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Seven Years in Iraq: An Iraq War Timeline

Source: time.com

March 2003 Shock and Awe

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Mirrorpix / Getty

Fires rage in Baghdad as U.S.-led coalition forces attack the city

"The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder. We will meet that threat now, with our Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and Marines, so that we do not have to meet it later with armies of fire fighters and police and doctors on the streets of our cities." —President Bush, addressing the nation soon after the bombing of Baghdad had begun on March 19

On March 19 at 9:34 p.m. — two days after demanding that Saddam Hussein and his sons Uday and Qusay surrender and leave Iraq within 48 hour — the U.S.-led coalition begins bombing Baghdad. Strikes are first made against "targets of opportunity" on the outskirts of Baghdad. In his address to the nation at 10:16 p.m. e.s.t., President Bush outlines the purpose of invading Iraq: "to disarm Iraq, to free its people, and to defend the world from grave danger." On March 20th at 7:57 A.M., the first confirmed skirmish between American and Iraqi forces takes place. By 4:00 p.m. that day, there are at least 7 raids on Baghdad.

April 2003 Baghdad Falls

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Robert Nickelsberg / Getty

Iraqi civilians and U.S. Marines topple a statue of Saddam in Baghdad

"Touch me, touch me, tell me that this is real, tell me that the nightmare is really over." —an unidentified Iraqi man, tears running down his face, as quoted in The New York Times

After encountering little serious resistance, U.S. forces roll into central Baghdad and take control of Iraq's capital city. On April 9th, Marines pull down a giant statue of Saddam in Firdos Square amidst celebrating Iraqis. After an initial period of relative calm, lawlessness quickly spreads. Looting becomes rampant, and countless objects are taken from Iraq's national museum, which housed artifacts up to 10,000 years old.

May 2003 Victory Lap

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Brooks Kraft / Corbis for TIME

President Bush arrives aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln.

"Mission Accomplished" —Banner behind President Bush on the USS Abraham Lincoln

Sitting in the co-pilot's seat of a Navy S-3B Viking, President Bush lands May 1 on the USS Abraham Lincoln, an aircraft carrier stationed off the coast of San Diego. Dressed in a flight suit, he gives a nationally televised victory speech from the carrier's flight deck and declares that, "major combat operations in Iraq have ended."

June 2003 Dead Enders

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Yuri Kozyrev for TIME

An Iraqi tribal chief brandishes a handgun.

"In those regions where pockets of dead-enders are trying to reconstitute, Gen. (Tommy) Franks and his team are rooting them out...In short, the coalition is making good progress." —Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, at a June 18 Pentagon press conference

Over 50 American troops have been killed since major combat operations were declared over on May 1. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld blames continued problems in Iraq on the last remnants of Saddam's Baathist regime, claiming that the level of violence is not different from everyday crime in a major U.S. city. Months later, British military officials estimate there are 40,000 to 50,000 insurgent fighters in the country. An Iraqi intelligence director puts the number at 200,000 insurgents, larger than the U.S. military in Iraq.

July 2003 Tough Talk

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Stan Honda / AFP / Getty

Television cameramen film the corpses of Uday (right) and Qusay, sons of Saddam

"There are some who feel like the conditions are such that they can attack us there. My answer is, bring them on." —President Bush, at a July 3 White House press conference

In response to a journalist's question about getting France, Germany and Russia to help deal with the rising number of deadly attacks on U.S. forces, President Bush says other countries are welcome to lend their support, but that the U.S. troops are capable of securing the situation. To critics who think the U.S. will leave Iraq prematurely if the attacks continue, Bush claims "they don't understand what they're talking about." Three weeks later, Saddam Hussein's sons Uday and Qusay are killed in a battle with U.S. forces in Mosul. To help convince skeptical Iraqis that the despised brothers are really dead, the U.S. allows photographs and videotapes of their bodies to be released.

August 2003 United in Grief

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Stephanie Sinclair / Corbis

A U.S. soldier stands among the ruins of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad

"Nothing can excuse this act of unprovoked and murderous violence against men and women who went to Iraq... to help the Iraqi people." —UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan

On August 19, less than two weeks after a bombing at the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad kills 14 people, a massive truck bomb destroys part of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad. At least 17 people are killed, including Brazilian Sergio Vieira de Mello, U.N. Special Representative to Iraq. No group claims responsibility for the bombing. Following the attack, most UN workers are pulled out of Iraq. As security deteriorates, other aid organizations leave Baghdad as well.

September 2003 Plan of Attack

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Mario Tama / Getty

The Deputy Director of the National Museum of Iraq sits among the damage caused by looters

"Division of responsibility for planning and execution was not clear. As a result planning occurred on an ad hoc basis and late in the process. Additionally, there were insufficient assets available to accomplish the mission." —From a secret report prepared for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as quoted in the September 3 edition of The Washington Times

The Washington Times obtains the final draft of a secret report prepared the month before for the Joint Chiefs of Staff that condemns many aspects of the war preparations and strategy. The report paints a picture of rushed, disorganized planning, a search for alleged WMDs that did not begin until far too late, and a neglected "Phase IV" of the occupation—that is, the reconstruction effort. It also notes that President Bush approved the overall Iraq strategy in August of 2002, long before his failed attempt to get a U.N. mandate for the war.

October 2003 Enter Bin Laden

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Al-Jazeera / CNN / AP

A video of Osama bin Laden airs on Al-Jazeera

"Be glad of the good news: America is mired in the swamps of the Tigris and Euphrates. Bush is, through Iraq and its oil, easy prey. Here is he now, thank God, in an embarrassing situation and here is America today being ruined before the eyes of the whole world." —Osama Bin Laden, in a video message broadcast October 18

In a video addressed to Iraqis, and broadcast on Al Jazeera, Osama Bin Laden congratulates followers on their efforts at jihad and denounces democracy as a deviation from Islam. Bin Laden calls upon Muslims and Iraqis especially to avoid supporting "American crusaders." "Any government set up by America will be a puppet and traitorous regime," says Bin Laden. He also claims that the war will drain the U.S. of its economic strength, which he points out has already begun to weaken. As he puts it: "Moreover, they have had a budget deficit for the third consecutive year. This year, the deficit reached a record peak of more than US $4.5 billion. Praise be to Allah."

November 2003 Jessica Lynch Speaks

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

John Himelrick / Getty

Jessica Lynch addresses the media at a homecoming ceremony in Elizabeth, West Virginia.

"I think it was the Army looking for a hero." —a senior military official discussing Jessica Lynch, as quoted in TIME

A little more than seven months after being rescued and turned into an icon of American wartime sacrifice and bravery, the inspiring true story and troubling myth built around Private Jessica Lynch reach their conclusion in November with the airing of an NBC made-for-TV movie and the publication of Lynch's memoir. A supply clerk with the 507th Maintenance Company, Lynch became a prisoner of war on March 23 after her convoy got lost and came under fire and the Humvee she was riding in crashed. With the aid of shadowy night footage from her April 1 rescue, Lynch was almost immediately turned into a symbol of courage under fire, with anonymous sources telling the media that "she was fighting to the death." In May, it became clear that much of Lynch's heroic tale was exaggerated by the Pentagon and misreported by the press.

December 2003 Capturing Saddam

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

APTN

An army doctor examines Saddam Hussein after his capture

"Ladies and gentlemen, we got him." —Paul Bremer, announcing the December 13 capture of Saddam Hussein to cheers from Iraqi journalists

Using intelligence obtained by questioning bodyguards and family members, U.S. forces determine Saddam Hussein's whereabouts and find him hiding in a one-person, eight-foot deep "spider hole" in ad-Dawr near his hometown of Tikrit, with two AK-47s, a pistol, and $750,000 in $100 bills. Bedraggled and sporting a scruffy beard and shaggy hair, Hussein is transported to a U.S. base near Baghdad; images of his initial medical exam are released to the media.

January 2004 WMD, RIP

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Tim Sloan / AFP / Getty

U.S. weapons inspector David Kay testifies before the Senate

"I don't think they existed ... I don't think there was a large-scale production program in the '90s." —David Kay, stepping down January 23 as leader of the Iraq Survey Group

After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, David Kay, who searched for WMD during the first Gulf War, leads the U.S. weapons inspection team known as the Iraq Survey Group. In less than one year, Kay tells a Senate committee that no WMD have been found in Iraq. "It turns out that we were all wrong," he testifies on January 28, though he maintains that he still believes the war was the right thing to do in light of the continuing threat posed by Saddam. In fact, soon after he steps down, Kay says in an interview that Iraq never gave up its ambition to obtain WMD and in fact "had a large number of WMD program-related activities." Charles Duelfer takes over Kay's role, releasing the Survey Group's final report, which affirms that no WMD were found, in September of 2004; the search is officially ended on January 12, 2005.

February 2004 A Call to Arms

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Marco Di Lauro / Getty

Victims of a bombing in Karbala are wheeled away from the scene of the attack, which took place during Ashura, one of the most sacred days on the Shia calendar

"It is the only way to prolong the duration of the fight between the infidels and us. If we succeed in dragging them into a sectarian war, this will awaken the sleepy Sunnis who are fearful of destruction and death at the hands of the Shia." —from a 17-page letter purportedly written by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi seeking the assistance of senior Al-Qaeda members.

In early February, various media outlets report that, the month before, U.S. forces had stormed a house in Baghdad and found a computer disk containing a letter addressed to senior Al-Qaeda figures. The writer, believed to be the Jordanian insurgent Zarqawi, asks for assistance in waging a civil war of religious extremism in Iraq and claims to be behind 25 attacks on Shi'as and American and other coalition forces. U.S. officials point to the letter as evidence that "there is clearly a plan on the part of outsiders to come into this country and spark civil war."

March 2004 Holy War

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Scott Nelson / Getty

A Shi'a man cries during a mourning observance for those killed in dual attacks on Shi'ites in Karbala and Baghdad

"What is happening to our country? These were just innocent people who came here to pray." —an unidentified iraqi woman near Baghdad's Kadhim shrine after a deadly bombing, as quoted in The Washinton Post

On Ashura, the holiest day of the year for Shi'ite Muslims, nearly 180 worshippers are massacred in a series of coordinated car and suicide bomb attacks at shrines in Baghdad and Karbala. It is one of the deadliest days since Saddam Hussein was toppled. U.S. officials blame the March 2 attacks on Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who has links to al-Qaeda, though one of his field commanders is later fingered as the mastermind. Shi'ite religious leaders blame the U.S. for allowing the horrific attacks to take place.

