Groups, Institutions, Organiza
Iraqi Intelligence Service (Istikhbarat)
Written by: Fatemeh Danesh-Shakib
Translated by: Hadi Qorbanyar
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Istikhbarat was the name of Iraq’s security–intelligence apparatus, which, during the Imposed War against Iran, was responsible for gathering military intelligence and interrogating prisoners of war.
The term Istikhbarat is Arabic in origin. Literally, it means asking for news or seeking information; in technical usage, it simply refers to intelligence or information.[1]
When King Faisal rose to power in Iraq on August 23, 1921, with British backing,[2] he established two security institutions: Mudiriyat al-Amn al-Amma (General Security Service), responsible for civilian security, and the Mudiriyat al-Istikhbarat al-Askariyya (Directorate of Military Intelligence), which monitored military personnel.
After the Baath Party coup of 8 February 1963,[3] the party created a new body known as al-Mukhabarat al-Amma (General Intelligence Service).[4] Later, during Saddam Hussein’s rule, and under the pretext of uncovering conspiracies, another institution—the al-Amn al-Khass (Special Security)—was established in 1983.[5]
The Directorate of Military Intelligence has operated under the Ministry of Defense since its inception. Following the Baathist coup in 1963, it came under the supervision of Iraq’s Revolutionary Command Council. Its core responsibilities included collecting information on neighboring countries’ land, naval, and air forces; identifying military commanders; gathering intelligence from border regions and deep within shared frontiers; producing military and topographical maps; obtaining aerial and satellite imagery of target countries; conducting counterintelligence operations; confronting espionage activities; and investigating potential violations within Iraq’s armed forces.
During the Iran-Iraq War, the head of this department was Qusay Hussein, Saddam Hussein’s son.[6] The organization’s headquarters was located in Baghdad along the Tigris River. Its senior officials were the high-ranking regime figures[7] and well-trained officers fluent in multiple languages who were usually Sunni and often came from cities such as Ramadi, Mosul, and Tikrit, selected through complex and tightly controlled procedures.[8]
Officers of this department operated in Iraqi embassies abroad under diplomatic cover. Their activities included gathering military intelligence on neighboring countries; identifying military commanders; collecting border intelligence; preparing military maps; acquiring satellite imagery; countering movements and activities backed by foreign powers; confronting and neutralizing foreign spies; collecting information and reporting on Western nuclear, biological, and chemical warfare programs; taking aerial photographs of foreign military bases, troop concentrations, and weapons production centers in NATO member states and identifying their air, land, and naval base locations; developing classified weapons projects and modern arms systems; suppressing domestic opposition; dismantling espionage networks; and carrying out assassinations of party opponents abroad.[9]
During the Iran–Iraq War, the Iraqi Army Intelligence Service was extensively active along the borders. Strong signal interception units and advanced listening equipment were deployed throughout the Iran–Iraq frontier. Their mission was to intercept radio communications used by the Iranian Army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), carried out through both close-range and long-range monitoring.[10]
Members of the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization, who fled to Iraq under the leadership of Massoud Rajavi in 1982 and formed the “National Liberation Army of Iran”[11] played a significant role in Iraqi intelligence operations. Being familiar with Persian linguistic codes, metaphors, and expressions, they analyzed Persian terminology and idioms, becoming one of the key assets of the Iraqi Intelligence Service in signal interception during the Imposed War.[12]
Throughout the Iran-Iraq War, many Iranian prisoners were tortured and killed by Iraqi Intelligence Service officers. Istikhbarat employed a wide range of interrogation and information-extraction methods,[13] including electric shocks, burning the feet, hands, and face, pulling out fingernails, crucifixion-style restraints, and suspension from ceilings.[14]
In 1997, the Edarat al-Istikhbarat al-Askariyya (Directorate of Military Intelligence) was reorganized under the name Mudiriyat al-Istikhbarat al-Askariyya al-Amma (General Directorate of Military Intelligence), operating directly under the Iraqi presidency.[15]
After Saddam Hussein’s regime collapsed, captured records and the arrest of senior Iraqi Intelligence Service officials revealed extensive evidence of crimes committed by the agency. Most of these materials are available in Arabic and English.[16]
[1] Tabiatshenas, Tahsin, Farhang-e Estelahat-e Nezami-ye Arabi–Farsi (Dictionary of Arabic–Persian Military Terms), Tehran: Jahad-e Daneshgahi-ye Daneshgah-e Tarbiat Moallem, 1374, p. 17; Dehkhoda, Ali-Akbar, Loghat-name-ye Dehkhoda (Dehkhoda Dictionary), Vol. 2, Tehran: Moassese-ye Entesharat va Chap-e Daneshgah-e Tehran, 1372, p. 1797.
[2] Parsadust, Manuchehr, Naqsh-e Iraq dar Shoru-e Jang hamrah ba Barrasi-ye Tarikh-e Araq va Andisheha-ye Hezb-e Baath (Iraq’s Role in the Outbreak of the War with an Analysis of Iraqi History and Baath Party Ideology), Tehran: Sherkat-e Sahami-ye Enteshar, 1st ed., 1369, p. 34.
[3] Sargord A. al-Jomayli, Negahi be Tarikh-e Siyasi-ye Araq (A Look at the Political History of Iraq), trans. Muhammad-Hussain Zavar Kabeh, Tehran: Hoze-ye Honari, 1370, p. 100.
[4] Tabraiyan, Safa al-Din, Khabgardha: az Payan-e Jang-e Jahani-ye Avval ta Roy-e Kar Amadan-e Hezb-e Baath (Sleepwalkers: From the End of World War I to the Rise of the Baath Party), Tehran: Markaz-e Asnad-e Enqelab-e Eslami, 1396, p. 66.
[5] Jenayat-e Posht-e Pardeh (Crimes Behind the Scenes), Anjoman-e Nejat, 1384, p. 3.
[6] Ibid., p. 1.
[7] Tabraiyan, Safa al-Din, Khabgardha (Sleepwalkers), p. 69.
[8] Ramazan, Mikhail, Shabih-e Saddam (Like Saddam), Binam, 1379, p. 243.
[9] Tabraiyan, Safa al-Din, Khabgardha (Sleepwalkers), Pp. 68–69.
[10] Esmaili, Seyyed Hojjat, Khodavand Ashraf: az Zohur ta Soqout (Khodavand Ashraf: From Emergence to Collapse), Tehran: Moassese-ye Farhangi-Honari va Entesharat-e Markaz-e Asnad-e Enqelab-e Eslami, 1393, Pp. 663–664.
[11] Tabraiyan, Safa al-Din, Khabgardha (Sleepwalkers), Pp. 65, 72.
[12] Esmaili, Seyyed Hojjat, Khodavand Ashraf: az Zohur ta Soqout (Khodavand Ashraf: From Emergence to Collapse), p. 664.
[13] Jabbari, Jalil, Shahid-e Gharib (The Lonely Martyr), Tehran: Sazman-e Aqidati–Siyasi-ye Artesh-e Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran, 1373, p. 71.
[14] Ahmadzadeh, Mikail, Akharin Khakriz (The Last Trench), Tehran: Sazman-e Aqidati–Siyasi-ye Artesh-e Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran (Nashr-e AJA), 1389, p. 143.
[15] Tabraiyan, Safa al-Din, Khabgardha (Sleepwalkers), p. 68.
[16] Baygani-ye Daneshname-ye Elektroniki-ye Defa Muqaddas, Sanad Sh. 1/2-97-1367, Mosahebeh ba Morteza Bashiri (Interview with Morteza Bashiri).
