The Multi-National Force – Iraq (MNF-I), often referred to as the Coalition forces, was a U.S.-led military command during the Iraq War from 2004 to 2009.
The vast majority of MNF-I was made up of U.S. Army forces. It supervised British, Australian, Polish, Spanish, and other countries' forces. It replaced the previous force, Combined Joint Task Force 7, on 15 May 2004. It was significantly reinforced during the Iraq War troop surge of 2007. MNF-I was reorganized into its successor, United States Forces – Iraq, on 1 January 2010.
The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, which does humanitarian work and has a number of guards and military observers, has also operated in Iraq since 2003. The U.N. Assistance Mission in Iraq was not a part of the MNF-I, but a separate entity. The NATO Training Mission – Iraq, was in Iraq from 2004 to December 2011, where it trained the Iraqi Army and the Iraqi Police. This NATO mission was later followed by NATO Mission Iraq, which formed in 2018 at the request of the Government of Iraq to help build more sustainable, transparent, inclusive and effective Iraqi armed forces and security institutions.
History The MNF-I's objectives, as expressed in an annex to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1546, a June 2004 letter from U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell to the U.N. Security Council, were stated to be:
The majority of countries that deployed forces to Iraq generally confined them to their respective military installations, due to widespread violence throughout the country.
The government of Iraq enjoyed broad international recognition, including from constituent countries of the Arab League. Jordan assisted in training of Iraqi security forces, and the United Arab Emirates donated military equipment, though purchased from Switzerland.
As of September 2008, over 545,000 Iraqi security forces have been trained.
In November 2006, the United Nations Security Council voted to extend the mandate of the multinational force in Iraq until the end of 2007. The move was requested by the Iraqi government, which said the troops were needed for another year while it built up its own security forces. In December 2007, the Security Council unanimously approved resolution 1790, which extended the mandate until 31 December 2008.
In December 2008, the American and Iraqi governments signed the U.S.–Iraq Status of Forces Agreement, which covered only American troops. It allowed them to remain in the country until 2011, but changed the status on several issues. Iraq regains sovereignty of its airspace, gains sovereignty over American contractors U.S. forces who commit crimes, if they are both off-duty and off base. The U.S. were given until 31 July 2009 to withdraw from Iraqi cities and the whole agreement was subject to a referendum of Iraqi voters held prior to 30 June 2009. If the referendum failed to approve the agreement, the Iraqi government would have given the U.S. until 31 July 2010 to withdraw completely.
On 18 December 2008 the Iraqi government published a law that covered the status of non-U.S. foreign forces in the country from the end of the U.N.'s mandate on 31 December 2008 through to their withdrawal on 31 July 2009. The Iraqi parliament voted on Saturday 20 December 2008, after a second reading of this law, to reject it and send it back to the Iraqi cabinet. The majority of Iraqi parliamentarians wanted it to be made into a binding international agreement rather than simply presenting it as a local Iraqi law. A compromise was reached and the law passed on 23 December 2008, with the Iraqi government agreeing to then sign bilateral agreements with the affected countries.
List of countries in the coalition Troop deployment in Iraq 2003–2011 + Iraq War Coalition troop deployment Troops at time of MNF-I deactivation Deployed troops (2003–2011) Deployed troops (2003–2007)Total invasion deployment Less than 200,000 troops
Multi-National Force – Iraq units Multi-National Force – West Multi-National Division – Baghdad Multinational Division Central-South Multi-National Division – North Multi-National Division (South-East) Logistics Support Area Anaconda : A contingent of around 150 advisers under the collective command NATO Training Mission – Iraq (withdrawn 12/11) : 150,000 invasion 165,000 peak (withdrawn 12/11) : 46,000 invasion (withdrawn 5/11) : 2,000 invasion (withdrawn 7/09) : 200 invasion—2,500 peak (withdrawn 10/08) : 3,600 peak (deployed 5/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 2,000 peak (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 8/08) : 1,650 peak (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 730 peak (deployed 7/03; withdrawn 7/09) : 545 peak (deployed 4/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 485 peak (deployed 5/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 380 peak (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 1/09) : 300 peak (deployed 12/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 250 peak (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 240 troops (deployed 4/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 180 peak (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 09/08) : 175 offshore (deployed 12/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 136 peak (deployed 5/03; withdrawn 11/08) : 60 peak (deployed 7/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 85 peak (deployed 6/05; withdrawn 11/08) : 77 peak (deployed 7/03; withdrawn 11/08) : 55 troops (deployed 7/04; withdrawn 12/08) : 46 troops (deployed 1/05; withdrawn 10/08) : 40 troops (deployed 6/05; withdrawn 1/09) : 29 troops (deployed 9/03; withdrawn 10/08) : 24 peak (deployed 9/03; withdrawn 12/08) : 3,200 peak (deployed 7/03; withdrawn 11/06) : 1,345 troops (deployed 7/03; withdrawn 3/05) : 1,300 troops (deployed 4/03; withdrawn 4/04) : 600 troops (deployed 1/04; withdrawn 7/06) Thailand: 423 troops (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 8/04) : 368 troops (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 5/04) : 302 troops (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 5/04) : 300 troops (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 3/05) : 230 troops (deployed 9/03; withdrawn 2/04) : 150 troops (deployed 7/03; withdrawn 8/06) : 128 troops (deployed 11/03; withdrawn 2/05) : 120 peak (deployed 6/03; withdrawn 08/07) : 110 peak (deployed 8/03; withdrawn 12/07) : 61 troops (deployed 9/03; withdrawn 9/04) : 51 troops (deployed 7/03; withdrawn 7/04) : 2 troops (deployed 5/03; withdrawal 8/07) Clandestine deployment of Canadian forces – According to the U.S. State Department, a total of 15 countries participated covertly. According to leaked U.S. diplomatic cables, despite the Canadian government's official position that they would not participate in the invasion, Canadian officials allegedly promised to clandestinely support it. In addition to naval vessels and personnel already in the region, Canadian officers, Major Generals Walter Natynczyk, Peter Devlin, and Nicholas Matern, served as Deputy Commanding Generals of Multi-National Corps – Iraq. and Canadian pilots flew Boeing C-17s into Iraq to "season" the flight crews. In 2003, Prime Minister Chrétien admitted that some Canadian troops could be serving alongside U.S. and British troops in Iraq. "It's possible," he said, "but they are not in combat roles." Canadian Defense Minister John McCallum refused to give Parliament details about the locations of Canadian soldiers in Iraq.
