General Military Council for Iraqi Revolutionaries

General Military Council for Iraqi Revolutionaries
المجلس العسكري العام لثوار العراق
Dates of operation15 January 2014 – 2 December 2014[1]
Active regionsIraq
IdeologyIraqi nationalism
Ba'athism
Arab socialism
Size75,000[2]
Allies
Opponents
Battles and wars

The General Military Council for Iraqi Revolutionaries (Arabic: المجلس العسكري العام لثوار العراق al-Majlis al-‘Askari al-‘Āmm li-Thuwwār al-‘Irāq; GMCIR),[3] was an Ba'athist militant group in Iraq headed by Saddam Hussein-era military and political leaders.[4] It was described by Al Jazeera as "one of the main groups" in the Iraqi insurgency.[5]

GMCIR began its insurgency against the Iraqi government in January 2014, during the War in Iraq (2013-17), as a unifying command for the former Sunni Arab Spring protesters that Nouri al-Maliki's government had cracked down upon since 2012.[6] The figures associated with the GMCIR have stated that it has a central command and "the footprints of a professional army",[4] that it follows the Geneva Convention protocol rules,[7] as well as claiming to be non-sectarian and seeking a "democratic solution" to the Iraqi crisis.[5] The GMCIR has announced its opposition to Iranian influence in Iraq and the role the IRGC have played with Iraqi security forces.[8]

The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace characterized the GMCIR as an Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Iraq Region front group.[3]

By the end of 2014 the group was eclipsed by ISIL and had become defunct.[9]

  1. ^ Historical Dictionary of Iraq (268 ed.). Rowman & Littlefield. 15 June 2019. p. 267. ISBN 9781538120057.
  2. ^ Heras, Nicholas A. "The Tribal Component of Iraq's Sunni Rebellion: The General Military Council for Iraqi Revolutionaries". Jamestown. The Jamestown Foundation. Archived from the original on 2 September 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  3. ^ a b Hassan, Hassan (17 June 2014). "More Than ISIS, Iraq's Sunni Insurgency". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Archived from the original on 19 June 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  4. ^ a b Arraf, Jane (March 12, 2014). "Iraq's Sunni tribal leaders say fight for Fallujah is part of a revolution". Washington Post. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved June 15, 2014. The councils include tribal leaders and former insurgent leaders but are headed by former senior army officers—among the thousands of Sunni generals cast aside when the United States disbanded the Iraqi army after the toppling of Saddam Hussein in 2003..."We consider the Iraqi government illegitimate because it is a result of [the U.S.] occupation," said Dari, head of the association's information office
  5. ^ a b Bayoumi, Alaa; Harding, Leah (June 27, 2014). "Mapping Iraq's fighting groups". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
  6. ^ Nasrawi, Salah (March 20, 2014). "The enemy next door". Al-Ahram Weekly. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2014.
  7. ^ "Iraq conflict: 'We are stronger than ISIS'". BBC News. 14 June 2014. Archived from the original on 15 June 2014. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  8. ^ Wasfi, Dahlia (12 August 2014). "The truth about operation Iraqi liberation (take II)". Middle East Eye. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
  9. ^ Historical Dictionary of Iraq (268 ed.). Rowman & Littlefield. 15 June 2019. p. 267. ISBN 9781538120057.