The Ba'ath regime, led by Saddam Hussein, by taking advantage of that verse, used that name for a military attack and the destruction of Kurdistan and the Kurdish civilian population. In 1988, the military forces and the Jash of the Ba'ath regime era, which consisted of: the First Corps, which had its headquarters in the city of Kirkuk, the Fifth Corps, which had its headquarters in Erbil, the Air Force, Special Forces, Maghawir, the Directorates of Security and Intelligence, units specialized in chemical and biological weapons, military intelligence, and all other institutions participated. Under the command of Ali Hassan al-Majid, the cousin of Saddam Hussein, that military campaign was carried out against the people of Kurdistan.

Although the history of the Anfal campaign of the Kurdish people dates back to the mid-seventies of the last century, the then-regime of Iraq expelled approximately 40 thousand Failis from Iraq, who had lived for several generations near Baghdad and Khanaqin, and portrayed them as Iranians. From the year 1971 to 1980, more than 200 thousand Faili Kurds were removed from their homelands by the Iraqi government. In the year 1980, the Ba'ath regime offered a sum of money as a reward to those citizens who separated from the Failis or disowned them.

Also, on the 31 of July 1983, the Ba'ath regime, with a large force, besieged each of the complexes of Qushtapa, Baharka, Harir, and Diana, and in a ruthless campaign, dragged eight thousand Barzani civilian citizens toward the deserts of Iraq, and in the most brutal manner, far from any religious value or humanitarian custom, buried them alive in Nugra Salman in the city of Samawa. The Anfal of the Barzanis was one of those crimes that are rare in human history and is considered one of the major crimes.

Those crimes of genocide continued until the years (1986-1988) without being named. Later, the Ba'ath regime officially designated the word Anfal as a name for the process of genocide against the Kurds in Iraq. From then on, that name was used for the military attack to destroy Kurdistan and exterminate its people, and in that regard, Ali Hassan al-Majid had made the property and assets of the Kurdish nation lawful for the army, Jash, and Kurdish Traitors, and issued an order for the looting and seizure of the property and assets of Kurdish citizens for the army. In that campaign, approximately 182,000 thousand Kurdish civilians became victims and were disappeared and buried alive.

Stages of the Kurdish Anfal

Although, as we mentioned, the beginning of the Anfal campaign dates back to the year 1970, which began with the expulsion and arrest of Faili Kurds, but officially in the year 1988, after the end of the eight-year war between Iraq and Iran (1980-1988), it was conducted in eight stages against the Kurdish civilian population:  

First stage

The first stage, known as (the Anfal of the Jafayati Valley), began on the 23 of February 1988 under the leadership of Sultan Hashim, the Minister of Defense, and with the participation of the 60 Brigade of the military force against the villages of Sargalu and Bargalu in the Jafayati Valley and Dukan, Bingrd, Chwarta, Qalacholan, Sarchinar, Surdash, the Lesser Zab, Azmar, Suse, and Mawat. In that campaign, the Ba'ath regime used several types of heavy weapons against the people of those areas. As a result of that regime campaign, many villages and areas were destroyed and razed, and it ended on the 18 of March 1988.

Second stage

The second stage, known as (the Anfal of Qaradagh), on the 22 of March 1988 covered the areas of the Glazerd Mountain, Bazian, Qaradagh, Darbandikhan, Zarayan, Arbat, and the villages of Tekiya, Suseinan, Sagrma, Darbandbasara, and Qopi Qaradaghi. The Ba'ath regime started that campaign with chemical weapons. In that campaign, more than 8 thousand civilian people of the area were displaced. Then they separated the young men and men from the women and the elderly and sent them to the Nugra Salman prison in the city of Samawa. That stage ended on the 1 of April 1988.

Third stage

The third stage, which was also called the Anfal of Garmian, from the 7 to the 20 of April 1988 covered three areas of Garmian. That stage was the most extensive attack and assault on the area. It covered the areas of Tuz Khurmatu, Qadir Karam, Kalar, Kifri, Chamchamal, Tilako, Pibaz, Sangaw, Darbandikhan, Qara Hanjir, Tekiya, and part of the Aghjalar area. That stage of Anfal was more catastrophic and damaging than all other stages in every respect, because approximately 80 thousand Kurdish civilian people were Anfalized in it.

Fourth stage

The fourth stage of Anfal, or the Anfal of the Lesser Zab Basin, began on the 3 of May 1988 after completing the crimes of the third Anfal, which resulted in the highest number of victims. That campaign covered the Lesser Zab Basin, which forms the border line between the two governorates of Kirkuk and Erbil, and also covered the south of the road between Koya and Dukan Lake and the areas of Shwan, Sheikh Bizini, the Koya Plain, Goptapa, Askar, Degala, and Altun Kupri.

The fourth stage of Anfal began with the chemical bombardment of the village of Goptapa. At first, warplanes rained chemical bombs on the people of the area; the victims of that village were approximately 300 people. The village of Askar was also bombed with 8 chemical bombs. At the same time, it released the water of the Dukan Dam so that people could not cross and save themselves. That stage ended on the 8 of May of the same year.

Fifth stage

The fifth, sixth, and seventh stages of the Anfal campaign began on the 15 of May 1988. That stage covered the valley of the mountains of Shaqlawa and Rawanduz. Several planes bombed the villages of Nazanin, Kamusak, Spindara, Aliyawe, and Samaquli with chemical gas, and as a result, a large number of the residents of those villages were Martyred. On the 7 of June, the fifth Anfal campaign ended.

Sixth and seventh stages

It began on the 26 of July 1988. That stage covered the areas of the Balisan Valley, the Malakan Valley, the Warta Valley, Hiran, and Samaquli. The Ba'ath regime bombed the area with chemical weapons. During the fifth, sixth, and seventh campaigns, 52 villages in the sub-districts of Khalifan, Rawanduz, and Khoshnawaty were destroyed. Those two stages ended on the 26 of August 1988.

Eighth and final stage

The eighth stage or the Badinan Anfal began on 25 August 1988 after the cessation of the Iraq-Iran war in the Badinan region. This campaign began with a chemical attack on the Zireskan area on the border of Iraq and Turkey and covered the areas of Duhok, Zakho, Amedi, Kani Masi, Zewa, Atrush, Zawita, Sheikhan, and Akre. This stage of the Anfal saw the most intensive use of chemical bombs, but the number of casualties was low compared to that intensive bombardment, because the Peshmerga forces in the area had previously warned the people and given them advice on self-protection. Only great damage was caused to the people's homes and livestock, and sheep and livestock were wiped out, and the farmers' fields became unproductive due to the effects of the chemicals. This stage continued until 6 September 1988.

Source:

1-Archive of the Kurdistan Democratic Party Encyclopedia Board.