April 2004 Abu Ghraib

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

The New Yorker / AP

A hooded and wired Iraqi prisoner at Abu Ghraib.

"The report's conclusions about the institutional failures of the Army prison system were devastating. Specifically, (Major General Antonio M.)Taguba found that between October and December of 2003 there were numerous instances of 'sadistic, blatant, and wanton criminal abuses' at Abu Ghraib." —from "Torture at Abu Ghraib", by Seymour Hersh, in the May 10, 2004 New Yorker

In late April, photographic evidence of American military personnel's abuse and torture of prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison are made public, sparking a huge public outcry around the world, and especially in the Middle East. The shocking images of smiling, sadistic soldiers and shackled, humiliated prisoners come to symbolize everything that has gone wrong with the war that was once supposed to spread freedom in Iraq. While several soldiers and officers are removed from duty and some are convicted in court martials for their role in Abu Ghraib, the administration insists that the scandal was the result of a few bored soldiers, and not not indicative of a greater flaw in U.S. policy towards the treatment of prisoners or the responsibility of senior military officials. A few months after the Abu Ghraib story breaks, leaked Justice Department memos reveal that the administration has indeed been quietly redefining the U.S. position on torture.

May 2004 Nick Berg's Execution

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Muntada al-Ansar / Getty

The webcam video of the beheading of Nick Berg.

"My name is Nick Berg, my father's name is Michael, my mother's name is Suzanne. I have a brother and sister, David and Sara. I live in West Chester, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia." —Nick Berg, speaking his final words before being beheaded

An American freelance telecommunications contractor named Nick Berg is abducted and beheaded in Iraq by militants in retaliation for U.S. abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison. Berg's decapitation and a statement from his killers are videotaped and posted on the Internet on May 11. Berg's family claims that their son would have left Iraq earlier but he had been detained by U.S. authorities in Iraq who were suspicious of his reasons for being in the country. The U.S. insists that, though he may have been held by Iraqi police, he was never held by coalition authorities.

June 2004 Cry of Freedom

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Eric Draper / White House / Getty

The White House releases a photograph of the note which U.S. National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice passed to President Bush at a summit meeting in Turkey.

"Let Freedom Reign!" —President Bush's written declaration after learning that power had been transferred to the Iraqis

During the opening session of a NATO summit in Turkey on June 28, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice passes President Bush a note informing him that the handover of power to an interim Iraqi government has taken place. "Iraq is Sovereign," the note begins. Bush scribbles "Let Freedom Reign" in the margin. A few hours later, the U.S. Supreme Court rules in three cases against the White House's claim of authority to detain terrorism suspects indefinitely and deny them access to courts and lawyers during interrogation.

July 2004 The 9/11 Commission

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Mark Wilson / Getty

Thomas H. Kean (right) confers fellow 9/11 Commission chair Lee H. Hamilton.

"The reports describe friendly contacts and indicate some common themes in both sides' hatred of the United States. But to date we have seen no evidence that these or the earlier contacts ever developed into a collaborative operational relationship. Nor have we seen evidence indicating that Iraq cooperated with al Qaeda in developing or carrying out any attacks against the United States." —from the final report of the 9/11 Commission

The bipartisan 9/11 Commission releases its final report on the events leading up to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Among other findings, including many intelligence failures, the report states there was no operational link between Saddam Hussein and Al-Qaeda, thereby contradicting one of the justifications for going to war with Iraq.

August 2004 Peace Breaks Out?

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Mohamed Messara / EPA

Supporters of cleric Muqtada al-Sadr battle U.S. troops in Najaf

"Iraq has achieved a victory today. No more fights" —Qasim Dawood, an Iraqi minister of state, as quoted in The Washington Post, rejoicing at the peace deal ending the fighting in Najaf

After a ceasefire is brokered by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the most influential Shi'ite leader in Iraq, three weeks of intense fighting in Najaf between U.S. forces and Shi'a militia of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr ends in late August. U.S. forces and al-Sadr's Mahdi army withdraw. Najaf and Kufa become weapons-free zones, and Sadr, who had been wanted by the former U.S. occupation authority on murder charges, is allowed to participate in political activities. Many Iraqi and U.S. officials will come to regret the deal, as Sadr and his Mahdi Army will remain one of the country's most destabilizing sectariain elements for years to come.

September 2004 Early Warning

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Aftermath of a suicide bomb attack, Baghdad

"But for the President to accuse the press and others for being pessimistic, which he does commonly in his speeches isn't that disingenuous when there's reports from NIA which paint these sort of scenarios?" —journalist questioning White House press secretary Scott McClellan aboard Air Force One

On September 16, The New York Times reports that in July the National Intelligence Council prepared a pessimistic, classified report for Bush which warns of the possibility of civil war in Iraq. Press Secretary Scott McClellan responds that the pessimists continue to be proven wrong by the determination of Iraqi leaders and citizens. Critics of the war seize on the report as further evidence that the administration isn't facing up to the realities on the ground in Iraq.

October 2004 Bremer's Verdict

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Karen Ballard / Redux for TIME

Administrator in Iraq Paul Bremer.

"We never had enough troops on the ground." —Paul Bremer, former Coalition Provision Authority administrator

Speaking October 4 at an insurance conference, former civilian administrator Paul Bremer states that ousting Saddam was "the right thing to do," but the U.S. did not have enough troops to combat the eruption of lawlessness after the toppling of the regime. Bremer says he "raised this issue a number of times with our government", but no action was taken. A senior Defense Department official says Bremer never asked for more troops.

November 2004 Fight in Fallujah

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Yuri Kozyrev for TIME

U.S. troops battle insurgents in Fallujah.

"We don't want them to leave Fallujah. We want to kill them here." —First Infantry Lt. Col. Pete Newell, quoted in the November 9 edition of The Philadelphia Inquirer

Authorized by the interim Iraqi government, Operation Phantom Fury is a U.S.-led, joint U.S.-Iraqi attack against insurgent strongholds in Fallujah, which results in a military victory for the U.S. The victory comes at a cost, though. One marine is initially suspected —though later acquitted— of killing a wounded, unarmed prisoner in a mosque. The Red Cross claims that some 800 Iraqi civilians were killed in the brutal fighting. And in December, it is reported that the U.S. used White Phosphorus to help defeat the insurgents.

December 2004 Rumsfeld's Rationale

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Master SGT. James M. Bowman / USAF / DOD

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld in Kuwait.

"As you know, you go to war with the Army you have. They're not the Army you might want or wish to have at a later time." —Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, at a town hall meeting in Kuwait, responding to a soldier's question about many units not having proper armor for combat

At a December 8 town hall meeting in Kuwait, soldiers preparing to be deployed to Iraq question Defense Secretary Rumsfeld about their improvised vehicle armor. Using "rusted scrap metal and compromised ballistic glass", as one questioner puts it to applause, soldiers have constructed "hillbilly armor" not suitable for urban combat in Iraq. Some officers have refused to go into battle with improper armor. Rumsfeld's performance is later parodied on Saturday Night Live.

January 2005 Democracy Arrives

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Ghaith Abdul-Ahad / Getty

An Iraqi woman casts her vote in Najaf.

"We are defeating the terrorists as we are coming here." —an Iraqi voter, as quoted on CNN

On January 30, Iraq holds its first democratic elections in fifty years. Though plagued by sporadic violence and a Sunni party boycott, the legislative elections attract high turnout from eligible Iraqis. The biggest winner is the United Iraqi Alliance, a broad coalition of Shi'ite politicians, which wins a plurality of seats in the national assembly. The election also leads to the nomination of Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, to be Iraq's president. Critics argue that elections will do little to alleviate Iraq's sectarian tensions since most voters simply voted in accordance with their ethnic or religious identities, though the Bush Administration and many Iraqis view the day as a major milestone. "This is the greatest day in the history of this country," Iraqi national security adviser Mowaffak al-Rubaie tells CNN.

February 2005 Law and Disorder

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

"If they are really the resistance, why don't they kill Americans?" —Basim Ali, 28, a police recruit wounded in the Hilla suicide bombing as quoted in The New York Times

On February 28th, a suicide bomber drives a sedan loaded with explosives into a crowd of army and police recruits waiting for medical examinations at a clinic in Hilla, 60 miles south of Baghdad. It is the single deadliest attack since the start of the war—at least 122 are killed and 170 wounded. The bombing signals an escalating trend in Iraq: deadly violence directed at anyone cooperating with the U.S.-backed government.

March 2005 Intelligence Failure

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Brendan Smialowski / AFP / Getty

President Bush meets with Charles Robb, Laurence Silberman and members of the Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States

"The intelligence community was dead wrong in almost all of its prewar judgments." —From the findings of the Silbermann-Robb commission

Co-chaired by retired federal judge Laurence Silberman and retired U.S. Senator Charles Robb, the nine-member commission appointed by President Bush to analyze the U.S. intelligence failures (especially concerning Iraq's non-existent WMD) in the lead-up to the war, issues its findings at the end of March. Among its most damning conclusions: "Not one bit of (the prewar intelligence) could be confirmed when the war was over." The commission also warns that the CIA and other intelligence agencies could have difficulties effectively gauging the threats posed by countries like Iran and North Korea.

April 2005 The Second Anniversary

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Ali al-Saadi / AFP / Getty

Supporters of Muqtada al-Sadr burn the American flag in central Baghdad.

"The 9th of April is a day in which one tyrant fell so that another occupying tyrant could take his place." —statement from the Iraqi Islamic Party, as quoted in The New York Times

On the second anniversary of the fall of Saddam Hussein, tens of thousands of Iraqis participate in a peaceful demonstration in Baghdad's Firdos Square, the site where Saddam's statue was pulled down by U.S. Marines at the start of the war. The demonstrators demand that the U.S. set a timetable for withdrawal and that Iraqi detainees be released from U.S.-run prisons. Many of the protestors are followers of the radical Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

May 2005 Cheney's Rosy View

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Yuri Kozyrev for TIME

An Iraqi insurgent holds a modified launcher for surface-to-air missiles.

