Ayad Khalil Zaki (Arabic: اياد خليل زكي; 1944 – 22 August 2013) was an Iraqi military officer and commander of the Iraqi Army's IV Corps (4th Corps) during the Gulf War. A combat engineering officer in the Iraqi Army, he served as the Iraqi field commander during the Anfal Campaign.[1] By 1990, Zaki was the Commander of the IV Corps of the Iraqi Army and was the commander of the army during the Battle of Wadi al-Batin in the Gulf War.[2]
Ayad Khalil Zaki | |
|---|---|
| اياد خليل زكي | |
 Zaki in 1990 | |
| Governor of Muthanna Province | |
| In office 1995–2002 | |
| President | Saddam Hussein |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c.1944 Baghdad, Kingdom of Iraq |
| Died | 22 August 2013 (age 69) Amman, Jordan |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |   Iraqi Republic (1961–1968) Ba'athist Iraq (1968–1995) |
| Branch/service |  Iraqi Ground Forces |
| Years of service | 1961–1995 |
| Rank | Colonel General  |
| Unit | 14th Combat Engineering Regiment ( Corps of Engineers ) |
| Commands | 5th Infantry Division (1984-1987) 4th Corps (1987-1991) |
| Battles/wars | |
In 1991, Zaki had been promoted to the position of Armed Forces Assistant Chief of Staff for Supplies and Logistics.[3] In early December 1994 , Zaki was one of the Generals called on by Wafiq al-Samarrai to revolt when the latter defected.[4] However, Zaki ignored al-Samarrai's call and refused to defect to the Iraqi opposition and revolt against the government of Saddam Hussein.
Zaki served as Assistant Chief of Staff until being made the Governor of Muthanna Province.[5]
Zaki left Iraq following the 2003 Invasion of Iraq and the overthrow of the Ba'athist government and fled to Jordan, where he spent his final years and died on the 22 August 2013.[6][7]
Zaki was a Sunni Arab from Baghdad.[4]
Command and Staff positions held
edit- Second in Command, Sapper Platoon 1956-57
- Pioneers and Sappers Platoon Leader - 1957-1959
- Combat Engineering officers company leader and battalion staff officer course, Soviet Union - 1959-1960
- Second in Command, Sapper Company - 1960-1962
- Commanding Officer, B Sapper Company, 2nd Sapper Battalion, 5th Motorised Brigade - 1962-1964
- Combined Arms/All-Arms Operations Officers Course, Soviet Union - 1964-1965
- Adjutant, 1st Field Engineer Regiment, 1st Division - 1965-1967
- Instructor, Military Engineering College - 1967-1968
- Commanding Officer, 2nd Infantry Battalion, 12th Armoured Brigade, 3rd Armoured Division - 1968-1971
- Higher Command and Staff College Course (Frunze University), Soviet Union - 1971-1972
- GSO-I, 2nd Infantry Brigade, 1st Division - 1972-1976
- Executive Staff Officer, Personnel and Training Division, Army General Headquarters Baghdad - 1976-1979
- Commander, 14th Infantry Brigade, 4th Division - 1979-1982
- Commander, 2nd Combat Engineering Brigade, II Corps - 1982-1984
- General Officer Commanding, 5th Infantry Division, 1984-1987
- GSO-I and Chief of Operations, II Corps - 1987-1990
- General Officer Commanding, IV Corps - 1990-1994
- Assistant Minister of Defence, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Army and Chief of Supplies and Logistics - 1994-1999
Ranks
edit- Second Lieutenant
- 1956-57 - Lieutenant
- 1957-1960 - Captain
- 1960-1965 - Major
- 1965-1968 - Lieutenant Colonel
- 1968-1972 - Colonel
- 1972-1979 - Brigadier
- 1979-1984 - Major General
- 1984-1989 - Lieutenant General
- 1989-1995 - Colonel General ( Full General )
- 1995-1999
References
edit- ^ Human Rights Watch - Appendix B - The Perpetrators of Anfal: A Road-Map to the Principal Agencies and Individuals
- ^ Ayalon, Ami (1 August 1992). Middle East Contemporary Survey 1990, Volume 14; Volume 1990. The Moshe Dayan Center. p. 420.
- ^ al-Marashi, Ibrahim; Salama, Sammy (2008). Iraq's Armed Forces: An Analytical History. Routledge. p. 189.
- ^ a b Maddy-Weitzman, Bruce. Middle East Contemporary Survey, Volume 24. p. 256 & p. 276.
- ^ Maddy-Weitzman, Bruce (5 September 2002). Middle East Contemporary Survey, Volume 24. The Moshe Dayan Center. p. 256 & p. 276.
- ^ Woods, Kevin M. (2011) [2010]. Saddam's Generals: Perspectives of the Iran-Iraq War. Alexandria, VA: Institute for Defense Analyses. p. 43. ISBN 9780160896132.
- ^ "BANGRE". Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2014-07-03.