Anbar clashes (2013–2014)

Battle context

The Anbar clashes emerged from sustained Sunni political grievances against the Maliki government, which had been building since December 2012. The arrest of Sunni MP Ahmed al-Alwani in Ramadi on 28 December 2013 served as the immediate trigger, converting protest into armed conflict across Al Anbar Governorate. The fighting pitted the Iraqi Army against a coalition of tribal militias and ISIL, reflecting the degree to which political alienation had driven Sunni communities toward alignment, or at least tactical convergence, with the insurgency. The clashes marked an early escalation point in what became the broader Iraqi Civil War of 2014–2017, demonstrating that ISIL could operate not in isolation but alongside tribal actors, complicating the Iraqi government's military and political response in one of the country's most strategically significant provinces.