Battle of Al Faw (2003) 2003
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 20 March 2003 – 24 March 2003 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 2003 | Wikidata P580 (start time) |
| Era | Post-1945 (1946 onwards) | derived from year |
| Location | Iraq | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Asia | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | 2003 invasion of Iraq | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | Ba'athist Iraq, United Kingdom, United States | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 29.9753, 48.4725 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Al Faw began on 20 March 2003 and continued for four days, as part of the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
One of the initial objectives of the Coalition was to capture every GOPLAT (gas and oil platform) in the Al-Faw Peninsula before they could be sabotaged or destroyed by the Iraqi military. Doing so would also deny Iraq the ability to cause another ecological disaster, as it had done with the Kuwait oil fires and the Persian Gulf oil spill in 1991. By seizing the country's coast, the Coalition would also ensure a quicker takeover of Iraqi oil production.
The 3 Commando Brigade of the British Armed Forces would also capture Umm Qasr at the same time, so that Umm Qasr Port—the only deep water port in Iraq—could be used to bring in heavy military supplies once Khawr Abd Allah was cleared by the Mine Counter Measures Task Group. The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit of the United States Marine Corps was placed under the command of the 3 Commando Brigade in order to provide the necessary force for capturing both targets.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Al Faw (2003) (revision 1375291019), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- First Battle of al-Faw 1986 · 0 km
- Fao Landing 1914 · 5 km
- Siege of Abadan 1980 · 44 km
- Battle of Umm Qasr 2003 · 52 km
- Battle of Khorramshahr (1982) 1982 · 58 km
- Battle of Khorramshahr (1980) 1980 · 59 km
Other battles of the 2003 invasion of Iraq
- Battle of Basra (2003) 2003
- Battle of Haditha Dam 2003
- Battle of Najaf (2003) 2003
- Battle of Nasiriyah 2003
- Battle of Samawah 2003
- Battle of Umm Qasr 2003
- Battle of the Karbala Gap (2003) 2003
All 8 battles of the 2003 invasion of Iraq →
Browse more: battles in Iraq · Asia · Post-1945 battles