Operation Okra: Australia and New Zealand against ISIS

Australia’s involvement in the war against ISIS started officially on 14 August 2014, when Lockheed C-130J-30 Super Hercules transports of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF)’s No. 37 Squadron (part of No. 86 Wing) dropped nine tons of supplies to civilians trapped on Mt. Sinjar. A second delivery of bottled water, high-energy biscuits, and hygiene packs designed to feed/hydrate 2,600 people for 24 hours was delivered to the town of Amirli on 31 August, along with a statement of support for Iraqi forces indicating Australia’s readiness to “provide further air-lift assistance to Iraq with the movement of stores including arms and munitions.” The C-130s were augmented starting 2 September by No. 36 Squadron’s Boeing C-17A Globemaster strategic airlift aircraft, which began delivering stores of Albanian-supplied ammunition to the Kurdish Peshmerga via Erbil International Airport in Kurdistan. During the operations, personnel from the Australian Special Air Service (SAS) rode along on the aircraft to provide security; they were known as the Special Operations Task Group (SOTG). 

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Starting in early September, approximately 200 SAS commandos from Charlie Company, 2nd Commando Regiment were deployed to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to await further instructions from the political leadership back in Australia. On 21 September, RAAF aircraft and 400 personnel departed from their bases at Amberley and Williamtown for Al Minhad Air Base in the UAE. This Air Task Group (ATG) was comprised of six F/A-18F Super Hornet strike aircraft from No. 1 Squadron, one E-7A Wedgetail AEW&C from No. 2 Squadron, and one KC-30A tanker from No. 33 Squadron. They arrived by 23 September, and began preparing for possible combat operations in Iraq. Australia’s military campaign against ISIS was inaugurated on 5 October with an air strike consisting of two bombs dropped by a Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet on a facility of some kind belonging to the organization, although no further clarifying information was given. Finally, in early November, the SOTG entered Iraq on-foot, its personnel arriving under diplomatic passports.

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Throughout the autumn and winter of 2014, the RAAF settled into a steady pace of missions including aerial reconnaissance and surveillance missions with the E-7A Wedgetail, aerial refueling missions with the KC-30A MRTT, and strike missions with F/A-18F Super Hornets. All told, the F/A-18s flew 75 sorties and dropped 61 precision guided munitions against various targets, while the KC-30A delivered about 3 million pounds of fuel to Coalition aircraft. 

In January 2015, the SOTG forces began training Iraq’s Counter-Terrorism Service. The Counter-Terrorism Service is comprised of Iraqi Special Operations Forces (ISOF), who represent the Iraqi military’s most elite units. Despite their intense level of training and the respect they command from foreign services, ISOF have been accused of human rights abuses, primarily against Sunni civilians. Thus, Australian soldiers are required to report any human rights abuses they witness. The effectiveness and reliability of such a program is yet to be seen. The Australian forces trained Iraqi troops on how to best utilize military working dogs, and set up a puppy breeding program to support future needs as well. In addition to specialized K9 training, Australian troops also gave lessons on explosive ordnance disposal (EOD), namely the destruction of improvised explosive devices (IED) left behind in cities by ISIS. Finally, Iraqi forces received instruction in urban combat, close-quarters combat, counter-sniper, medical training, and general counterterrorism operations planning/command and control.

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On 4 March 2015, the RAAF reported that the six F/A-18F Super Hornets had departed the region and been replaced by six McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A Hornets from No. 75 Squadron. They were joined by an additional contingent of Australian troops on 21 April 2015, when the deployment of what became known as Task Group Taji (TG Taji) was publicly announced. TG Taji consisted of about 300 members of the Australian Defence Forces, plus an additional contingent from New Zealand’s military. All told, TG Taji contained a core group of trainers, along with command, force protection, and support elements.  Contrary to the mission of the SOTG, TG Taji was being sent to train regular formations of the Iraqi Army, as opposed to special forces units. Training emphasized planning/conduction operations, basic maneuver, and integration of modern intelligence means in a battlefield setting.

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Meanwhile, aerial operations against ISIS continued. The E-7A Wedgetail was used as a force multiplier, directing up to 60 aircraft at a time from various nations, while the KC-30A provided fuel to an equally diverse number of aircraft. By the end of June 2015, the E-7A had completed over 100 operational sorties, with the KC-30 delivering 25 million pounds of fuel and the F/A-18 Hornet and Super Hornet fighters tallying a combined 5,000 hours flying time. The strike aircraft had delivered around 400 precision-guided munitions. On 12 September 2015 the first RAAF mission over eastern Syria was completed, although no weapons were released.

