Fallujah
Fallujah
ٱلْفَلُّوجَة | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Fallujah Location within Iraq | |
| Coordinates: 33°21′13″N 43°46′46″E / 33.35361°N 43.77944°E | |
| Country | Iraq |
| Governorate | Al Anbar |
| District | Fallujah District |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Issa Saer al-Assawi |
| Elevation | 141 ft (43 m) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 275,128 |
| Time zone | UTC+3 (GMT+3) |
| Postal code | 31002 |
Fallujah[a] (Arabic: ٱلْفَلُّوجَة, al-Fallūjah Iraqi pronunciation: [el.fɐl.ˈluː.dʒɐ]) is a city in the Iraqi province of Al Anbar. It is 69 kilometers (43 mi) west of Baghdad. The city is located in the region defined as Sunni Triangle by the United States, as the majority of its residents are Sunni Arabs. In 1947, Fallujah was a small town with a relatively small population but had grown to a population of about 250,900 people by 2018.
Following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which triggered the Iraq War, the city became a major centre of resistance during insurgency. The United States, the United Kingdom, and the Iraqi Interim Government twice engaged in fierce urban combat with insurgents throughout the city; the first battle of Fallujah failed to dislodge the insurgents, triggering the second battle, in which the coalition forces successfully took control of the city. However, heavy fighting from these two battles left the city severely damaged, though it remained occupied by the coalition until 2011. In January 2014, three years after the American withdrawal from Iraq, Fallujah was captured by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and suffered a major population decline. On 23 May 2016, the government announced the beginning of a large-scale military offensive against the ISIL militants occupying the city, resulting in the Third Battle of Fallujah.[3] On 26 June 2016, the Iraqi Armed Forces stated that Fallujah had been fully liberated and was free from ISIL control.[4][5]
The city was a small town in 1947. About 275,100 people lived here in 2011.[6] It is known as the "city of mosques" for the more than 200 mosques found in the city and the surrounding villages.
Notes
[change | change source]- ↑ Sometimes also transliterated as Falluja, Fallouja, or Falowja
References
[change | change source]- ↑ World Gazetteer, archived from the original on 9 February 2013, retrieved 21 January 2009
- ↑ http://postimg.org/image/euj0qcxd/[permanent dead link]
- ↑ Hassan, Falih; Arango, Tim (23 May 2016). "Iraqi Forces Try to Retake Falluja From ISIS". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 23 May 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2016.
- ↑ Cite error: The named reference
liberatedwas used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page). - ↑ "Iraq government loses control of Fallujah: PM Maliki vows "terrorists" will be eliminated after Islamic State of Iraq and Levant takes over town in Anbar province". Al Jazeera. 4 January 2014. Archived from the original on 17 November 2015.
- ↑ Fallujah Once Again Beset by Violence, McClatchy Washington Bureau, 26 November 2006, archived from the original on 10 September 2009, retrieved 10 September 2009
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