Haditha

Haditha is officially a political district subordinate to the Al Anbar Province. The Haditha District consists of the Sub-Districts of Haditha [City], the Haqlaniyah Sub-District, and the Barwannah Sub-District. Each district is governed by a Mayor and a Sub-District Council. The twenty member sub-district councils elect one of their own to serve as the Council Chairman. They also employ other municipal managers such as a Municipal Engineer.

The riverbank in the Haditha District is occupied by well irrigated farm plots that produce a large amount of food. Substantial sheep and goat flocks are also kept in the area. Further food sources come from fishing the river or the nearby Lake Qadisiya.

Entering the Haditha Sub District, one is likely to see municipal signs illustrated with a water wheel. These are displayed as a reference to the area's history. Locals suggest that the ancient looking structures on or near the Euphrates River were part of a water wheel structure that dates back to a period of Roman occupation. They claim locals built water wheels to establish a limited aqueduct system similar to the one that served Rome. Whether or not soldiers or citizens of the Roman Empire ever resided in Haditha is an open question.

The K-3 Pumping Station was built near the town in 1934, part of Iraq's first oil export pipeline, and the point at which the pipeline bifurcated.

File:Haditha location map.png

The Haditha Dam and surrounding areas were initially secured by U.S. troops in April 2003 as part of the invasion of Iraq. An attack on the dam would have severely flooded towns along the Euphrates downstream from Haditha, as well as eliminating an important source of electricity.

On July 16, 2003 Mohammed Nayil Jurayfi, mayor of Haditha, and his youngest son, Ahmed, were assassinated.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3070223.stm New casualties test US resolve] BBCRajiv Chandrasekaran, "[https://archive.today/20120526222842/http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A8262-2003Jul17?language=printer Iraqi Mayor's Killing Reinforces Fear]" Washington Post Foreign Service

In 2004, U.S. troops left a local police force in charge of the city and insurgents rounded up dozens of local police officers and publicly executed them in a soccer stadium.Andrew Tilghman [https://archive.today/20120526222837/http://stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=37660 U.S. call for Iraqi police in Haditha goes unanswered] Stars and Stripes Mideast edition, Monday, June 5, 2006

In May 2005, U.S. forces launched Operation New Market in Haditha against the insurgents controlling the city. However, resistance continued. On August 1, 2005, an ambush killed 6 United States Marine snipers, (who were operating in two two-man teams with an additional marine per team for security) in the city; on August 3, a roadside bomb killed another 14 Marines and their interpreter. On August 26, another IED attack killed 7 Marines and injured 12.

According to an August 2005 report by The Guardian, the town was controlled by insurgents, with US forces making only fleeting visits every few months. Like Al-Qa'im, it had come under a Taliban-like rule, with Sharia law being imposed and Western-style items banned and insurgents collecting the salaries of government employees.[https://www.theguardian.com/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1553969,00.html Under US noses, brutal insurgents rule Sunni citadel], The Guardian, August 22, 2005 This insurgent dominance has continued into 2006.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/29/AR2006052901172_pf.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |first=Ellen |last=Knickmeyer |title=U.S. Will Reinforce Troops in West Iraq}}

The mayor of Haditha in November 2005 was Emad Jawad Hamza.Tim McGirk [https://web.archive.org/web/20060615020355/http://www.time.com/time/world/printout/0,8816,1174649,00.html Collateral Damage or Civilian Massacre in Haditha?] Time

{{Main|Haditha massacre}}

On 19 November 2005, 25 Iraqi noncombatants, including 11 women and children, were killed by 12 Marines from 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines. The US military subsequently investigated the massacre,[https://web.archive.org/web/20060615051844/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fnews%2F2006%2F05%2F27%2Fwus27.xml&sSheet=%2Fnews%2F2006%2F05%2F27%2Fixnews.html 'Worst war crime' committed by US in Iraq], telegraph.co.uk, May 27, 2006 and a captain and a lieutenant colonel were relieved of duty (another captain was relieved on the same day but not for the same incident.){{Cite web |url=http://www.mudvillegazette.com/archives/005400.html |title=mudvillegazette.com |access-date=2008-04-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080403054551/http://www.mudvillegazette.com/archives/005400.html |archive-date=2008-04-03 |url-status=dead }}{{Cite news |last=Hamdani |first=Ali |last2=Parker |first2=Ned |date=May 29, 2006 |title=Marines and the 'massacre': a neighbour tells of aftermath - Times Investigation |url= |work=The Times |department=World News : Iraq |page=29 |issue=68712 |id={{Gale|IF0502981321|A146334952}}. {{NewsBank text|111EAF83F8490EEE}}.}} Some allege the massacre was in retribution for an incident earlier in the day in which US Marine Lance Corporal Miguel Terrazas was killed in a roadside bomb attack on Marines from Kilo Company.BBC 10 O'Clock News, BBC, 2 June 2006 In August 2006 a commission reviewing the killings found probable cause for charging the Marines.[https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna14150687 U.S. probe implicates Marines - Conflict in Iraq - nbcnews.com] The same day, one of the accused Marines sued Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.) for libel because of Murtha's characterization of the incident saying the Marines killed the civilians "in cold blood." In 2009, a federal appeals court ruled that Murtha was immune from the lawsuit because he was acting in his official role as a lawmaker when he made the comments to reporters.[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/14/frank-wuterich-cant-sue-m_n_186706.html Frank Wuterich Murtha Defamation Suit Dies In Court] AP. May 15, 2009. Retrieved Oct. 13, 2014.

