The Battle of Baghdad began in February 2006 and continued until May 2008, for control of the

capital city A capital city, or just capital, is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state (polity), state, province, department (administrative division), department, or other administrative division, subnational division, usually as its ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. A combined force of

Iraqi security forces The Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) is a term used by the United States Department of Defense (DoD) to describe law enforcement and military forces of the federal government of the Republic of Iraq. During the Iraq War, these entities received trainin ...

and the allies including the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

fought against insurgents to retain control of the city during the sectarian civil war that engulfed the country in 2006. The battle coincided with an unsuccessful coalition operation called Together Forward which was to significantly reduce the violence in

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

which had seen a sharp uprise in

sectarian violence Sectarian violence or sectarian strife is a form of communal violence which is inspired by sectarianism, that is, discrimination, hatred or prejudice between different sects of a particular mode of an ideology or different sects of a religion wi ...

since the mid-February 2006 bombing of the Askariya Mosque, a major

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

Muslim shrine. Insurgents managed take control of more than 80 percent of Baghdad before an offensive conducted by

Iraqi forces The Iraqi Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of Iraq. They consist of the Ground forces, the Army Aviation Command, the Iraqi Air Force, the Air Defence Command, and the Iraqi Navy. The armed forces are administered by the Min ...

and allies to secure Baghdad. Insurgents also made huge gains in the western Al Anbar and southern Babil province, temporarily forcing Coalition and Iraqi security forces from many towns and cities. Most direct insurgent control of Baghdad ended by late 2007, and by mid-2008, Iraqi forces and

allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

mostly secured Baghdad and reached an agreement with

Mahdi army The Mahdi Army () was an Iraqi Shia militia created by Muqtada al-Sadr in June 2003 and disbanded in 2008. The Mahdi Army rose to international prominence on April 4, 2004, when it spearheaded the first major armed confrontation against the ...

to allow government forces to enter and patrol the

Sadr City Sadr City (), formerly known as Al-Thawra () and Saddam City (), is a suburb district of the city of Baghdad, Iraq. It was built in 1959 by Prime Minister of Iraq, Prime Minister Abd al-Karim Qasim, Abdul Karim Qassim and named Al-Rafidain Distric ...

district of the city, thus fully securing Baghdad and restoring calm in the central parts of Iraq.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle of Baghdad (2006-2008) Battles of the Iraq War involving the United Kingdom Battles of the Iraq War involving the United States Baghdad in the Iraq War 2000s in Baghdad Battles of the Iraq War in 2006 Battles of the Iraq War in 2007 Battles of the Iraq War in 2008 Battles of the Iraq War involving Sunni insurgent groups Battles of the Iraq War involving Shia insurgent groups Battles involving the Mahdi Army