2003 invasion of Iraq

The 2003 invasion of Iraq was the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion began on 20 March 2003 and lasted just over one month, including 26 days of major combat operations. The invasion was conducted by a U.S.-led combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Poland.

According to U.S. president George W. Bush and UK prime minister Tony Blair, the coalition aimed "to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction [WMDs], to end Saddam Hussein's support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people"; however, just before the start of the invasion, a UN inspection team led by Hans Blix found no evidence of the existence of WMDs. According to Blair, the trigger was Iraq's failure to take a "final opportunity" to disarm itself of alleged nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons that U.S. and British officials called an immediate and intolerable threat to world peace. The invasion was strongly opposed by some long-standing U.S. allies, including the governments of Canada, France, Germany, and New Zealand. In September 2004, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan called the invasion illegal under international law and said it was a breach of the UN Charter. On 15 February 2003, a month before the invasion, there were worldwide protests against the anticipated invasion of Iraq, including a rally of three million people in Rome which the Guinness World Records listed as the largest-ever anti-war rally.

The invasion was preceded by an airstrike on the Presidential Palace in Baghdad on 20 March 2003. The following day, coalition forces launched an incursion into Basra Governorate from their massing point close to the Iraqi–Kuwaiti border. While special forces launched an amphibious assault from the Persian Gulf to secure Basra and the surrounding petroleum fields, the main invasion army moved into southern Iraq, occupying the region and engaging in the Battle of Nasiriyah on 23 March. Massive air strikes across the country and against Iraqi command and control threw the defending army into chaos and prevented an effective resistance. On 26 March, the 173rd Airborne Brigade was airdropped near the northern city of Kirkuk, where they joined forces with Kurdish rebels and fought several actions against the Iraqi Army, to secure the northern part of the country.

The main body of coalition forces continued their drive into the heart of Iraq and were met with little resistance. Most of the Iraqi military was quickly defeated. On 9 April 2003, 22 days after the first day of the invasion, the capital city of Baghdad was captured by coalition forces after the six-day-long Battle of Baghdad. Other operations included the capture and occupation of Kirkuk on 10 April and the attack on and capture of Tikrit on 15 April. Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi central leadership went into hiding as the coalition forces completed the occupation of the country. On 1 May, U.S. president George W. Bush declared the "end of major combat operations" in his Mission Accomplished speech. This declaration ended the invasion period of the Iraq War and began the period of military occupation. Saddam Hussein was captured by U.S. forces on 13 December 2003.