Notable deployment of military equipment – contributed with ARTHUR counter-battery radar systems, which pointed out 1,500 bombing targets during" the first days of the war (the British minister of defence, Geoff Hoon, thanked Norway for its "robust" contribution).
Countries that deployed troops to Iraq 2011 withdrawals
– 3,700 troops were in Southern Iraq, leading the Multi-National Division (South East), which includes troops from several other countries. The deployment includes infantry, mechanized infantry and armored units as well as water-borne patrol personnel and a range of aircraft. After the invasion (which involved 46,000 British troops), approximately 8,500 troops were stationed in the south of the country, but 1,300 were withdrawn in early 2006. The British government then gradually reduced the number of troops in Iraq until May 22, 2011 when all the remaining British troops left Iraq after the Iraqi government rejected their request to stay and to extend their mission. The UK had lost 179 soldiers in Iraq as of 12 February 2009: 136 in roadside bombings, firefights, and rocket attacks. Out of the remaining 43, the cause of death included accidents, 'friendly fire' incidents, illnesses, and suicide. See Operation Telic for further information. – In the cities, U.S. forces operate in support of Iraqi forces, and outside the cities U.S. forces operate in partnership with Iraqi forces. Support includes, for example, aerial surveillance, tactical advice, logistics, and intelligence, while partnership includes actual combat, for example patrolling, mine clearing, and serving arrest warrants. Additionally, a major line of operations is the logistical work of transporting millions of pieces of equipment back to the United States. On 1 January 2010 the five major command groups in the country were consolidated into a headquarters command called U.S. Forces – Iraq (USF–I), and MNF–I was deactivated. Subordinate commands (MNC–I, MNSTC–I, and Task Force 134), responsible for detainee operations, were also deactivated in the same ceremony and their responsibilities now fall under the aegis of USF–I. In August 2010 all U.S. combat operations in Iraq ceased, and by then it is planned that all combat brigades will be AABs. In accordance with the U.S.–Iraq Status of Forces Agreement, all U.S. troops were withdrawn from Iraq by December 31, 2011. On October 21, 2011, President Barack Obama confirmed that all U.S. military personnel would leave Iraq by the end of 2011. As of December 6, 2011 there were 4,485 U.S. soldiers killed in combat operations within Iraq. On December 15, 2011, the United States formally ended its mission in Iraq. On December 18, 2011, the United States completed its withdrawal from Iraq.
2009 withdrawals – Australia contributed 2,000 personnel to the 2003 Iraq invasion. The largest force was the Overwatch Battle Group (West), which comprised 515 soldiers based at Camp Terendak in Talil (Southern Iraq), which terminated operations on June 2, 2008 along with the attached Australian Army training team (composed of 60–95 personnel). The battle group was previously known as the Al Muthanna Task Group, which had about 450 troops and was deployed on 22 February 2005 to reinforce Task Force Eagle, a British Army Battlegroup, which had recently replaced outgoing Dutch forces in Al Muthana Province. The Australian military presence in Iraq ended on 28 July 2009 per an agreement with the Iraqi government. There have been several injuries but no deaths of Australian troops in Iraq attributed to hostile action, however, a SASR operator was killed in a vehicle accident in Kuwait, and a soldier named Jacob Kovco, assigned to the Baghdad SECDET, died from an accidental discharge of his pistol. (See also: Australian contribution to the 2003 invasion of Iraq) – Salvadoran troops were involved in guarding convoys. The last Salvadoran troops left Iraq on 22 January. El Salvador lost five soldiers in Iraq, four in hostile incidents and one in an accident. Twenty soldiers were wounded. – Estonia has decided not to send a fresh troop contingent to Iraq, ending the involvement of units of up to 40 soldiers in the mission in Iraq since June 2003, Estonia's defence ministry announced in January. The mission officially ended on 7 February 2009. Their task was to conduct raids and combat patrols alongside American Forces in Baghdad and Fallujah. Two soldiers were killed in Iraq in separate insurgent attacks, 18 soldiers were wounded. Three staff officers remain with the NATO-led training mission in Iraq.