Forward Operating Base Hope is the current name of Camp War Eagle which was the name of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

camp located at the northeast corner of the

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...

slum A slum is a highly populated urban residential area consisting of densely packed housing units of weak build quality and often associated with poverty. The infrastructure in slums is often deteriorated or incomplete, and they are primarily inh ...

known as Sadr City. It was established in May 2003 by 1st Squadron,

2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment The 2nd Cavalry Regiment, also known as the 2nd Dragoons, is an active Stryker infantry and cavalry regiment of the United States Army. The Second Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army Europe and Africa, with its garrison at the ...

(known as the War Eagles) and B Company, 2nd Battalion,

37th Armor Regiment The 37th Armor is an armor (tank) regiment of the United States Army. It is often remembered as the successor to the 37th Tank Battalion, 4th Armored Division, commanded by then Lieutenant Colonel Creighton Abrams (the namesake of the M1 Abrams ...

which is an element of 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division. War Eagle was located on the site of a pre-war Iraqi Army base, and as such was walled and somewhat suited for use as a forward operating base. Some of the first battles with the

Mahdi Army The Peace Companies ( ar, سرايا السلام, or Saraya al Salam) are an Iraqi armed group linked to Iraq's Shia community. They are a 2014 revival of the Mahdi Army ( ''Jaysh al-Mahdī'') that was created by the Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada a ...

were fought out of this camp in early 2004. Soldiers from the 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division including 1st Battalion,

12th Cavalry Regiment The 12th Cavalry is a cavalry regiment of the United States Army. History On 2 February 1901, Congress authorized the organization of the Twelfth Regiment of Cavalry, Army of the United States. Under this authority, the regiment was formed at ...

, 2nd Battalion,

5th Cavalry Regiment The 5th Cavalry Regiment ("Black Knights") is a historical unit of the United States Army that began its service on August 3, 1861, when an act of Congress enacted "that the two regiments of dragoons, the regiment of mounted riflemen, and the t ...

and Bravo Company

20th Engineer Battalion ) , colors = The wavy arrow , colors_label = Unit Identification , march = , mascot = , battles = World War IWorld War IIVietnam War ...

(United States), were stationed at Camp War Eagle and fought against the

Shia Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...

militia of

Muqtada al Sadr Muqtada al-Sadr ( ar, مقتدى الصدر, Muqtadā aṣ-Ṣadr; born 4 August 1974) is an Iraqi politician and militia leader. He is the leader of the Sadrist Movement and the leader of the Peace Companies, a successor to the militia he had p ...

known as the

during the uprising which began April 4, 2004. The troops of Task Force Lancer's (2-5 Cav, C1-82FA, and B/1-12 Cav) and Task Force Charger's (1-12 Cav, B/2-5IN, B/20E) stay at War Eagle (March '04-05') was one of the deadliest periods in the Iraq war. On April 4, 2004, this was the launch point for what was to be named "Black Sunday". During the six-hour night battle, 8 were killed and 60+ were wounded. This initial fight would go on for 10 days. It was during this time that Casey Sheehan was killed.

Cindy Sheehan Cindy Lee Sheehan ( Miller; born July 10, 1957) is an American anti-war activist,Geraghty, Jim (2011-05-02)Cindy Sheehan: ‘If you believe the newest death of OBL, you’re stupid.’''National Review''. Retrieved May 2, 2011. whose son, U.S. Arm ...

, his mother, would use her son's death to protest the war in Iraq. On Mothers' Day, 2004 also known as "The Day of Steel Rain", Camp War Eagle was attacked with approximately 100+ detonated mortar rounds and rockets raining down inside the camp in a 24-hour period. It was renamed Camp Hope in early 2005. On March 10, 2006, the camp, then known as

Forward Operating Base A forward operating base (FOB) is any secured forward Operational level of war, operational level military position, commonly a military base, that is used to support strategic goals and tactical objectives. A FOB may or may not contain an airfi ...

(FOB) Hope, was transferred from

Multi-National Division – Baghdad Below is an estimated list of the major units deployed within the Multi-National Force – Iraq and other United States military units that were operating in Iraq under the U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) in 2009, during the Iraq War. In militar ...

control to the

Iraqi Army The Iraqi Ground Forces (Arabic: القوات البرية العراقية), or the Iraqi Army (Arabic: الجيش العراقي), is the ground force component of the Iraqi Armed Forces. It was known as the Royal Iraqi Army up until the coup ...

. Specifically, 3rd Battalion, 67th Armored Regiment, 101st Airborne Division handed over control to 3rd Battalion, 2nd Brigade ("The Tiger Brigade"), 6th Iraqi Army Division.

References

Sadr City Installations of the United States Army in Iraq Army installations of Iraq 2003 establishments in Iraq 2005 disestablishments in Iraq Iraq War {{Iraq-War-stub