"I think they're in the last throes, if you will, of the insurgency." —Vice President Dick Cheney, in an interview on CNN's Larry King Live

In late May, in an attempt to tamp down violence in Baghdad, Iraqi forces launch Operation Lightning, the toughest crackdown in Baghdad so far. More than 40,000 Iraqi troops contribute to the effort, which seeks to root out insurgents and terrorists through hundreds of checkpoints and military cordons, as well as house-to-house searches. Shortly after the operation begins, the Vice President makes his now oft-quoted statement. In the long run, Operation Lightning is generally unsuccessful: Baghdad continues to be wracked by sectarian killings.

June 2005 Off Message

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Brooks Kraft / Corbis for TIME

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

"We're not going to win against the insurgency. The Iraqi people are going to win against the insurgency. That insurgency could go on for any number of years...five, six, eight, 10, 12 years." —Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, appearing on Fox News Sunday

Only a month after Cheney airs his rosy view of the Iraqi insurgency, Rumsfeld appears to contradict the Vice President. During his interview with Chris Wallace, he explains that the goal of the coalition is to set up an environment in which the Iraqi people can have success in the long-term battle against the insurgency, and that it will be they—not coalition forces—who will be fighting the insurgency in the years to come.

July 2005 Child's Play?

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Robert Caplin / The New York Times / Redux

Ayad al-Sirowiy, 13, after his surgery at Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland.

"I hope we come back." —Ayad al-Sirowly, an injured Iraqi boy who was brought to the U.S. for medical treatment, upset that he has to return to his home country, quoted in The New York Times

Al-Sirowiy was disfigured when his cow set off an American cluster bomb, driving shrapnel into his face and blinding him in one eye. After a retired law professor in Miami read about the 13-year-old boy, he arranged to have him brought to the United States for treatment. Ayad and his father, Ali, were flown to New York in July of 2005, and spent two weeks getting treatment and taking in the sights, including the Pentagon, Congress, the Empire State Building and a Wal-Mart ("It was bigger than my village," the father quipped).

August 2005 Cindy Sheehan's War

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Chris Usher for TIME

Cindy Sheehan protests near President Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas.

"Casey's my hero because of the way he lived, not because of the way he died...Casey lived a great life and he was an honorable man and he died in a dishonorable war." —Cindy Sheehan, from an interview with Salon.com

In early August, Cindy Sheehan, whose son Casey died while fighting in Iraq in April 2004, sets up a camp and holds a makeshift vigil two miles away from President Bush's Crawford, Texas ranch, demanding a second meeting with Bush. (She previously met the President, along with other military families, in June of 2004). Sheehan, who makes no secret of her belief that Bush is responsible for the death of her son or of her desire to tell him that all troops must be immediately withdrawn from Iraq, is rebuffed by the President, and even spawns counter-protests from conservatives. Long after the Crawford media circus ends, Sheehan campaigns against the war and becomes the most famous and emotional face of the country's anti-war movement.

September 2005 Powell's Mea Culpa

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Nicholas Roberts / AFP / Getty

Secretary of State Colin Powell.

"It's a blot. I'm the one who presented it on behalf of the United States to the world, and (it) will always be a part of my record. It was painful. It's painful now." —Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, in an interview with Barbara Walters

During an interview with Barbara Walters of ABC News, former Secretary of State Colin Powell expresses contrition over his role in selling the Iraq war to the United Nations. In February of 2003, Powell gave a dramatic address to the U.N. Security Council in which he presented evidence of Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction programs — evidence that was subsequently called into question. Powell left the administration shortly after Bush's reelection in November of 2004.

October 2005 Libby's Leak

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Christopher Morris / VII for TIME

I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby in the Oval Office of the White House.

"Revealing my wife Valerie's secret CIA identity was very wrong and harmful to our nation. I feel that my family was attacked for my speaking the truth about the events that led our country to war." —Joseph Wilson, on the leaking of his wife Valerie Plame's identity as a CIA operative

On October 28, Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby is indicted on charges of obstruction of justice and perjury in Patrick Fitzgerald's investigation of the leaking of C.I.A. operative Valerie Plame's identity. Plame's husband Joseph Wilson, a former diplomat, wrote an op-ed critical of the administration's claims that Saddam had bought yellowcake uranium from Niger in the late 1990s — a critical component of the administration's case that Saddam had WMD. After months of speculation surrounding Karl Rove and Dick Cheney, Libby is the only administration figure indicted in the case, and during the trial in early 2007 his defense team briefly tries to paint him as the fall guy in a broader White House smear campaign. Libby was found guilty on four out of five counts on March 6, 2007.

November 2005 Murtha's Mission

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Mark Wilson / Getty

Rep. John Murtha calls for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq on Capitol Hill.

"The war in Iraq is not going as advertised. It is a flawed policy wrapped in illusion. The American public is way ahead of us. The United States and coalition troops have done all they can in Iraq, but it is time for a change in direction." —Congressman John Murtha

On November 17, Representative John Murtha (D-PA), a former marine, announces his decision to introduce a resolution calling for the immediate redeployment of U.S. forces from Iraq. The resolution would create a rapid reaction force leaving military assets in a position to respond to threats in the region. Murtha, once a supporter of the war, argues that such a move would force Iraqis to take security matters into their own hands—something they will not do as long the U.S. commitment is open-ended. A year later, Murtha's vocal opposition to the war strategy is widely credited for helping the Democrats regain control of congress in the midterm elections.

December 2005 Admitting Failure

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Christopher Morris / VII for TIME

President Bush.

"It is true that much of the intelligence turned out to be wrong. As President, I'm responsible for the decision to go into Iraq — and I'm also responsible for fixing what went wrong by reforming our intelligence capabilities." —President Bush

On December 14, President Bush addresses the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington. While acknowledging the lack of solid intelligence in the run up to the war, Bush defends the invasion of Iraq: "Given Saddam's history and the lessons of September the 11th, my decision to remove Saddam Hussein was the right decision." Critics express frustration that the President continues to connect Iraq to 9/11 despite the findings of the 9/11 Commission Report.

January 2006 Jill Carroll's Abduction

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Al Jazeera / AP

American reporter Jill Carroll appears in a silent 20-second video aired by Al-Jazeera.

"I sent you a letter written by my hand that you wanted more evidence so we're sending you this new letter now just to prove that I am with the mujahideen. I'm here, I'm fine. Please, just do whatever they want, give them whatever they want as quickly as possible. There is very short time; please do it fast. That's all." —Jill Carroll in the third of four hostage videos put out by her captors

On January 7, Jill Carroll, a 28-year-old freelance journalist working for The Christian Science Monitor, is abducted during a reporting trip to the Adel district of Baghdad. Her interpreter, Alan Enwiyah, is killed during the ambush, and a search quickly ensues, with governments worldwide demanding Carroll's release. After she appears in three videos and the U.S. releases five female Iraqi prisoners (while insisting that the prisoner releases are unrelated to the demands of Carroll's captors), Carroll is freed and turns up unharmed near the offices of the Iraqi Islamic Party on March 30. According to Reporters Without Borders, at least 153 journalists and media assistants have been killed since the invasion of Iraq.

February 2006 Uncivil War

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Sabah al-Bazee

The ruins of the Golden Mosque, destroyed in a bomb attack, in Samarra, Iraq.

"And they say there is no sectarian war? What do you call this?" —An unidentified Iraqi man at the main Baghdad morgue, as quoted in The Washington Post

The famous, golden-domed al-Askari mosque in Samarra, one of the holiest sites in Shi'a Islam, is badly damaged by two men in a dawn attack on February 22. The bombing, thought to be perpetrated by followers of al-Qaeda in Iraq, does not injure anyone, but it is followed by immediate reprisal raids on Sunni mosques and sparks a deadly series of sectarian counter attacks, including many grisly executions. Despite a round-the-clock curfew imposed for a few days in Baghdad, more than 1300 Iraqis die.

March 2006 Collateral Damage?

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Lucian Read / Atlas Press

Bodies of civilians killed in Haditha are readied for burial.

"Democracy assassinated the family that was here." —graffiti on the home of one of the victims of the Haditha massacre, as quoted in The Washington Post

In the March 27 issue of TIME, correspondent Tim McGirk reports that on November 19, 2005, 24 civilians in the Western town of Haditha—including 11 women and children—were intentionally shot dead by members of the Marine unit Kilo Company as retaliation for the roadside-bombing death of one of their soldiers. The Marines initially sought to cover up their actions by falsely reporting that some of the civilian deaths had been the result of a roadside bomb. The cover up slowed the investigation, but in April three Marines were relieved of their commands. The military has since acknowledged that intentional civilian killings took place in Haditha. On December 21, 2006, the U.S. military charged eight Marines in connection with the incident, with four accused of unpremeditated murder.

April 2006 The Generals' Revolt

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Brendan Smialowski / Getty

Donald Rumsfeld speaks before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill.

"This too will pass." —Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, in an interview with Rush Limbaugh, referring to calls for his resignation by six retired U.S. generals

In various interviews with news outlets, six retired U.S. generals call for Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to resign. They accuse Rumsfeld of having created an "arrogant" atmosphere among the Pentagon's civilian leadership, of having an authoritarian style of leadership, and of having "micromanaged the generals who are leading our forces." White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan dismisses the growing dissatisfaction with Rumsfeld, telling reporters that "The president believes Secretary Rumsfeld is doing a very fine job during a challenging period." Rumsfeld continues serving in his role before stepping down on November 3, 2006 after the public's dissatisfaction with the handling of the war helps the Democrats regain control of Congress.

May 2006 Self Defense

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

AFP / Getty

Iraqi soldiers evacuate a wounded comrade from the building of the Iraqi Ministry of Public Works.

"Our security forces will be capable of taking over the security portfolio in all Iraqi provinces within one year and a half." —Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki

A few weeks after forming a government, Iraq's new prime minister stresses on multiple occasions that he believes the country's security forces will be able to keep the peace on their own by the end of 2007. Later in the year he moves the date up to June of 2007. Though greeted with skepticism from many observers, Maliki's embrace of a firm timeline is welcomed by the Bush Administration, which uses the commitment to counter charges that it has no intention of scaling back its heavy presence in Iraq. At the same time, Washington continues to express frustration that Maliki is not doing enough to rein in Shi'ite militias that are contributing to the violence in Baghdad and beyond.

