خليل باشا اخر الولاة العثمانيين في العراق : دراسة تاريخية لدوره العسكري : 1915-1917

Abstract EN

When following up the political and military events that accompanied the last years of Ottoman presence in Iraq, the character of Khalil Pasha, the last Ottoman Wali in Baghdad and the 6th Ottoman Army Commander, should be studied in order to get to know his personal, managerial, and military character.

He was sent to Iraq in 1915 coming from the Caucasus with the 18th Corps as commander of the 51st Division to provide military support to Noor Al-Deen Mahmood, Baghdad Wali at the time and commander of all Ottoman armies in Iraq.

At the time, the Ottomans were fighting the British at Salman Pak in the WW1.

After a short while, that leader was put in charge of Baghdad Wilayet and 18th Division (1916) before becoming commander of the 6th Ottoman Army, headquartered in Iraq.

However, Khalil Pasha miscalculations, military mistakes, and deviant behavior were among the main reasons behind the collapse of Ottoman defenses in the face of British advancement to occupy Baghdad, led by General Maude, who entered the city at the dawn of March 1917 after Khalil Pash had ordered his forces to move to Samara'.

Thus, the Ottoman presence in Iraq, which lasted for 4 centuries, came to a close, and the era of British dominance over Iraq started.

The said leader spent in Baghdad one year and 3 months, full of tragedies and ordeals