Free Iraqi Forces
| Free Iraqi Forces (FIF) | |
|---|---|
 Flag of the Free Iraqi Forces (FIF), seen on Free Iraqi Forces militiamen’s uniform as a flag sleeve patch, and sometimes flown during the invasion of Iraq. | |
| Leaders | Ahmad Chalabi |
| Dates of operation | 2003 |
| Country | Iraq |
| Allegiance |  Multi-National Force - Iraq
 Republic of Iraq |
| Motives | Overthrow of the government of Ba'athist Iraq |
| Status | Dissolved |
| Part of | Iraqi National Congress (2003) |
The Free Iraqi Forces (FIF) were a militia made up of Iraqi expatriates, who served in the 2003 invasion of Iraq and its aftermath, under the control of Ahmed Chalabi's Iraqi National Congress government-in-exile. The specifically paramilitary branch of the program was also known as the Free Iraqi Fighting Forces (FIFF), while other elements served as interpreters or on civil affairs projects.[1][2]
Composition
[edit]
The original intent of the American Office of the Secretary of Defense was to recruit and train 3,000 Iraqi expatriates in Taszar, Hungary in preparation for the war.[1] Recruitment, however, fell well below the target number, and were of dubious military utility, ranging from ages 18 to 55.[3]
Operations
[edit]
The program was seen as unsuccessful, with at one point some US$63 million spent to recruit and train 69 troops for the FIF, and the program was dissolved in April 2003. The FIFF never numbered more than 500 troops.[4] The units were also seen as undisciplined and pro-Shia and anti-Sunni, and engaged in looting.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Catherine Dale (April 2011). Operation Iraqi Freedom: Strategies, Approaches, Results, and Issues for Congress. DIANE Publishing. pp. 48–. ISBN 978-1-4379-2030-7.
- ^ Nathan Hodge (15 February 2011). Armed Humanitarians: The Rise of the Nation Builders. Bloomsbury USA. pp. 66–. ISBN 978-1-60819-017-1.
- ^ Sheldon Rampton; John Clyde Stauber (2003). Weapons of Mass Deception: The Uses of Propaganda in Bush's War on Iraq. Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin. pp. 61–. ISBN 978-1-58542-276-0.
- ^ Beth K. Dougherty; Edmund A. Ghareeb (7 November 2013). Historical Dictionary of Iraq. Scarecrow Press. pp. 299–. ISBN 978-0-8108-7942-3.
- ^ Anthony H. Cordesman; Emma R. Davies (30 December 2007). Iraq's Insurgency and the Road to Civil Conflict. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 58–. ISBN 978-0-313-34998-0.