June 2006 Zarqawi's End

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Wathiq Khuzaie / Getty

An army spokesman announces the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

"The man was an animal and he deserved what he got. And may he rot in hell." —Paul Bigley, whose brother was beheaded by followers of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, in an interview with Britain's Channel Four television network

Sunni insurgent leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who U.S. authorities say is responsible for scores of kidnappings, beheadings, and bombings, is killed June 7 in an airstrike on a safe house north of Baghdad. The Jordanian-born Zarqawi was a leader of al-Qaeda's Iraq insurgency campaign, which sought to widen the divide between Iraq's Sunnis and Shi'ites to prolong the conflict. Despite the power of two 500-pound bombs, Iraqi and U.S. soldiers find the most wanted man in Iraq still alive but critically wounded, saying his prayers. The U.S. hopes his death will be a blow to the insurgency, but those prayers turn out, for the most part, not to be answered.

July 2006 Halliburton in the Hot Seat

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Brett Coomer / Getty

Demonstators protest outside the Haliburton shareholders meeting in Houston, Texas

"(A)s the number one war profiteer, Halliburton has taken U.S. taxpayers for a ride through a systemic pattern of waste, fraud and abuse." —Charlie Cray of HalliburtonWatch.org

By the time the army discontinues a controversial reconstruction contract with Halliburton in July 2006, the energy services giant has generated more than $13 billion in Iraq-related sales — and its fair share of criticism and attacks in the process. Throughout its work in Iraq, the multinational has been the target of numerous allegations and investigations into alleged fraud, waste and over-billing. The fact that Vice President Cheney had been Halliburton's CEO from 1995-2000 only fuels the conspiracy theories that the war was primarily intended to help line the pockets of the administration's friends in big oil. In March of 2007, Halliburton invites new scrutiny when it announces that it is moving corporate headquarters to Dubai to be closer to its oil business in the Middle East.

August 2006 A General's Candor

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Mohammed Hato / AP

A young girl wounded in sectarian fighting lays on a hospital bed in Baghdad.

"I believe that the sectarian violence is probably as bad as I've seen it, in Baghdad in particular, and that if not stopped, it is possible that Iraq could move toward civil war." —Gen. John Abizaid, head of U.S. Central Command, testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee

Gen. John Abizaid, the head of U.S. Central Command, testifies August 3 before the Senate Armed Services Committee, at the same hearing where Hillary Clinton and Donald Rumsfeld have several testy exchanges about the management of the war. Abizaid describes Iraq's state in dire terms and warns that the deteriorating situation could lead to all-out civil war. While stressing that he has rarely seen the Middle East "so unsettled and so volatile," he claims that the "slide can be prevented." Still, his negative comments highlight a long-running theme of the war: the divide between upbeat statements and predictions given by civilian leadership at the Pentagon and the White House and the more measured assessments provided by members of the military.

September 2006 Breeding Ground

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Robert Nickelsberg / Getty

A New York City policeman stands guard in front of the New York Stock Exchange.

"The Iraq conflict has become the 'cause celebre' for jihadists, breeding a deep resentment of US involvement in the Muslim world and cultivating supporters for the global jihadist movement." —Excerpt from "Trends in Global Terrorism," a classified National Intelligence Estimate

In late September The New York Times reports on the details of a classified National Intelligence Estimate titled "Trends in Global Terrorism: Implications for the United States." The document reportedly states that the threat of terrorism has increased since 9/11, and that the Iraq war is a radicalizing event that is helping to give birth to a new generation of jihadists worldwide. According to an intelligence official quoted in the Times, the report "says that the Iraq war has made the overall terrorism problem worse." The report further fuels continuing debates between the administration and its critics over whether the Iraq war has helped to reduce or increase the chances of terrorism hitting U.S. shores again.

October 2006 "Course Correction"

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Ron Edmonds / AP

White House Press Secretary Tony Snow.

"We went back and looked today and could only find eight times where he (Bush) ever used the phrase 'stay the course'." —White House press secretary Tony Snow on Fox News

In late October, a new semantic battle in the Iraq war breaks out. While Republicans continue to insist that Democrats advocating withdrawal simply want to "cut and run," administration critics argue that the White House has no new thinking about how to proceed in Iraq beyond its tired motto of "staying the course." Before long, critics seem to get the upper hand and put the administration on the defensive. When ABC News' George Stephanopoulos questions President Bush about a strategy in Iraq that is "between 'stay the course' and 'cut and run,'" Bush denies that his strategy has ever been "stay the course." Press Secretary Tony Snow soon gets in on the act, forgetting the numerous times his boss has repeated the mantra-like phrase. Within a few months, the White House will essentially admit defeat in the "stay the course" skirmish when it announces its surge strategy.

November 2006 An Election on Iraq

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Leslie E. Kossoff / AFP / Getty

Congressional Democrats celebrate their election victory.

"Nowhere did the American people make it more clear that we need a new direction than in the war in Iraq...We cannot continue down this catastrophic path." —Incoming Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi

On November 14th, FBI investigators announce that the private security guards employed by contractor Blackwater who killed 17 Iraqi civilians while escorting a diplomatic convoy on Sept. 16th acted recklessly, concluding that 14 of the 17 deaths were unjustified. Still, the issue of who will be prosecuted and how remains unclear. Questions also loom about whether Blackwater's contract with the U.S. State Department will be renewed in May. The FBI report comes a month after the House passes a bill to close the legal loophole that protects overseas contractors from being prosecuted under Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act. The Senate has yet to vote on the act.

December 2006 Saddam's Last Words

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Reuters

Saddam Hussein is executed.

"I have saved you from destitution and misery and destroyed your enemies, the Persian and Americans...God damn you." —Saddam Hussein, to his guards, shortly before being executed

Saddam Hussein is hanged on December 30. An apparent cell-phone video of the execution is leaked shortly thereafter; in it, some of the witnesses, who appear to be members of Muqtada al-Sadr's militia, the Mahdi Army, taunt Saddam in the moments just before his death. The execution is controversial both for the release of the video and for the fact that it occurs on the day that Sunnis celebrate Eid al-Adha, an important Muslim holiday (Shi'ites celebrate it a day later). The rushed and chaotic nature of the execution helps turn Saddam from a once brutal dictator into an Arab martyr in much of the Middle East.

January 2007 The Surge

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

John Moore / Getty

U.S. Marines prepare to deploy from Camp Ramadi.

"America will change our strategy to help the Iraqis carry out their campaign to put down sectarian violence and bring security to the people of Baghdad. This will require increasing American force levels. So I've committed more than 20,000 additional American troops to Iraq." —President Bush, announcing his new surge strategy on January 10

A little more than a month after the Iraq Study Group warns that the situation in Iraq is "grave and deteriorating," President Bush announces changes in political and military strategy in Iraq. Part of what the White House calls "The New Way Forward" — and what nearly everyone else calls the surge — involves an influx of 21,500 more troops into Iraq. The price tag of the additional 12-month deployments is estimated to be up to $27 billion. After months of claiming the war in Iraq is improving, Bush concedes that his policies are not working. His proposed solution faces immediate opposition from Democrats.

February 2007 Pointing the Finger at Iran

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Raheb Homavendi / Reuters

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.

"We wanted to make certain that Iran understood that the United States was able and capable of and prepared to defend its interests and that of its allies in the Persian Gulf and it was probably important to take some steps to reiterate that message." —Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in an interview with The New York Times

Around the same time that the Bush Administration announces the surge strategy, officials increase attempts to link Iran with the violence in Iraq — despite the fact that most attacks on U.S. troops have come from Sunni fighters. The U.S. military presents evidence that it claims shows Iran is supplying militias in Iraq with the technology behind some of the deadliest improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Iraq. The military also detains five Iranians captured at a government office in northern Iraq, and dispatches an aircraft carrier and anti-missile battery to the Persian Gulf. Washington goes out of its way to say that it has no intentions of starting a war with Iran, but just in case, Democrats make clear that they believe the President does not have prior authority to invade Iran without approval from Congress. In early March, the administration seems to draw down a bit, attending a regional conference on security in Iraq that includes a delegation from Iran.

March 2007 Walter Reed

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Larry Downing / Reuters

U.S. Army Sergeant John Daniel Shannon testifies before Congress.

"I will not see young men and women who have had their lives shattered in service to their country receive anything less than dignity and respect." —Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon, an injured Iraq war veteran himself, testifying during a hearing on the Walter Reed hospital scandal held by a House subcommittee

After a series of investigative articles published in The Washington Post allege extremely poor outpatient conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where many wounded Iraq veterans are treated, the secretary of the army resigns and the head of the hospital is fired. In emotional congressional hearings, soldiers treated at Walter Read describe inadequate care and a confusing, jumbled bureaucracy that is often serves as an obstacle to proper care. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates makes clear that he will no longer tolerate inadequate treatment of veterans, but trust in the administration, and the president's approval ratings, are near all-time lows.

April 2007 Tour of Duty

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Hadi Mizban / Getty

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates.

"Our forces are stretched. There's no question about that." —U.S. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates announcing that all active-duty soldiers serving year-long tours in Iraq and Afghanistan must serve an additional 3 months

On April 11th, Defense Secretary Robert Gates announces a 3-month extension of duty for all soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. That same day, the Washington Post reports that at least three retired four-star generals have rejected offers to become the nation's war czar, including Retired Marine Gen. John J. Jack Sheehan, who explained: "Rather than go over there, develop an ulcer and eventually leave, I said, 'No, thanks.'" Earlier in the month, in an effort to transform Baghdad's war-torn image, Republican Senator John McCain enjoys a televised stroll through the city's open-air market, telling reporters "Never have I been able to go out into the city as I was today ... The American people are not getting the full picture of what's happening here." Some Democrats, including Illinois Senator Barack Obama, argue the Congressman's security detail — 100 soldiers, 3 blackhawks, 2 Apache gunships and a flak jacket — contradicts his claim.

May 2007 No End In Sight

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Jim Watson / AFP / Getty

U.S. President George W. Bush speaks to reporters after a briefing with the Department of Defense in Washington, D.C..

