surge was that it provided the ISF time for training and leadership development, as well as more Coalition partnering units. One of the lessons learned is that the Coalition should not draw down too quickly, according to U.S. Brigadier General Dana Pittard^[7]

The Iraqi Army launched its first solely planned and executed high-profile division-level operation March 25, 2008 with Operation Charge of the Knights. The IA received Coalition support only in air support, logistics and via embedded advisors. Also, a British infantry brigade stationed in Basra were ready in a tactical overwatch role but did not need to intervene. Urban operations are considered to be among the most complex types of warfare.

Force structure

Iraqi Army soldiers from the 4th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division.

Iraqi soldiers of the 3rd Brigade 14th Iraqi Army division graduate from basic training

Iraqi security forces are composed of forces serving under the Ministry of Interior (MOI) and the Ministry of Defense (MOD). MOD forces are the army, the air force and the navy. MOI forces are the police, the paramilitary federal police and the border enforcement forces. Also, other ministries have Facility Protection Service personnel who act as guards at government buildings and as personal security details to protect ministry officials.^[8]

Iraqi Army

The Iraqi Army is an objective counter-insurgency force that is currently being developed by the government of Iraq in cooperation with Coalition forces. The force generation plan as of November 2009 includes 14 divisions, each division consisting of 4 brigades.^[9]

The Iraqi army is described as the most important element of the counter-insurgency fight.^[10] The tactic is to provide security and other services on a local level by using infantrymen on dismounted patrols. As insurgents lose the passive or active support from the local population, they will easily be defeated, it is believed.

Light infantry brigades are equipped with small arms, machine guns, RPGs, body armor and light armored vehicles. Mechanized infantry brigades are equipped with T-54/55 main battle tanks and BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles.^[10] The Hungarian Armed Forces have donated 77 Soviet-made T-72 tanks from their own arsenal. The tanks have been refurbished by Hungarian specialists and were delivered in fully battle-ready condition in 2004. Training personnel was also provided to the newly forming Iraqi army. Iraq will also be receiving 70 to 120 additional T-72 tanks from Slovakian army reserves. Iraq will be receiving 140 M1A1M tanks in 2010, and has ordered another 140 M1A1's to be delivered in 2011.

Iraqi Air Force

The Iraqi Air Force is designed to support ground forces with surveillance, reconnaissance and troop lift. Two reconnaissance squadrons use light aircraft, three helicopter squadrons are used to move troops and one air transportation squadron uses C-130 transport aircraft to move troops, equipment, and supplies. It currently has 3,000 personnel. It is planned to increase to 18,000 personnel, with 550 aircraft by 2018.^[10]

Iraqi Navy

A patrol boat prior to being delivered to the Iraqi navy

The Iraqi Navy is a small force with 1,500 sailors and officers, including 800 Marines, designed to protect shoreline and inland waterways from insurgent infiltration. The navy is also responsible for the security of offshore oil platforms. The navy will have coastal patrol squadrons, assault boat squadrons and a marine battalion.^[10] The force will consist of 2,000 to 2,500 sailors by year 2010.^[11] The Iraqi navy possesses 16 patrol boats, 35 assault boats, and 1 offshore picket vessel.

Iraqi Police

The primary objective of the Iraqi Police is to safeguard the public and provide internal security at the local level. The Iraqi police is presently mainly focused on counter-insurgency operations, but over time the Iraqi police will improve criminal investigation capabilities including forensic investigative capabilities.

During the Saddam regime, the Iraqi police was used as an instrument to terrorize, intimidate and incite fear into the populace, using torture, threat and murder.^{[citation needed]} Today, the new Iraqi police force is tasked with protecting people from such acts. The police course curriculum includes democratic policing, human rights, first aid, police ethics, leadership and communications. Currently there are over 340,000 Iraqi police.

The Iraqi police are equipped with AK-47s, Glock pistols, body armor, pick-up trucks and SUVs.^[8]

Iraqi Police Service (IPS)

The Iraqi Police Service (IPS) is responsible for the day to day patrolling of cities around most crimes. The IPS is recruited locally and generally reflective of the demographic makeup of its neighborhoods.

Federal Police (FP)

The Federal Police (FP) is a paramilitary gendarmerie type force designed to bridge the gap between local policing and the army, allowing the MOI to project power across provinces and maintain law and order while an effective community police is developed. Although called police, the force has been trained primarily for military operations.

Because of frequent allegations of abuse and other illegal activities, the government of Iraq decided in the fall of 2006 to reform and retrain all FP units. The FP transformation will yield a police organization capable of performing criminal investigations as well as tactical operations. The transformation includes a reorganization that resulted in replacement of two division headquarters with a federal police headquarters.^[8]

FP units are equipped with small arms, machine guns, pick-up trucks and SUVs. The mechanized battalions are equipped with light armored vehicles.^[8]

Department of Border Enforcement (DBE)

Mashan border fort in Sulaminiyah, Iraq.