A court-martial on June 4, 2008 acquitted a US Marine, Lieutenant Andrew Grayson, for any role in covering up the killings, while charges were dropped against five other marines in the affair. Grayson had not been present for the incident, but had been accused of telling a sergeant to delete photographs of the victims."[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/05/us/05marine.html Marine Is Acquitted in Iraq Killings] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170222070352/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/05/us/05marine.html|date=February 22, 2017}}", New York Times, June 5, 2008.

Lt Colonel Jeffrey Chessani, the highest-ranking officer accused over the incident, had been charged with dereliction of duty for failing to order a war crimes investigation into the killings. The charges were dismissed in 2008 on the grounds General James Mattis, who was responsible for overseeing the prosecutions, had been unduly influenced by his top legal aide, then-Colonel John Ewers, who had been the investigator into the incident.{{cite web |title=MILITARY: Marine Corps seeks to reinstate Haditha charges |url=http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/08/05/military/z24633184f0a151da88257494006dd5f0.txt |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202005445/http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/08/05/military/z24633184f0a151da88257494006dd5f0.txt |archive-date=December 2, 2008 |access-date=October 25, 2015 |work=North County Times |df=mdy-all}} The dismissal was later upheld on appeal.{{cite news |last=Perry |first=Tony |date=March 18, 2009 |title=Court upholds dismissal of charges in Haditha case |url=http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-marine18-2009mar18,0,4933729.story?track=rss |access-date=October 24, 2010 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times}}

Squad leader Frank Wuterich, who had been accused of leading the killings, was charged with voluntary manslaughter and assault. In 2012, he made a plea agreement which dropped these charges. In exchange, he pled guilty to one count of dereliction of duty for telling his squad to "shoot first and ask questions later," and was demoted to the rank of private.{{cite news |author=Slosson |first=Mary |date=January 26, 2012 |title=Marine spared from jail time in Iraq killings |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-marine-haditha-idUSTRE80M1U620120123 |access-date=October 27, 2024 |work=Reuters |df=mdy-all}} The plea agreement caused anger in Iraq, with the Iraqi government saying it "did not fit the crime" and that they would look for other legal avenues they could pursue.{{cite news |date=January 26, 2012 |title=Iraq says to take legal action for Haditha victims |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-massacre-idUSTRE80P1JA20120126 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151008110016/http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/26/us-iraq-massacre-idUSTRE80P1JA20120126 |archive-date=October 8, 2015 |access-date=July 1, 2017 |work=Reuters |df=mdy-all}}

{{Story|date=January 2018}}

File:Congressional delegation meets children in Hadithah, Iraq.jpg

File:Vegetable stand in Haditha Iraq.jpg

The change in U.S. strategy in late 2006 brought quick results to the Hadithah Triad. The U.S. Marines and their Iraqi and coalition allies had largely driven out insurgents by the summer of 2007.

Hadithah was much more secure and had recovered some of its prosperity by the summer of 2008. The progress was evident when an American Congressional Delegation visited the town in August and found full shops and friendly people.

With this turbulent history the future was unpredictable. However, according to the website of Multi National Forces – Iraq, progress began after a large berm was erected around the cities of Haditha and Haqlaniyah on the western side of the Euphrates and Barwannah on the East side during Operation Al Majid.

Marine units rotated in and out of the area detaining numerous persons. Iraqi Police were firmly established by 2007 and violence fell. In contrast to previous years, the Ramadan period of 2007 came and went in Haditha with no insurgent attacks.