"The President wants a blank check. The Congress is not going to give it to him." —House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on President Bush's veto of the Iraq funding bill, which included a timeline for withdrawal

For only the second time in his presidency, George W. Bush exercises his veto power by rejecting legislation from Congress to impose an Oct. 1 deadline for withdrawing U.S. troops. A CNN poll later showed that 54% of Americans disapproved of the veto and just one week later, 144 Iraqi lawmakers sign a petition calling for a U.S. timetable for withdrawal. Hours before casting their votes on a spending bill for the war, 11 Republicans warn Bush that his stance on Iraq is threatening the GOP's future. The Washington Post calls it "a remarkably blunt White House meeting." At the end of the month, Bush cites America's continued post-war presence in South Korea as a model for the country's future in Iraq. The comparison coincides with the surge's completion, as the last of about 21,500 additional combat troops are sent to the region. White House spokesman Tony Snow quickly clarifies Bush's analogy, saying: "I think the point he's trying to make is that the situation in Iraq, and indeed, the larger war on terror, are things that are going to take a long time. But it is not always going to require an up-front combat presence."

June 2007 Shifting Alliances

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Ibrahim Mohammed / AFP / Getty

Sunni militiamen working with Iraqi security forces to fight Al-Qaeda pose armed in Baghdad's Abu Ghraib neighborhood.

"The government's aim is to disarm and demobilize the militias in Iraq. And we have enough militias in Iraq that we are struggling now to solve the problem. Why are we creating new ones?" —Iraqi political adviser Sadiq al-Rikabi on Washington's new plan in the fight against al Qaeda to arm and enlist the help of some of the same Sunni Arab groups that used to attack U.S. forces

The month begins with a troubling statistic from the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior: the number of unidentified corpses discovered in Baghdad soared more than 70% in four weeks, from 441 bodies found in April to 726 in May. Around the same time, American commanders begin arming some of the same Sunni Arab groups in central and north-central Iraq that used to battle U.S. forces, saying alliances have shifted as the Iraqi civilian death toll mounts. "This isn't a black and white place. There are good guys and bad guys and there are groups in between," Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch tells The New York Times , in explaining the shift in enemies and allies. Still, some critics of the move voice concern that American forces are simply arming both sides of a future civil war. CNN announces on June 26th that public support for the war has reached a new low, with more than 70 percent of Americans saying they oppose the conflict. Worse still, the survey found that Republican support is beginning to waver: 38 percent of Republicans polled oppose the war.

July 2007 The Human Toll

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Bay Ismoyo / AFP / Getty

Iraq's captain Younis Moh moud, right, celebrates with teammates after defeating Saudi Arabia at the end of the final match of the Asian Football Cup 2007 in Jakarta.

"No one is acknowledging how big the humanitarian catastrophe is." —Iraqi Humanitarian activist Basma al-Khateeb on the growing crisis of hunger and disease among civilians

On July 28th, a coalition of Iraqi non-profit groups, including Oxfam, report that roughly 8 million Iraqis are in need of emergency aid. The report also found that 1 in 4 Iraqi children is malnourished and that 70 percent of the country's population lacks clean drinking water. Another study by Iraq's Special Inspector General shows that only 435 of 2,797 finished reconstruction projects have been handed over to Iraqi officials to date. Earlier in the month Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, meets his Iranian counterpart in Baghdad to discuss Iran's alleged support of Shi'ite militia in Iraq . Though the meeting is historic — it is only the 2nd meeting between the country's two ambassadors in 30 years — Crocker is not optimistic about its practical outcome, telling reporters: "Thus far, the results on the ground are not encouraging." The next day, Iraqis enjoy a much-needed moment of triumph after the country's soccer team defeats Saudi Arabia in the Asia Cup championship.

August 2007 Sectarian Cease-Fire

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Sabah Arar / AFP / Getty

Smoke rises from the site of a car bomb explosion in central Baghdad, August 16, 2007.

"What really matters here is actions, and so those are the measures of merit that we'll be watching for." — U.S. military spokesman Brig. Gen. Kevin Bergner after anti-American Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr announced a six month freeze in military actions by his militia, the Mahdi Army

On August 15, with temperatures reaching nearly 130 degrees in Baghdad, anti-American Shi'ite cleric Moktada al-Sadr announces that military operations for his Madhi Army will be suspended for six months after the group is accused of murdering 52 Iraqi civilians in Karbala, one of Iraq's holiest cities, during a clash with rival militia members in what the New York Times calls "a politically embarrassing example of Shiite-on-Shiite violence." Six months later, al-Sadr would renew the ceasefire , although reports suggest an uncomfortable link between Iran and Iraq's militias. The day before the ceasefire is announced, in the single worst attack since the war's launch, suicide bombers detonate exposives-laden fuel tankers in northwestern Iraq, killing more than 500 and wounding nearly 1,500 members of the Yazidi tribe. No groups come forward to claim responsibility, but officials suspect al Qaeda-linked Sunni insurgents.

September 2007 The Surge Status Report

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Brooks Kraft / Corbis for TIME

U.S. Army General David Petraeus testifies in front of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the state of the war in Iraq on Capitol Hill in Washington, September 11, 2007.

"I don't know, actually." —Gen. David Petraeus, when asked by the Senate Armed Services Committee whether the Iraq war is making America safer

During a much-anticipated appearance on Capitol Hill, Gen. David Petraeus reports on the progress of the new "surge" strategy, testifying that a drawdown in troop numbers may be possible in the future. Ryan Crocker, the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, offers a more grim assessment, testifying at the same hearing: "I frankly do not expect that we will see rapid progress." Neither men offer concrete timetables for troop withdrawal. In a nationally televised address just days after the sixth anniversary of 9/11, President Bush echoes Petraeus' testimony by announcing a reduction in troop levels by July 2008, from a current high of 169,000 to 130,000.

October 2007 Trouble on the Border

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Mustafa Ozer / AFP / Getty

Turkish soldiers patrol a road near the Turkey-Iraq border.

"We will never accept a military solution to the differences between Turkey and Iraq." —Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki responding to the Turkish government's efforts to gain parliamentary approval for military raids into northern Iraq

Tension between Turkey and Iraq mounts as guerilla fighters of the outlawed Kurdistan Worker's Party , or PKK, continue launching attacks against Turkish troops from northern Iraq. On Oct. 17, Turkey's parliament overwhelmingly votes in favor of sending soldiers into Iraq to destroy the PKK hideouts there as Turkish officials blast the U.S. for what they call a lack of support in quelling the guerilla attacks. Concerned that such an invasion might de-stabilize the region , U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urges restraint while downplaying the country's criticism of America. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, an ethnic Kurd, calls for an end to the PKK's attacks but, echoing U.S. sentiment, stresses the need for a diplomatic solution. Despite calls for restraint, Turkish troops would later invade Iraq in March during a week-long ground incursion . Though U.S. officials pressed Turkey for a swift mission, they would supply the NATO ally with intelligence about the PKK hideouts there.

November 2007 Blackwater's Black Mark

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Ali Yussef / AFP / Getty

An Iraqi woman walks past a burnt car at the site of the September 16 shootout.

"I wouldn't call it a massacre, but to say it was unwarranted is an understatement." —An unidentified U.S. official on the early FBI findings regarding the shooting deaths of 14 Iraqi civilians by Blackwater security guards

On November 14th, FBI investigators announce that the private security guards employed by contractor Blackwater who killed 17 Iraqi civilians while escorting a diplomatic convoy on Sept. 16th acted recklessly, concluding that 14 of the 17 deaths were unjustified. Still, the issue of who will be prosecuted and how remains unclear. Questions also loom about whether Blackwater's contract with the U.S. State Department will be renewed in May. The FBI report comes a month after the House passes a bill to close the legal loophole that protects overseas contractors from being prosecuted under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act. The Senate has yet to vote on the act.

December 2007 The Price of Freedom

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Leftaris Piterakis / AP

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown talks with British troops as he arrives in the southern city of Basra.

"Your makeup and your decision to forgo the headscarf will bring you death." —Graffiti in Basra, Iraq where religious vigilantes have killed 40 women in the past year for violating Islamic teachings with the way they dress

At a ceremony at Basra airport on Dec. 9th, British representatives officially transfer control of the country's southern Basra province to Iraqi authorities. The UK's foreign secretary David Milliband, acknowledging the radical Shi'ite grip on the region, says at the ceremony: "We are not handing over a land of milk and honey." Basra becomes the 9th of Iraq's 18 provinces to come under Iraqi control. A few days earlier, Gen. David Petraeus tells reporters at Baghdad's Camp Victory that violence has decreased 60% in the last 6 months. Despite the progress, Petraeus acknowledges that 2007 has still been the deadliest year for U.S. troops since the war began, saying: "There's nobody in uniform who's doing victory dances in the end zone."

January 2008 The Longest War

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Chris Carlson / AP

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, right, speaks as Sen. Barack Obama, looks on during a Democratic presidential debate.

"I don't know if a hundred years is the right number. That's a long time." —President George W. Bush when asked about a primary campaign exchange in which Republican candidate John McCain said American troops could be in Iraq for a hundred years

On the U.S. campaign trail, presidential hopefuls spar over the issue of troop withdrawal , with New York Senator Hillary Clinton telling voters at the South Carolina Democratic debate that she would bring troops home within 60 days of her inauguration. Former Sen. John Edwards attacks both Clinton and Illinois Senator Barack Obama for staying mum on the issue of permanent bases in Iraq. Obama responds: "I want to be as careful getting out as we were careless getting in." In the final Republican debate before Super Tuesday, Arizona Senator John McCain , who supports Bush's Iraq policy, accuses rival Mitt Romney of supporting a strict timetable for withdrawal. All this takes place after the new year begins with a gruesome attack in Baghdad on New Year's Day, where a suicide bomber kills 32 mourners at the funeral of a Shi'a Muslim army officer.

February 2008 Radicals and Refugees

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Ali Abbass / EPA

Iraqi soldiers inspect the site of a suicide bomb attack at a popular pet market in Baghdad.

"Al-Qaeda in Iraq wants to poison the next generation of Iraqis." —Rear Adm. Gregory Smith commenting on a video showing masked, armed boys that the U.S. military says is a training and recruiting tool in Iraq

On Feb. 7, American and Iraqi forces release video footage of children as young as 11 being armed and trained by al-Qaeda. A week earlier, two female suicide bombers kill nearly 100 people in Baghdad's popular pet market. Officials initially claim the women had Down syndrome and were unwitting agents in the attack, though the AP later reports there is no evidence to support this claim. To highlight the plight of displaced Iraqis , on February 7th actress Angelina Jolie, acting as a goodwill ambassador for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, visits the country, where an estimated 4.2 million residents have fled their homes; half of whom now live in neighboring Syria and Jordan.