Iraq's borders are controlled by the Department of Border Enforcement (DBE) and the Department of Ports of Entry (POE) collectively. The DBE is manning 405 border structures. There are 14 land points of entry. As of November 2006, there were 28,300 DBE personnel trained, organized into 5 regions, 12 brigades and 38 battalions. Force generation and equipment goals are on schedule for completion by December 2006.^[8]

Facilities Protection Service

There are more than 150,000 Facility Protection Service personnel who work for 26 ministries and 8 independent directorates. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some of them are unreliable and responsible for violent crimes. PM Maliki has announced a reform to consolidate all Facilities Protection Service personnel into a unified organization responsible to the MOI. As of December 2005, the Coalition no longer provides material or logisitcal support to the FPS.^[8]

Assuming responsibilities for security

Under the Geneva Convention, the Coalition was obliged to provide security for the Iraqi people after the toppling of the Saddam Hussein regime. After the dissolution of the Coalition Provisional Authority, June 28, 2004, the Coalition stayed in country at the request of the Iraqi government and under a UN Mandate to help the fledgling government develop its security forces and fight an insurgency. One mission objective for the MNF-I is an "Iraq that has a security force that can maintain domestic order and deny Iraq as a safe haven for terrorists". The strategy to achieve this is basically to train and equip Iraqi Security Forces and gradually transition security responsibilities to the ISF.

General George Casey in Tikrit

Developing host-nation security forces is a cornerstone of the United States COIN doctrine.^[12] After a review of the military strategy in the end of 2004, then commanding general of the MNF-I George Casey directed the Coalition forces to shift their focus from fighting insurgents to training Iraqis.^[13] At the time, the insurgency was mainly directed against the occupation and it was believed that if the Coalition would reduce its presence then the insurgency would diminish. Military planners had hoped that national elections would change the perception of being under occupation, stabilize the situation and allow the Coalition to reduce its presence. After national elections in December 2005, however, the insurgency shifted focus from a resistance against the occupation towards sectarian conflict. Accelerated by the Golden mosque bombing in February 2006, the levels of sectarian violence rose dramatically and the security situation deteriorated. In Baghdad a cycle of sectarian violence accelerated in which Al-Qaeda affiliated Sunni insurgents carried out spectacular suicide-bombings in Shia districts and Shia militias retaliated with extrajudicial killings in Sunni districts.^[14] It became evident that Iraqi Security Forces were incapable of putting a lid on the sectarian violence and protect the population, and the MNF-I had to adjust plans for security transition. The commander of the Iraqi Assistance Command, Dana Pittard said June 2007 that the lesson learned is that Coalition forces should not draw down too quickly and that the transitioning of security responsibilities will take time. "I think it will take a couple of years before the Iraqi security forces are going to be able to fully take control of the security situation in Iraq", Pittard said.^[7]

In a 2005 U.S. DoD 9010 report to U.S. Congress, the Pentagon reported that its plan for security transition was broken down into four broad phases:

• Implement Partnerships — MNF-I establish and maintain partnerships across the entire spectrum of Iraqi Security Forces units, from battalion through to ministerial level.
• Iraqi Army Lead (IAL) — Process during which Iraqi Army units progress through stages of capability from unit formation to the ability to conduct counter-insurgency operations.
• Provincial Iraqi Control (PIC) — Iraqi civil authorities satisfy the conditions required to assume control and exercise responsibility for the security of their respective provinces.
• Iraqi Security Self-Reliance — The Government of Iraq achieves PIC (or a combination of PIC and IAL) throughout Iraq; and the Government, through its security ministries, is capable of planning, conducting, and sustaining security operations and forces.^[15]

The first phase was completed in May 2006. The second phase can be considered complete since all of the original ten IA divisions have transferred to an Iraqi chain of command and are responsible for most of Iraq's battlespace and since Iraqi Army Lead-statistics are no longer included in the U.S. DoD's quarterly reports to Congress. Muthanna was the first province to enter the third phase July 2006.^[16] Dhi Qar province achieved PIC in September 2006^[17] and Najaf achieved PIC in December 2006.^[18] Maysan province achieved PIC status on April 18, 2007.^[19] The three provinces of the Kurdish region - Dahuk, Irbil and Sulaymaniyah provinces - achieved PIC status on May 30, 2007.^[20] Karbala province achieved PIC October 29, 2007^[21] and Basra province achieved PIC status December 15, 2007.^[22] During 2008, Qadisiyah achieved PIC July 15, 2008,^[23] Anbar achieved PIC September 1, 2008,^[24] Babil achieved PIC October 23, 2008,^[25] and Wasit achieved PIC status on October 29, 2008.^[26]

As of June 2009, PIC is no longer mentioned in the DoD 9010 report. Broadly speaking, the PIC process has been consumed by the U.S.-Iraq Status of Forces Agreement. Since U.S. forces have withdrawn from all cities and are operating in a support role only, Iraq can be considered to have achieved de facto PIC throughout the country.

References

External links

• Frontline: Gangs of Iraq
• Iraqi Force Development in 2006, by Anthony H. Cordesman and William D. Sullivan
• Fact Sheet: Training Iraqi Security Forces, The White House
• Measuring Security and Stability in Iraq, Quarterly reports from the US Department of Defense to US Congress.

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