Operation Iraqi Freedom: A Military Geographical Perspective^*

* The authors are extremely grateful to the editors, Doug Johnson and Viola Haarmann, to the guest editor, Dona Stewart, and to the anonymous reviewers who provided constructive criticism, valuable insights, and recommendations to improve earlier versions of the article.

Abstract.

The war in Iraq has spanned the full spectrum of military operations: intense combat, stability‐and‐support operations, and peacetime activities. Regardless of their nature and relative intensity, military operations are shaped by the characteristics of the military operating environment. Consequently, the scale, tempo, and complexity of any type of military endeavor are linked to the physical and cultural landscapes of the region in which it is conducted. Military geographers use geographical information, tools, and techniques to examine those links. Iraq's operating environment is studied to identify the relevant components of its physical and human geography. This military geographical examination of Iraq tells us a great deal about how the physical and cultural environment have influenced the war, as well as how the complexity of its human landscape continues to affect the postwar rebuilding of the country.

Key words:

• geotechnology
• Iraq
• military geography
• Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Eugene J. Palka

Dr. Palka is a professor of geography at the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York 10996

Francis A. Galgano

Dr. Galgano is an associate professor of geography.

Mark W. Corson

Dr. Corson is an associate professor of geography at Northwest Missouri State University, Marysville, Missouri 64469.