ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the new and limited role that forensic archaeology and anthropology have had in Iraq, focusing on events since the 2003 overthrow of the Iraqi government by the United States and allies. In 1920, during the Iraqi revolution against British rule at Winston Churchill's suggestion, the Royal Air Force (RAF), used poison gas against the rebellious Kurds. The best qualified in Iraq may be those who participated in training courses with the International Forensic Centre of Excellence for the Investigation of Genocide and the International Commission for Missing Persons, (ICMP). In June 2003, the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) took political control of Iraq and set about to investigate alleged mass graves. The work involved the identification of conventional archaeologists and anthropologists in Iraq, many of whom had experience with the recovery and analysis of human remains and newly graduated doctors from Medical Degree programs, where skeletal anatomy is a core subject.
