HQ$History - United States Special Operations Command

2004, and if Sadr had not
surrendered, they would
have stormed his hiding
place. In September 2004,
the ICTF and the commandos
conducted offensive operations
in Samarra, and in
the November 2004 battle to
retake Fallujah, 36th
Commando assaulted an
insurgent stronghold within
a hospital. Had the latter
operation been conducted by
U.S. forces, the enemy could
have easily exploited anticipated
collateral damage for
propaganda.
As the two Iraqi units
grew in size and scope, it became necessary to
build a stronger command and support structure.
With SOF assistance, the Iraqi Army created
the Iraqi Special Operations Forces (ISOF)
Brigade in July 2005. The 36th Commando
became the 1st Battalion of the ISOF Brigade,
and the ICTF became the 2nd Battalion of the
ISOF Brigade. The brigade had both training
and support battalions, giving it a total of four.
In 2006, the Iraqi Prime Minister, with MNSTC-
I and MNF-I concurrence, decided to expand the
ISOF Brigade to other regions of the country,
requiring four additional Commando Battalions.
By December 2007, the ISOF Brigade had two
new Commando Battalions operational and two
still scheduled. In December 2007, the ISOF
Brigade was transferred from the MOD to the
Iraqi Counter Terrorism Command. ISOF
remained arguably the most effective Iraqi
forces, and perhaps, the most impressive success
story in the American-led effort to build new
Iraqi security forces.
Training and Advising
Conventional Forces
SOF’s training and advisory mission did not
stop with the ISOF Brigade. Conventional
forces took the lead in training and organizing
Iraqi police and conventional military forces.
American commanders, however, recognized
SOF’s enormous experience in organizing and
training foreign forces. As a rule, SOF not only
trained forces, but accompanied them during
operations to provide continuing advice, assistance,
and assessment. To meet the training
needs of the broader Iraqi Army, the multinational
command subsequently requested the
CJSOTF’s assistance in training conventional
Iraqi forces in 2004. Thus, SOF grew increasingly
involved in training a variety of Iraqi
units.
When 10th SFG (A) replaced 5th SFG (A) in
command of the CJSOTF-AP in December 2004,
SOF began partnering with local Iraqi security
forces in their AOs. CJSOTF-AP instructed each
operational detachment to build partnership
relationships with the most effective Iraqi forces
in its AO. Usually these units were from the
Iraqi National Guard (later re-designated Iraqi
Army units), but in some places SOF worked
BATT personnel conducting combined operation with Iraqi
soldiers and U.S. conventional forces.
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