In the next few months two bridges across the Euphrates were rebuilt, the area hospital was reopened and re-equipped, the K3 Oil refinery south of the area was brought back online, and life began to take on the air of normalcy.

Also planned is keeping the hydro-electric dam functioning and rebuild capacity with the help of US led coalition forces, to re-open a local oil refinery, again with significant funding and technical advice from Coalition forces and provincial reconstruction teams headquartered in Ramadi and Al Asad, to rebuild two dams over the Euphrates River, man a large (and apparently effective) police force, establish regular ambulance service, re-equip and run their hospital, open an asphalt factory, re-open schools with basic refurbishments complete, fill the offices of their local government, expand their local markets, begin rebuilding a local marble factory.

In early 2014, ISIL launched a successful campaign to seize around 70% of Anbar province from Iraq. Haditha is notable for being one of the few towns that remained under the control of Iraqi forces despite being more than 200 kilometres from Baghdad. In September 2014, ISIL attacked the dam but were repelled by airstrikes. As of May 2016, it remains one of the most exclusively Sunni Arab towns of Iraq under control of the government.

Al Jazeera's Iraq editor Hamed Hadeed said Haditha plays a major role in the country's conflict because of its strategic location and unparalleled resistance to ISIL:

"Haditha serves as a significant transportation route between the western regions of Anbar, the central province of Salahuddin, and northern governorate of Nineveh. It is also the only city in Anbar province that has been able to block IS's repeated attempts to control it."{{Cite web|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/01/isil-launches-major-assault-iraq-haditha-160105135657979.html|title=ISIL launches major assault on Iraq's Haditha}}

Haditha has a hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification BWh). Most rain falls in the winter. The average annual temperature in Haditha is {{convert|21.1|°C|1}}. About {{convert|127|mm|2|abbr=on}} of precipitation falls annually.

{{Weather box|location = Haditha

|metric first = Y

|single line = Y

|Jan high C = 12.5

|Feb high C = 16.6

|Mar high C = 21.6

|Apr high C = 27.4

|May high C = 34.5

|Jun high C = 39.5

|Jul high C = 41.9

|Aug high C = 41.8

|Sep high C = 38.7

|Oct high C = 32.1

|Nov high C = 22.6

|Dec high C = 14.6

|Jan low C = 2.4

|Feb low C = 3.6

|Mar low C = 8.1

|Apr low C = 13.2

|May low C = 18.3

|Jun low C = 22.3

|Jul low C = 24.9

|Aug low C = 24.4

|Sep low C = 20.5

|Oct low C = 14.9

|Nov low C = 7.5

|Dec low C = 3.6

|Jan precipitation mm = 22

|Feb precipitation mm = 18

|Mar precipitation mm = 15

|Apr precipitation mm = 19

|May precipitation mm = 3

|Jun precipitation mm = 0

|Jul precipitation mm = 0

|Aug precipitation mm = 0

|Sep precipitation mm = 0

|Oct precipitation mm = 9

|Nov precipitation mm = 17

|Dec precipitation mm = 24

|year precipitation mm= 127

|source = Climate-Data.org, Climate data

|date=16 January 2018}}

• Mithal al-Alusi (born 1953), politician
• Kamal al-Hadithi, (1939 – 2018) poet, journalist and politician.{{cite book |last1=Yaʻqub|first1=Imil|title=Muʻjam al-shuʻarāʼ : mundhu badʼ ʻaṣr al-Nahḍah|script-title=ar:معجم الشعراء منذ بدء عصر النهضة|trans-title=Dictionary of poets since the beginning of Nahda|volume=2|page=936|date=2004|publisher=Dar Sader|location=Beirut, Lebanon|isbn= |edition=first |language=ar}}
• Mar Mari Emmanuel (born 1970), an Assyrian bishop in Australia.

{{Reflist|2}}

Articles

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080322233935/http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/31215.html Marines Exonerated]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080829024411/http://warchronicle.com/TheyAreNotKillers/DefendOurMarines/BobWeimann/CaseForSquadLeader_SSgtWuterich_Haditha_25July08_321.htm Case for the Combat Squad Leader]

{{Commons category|Hadithah}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20090917143043/http://www.iraqimage.com/pages/browse/Hadithah.html Iraq Image - Haditha Satellite Observation]

{{Al Anbar cities}}

{{Districts of Iraq}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Populated places in Al Anbar Governorate

Category:Populated places on the Euphrates River

Category:District capitals of Iraq

Category:Cities in Iraq