Ninawa Campaign - The Campaign

The Campaign

Sporadic fighting had already been going on since late 2007 after the insurgents had been routed from Diyala. In early 2008, however, al-Qaeda wanted to make it clear that they could still fight effectively in Iraq.

On January 23, a massive cache of explosives was detonated in an abandoned building in Mosul in the Zinjeli neighborhood. Insurgents were tipped off that Iraqi security forces were preparing to search the building and when the police came they detonated the explosive. The explosion killed 60 people, all of them civilians, wounded 280 and leveled several buildings.

The next day, as the police was investigating the scene, of the massive bombing the day before, gunmen opened fire on them. At that time a suicide bomber targeted the car of the police chief of Mosul, who was on the scene, killing him and two other policemen.

On January 25, the Iraqi Prime Minister ordered Iraqi military reinforcements to Mosul to begin an offensive to crush the remaining al-Qaeda elements that were still holding out in the area. The troops, tanks and helicopters began arriving in Mosul on January 27, including elements of the 35th Brigade, 9th (Armored) Division.

However, a day after the reinforcements arrived insurgents ambushed a U.S. military patrol in the city killing five soldiers. The patrol was initially attacked by an IED, but then insurgents in a nearby mosque opened fire on soldiers in the patrol after the roadside bombing, prompting a fierce gunbattle as U.S. and Iraqi troops secured the area. Iraqi soldiers entered the mosque but the gunmen had already fled.

During the fight for the north there was also some sporadic fighting in other areas, such as Tal Afar to the west of Mosul, Kirkuk further to the north-east and Hawija which is just south of Kirkuk.

On February 18, Coalition forces captured Abd-al-Rahman Ibrahim Jasim Tha’ir, Al Qaida's military emir for Mosul. Abd-al-Rahman was moved to Mosul from Bayji after the previous emir was captured on January 21. His capture allowed Coalition forces to develop intelligence about the Al Qaida in Iraq network in south-east Mosul and on March 1 it was reported that Coalition forces had killed the military emir for south-east Mosul on February 27, Abu Yasir al-Saudi. Al-Saudi was a Saudi national who had previously fought in Afghanistan and had been involved in many deadly terrorist attacks across Mosul, including the January 28 ambush, since arriving in Iraq in August 2007 with three other Saudis. It was also reported that 142 insurgents had been killed or captured in Mosul since the operation began.

On March 15, a force of between 10-12 insurgents attacked an Iraqi Army combat outpost with grenades, RPGs and small arms. The insurgents were repulsed and 3 were killed in the attack.

On March 23, an insurgent suicide bomber, in a truck with a bullet-proof windshield, attacked Combat Outpost Inman, an Iraqi Army military base in western Mosul. He blasted through an armored vehicle to reach the courtyard of the military headquarters. In the ensuing explosion 13 Iraqi soldiers were killed and 42 people, including 30 soldiers, were wounded.

On April 14, an insurgent suicide bomber attacked a group of Peshmerga soldiers near Sinjar. Following the attack insurgents opened up on them with small-arms fire and RPG's. 14 soldiers were killed and 15 wounded.

On April 26, insurgents attacked an Iraqi Army checkpoint in Mosul. A suicide bomber detonated an explosive laden vehicle killing 2 Iraqi civilians and wounding 4. Insurgents than followed the explosion with small arms and RPG fire. Iraqi Army and Coalition forces returned fire, killing one terrorist.