This report provides short answers to commonly asked questions about military personnel, compensation, and force structure issues related to Operation Noble Eagle (ONE), Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Operation Noble Eagle is the name given to military operations related to homeland security and support to federal, state, and local agencies in the wake of the September 11th attacks.

This report provides detailed trade information and statistics on Iraq’s trade with the world from 2001 to 2003, highlighting its major trading partners. Data on U.S. trade with Iraq from 2002 to 2004 are also provided.

This report provides statistics on fatalities during Operation Iraqi Freedom, which began on March 19, 2003, as well as on the number of fatalities since May 1, 2003, plus statistics on those wounded, but not killed, since March 19, 2003.

This report provides a table of casualties that was compiled by the Department of Defense (DOD), as tallied from DOD press releases. Table 1 provides statistics on fatalities during Operation Iraqi Freedom, which began on March 19, 2003, and is ongoing, as well as on the number of fatalities since May 1, 2003.

This report provides a summary estimate of military forces reported to have been deployed to and subsequently withdrawn from the U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) Area of Responsibility (AOR), popularly called the Persian Gulf region, to support Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Report which discusses issues related to the North Atlantic Trade Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU) including the level of involvement of the entities in using political and military actions to defend against terrorism and proliferation, the types of military forces necessary, the role of the EU in crisis management, the appropriateness of decision-making procedures to respond to emerging threats, and the role of other international institutions.

The issue of women’s rights in Iraq has taken on new relevance, following the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, efforts to reconstruct Iraq, and recent elections for a Transitional National Assembly (TNA). Over the past three years, the Bush Administration has reiterated its interest in ensuring that Iraqi women participate in politics and ongoing reconstruction efforts in Iraq. There has also been a widening debate regarding the extent to which the U.S.-led reconstruction efforts have been able to enhance women’s rights in Iraq and encourage their participation in Iraq’s governing institutions.

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Iraq’s chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons programs, together with Iraqi long-range missile development and support for al-Queda terrorism, were the primary justifications put forward for military action. On March 17, 2003, President Bush issued an ultimatum demanding that Saddam Hussein and his sons depart from Iraq within 48 hours. On March 19, offensive operations began with air strikes against Iraqi leadership positions. By April 15, after 27 days of operations, coalition forces were in relative control of all major Iraqi cities and Iraqi political and military leadership had disintegrated. On May 1, 2003, President Bush declared an end to major combat operations. There was no use of chemical or biological (CB)weapons, and no CB or nuclear weapons stockpiles or production facilities have been found.

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Report which discusses issues related to the North Atlantic Trade Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU) including the level of involvement of the entities in using political and military actions to defend against terrorism and proliferation, the types of military forces necessary, the role of the EU in crisis management, the appropriateness of decision-making procedures to respond to emerging threats, and the role of other international institutions.

The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA or “the authority”) was established approximately one month after United States and coalition forces took control of Baghdad in Iraq on April 9, 2003.1 The authority’s mission was “to restore conditions of security and stability, to create conditions in which the Iraqi people can freely determine their own political future, (including by advancing efforts to restore and establish national and local institutions for representative governance) and facilitating economic recovery, sustainable reconstruction and development. This report discusses two views on how the authority was established, reviews selected characteristics of the authority, identifies statutory reporting requirements concerning the authority and the reconstruction of Iraq, and explores several policy issues.

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This report discusses Iran’s influence over the post-Saddam government in Iraq, which is substantial because the predominant parties in that government have long enjoyed Tehran’s sponsorship. An emerging concern is that Iran’s influence has extended to support for militant groups in Iraq. Some U.S. statements and press sources say that sophisticated explosive devices are entering Iraq from Iran, suggesting that Iran, or factions within Iran, are backing Iraqi factions that use violence to oppose the U.S. and allied military presence in Iraq.

This report discusses issues with the “oil-for-food” program (OFFP), which was the centerpiece of a long-standing U.N. Security Council effort to alleviate human suffering in Iraq while maintaining key elements of the 1991 Gulf war-related sanctions regime. The program terminated following the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime, the assumption of sovereignty by an interim Iraqi government on June 28, 2004, and the lifting of Saddam-era U.N. sanctions. However, since the fall of the regime, there have been new allegations of mismanagement and abuse of the program, including allegations that Saddam Hussein’s regime manipulated the program to influence U.N. officials, contractors, and politicians and businessmen in numerous countries.

Large-scale reconstruction assistance programs are being undertaken by the United States following the war with Iraq. To fund such programs, Congress approved on April 12, 2003, a $2.48 billion Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund (IRRF) in the FY2003 Supplemental Appropriation. On November 6, 2003, the President signed into law P.L. 108-106, the FY2004 Emergency Supplemental Appropriation, providing $18.4 billion for Iraq reconstruction. Contributions pledged at the October 24, 2003, Madrid donor conference by other donors amounted to roughly $3.6 billion in grant aid and as much as $13.3 billion in possible loans. This report describes recent developments in this assistance effort.

Elections for a transitional National Assembly, provincial councils, and a Kurdish regional assembly were held on January 30, 2005. High voter turnout in mostly Shiite and Kurdish areas led to a first and second-place finish for slates backed by these two communities. Sunni Arabs, dominant under Saddam Hussein, appear to have been further marginalized by their relative lack of participation in the vote. This report will be updated regularly. See CRS Report RL31339, Iraq: U.S. Regime Change Efforts and Post-Saddam Governance.

Elections for a transitional National Assembly, provincial councils, and a Kurdish regional assembly were held on January 30, 2005. High turnout in Shiite and Kurdish areas led to first- and second-place finishes for slates of these two communities, and they determined the composition of a new government inaugurated in May. See CRS Report RL31339, Iraq: U.S. Regime Change Efforts and Post-Saddam Governance.

Elections for a transitional National Assembly, provincial councils, and a Kurdish regional assembly were held on January 30, 2005. High voter turnout in mostly Shiite and Kurdish areas led to a first and second-place finish for slates backed by these two communities; and they are negotiating what appears to be a fragile governing coalition. Sunni Arabs mostly boycotted. See CRS Report RL31339, Iraq: U.S. Regime Change Efforts and Post-Saddam Governance.