7th Division (Iraq)
| 7th Iraqi Army Division | |
|---|---|
|
| |
| Active |
c.1960s–2003 2004–present |
| Country |
 Iraq |
| Allegiance | United States Forces – Iraq |
| Branch | Army |
| Type | Division |
| Role | Infantry |
| Size | 9,000+ |
| Part of | Iraqi Ground Forces Command |
| Garrison/HQ | Ramadi |
| Engagements | Iraqi insurgency |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Maj. Gen. Murthi Mishin Rafa Farahan |
| Insignia | |
| Division Flag |
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The 7th Division is a division of the Iraqi Army. First formed in the 1960s or 1970s, it was disbanded in 2003. It was reformed after 2004. It is now headquartered at Al Asad. This division was trained by the United States Marine Corps. It played a part in the defeat of Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) in Anbar province in 2007. It was transferred to the Iraqi Ground Forces Command (IGFC) on November 1, 2007.[1]
Division Units:
- 26th Motorized (AAslt) Brigade
- 27th Motorized (AAslt) Brigade
- 28th Motorized Brigade
- 29th Mechanized Brigade (operational since April 3, 2008)
In accordance with the standards of training Iraqi forces the division's brigades or battalions will be committed at all times in other units. This was tested by detaching units of the 7th Division south of Baghdad in early of 2008. The 29th is the last brigade formed in the desert of western Iraq, is based in Rutbah, it may be in line to be equipped with wheeled armour like the 37th or 17th Brigades.
In May 2008, the 26th Brigade participated in operations in Basra.
On 21 December 2013, Maj Gen Mohammed al-Karawi, the Commander of the division, was killed during a security operation in Rutbah against al-Qaeda training camps. In the incident, several suicide bombs had gone off as Karawi was entering a deserted building, killing Karawi alongside several officers, and wounding up to 32 soldiers. More than 60 militants had been in the area at the time.[2]
Throughout late 2014 and early 2015, some 320 US advisers trained the troops of the 7th Division, which occasionally engaged in skirmishes with militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).[3]
Notes
- ↑ "7th Iraqi Army Division now Controlled by Iraqi Government" (Press release). MNF-I. November 3, 2007. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
- ↑ "Bomb attack kills officers in Iraq's Anbar province". BBC News. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
- ↑ 7th Division, Iraqi Army. Globalsecurity.org. Retrieved May 25, 2015.