Allegiance Iraq Type Motorised Infantry | Branch Iraqi Army Role Strategic Reserves | |
 | ||
Active 1959–2003
August 2005 – present Country Republic of Iraq (1959–68)
Ba'athist Iraq (1968–2003)
Iraq (2005–present) | ||
The 6th Division is a formation of the Iraqi Army, first formed after 1959, converted to armoured status by 1973, but disbanded in 2003. It was reformed as part of the new army in August 2005.
The division was present during the Yom Kippur War on the Golan Heights, but does not appear to have seen much action. One of its components during the war was the 30th Armoured Brigade. (Pollack 174) It fought during several battles of the Iran–Iraq War. Later in the war, it was present at the Second Battle of Al Faw of 1988 with 7th Infantry Division. It operated with IV Corps during the Persian Gulf War and then fought against the Kurds in the north in 2000. It was assigned to the III Corps just before the 2003 invasion of Iraq. At the time, it included the 25th Mechanised Brigade, 30th Armoured Brigade, and 70th Armoured Brigade. It was equipped with T-55s and BMP-1s. It was rendered incapable for combat during the Battle of Nasiriyah in March 2003, during the invasion. It was then dissolved along with the rest of the Iraqi Army by Coalition Provisional Authority Order Number 2.
The reconstruction of the Iraqi Army began in 2003. The units that would eventually form the 6th Division began to be created soon afterwards. "While most of the 6th Division's battalions are former Iraqi National Guard units, some with their origins in the ING's predecessor, the Iraqi Civil Defence Corps, the division headquarters was not formed until August 2005." The 6th Division is the oldest formation of the army in Baghdad. Its subordinate formations included:
The division was previously commanded by Major General Mubdar Hatim al-Dulaimi, who was killed in 2006.
Current division order of battle is estimated by DJ Elliott as:
The division is responsible for the Baghdad West sector.
It is possible that the 54th Brigade may be attached to a new 15th Division (a future airborne division?) planned for Baghdad-West. This will be created with the units in excess of the 25th Brigade as a base at FOB Kalsu in Iskandariyah.
The former Baghdad Brigade was previously reported as having been re-designated as the 56th Brigade. Now, it has been re-subordinated to the 6th Motorized Division. On 22 December 2009, 135 members of the 56/6 Brigade completed mechanized infantry courses and qualified on the M113A2 Armored Personnel Carrier at the Camp Taji Armor School. M113A2s usually have a crew of 2 each and carry 11 infantry. This many crew graduating indicates that the 56/6 Brigade is converting to a Combined Arms or Armored Brigade since that is crew for 6 companies of mechanized infantry. The 56/6 Brigade has a brigade number belonging to the unformed 15th Division and could be a temporary assignment pending the formation of a new division.