Al-Anfal Campaign

Al-Anfal campaign
Part of the Iraqi–Kurdish conflict and the Iran–Iraq War
Date 1986–1989 (In strict sense February 23, 1988 – September 6, 1988) Location Iraq Result Insurgency weakened but not quelled Destruction of 4,500 villages.
Belligerents
Ba'athist Iraq	KDP PUK
Commanders and leaders
Saddam Hussein Ali Hassan al-Majid Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri Ahmad al-Tai Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti Farhan Jubouri Saber Abdel Aziz al-Douri Taher Tawfiq al-Ani Ayad Abbas Al-Nassri Wafiq Al-Samarrai	Massoud Barzani Jalal Talabani
Units involved
1st Corps 5th Corps National Defense Battalions
Strength
200,000	3,500
Casualties and losses
50,000-182,000 civilians killed

Insurgency weakened but not quelled

The Al-Anfal campaign (Harakat al-Anfal/Homleh al-Anfal) (Kurdish: پڕۆسەی ئەنفال‎) (Arabic: حملة الأنفال‎‎) Operation Anfal or just simply Anfal was a campaign against Kurdistan in northern Iraq, led by Ali Hassan al-Majid in the final stages of Iran–Iraq War. The campaign takes its name from Surat al-Anfal in the Qur'an, which was used as a code name by the former Iraqi Baathist government for a series of systematic attacks against the Kurdish fighters in northern Iraq, conducted between 1986 and 1989 and culminating in 1988. Sweden, Norway and the United Kingdom officially recognize the Anfal campaign as genocide. On December 5, 2012, Sweden's parliament, the Riksdag, adopted a resolution by the Green party to officially recognize Anfal as genocide. The resolution was passed by all 349 members of parliament. On February 28, 2013, the British House of Commons formally recognized the Anfal as genocide following a campaign led by Conservative MP Nadhim Zahawi.

Al-Anfal is the eighth sura or chapter of the Qur'an which explains the triumph of 313 followers of the new Muslim faith over almost 900 pagans at the Battle of Badr in 624 AD. Al Anfal literally means the spoils (of war) and was used to describe the military campaign of extermination and looting commanded by Ali Hassan al-Majid. His orders informed jash (literally "donkey's foal" in Kurdish) units that taking cattle, sheep, goats, money, weapons and even Kurdish women was legal.

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