The 2nd Division was a formation of the

Iraqi Army The Iraqi Ground Forces (Arabic: القوات البرية العراقية), also referred to as the Iraqi Army (Arabic: الجيش العراقي), is the ground force component of the Iraqi Armed Forces. It was formerly known as the Royal Iraq ...

. It was theoretically headquartered at

Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad. Situated on the banks of Tigris, the city encloses the ruins of the ...

, but was driven out of that city by IS. No reliable reports of its continued existence have surfaced since June–July 2014. Previously, the 2nd Division was one of the most experienced formations in the Iraqi Army. The previous 2nd Division had been one of the four original divisions of the Iraqi Army, being active in 1941. The division was stationed in

Kirkuk Kirkuk (; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of the Kirkuk Governorate. The city is home to a diverse population of Kurds, Iraqi Turkmen, Iraqi Turkmens and Arabs. Kirkuk sits on the ruins of the original Kirkuk Cit ...

in 1941, and was there when the

Anglo-Iraqi War The Anglo-Iraqi War was a British-led Allies of World War II, Allied military campaign during the Second World War against the Kingdom of Iraq, then ruled by Rashid Ali al-Gaylani who had seized power in the 1941 Iraqi coup d'état with assista ...

took place. Under

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...

's rule it fought the Kurds in 1961–70, being able to reverse most of the Kurdish gains of their initial offensive of autumn 1961. However it began to suffer from desertion. In 1963 it was concentrated in eastern Kurdistan and probably took part in later offensives. The first Kurdish war ended with the Kurds being granted autonomy. In 1977-78 it was in the north, with its headquarters in

as part of the 1st Corps, including five brigades (two reserve) according to British military reports now accessible at

The National Archives National archives are the archives of a country. The concept evolved in various nations at the dawn of modernity based on the impact of nationalism upon bureaucratic processes of paperwork retention. Conceptual development From the Middle Ages i ...

, Kew. The division was later present in

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

during

Operation Desert Storm Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

. It was initially assigned to 2nd Corps in the Qasr as Sabiyah area, in mid January 1991, but had moved to just north of

Al Jahra Al Jahra () is a city and area located west of the centre of Kuwait City in Kuwait. Al Jahra is the capital of the Al Jahra Governorate of Kuwait as well as the surrounding Al Jahra District which is agriculturally based. Encyclopædia Britanni ...

on 24 February 1991. In 2002 it was still in the north as part of the 1st Corps, made up of the 2nd, 4th, and 36th Infantry Brigades. After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the Iraqi Army was disbanded in mid-2003. After the creation of the

New Iraqi Army The Iraqi Ground Forces (Arabic: القوات البرية العراقية), also referred to as the Iraqi Army (Arabic: الجيش العراقي), is the ground force component of the Iraqi Armed Forces. It was formerly known as the Royal Iraq ...

by the

Coalition Provisional Authority The Coalition Provisional Authority (; , CPA) was a Provisional government, transitional government of Iraq established following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, invasion of the country on 19 March 2003 by Multi-National Force – Iraq, U.S.-led Co ...

, the division was reformed. It was certified and assumed operational responsibility for

counter-insurgency Counterinsurgency (COIN, or NATO spelling counter-insurgency) is "the totality of actions aimed at defeating irregular forces". The Oxford English Dictionary defines counterinsurgency as any "military or political action taken against the ac ...

operations in the city of

on December 21, 2006. The 2nd Division’s battalions used to be former Iraqi National Guard units, and were manned predominately by Kurdish troops, many being former

Peshmerga The Peshmerga () are the internal security forces of Kurdistan Region. According to the Constitution of Iraq, regional governments are responsible for "the establishment and organization of the internal security forces for the region such as p ...

militia units. Its subordinate formations included: * 5 (Citadel) Motorized Brigade (formerly 4th Bde) * 6 (Scorpions) Infantry (AAslt) Bde (former 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division) * 7 Infantry Brigade * 8 Infantry Brigade * 2nd Motor Transport Regiment Ku-map

Three battalions from what was then the Iraqi Army's 4th Brigade graduated basic training in a "march-on" ceremony at the Al Kasik Military Training Base west of Mosul, Oct. 15, 2004. Reports from 2005 indicated that the then 4th Brigade was a former Peshmerga formation. The 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division was formerly known as the 7th Brigade, IIF before the re-organization of the Iraqi Army. The 2nd Brigade of the 2nd Division is composed of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Battalions. As of March 2008, the 2nd Division's headquarters was at Al Kindi Base, and the division was commanded by Brig. Gen. Mutaa al-Khazraji. After the creation of the Ninewa Operational Command in 2008 the division became part of the new command. The division collapsed after June 6–7, 2014, as the

Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...

(ISIL) seized huge amount of territory across the north of Iraq, including Mosul.

Notes

* Kenneth M. Pollack, ''Arabs at War: Military Effectiveness, 1948–91'', University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln and London, 2002, {{ISBN, 0-8032-3733-2

External links

* Globalsecurity.org
2nd Infantry Division
Divisions of Iraq Military units and formations established in 2005 Military units and formations disestablished in 2014 Iran–Iraq War Military units and formations of the Gulf War Military units and formations of Iraq in the Iraq War Military units and factions of the Syrian civil war Iraq in World War II