March 2008 Visiting Hours

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Atta Kenare / AFP / Getty

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is received by Ali Akbar Velayati (left), advisor to the Islamic republic's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, upon his arrival in Tehran, Iraq, March 3, 2008.

"It's good to be back in Iraq." —Vice President Dick Cheney on a visit to Baghdad to mark the fifth anniversary of the invasion of the country

On March 2nd, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad becomes the first Middle East leader to visit Iraq since the U.S. invasion. The Shi'ite-led government literally rolls out the red carpet for his stay, while hundreds of Sunnis gather in the streets to protest his visit. Two weeks later, both Republican presidential nominee John McCain and Vice President Cheney make "surprise" visits to Iraq to mark the five-year anniversary and tout the progress in security made since the surge was launched over the last year — though recent mass bombings and the killing of kidnapped Iraqi archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho darken the headlines. The week before Cheney's tour, the administration endures another abrupt departure when William Fallon , the U.S. Commander of the CENTCOM, resigns following media reports that he and Bush have disagreed over policies toward Iran and the pace of withdrawing troops from Iraq.

April 2008 Judging the Verdict

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Alex Wong / Getty

General David Petraeus delivers a highly anticipated "progress report" briefing to Congress.

"There has been significant but uneven security progress in Iraq. The progress made since last spring is fragile and reversible." —Gen. David Petraeus, testifying before Congress

Political machinations over the Iraq War reach a high, as the top U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus, delivers much-anticipated testimony to Congress on April 8 and 9. Petraeus, appearing alongside Iraq ambassador Ryan Crocker, cites significant progress in quelling tensions in Iraq but warns of the danger of reducing troop levels beyond pre-surge levels — which he says would threaten the recent security gains and be viewed in the region as a sign of U.S. weakness. His message is practically overshadowed by the presence on the committees of the three remaining U.S. presidential candidates, senators Barack Obama, John McCain and Hillary Clinton, each eager to make their own opinion on withdrawal heard. McCain is supportive of keeping troop levels near 140,000, and claims "we can now look ahead to the genuine prospect of success"; both Obama, who calls the war a "massive strategic blunder," and Clinton urge drafting plans for a full withdrawal.

May 2008 Open City

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Ali Yussef / Getty

Iraqi soldiers stand guard at their tank stationed in Sadr City.

"We are not afraid to go anywhere. We did not come to go against any political party. We're only after the outlaws." —Iraqi Sgt. Romi Sayah, after moving into Baghdad's Sadr City, to The Washington Post

The Iraqi government reaches an agreement with the Mahdi Army, the paramilitary group in control of Sadr City. The militia controlled the heavily Shi'ite section of Baghdad until May 10, when Mahdi leadership, on behalf of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, agrees to cede the area to Iraqi troops. The Iraqi army enters Sadr City on May 20 in an operation the central government sees as an indication that it is increasingly capable of managing its own security. The truce largely ends a particularly brutal seven-week string of violence in Sadr City that left nearly a thousand Iraqis dead. Earlier in the month the U.S. government renews the contract of the private-security firm Blackwater, despite Iraqi allegations that Blackwater guards killed 17 Iraqi civilians in Sept. 2007.

June 2008 Guns and Butter

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Wathiq Khuzaie / Getty

US Army troops on patrol in Baghdad.

"I often hear members of Congress say they oppose the war but still support the troops. Now they have a chance to prove it." —President George W. Bush

After months of haggling, Congress passes a broad war funding measure that allocates about $163 billion to support ongoing combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan through the beginning of 2009. Unable to win support for a troop withdrawal timetable, Democrats settle for extending unemployment insurance for all Americans and establishiing new higher-education benefits for veterans. Republicans point to bi-partisan support for the measure — and a Pentagon report that shows U.S. military deaths in Iraq fell to 19 in May, the lowest monthly total since the invasion of 2003 — as a validation of Bush Administration policies. GOP enthusiasm is tempered by a June 23 government report that asserts the U.S. has inflated its claims of economic, political and social progress in Iraq.

July 2008 All in the Timing

By Jesse Singal, Christine Lim and M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Lorie Jewell / U.S. Army / Getty

Barack Obama visits Iraq in July, 2008.

"That, we think, would be the right time frame for a withdrawal, with the possibility of slight changes." —Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, during an interview with Germany's Der Spiegel

With the presidential campaign in full swing, Barack Obama travels to Iraq to meet the country's political leaders and senior U.S. military officials. During the trip, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki — whose fortunes are bolstered on July 19 by the decision of Sunni politicians to end a year-long boycott and rejoin the government — appears to endorse the Illinois Senator's proposed troop withdrawal timetable before backtracking from his comments. After getting that boost, however, Obama draws fire from John McCain for canceling a scheduled visit to injured American troops at Germany's Landstuhl Regional Medical Center; Republicans claim the Democrat didn't want to visit because he couldn't bring along the media or campaign staff, while Obama counters that he simply decided the appearance would be perceived as political. Iraq gets a measure of good news when the International Olympic Committee, which had suspended the country's Olympic Committee for what it claimed was political meddling, agrees to allow Iraq's athletes to participate in the Beijing Games.

August 2008 Fighting the Bill

By M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Essam al-Sudan / AFP / Getty

An engineer walks past the chimneys at the Barjisiya oil fields in Basra, Iraq.

"It is inexcusable for U.S. taxpayers to continue to foot the bill for projects the Iraqis are fully capable of funding themselves. We should not be paying for Iraqi projects, while Iraqi oil revenues continue to pile up in the bank." —Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, on a GAO report that found Iraq had only spent a fraction of the $79 billion it had earned in oil revenue

A report from the Government Accountability Office reveals that soaring oil prices will leave the Iraqi government with a cumulative budget surplus of as much as $79 billion by the end of the year, though only a fraction of that has been spent on reconstruction costs. With the U.S. having already spent $48 billion to rebuild Iraq and the economy showing signs of recession, the revelation rankles leading senators like John Warner and Carl Levin. It doesn't help matters that the report finds that Iraq has several billions of dollars earning interest in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. In the same month, the Iraq government signs its first major oil deal with a foreign country since the 2003 invasion. The contract with the China National Petroleum Corporation to develop the Ahdab oil field southeast of Baghdad over a 22-year period is reportedly worth up to $3 billion. The field could produce as many as 115,000 barrels a day, and plans to begin pumping are slated for 2011. Meanwhile, during one of the hottest weeks of the year, six Shi'ites headed to the holy city of Karbala are killed in three attacks in three consecutive days. And on Aug. 23, gunmen fatally shoot Kamal Shyaa Abdullah, a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Culture who had refused protection because he disliked the fuss of bodyguards.

September 2008 Provincial Progress

By M.J. StepheyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Wathiq Khuzaie / Getty

U.S. Marine Major General John Kelly, left, and Anbar Province governor Maamoun Sami Rashid al-Alwani sign papers during a handover ceremony.

"The people are not afraid of the terrorists anymore." —Hikmat al-Gaaod, mayor of Hit, in Anbar, after coalition troops handed over security control of the once strife-torn province to local police

On Sept. 1, local Iraqi police take over security control of the nation's Anbar province , once the center of the country's Sunni insurgency and now home to 25,000 U.S. troops. (At one point, 1 out of every 3 American fatalities occurred there). President George W. Bush hails the milestone as a major victory against al-Qaeda extremists ousted by the region's Sunni sheikhs, who had recently established "Awakening Councils" and community police forces to work with the U.S. to quell the violence. Though Anbar is the 11th of 18th provinces returned to local authorities, it is the first predominately Sunni province to be handed over. Still, Gen. David Petraeus hesitates to use the word "victory" to describe such progress, telling the BBC: "This is not the sort of struggle where you take a hill, plant the flag and go home to a victory parade." Two weeks later, Petraeus — who had engineered the troop surge in Iraq — relinquishes his command there to Gen. Ray Odierno in a government ceremony presided by Defense Secretary Robert Gates. In his first comments as Iraq's commander, Odierno echoes Petraeus' caution: "We must realize that these gains are fragile and reversible, and our work here is far from done."

October 2008 Extending the Fight

By Kate PickertFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Joseph Barrak / AFP / Getty

Thousands of Syrians demonstrate in Damascus to protest a deadly US raid that targeted a Syrian village near the Iraqi border.

"You have to clean up the global threat that is in your back yard, and if you won't do that, we are left with no choice but to take these matters into our hands." —Anonymous senior U.S. official, as quoted in The Washington Post, on why the U.S. military crossed the border from Iraq into Syria to attack a building where it said an al-Qaeda in Iraq operative was located

A little more than a week before the U.S. presidential election, helicopters carrying American special forces cross from Iraq into neighboring Syria. The commandos attack a building near the border, leaving eight people dead . Syria says the dead were civilians, and claims the U.S. "aggression" jeopardizes cooperation between the Syrian and American governments; the U.S. military insists the dead were all militants, including a top al-Qaeda in Iraq leader, and says that the assault was a warning that Syria needs to step up its border security to stop the flow of militants into Iraq. Western media reports that a seemingly spontaneous rally in Damascus, drawing tens of thousands of people protesting the U.S. attack, is actually an event staged by the Syrian government. Around the same time, the Iraqi government takes over control from the U.S. of some 100,000 former insurgents who rose up against al-Qaeda as part of the Sunni Awakening — a move that some worry could backfire, given the longstanding tensions between the Sunni fighters and the Shi'ite-dominated central government.

November 2008 Extending the Fight

By Kate PickertFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Getty

Iraqi political leaders meeting to discuss the Iraqi and U.S. security pact at the Iraqi President's office in Baghdad.

