Iraqi Special Operations Forces

Special operations troops of the Iraqi Army were first established when Colonel Khaleel Jassim Al-Dabbagh built the first royal special units in the name of "Queen Alia Forces" in the mid-1950s. It consisted of Sunni and Shia Arabs, as well as other components of the Iraqi population. They were mainly used on an emergency basis to carry out special missions inside of Iraq and outside when the country was at war.

After the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, the Saddam Hussein-era Iraqi Army was disbanded by the occupation authorities. Because of that, the current Iraqi commando force was recruited from scratch, mostly from Shia, Sunni Arabs, Kurds, Assyrians and Turkmen.[4] In November 2005, after training in Jordan with Jordanian Special Forces and U.S. Army Special Forces ("Green Berets"), the Iraqi Special Operations Force had 1,440 men trained, composed of two combat battalions, considered equal in training and combat effectiveness to an average U.S. Army infantry battalion, and two support battalions.[5] By March 2008, the force consisted of a single brigade which in turn was made up of an Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Force (ICTF) battalion, three Commando battalions, a support battalion and a special reconnaissance unit.[6]

On April 18, 2010, ISOF troops, supported by U.S. troops, carried out a night-time raid on a terrorist safe house near Tikrit. The ISOF surrounded the building and called on them to surrender, but instead the terrorists fired on them. The ISOF returned fire and assaulted the building. The ISOF killed Abu Ayyub al-Masri and Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the leaders of the Islamic State of Iraq, 16 others were also arrested.[7][8][9]

In the Battle of Mosul that began in October 2016, the special ops forces were the first division into the city of Mosul, which had been occupied by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant since 2014.[10] On 1 November 2016, the 1st Iraqi Special Forces Brigade fought its way into the Gogjali quarter of the city, becoming the first Iraqi unit to enter the city during the offensive.[11] On 10 July 2017, the Iraqi prime minister declared the liberation of Mosul from ISIS.[12] During a Senate hearing in July 2019, former United States Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East, Mick Mulroy, stated that Iraqi Security Forces with the support of the United States liberated an area the size of West Virginia from ISIS. He specifically highlighted Iraq's Counter Terrorism Service and said they rank among the region's most capable and that they serve as a testament to the capacity-building efforts by the United States.[13][14]

By 2009, the 1st Special Operations Brigade (ISOF-1) was based in Baghdad and had the 1st, 2nd, and 5th Battalions, a brigade support battalion and a training battalion/Iraqi Special Warfare Center and School. The 1st Battalion was the renamed Iraqi 36th Commando Battalion.[15] The 1st Brigade is often referred to as the Golden Division, and previously the Golden Brigade.[16]

The 2nd Special Operations Brigade (ISOF-2) had four commando battalions (1,440 men), which were at Basra, Mosul, Diyala and Al Asad prior to the formation of the 3rd Brigade. The battalions at Basra and Mosul achieved Iraqi Operational Control (IOC) in January 2008 and conducted local operations. Regional CT Centers (RCCs), similar to Joint Interagency Task Force (JIATF) organizations, were to be established at all four regional commando bases to develop intelligence on terrorist networks in their region.

The 3rd Special Operations Brigade was established in Basra by spring 2013, following an order by the prime minister in January 2012 that the forces expand by an additional brigade. It consisted of regional commando battalions in Basra, Diwaniya, Najaf, Maysan, Dhi Qar and Muthana provinces, a recon battalion, and a support battalion.[17] A Special Tactics unit is also maintained.[18]

In February 2008, the Iraqi Air Force, with Coalition Advisors, began night vision goggle (NVG) training as the basis for future counter-terrorism (CT) pilot training. Potential CT pilots and aircrew will undergo NVG flying introduction in order to select the best pilots for advanced CT aviation training as early as April 2008. Selected pilots will continue to log NVG training hours in order to attain a proficiency level that prepares them for Advanced Special Operations specific training as early as late summer 2008. Once fielded, this special operations aviation capability will reside in the Iraqi Air Force's 15 Squadron,[6]