The 10th Armoured Division '' is a formation of the Iraqi Army that was dissolved in 2003, but reinstated in 2007.

History

The 10th Armoured Division served in the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. It began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for almost eight years, until the acceptance of United Nations Security Council ...

. It participated in the initial liberation of the Iraqi border enclaves which had been occupied for years by Iran. Its 24th Mechanized Brigade was tasked with seizing the Saif Sa'ad enclave, located halfway between Mehran and Naft-e-Shah (northeast of Tursaq). The division commander received his orders on 8 September 1980, and the operation was under way by 10 September. The northern part of the enclave was seized by 13 September, and the southern part several days later. Later in the war, the division suffered heavy losses in

Operation Fath ol-Mobin Operation Fath-ol-Mobin ( fa, عملیات فتح‌المبین, a Quranic phrase meaning "Undeniable Victory" or "Manifest Victory") was a major Iranian military operation conducted during the Iran–Iraq War, in March 1982. The operation was ...

. It also fought in

Operation Ramadan Operation Ramadan was an Iranian offensive in the Iran–Iraq War that consisted of three separate attacks that lasted for 6 weeks. It was launched by Iran on 13 July 1982 near Basra and featured the use of human wave attacks in the largest land ...

and

Operation Jerusalem Operation Names of Jerusalem, Beit-ol-Moqaddas ( fa, عملیات بیت‌المقدس) or Operation Toward Beit-ol-Moqaddas () was an Iranian operation conducted during the Iran–Iraq War. The operation was a success, as it achieved its stan ...

. The division fought in the 1991 Gulf War with Jihad Forces (corps). It was considered the best regular division in the Iraqi Army.Bourque P.243 It had more modern equipment than the other regular Iraqi formations, being equipped with

T-72 The T-72 is a family of Soviet/Russian main battle tanks that entered production in 1969. The T-72 was a development of the T-64, which was troubled by high costs and its reliance on immature developmental technology. About 25,000 T-72 tanks ha ...

and

T-62 The T-62 is a Soviet Union, Soviet main battle tank that was first introduced in 1961. As a further development of the T-54/T-55, T-55 series, the T-62 retained many similar design elements of its predecessor including low profile and thick ...

tanks. It engaged American and British forces during the

Battle of Norfolk The Battle of Norfolk was a tank battle fought on February 27, 1991, during the Persian Gulf War, between armored forces of the United States and United Kingdom, and those of the Iraqi Republican Guard in the Muthanna Province of southern Iraq. T ...

. The U.S. 3rd Armored Division engaged an Iraqi 10th Armoured Division

tank battalion that was assigned to the

Republican Guard A republican guard, sometimes called a national guard, is a state organization of a country (often a republic, hence the name ''Republican'') which typically serves to protect the head of state and the government, and thus is often synonymous wit ...

Tawakalna Division at the battle for Objective Dorset. In September 1997 a

Jane's Intelligence Review ''Jane's Intelligence Review'' is a monthly journal on global security and stability issues published by Jane's Information Group. Its coverage includes international security issues, state stability, terrorism and insurgency, ongoing conflicts, ...

article listed the 10th Armoured Division as being part of the 4th Corps, located at

Al Teab AL, Al, Ål or al may stand for: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Al (''Aladdin'') or Aladdin, the main character in Disney's ''Aladdin'' media * Al (''EastEnders''), a minor character in the British soap opera * Al (''Fullmetal ...

in Al Amarah Governorate (''sic:'' Maysan Governorate), and consisting of the 17th, 24th, and 42nd Brigades. The division began the

2003 invasion of Iraq The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one month, including 26 ...

under the command of the 4th Corps on the Iranian border north of Al Amarah. The division and the remainder of

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein ( ; ar, صدام حسين, Ṣaddām Ḥusayn; 28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003. A leading member of the revolution ...

's Iraqi Army was dissolved by

Coalition Provisional Authority Order 2 Coalition Provisional Authority Order Number 2: Dissolution of Entities signed by Coalition Provisional Authority on 23 May 2003, disbanded the Iraqi military, security, and intelligence infrastructure of President Saddam Hussein. It has since bec ...

of May 2003. However, by mid-2007 the division was active again; a

Freedom of Information Freedom of information is freedom of a person or people to publish and consume information. Access to information is the ability for an individual to seek, receive and impart information effectively. This sometimes includes "scientific, indigeno ...

request answered by the UK

Permanent Joint Headquarters The Permanent Joint Headquarters (PJHQ) is the British tri-service headquarters from where all overseas military operations are planned and controlled. It is situated at Northwood Headquarters in Northwood, London. The Permanent Joint Headquar ...

stated on 23 May 2007 that "..The 10th Division (10 Div) are responsible for the four southern Iraqi provinces with one Brigade taking responsibility for each

Dhi Qar Dhi Qar Governorate ( ar, ذي قار, translit=Thi Qār, ) is a governorate in southern Iraq. The provincial capital is Nasiriyah. Prior to 1976 the governorate was known as Muntafiq Governorate. Thi Qar was the heartland of the ancient Iraqi civ ...

Maysan , image_map = Maysan in Iraq.svg , mapsize = 200px , settlement_type = Governorate , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_t ...

and al-Muthanna provinces and two brigades (1 and 5) responsible for Basra. The 5th Brigade is not yet fully stood up, but is recruiting and training. This is expected to be completed before the end of the year." The division was then involved in the Battle of Basra (2008), also known as Operation "Charge of the Knights." During the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division's tour from June 2008-mid-2009, the division conducted Operation "Lion's Roar," a combined live-fire exercise in Maysan Province in April 2009 – the first of its kind in the Iraqi Army. The exercise integrated U.S. enablers and demonstrated the capability and lethality of the Iraqi Army. On 29 August 2015, Brigadier General Mahmoud al-Filahi was appointed as the commander of the division, after the former commander, Brigadier General Safin Abdulmajid, was killed by a suicide car bomber in Ramadi.Mamoun, Abdelhak. "Abadi appoints Brigadier General Mahmoud al-Filahi Commander of Army's 10th Division." ''Iraqi News''. 30 August 2015. Accessed 17 October 2015

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Notes

References

*{{Cite book, first=Stephen A., last=Bourque , title= Jayhawk! The 7th Corps in the Persian Gulf War , publisher = Center of Military History, United States Army, date=2001, lccn = 2001028533, oclc=51313637 *

House of Commons of the United Kingdom The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 me ...

Iraq: Armed Forces Defence written question – answered on 8th October 2007
Divisions of Iraq Basra