"Whomever voted for this agreement will bear the responsibility of the negative results from it." —Mohammed al-Daini, a Sunni lawmaker who voted against a deal governing U.S. troops in Iraq

After contentious debate in the Iraqi parliament, a majority of lawmakers approve a status-of-forces-agreement (SOFA) that governs the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq. While giving the U.S. new authority to remain in Iraq after December 31, when the current UN mandate is set to expire, the agreement calls for the American military to withdraw from the country by the end of 2011. Approval of the deal is a major political victory for Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who hopes to claim credit for bringing an end to the U.S. presence in Iraq. Allies of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, among others, vote against the pact , arguing that U.S. troops should pull out immediately. The deal is also a measure of validation for newly elected President Barack Obama, who had campaigned on a promise to end the war in Iraq. Near the end of the month Obama says he will keep Robert Gates as Defense Secretary, fulfilling his pledge to have at least one Republican in his cabinet and assuring continuity in national security.

December 2008 Shoe Stopper

By Randy JamesFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

APTN / AP

President Bush ducks to avoid being hit by a shoe.

"This is a gift from the Iraqis; this is the farewell kiss, you dog!" —Iraqi journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi, as he throws his shoes at President Bush

For President Bush's legions of critics, it was a fitting end to his turbulent time in office. At a press conference during his final visit to Baghdad on Dec. 14, Bush is targeted by by an Iraqi journalist loudly denouncing the U.S. presence in the country and hurling his two black dress shoes at the lectern. Bush manages to duck both flying shoes , and the assailant, television correspondent Muntazer al-Zaidi, 29, is hustled from the room and reportedly beaten by Iraqi security officials. Bush laughs off the event, later joking he saw the man's "sole" and even going so far as to cite the incident as a sign of progress in a democratic Iraq. First Lady Laura Bush, by contrast, calls the incident "an assault." Al-Zaidi is hailed as a hero by opponents of the U.S. invasion throughout the Arab world, where throwing shoes is a sign of deep disrespect, and thousands gather in Baghdad's Sadr City neighborhood to demand his release. Al-Zaidi's lawyers maintain his protest was protected free speech, but prosecutors disagree, charging him with assaulting a foreign leader on an official visit, which can carry a 15-year prison sentence . "I am innocent. It was a natural reaction to the crime of occupation," Al-Zaidi says in his defense during a brief trial at Baghdad's Central Criminal Court in March of 2009, claiming he could not control his emotions as Bush flashed "that icy smile" during the press conference. However, on March 12, he is sentenced to three years in jail, a punishment that many Iraqis view as unduly harsh and his lawyers vow to appeal.

January 2009 Voting for Change

By Randy JamesFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Saddam Hussein / AFP / Getty

A Sunni Muslim woman casts her vote during provincial elections in Fallujah.

"This time we won't let those people who have let us down in the past reach power again." —Lubna Naji, a Baghdad medical student planning to vote in Iraq's provincial elections, to the BBC.

On the last day of January, some 14,000 candidates stand for office in Iraq's provincial elections, the first to be held since 2005. Voters in 14 of Iraq's 18 provinces — including Sunni Muslims who had boycotted the previous contest — choose 440 council members in the mostly peaceful elections, widely hailed as a positive omen for the young, fledgling democracy. Secular parties perform particularly well, a result viewed as reflecting widespread discontent toward religious parties which have come to be considered corrupt and ineffective in power — as well as an endorsement of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Weeks earlier the vast, $736 million U.S. embassy opens in Baghdad, and on New Year's Day the U.S. cedes formal control of Iraqi airspace and Baghdad's fortified "Green Zone," which one Iraqi solider tells the Washington Post is "a matter of pride."

February 2009 Exit Strategy

By Katie RooneyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Logan Mock-Bunting / Getty

President Barack Obama delivers an address to Marines and other military personnel at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.

"What we will not do is let the pursuit of the perfect stand in the way of achievable goals. We cannot rid Iraq of all who oppose America or sympathize with our adversaries. We cannot police Iraq's streets until they are completely safe, nor stay until Iraq's union is perfected..." —President Barack Obama, speaking at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina as he announces his Iraq troop withdrawal plan.

On Feb. 27, President Obama fulfills his central campaign promise by announcing his plan to pull out most combat troops from Iraq by August 2010 and all troops by the end of 2011. Speaking with a sea of Marines standing in the background, the young President leaves the beltway for the major announcement. While some in his own party express their frustration with the number of residual troops his plan leaves behind until 2011 — about 35,000 to 50,000 initially — Obama also gets some backing from his former election opponent, John McCain, who expresses a cautious endorsement of the plan. The President acknowledges in his remarks that he's not going to please everyone; later that day he addresses Democratic critics on PBS' "The NewsHour," saying those who are complaining "maybe weren't paying attention" during the campaign because his plan is pretty much exactly what he promised — though, in truth, Obama's withdrawal is spread out over 19 months, instead of the 16 he touted during the election. He also notably avoids saying whether the U.S. has won the war in Iraq, stressing that he doesn't want to look backwards. But, while U.S. troops may be coming home from Iraq, they might not all actually remain home for long — the President has also vowed to significantly boost troop levels in Afghanistan.

March 2009 Renewed Violence

By Katie RooneyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Reuters

A policeman inspects the wreckage of a vehicle used in a car bombing that killed 12 people and wounded 40 in the Shi'ite town of Hamza, Iraq.

"We have said before that Qaeda was broken, but it was not finished." —Hadi al-Ameri, the chairman of the Security Committee in the Iraqi Parliament and the leader of the Badr Organization, a Shi'ite group, on the two-day spike of violence in Iraq in March.

After months of relative calm in the Iraqi capital, insurgents strike with two back-to-back sophisticated suicide bombings in three days in early March, killing a total of more than 60 people. In both attacks, suicide bombers detonate an explosives belt into a crowd of people — the first outside a Baghdad police academy and the second in a marketplace in western Baghdad. While Iraqi military leaders stress there shouldn't be any firm conclusions drawn from the bombings and what they mean for security in the capital, the renewed violence heightens fears of the return to some of Iraq's darker days, when deadly blasts were regular occurrences. The spike in attacks come as the Pentagon announces it will reduce its troop numbers in Baghdad from 140,000 to 128,000 by September 2009, the first step in President Obama's plan to withdrawal all U.S. combat forces by August 2010. A few days after the attacks, Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki tells the Associated Press that he has expressed his concerns to President Obama, saying, "I do not want any withdrawals except in areas considered 100 percent secure and under control." Obama Press Secretary Robert Gibbs also reacts to the violence, telling reporters in his daily briefing that the government and military "remain strongly committed to ensuring peace and security in Iraq."

April 2009 Obama's Inaugural Visit

By Christina CrapanzanoFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Jim Young / Reuters

President Barack Obama greets troops at Camp Victory in Baghdad.

"You have given Iraq the opportunity to stand on its own as a democratic country. That is an extraordinary achievement." —President Barack Obama in a speech to U.S. troops in Baghdad, April 7.

Less than three months after his inauguration, Obama makes a surprise stop in Iraq at the end of his European tour in an effort to show he's serious about his 2011 withdrawal promises. At Camp Victory in Baghdad, the President praises the troops for bringing stability to the region and the crowd of 700 U.S. servicemen cheers as Obama calls on Iraqis to "take responsibility for their country and for their sovereignty." Obama also tells reporters that while he is taking a lot of time to figure out the path forward in Afghanistan, he doesn't want Americans to forget all the work still has to be done in Iraq. He spends about five hours on the ground before returning to Washington. Violence escalates throughout the rest of the month, as a string of at least 18 bombings kill more than 100 people.

May 2009 Ethnic Promise and Peril

By Christina CrapanzanoFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Ali al-Saadi / AFP / Getty Images

A security guard watches over the Tawke oil refinery near the village of Zacho, in the autonomous Iraqi region of Kurdistan.

"We are seeing eventually and finally, but very gradually, common sense prevailing." —Kurdistan U.S. representative Qubad Talabany on the Iraqi-Kurd oil deal at the 2nd Iraq Oil and Gas Summit in Houston May 13.

"We do not trust these people, we know their intentions." —Khasro Goran, the Nineveh leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, on increased sectarian violence in northern Iraq.

On May 10, the Iraqis and Kurds strike a deal allowing the Kurdistan Regional Government to control oil exports for the first time. The agreement, which permits Kurds to sell about 100,000 barrels of oil per day beginning in June, is hailed as an indication of improving relations between the historically distrustful communities. Meanwhile, clashes between Kurds and Sunni Arabs in Iraq's Nineveh province worsen throughout May, as Kurds continue to boycott Arab authority in the region. After a January provincial election broke the Kurds' almost five-year reign in Nineveh and Arab Atheel al-Nujaifi was chosen to be governor in April, Kurds have threatened increased conflict unless their leaders are given deputy governor and provincial council chairman positions. Nujaifi, who has connections to members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party, rejects compromise unless Kurds withdraw from disputed territories, which Kurdish leaders refuse to do.

June 2009 U.S. Pullback Begins

By Christina CrapanzanoFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

David Furst / AFP / Getty Images

Iraqi soldiers attend a ceremony commemorating the handover of a U.S. military outpost to Iraqi forces in the Sadr City area of Baghdad, Iraq.

"Those who think that Iraqis are not able to protect their country and that the withdrawal of foreign forces will create a security vacuum are committing a big mistake." —Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, in nationally televised address as U.S. combat troops begin their withdrawal from Iraqi cities.

Iraq's Prime Minister takes to the airwaves to celebrate the beginning of U.S. troop withdrawal in Iraqi cities, praising the pullback as a "joint achievement by all Iraqis" and declaring the date National Sovereignty Day. Citizens rejoice in Baghdad, where foreign troops have been positioned since the 2003 U.S. invasion.

President Barack Obama marks the withdrawal with little fanfare, calling the day "an important milestone" while cautioning of "difficult days ahead." The Iraqi government's ability to maintain security remains in doubt (just before the withdrawal began June 30 four U.S. soldiers were killed in combat in Baghdad). Some American troops stay in the cities to assist Iraqi security forces, and the U.S. can continue operations outside of urban areas with the Iraqi government's consent.

July 2009 Iraq and Iran

By Christina CrapanzanoFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

People's Mujahedeen / AFP / Getty Images

Iraqi security forces clash with a member of the Iranian opposition-in-exile at Camp Ashraf, north of Baghdad.

"We have had promises from the government of Iraq that they would deal with the MEK in a humane fashion ... Using non-lethal force is a good sign." —Gen. Ray Odierno, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, saying the Iraqi government did not inform him in advance of its plans to raid Camp Ashraf.

"They sprayed the residents with hot water and beat them with batons." —Safa Mohammed, a Camp Ashraf resident, on the deadly raid by Iraqi troops.

Conflict breaks out north of Baghdad after the Iraqi Army storms a camp of Iranian exiles on July 28. The raid of Camp Ashraf comes after residents refuse to allow Iraqi forces to establish a police station on the site. Until January, U.S. forces had been protecting the camp, which houses more than 3,000 members of the Iranian opposition group MEK. The group has been disarmed since 2003 and reportedly provided information to the U.S. about Iran's nuclear program. Iraqi forces reportedly kill 11 and wound 500 after opening fire and running over dissidents with military Humvees. The raid was the largest independent operation conducted by Iraqi forces since the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq's cities in June. Worldwide hunger strikes and protests follow for months after the initial clash, as Iraq continues efforts to close the camp.

August 2009 Rising Violence

By Christina CrapanzanoFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Reuters / Corbis

Residents gather at the site of a truck bomb attack that happened outside the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Baghdad, Iraq.

"The whole thing is just so disgusting ... They're just psychopathic." —U.S. ambassador to Iraq Christopher Hill, as he read reports from embassy staff about damage after truck bombs go off in central Baghdad.

On August 19 two car bombs hit Iraq's Finance and Foreign Ministries. The "Bloody Wednesday" attacks in central Baghdad kill at least 122 and injure more than 500. The explosions come after several turbulent weeks in Iraq — in the first 10 days of August, violent acts throughout the country killed 157 people. The August bombings, which are the worst since U.S. troops withdrew from Iraqi cities on June 30, raise questions of Iraq's ability to handle security on its own.

September 2009 A Losing Battle Against Insurgents?

By Christina CrapanzanoFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Habib / Reuters

Iraqi police escort suspected militants during a raid in the town of Mussayab, Iraq.

"What's happening now isn't terrorism, it's gangsters ... They kidnap, they demand money. Maybe they used to be insurgents, but now they're just criminals." —Iraqi army Staff Sergeant Mortatha Abdul Karam at a Mosul checkpoint, commenting on the crackdown against insurgents in North Iraq.

Throughout September, the Iraqi government increases its efforts to root out insurgents in the northern province of Nineveh. During the first week of the month, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki deploys thousands of police officers to the Syria border to prevent these dissidents from entering the country. The deployment coincides with Iraq alleging Iraqi militants in Syria were involved in the August bombings in Baghdad. However, the government continues to suffer security setbacks after 16 prisoners, including al-Qaeda members, escape from a Tikrit detention center in northern Iraq on September 24. On the eve of October, Iraq launches a major anti-terror operation aimed at driving al-Qaeda and Baathist insurgents out of the militant-stronghold Mosul. Three days after the onslaught began, Iraqi forces arrest more than 150 people.

October 2009 Election Maneuvering

By Katie RooneyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Thaier al-Sudani / Reuters

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announces his new "State of Law" coalition in Baghdad, Iraq.

"I joined this list for the unity of Iraq and to make sure we don't go back to the bad old times." —Popular Sunni tribal leader Sheikh Ali Hatem Suleiman, explaining why he agreed to be a part of Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's State of Law Coalition in the upcoming elections.

Election season goes into full swing in October, starting with al-Maliki announcing that he's going to run in the next year's parliamentary elections. The Prime Minister smartly unveils a nationalist platform, consisting of the State of Law coalition that includes both his own Dawa party (a Shiite Muslim group) as well as personalities and tribal figures in all of the country's Sunni Muslim provinces. Meanwhile Iraq's most revered Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, pushes for an open-list voting system (allowing voters to select individual candidates) to try to increase turnout, putting pressure on parliament not to adopt the closed-list system they were considering, which gives voters only a choice of parties.

But despite al-Maliki trying to convince the public Iraq has turned a page on the devastating violence, two synchronized suicide car bombings in Baghdad severely damage the Justice Ministry and provincial council complexes, leaving at least 155 dead and about 500 wounded in the crowded downtown streets. It's the deadliest coordinated attack in Iraq since the summer of 2007.

November 2009 Sunni Awakening Crackdown?

By Katie RooneyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP / Getty Images

A member of the Sahwa, or "Awakening," anti-Qaeda militia sits at a shelter near a checkpoint in the Iraqi village of Abu Basal.

"Regrettably, the Iraqi law is being used by the government as a tool to settle old scores with the people who helped to stabilize the country." —Sunni legislator Mustafa al-Hiti, after a leader of a Sunni Awakening Council was sentenced to death for kidnapping and murder.

The Awakening Councils, local Sunni groups (including former insurgents and Baathists) who were paid to turn against the insurgency, are credited with helping reduce much of the sectarian violence since 2006. So it came with mixed reaction that Sunni leader Adil al-Mashhadani, who led the Awakening militia in the impoverished Fadhil neighborhood of Baghdad, was sentenced to death on charges of terrorism in November. The ruling left some worrying that the Shi'ite-dominated Iraqi government was trying to weaken the Sunni movement. Meanwhile, Iraqi Interior Ministry officials reported the civilian death toll in Iraq fell to its lowest level in November since the 2003 invasion.

December 2009 Maliki's Snub

By Katie RooneyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Justin Sullivan / Getty Images

U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates walks away after speaking to soldiers at Forward Operating Base Warrior in Kirkuk, Iraq.

"He certainly doesn't consider it a snub." —Geoff Morrell, the Pentagon press secretary, after Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki cancels a meeting with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates during his surprise visit to Iraq.

Secretary Gates gets bumped from al-Maliki's schedule and has to wait almost a full day to hold talks with the Iraqi Prime Minister after arriving in Baghdad December 10. Al-Maliki pushed back meeting with Gates because he had to spend the day defending himself before parliament, which had expressed severe security concerns following a recent series of bombings. He met with lawmakers for more than six hours after five coordinated bombings killed 127 people earlier that week.

Meanwhile, after months of wrangling, Iraqi lawmakers broker a deal that will allow for the first national elections since 2005 in early 2010. The news comes as a relief to American military commanders, who have been timing their withdrawal to the elections. Other good news this month: British hostage Peter Moore, held by a Shi'a militant group for more than two and a half years, is freed by his captors.

January 2010 Blackwater Fallout

By Katie RooneyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

MARWAN NAAMANI / AFP / Getty Images

Blackwater contractors riding a helicopter scan the center of Baghdad on February 5, 2005.

"The explanations offered by the prosecutors and investigators in an attempt to justify their actions and persuade the court that they did not use the defendants' compelled testimony were all too often contradictory, unbelievable and lacking in credibility." —U.S. Federal Judge Ricardo M. Urbina, in his ruling throwing out the indictment of five former Blackwater security guards over a 2007 shooting in Baghdad.

"What are we — not human?" Why do they have the right to kill people? Is our blood so cheap? For America, the land of justice and law, what does it mean to let criminals go?" —Abdul Wahab Adul Khader, a 34-year-old Iraqi bank employee who was wounded years ago in the Blackwater shooting, after a judge decides to drop all charges against the contractors.

While U.S. commanders in Iraq began the new year by celebrating their first month without a combat death since the start of the war, the milestone was mostly overshadowed by Federal Judge Urbina's decision to dismiss the charges against the Blackwater guards who opened fire on unarmed Iraqi civilians in 2007, leaving 17 Iraqis dead and about 20 wounded. Urbina found that the prosecutors and investigators had improperly used statements given by the five Blackwater guards, compromising their right to a fair trial. The ruling brought one of the highest-profile prosecutions to come out of the Iraq war to a sudden halt — and delivered a significant blow to the U.S. Justice Department.

Meanwhile, much of the focus is on the Hussein-era years in the lead up to the parliamentary elections. Vice President Joe Biden visits Iraq in late January and declares support for the controversial banning of Ba'athists from the voting. And "Chemical" Ali Hassan al-Majid, a key figure in Saddam Hussein's government, is executed after being sentenced to death by hanging. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair also finds himself in the hot seat, defending himself against critics in a highly anticipated testimony before an official inquiry into Britain's role in the Iraq conflict.

February 2010 Baathists Back in the Mix

By Katie RooneyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Thaier al-Sudani / Reuters

Iraqi soldiers gather together in Baghdad, Iraq.

"This is purely a means of trying to gain more votes." —Mayson al-Damalogi, a spokesman for a coalition of Sunni and secular candidates headed by former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, after the Iraqi government approves the reinstatement of 20,000 army officers who served under Saddam Hussein.

Just over one week before the national elections, Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki approves reinstating a slew of army officers from Hussein's era — a surprising move given that the Prime Minister had focused his campaign in the coming parliamentary elections around bashing the former Baath government.

His opponents viewed the move skeptically and suggested that al-Maliki was trying to gain favor with the former Baathists. The move comes after an appeals court overturns a ban on hundreds of candidates for having ties to Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party. The initial ban, supported by al-Maliki, had prompted threats of election boycotts by Sunnis and warnings that the credibility of the election itself was at stake.

March 2010 Iraqis Head to the Polls

By Katie RooneyFriday, Mar. 19, 2010

Zhang Ning / Xinhua / Landov

Iraqi citizens vote at a polling station in Baghdad, Iraq.

"The decisive region is Baghdad." —Sami al-Askari, an ally of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki and a candidate in Baghdad for the Iraqi Parliamentary elections.

The tallying of the March 7 elections continues, with partial election results released March 15 suggesting a sharp and divisive shift in power in Iraq. So far the results show Maliki up in six of Iraq's nine southern provinces populated by the Shiite majority but the coalition led by Ayad Allawi, a secular Shiite and former prime minister, shows he is still putting up a fight.

Many say Baghdad, with 70 seats in Parliament, is the crucial test. With two-third of the votes counted so far, Maliki is winning a plurality of Baghdad and Allawi is right behind him. But another surprise is the emergence of the Sadrist movement as an influential political bloc, headed by Moktada al-Sadr, a radical cleric who led the Shiite insurgency against the American occupation. This time around the Sadrists, which have wide support among the Shi'ite poor in the oil-producing south and deprived urban areas like Baghdad's Sadr City slum, have embraced the political process (while still remaining opposed to the ties with the U.S.). Throwing them into the mix may now make it that much harder to form a new postelection government.

Either way, the election was considered a milestone in U.S. plans to withdraw all but 50,000 troops by August.

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