The first contingent deployed as TF Taji, known as TF Taji-1, was replaced by a fresh batch of trainers and support personnel, who arrived for duty on 5 December 2015. TF Taji-1 successfully trained about 3,600 Iraqi personnel. 

The RAAF was detailed to assist Iraqi forces during the Battle of Ramadi, which concluded on 28 December 2015. The RAAF was credited with supporting ISOF troops with 150 air strikes, destroying 50 fighting positions, 16 heavy machine guns, and an unspecified number of vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices (VBIED). One Australian soldier was injured on 14 January 2016 after accidentally discharging his own firearm while exiting a vehicle. He received non-life threatening injuries.

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TF Taji-2 continued training Iraqi personnel in night combat, armored warfare, and helicopter coordination, essential skills on a modern battlefield against a competent, mechanized opponent like ISIS. TF Taji-2 concluded their mission on 6 June 2016, handing control of the training operation over to TF Taji-3. Three days later, on 9 June, an explosion rocked the Taji complex, but no ADF personnel were reported injured. 

On 16 September 2016, Coalition UAVs monitored a group of about 10 men with weapons and a mixture of military and civilian clothing gathering several miles from Deir ez-Zor Airport. The following day, another UAV noted the addition of armored fighting vehicles among the men, and the decision to strike was made. At 13:55 (GMT) the strikes began. At 14:52, the deconfliction hotline with the Russian Federation alerted Coalition forces that they were, in fact, striking Syrian government forces. Within 5 minutes the strikes had halted. Despite this, an untold number of Syrian government forces were left injured and/or killed. An investigation into the incident by the Australian government found no evidence of misconduct, but recommended additional protocols be implemented prior to future strikes.

TF Taji-3 concluded their mission on 12 December 2016, having trained an additional 6,500 Iraqi personnel, and handed control of the complex over to TF Taji-4. Among the personnel trained, from TF Taji-3 and on, were Iraqi police officers from Ninewah province. From late-2016 on, the ADF’s press releases on Operation Okra became sporadic and irregular at best. During their time, TF Taji-4 trained at least 7,500 members of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), conducting 83 training courses together with 62 “Advise and Assist” missions. TF Taji-4 concluded their deployment on 17 June 2017, being replaced by TF Taji-5. TF Taji-5 assisted with training Iraqi Security Forces in various areas, including tactics, techniques and procedures for company-to-brigade level operations, combat leadership, and combined arms operations. TF Taji-5 concluded on 8 December 2017, passing the torch to the incoming TF Taji-6.

On 16 January 2018, the strike element of the ATG returned to Australia having flown their final of 2,700 sorties. Their return to Australia took place shortly after the collapse of territorial holdings in Iraq and Syria by ISIS. The departure of the F/A-18 Hornets did not mean a departure of the KC-30A MRTT or E-7A Wedgetail aircraft, which continued to operate in the region. By August of 2018, the KC-30As had delivered over 100,000,000 pounds of fuel to Coalition aircraft. The KC-30A returned to Australia in October 2018, at which point they began deploying on a rotational basis with the E-7A Wedgetails (that is, one in-theater at a time).

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TF Taji-6, comprised of 300 Australian and 100 New Zealand soldiers, arrived and immediately went to work training the Iraqi Army’s 57th and 61st Composite Brigades, the graduation of which marked 30,000 Iraqi soldiers trained by TF Taji. TF Taji-6 ended on 4 June 2018, passing the responsibility for training Iraqi forces on to TF Taji-7. TF Taji-7 spent several months training the Iraqi Army’s 59th and 41st Brigades in skills such as cordon/search, ambushing and marksmanship, and other professional soldier skills. The mission ended on 10 December 2018, passing command of the mission to TF Taji-8.

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The KC-30A MRTT returned to Australia on 25 October 2018, having delivered over 100,000,000 pounds of fuel to Coalition aircraft over the course of its 95 missions. The RAAF operated six such aircraft at the time, which come equipped with two different air-to-air refueling systems. The first system, the Advanced Refueling Boom System, is mounted under the fuselage of the aircraft; the second system is the hose-and-drogue refueling pod mounted under each wing. This complex system of hoses and pods is controlled by an Air Refueling Officer, who has both 2D and 3D displays of the aircraft and surrounding airspace. The aircraft is further equipped with an advanced electronic warfare system for protection against surface-to-air missiles, as well as a Link-16 real-time datalink.

On 31 January 2019, the Australian Defence Department confirmed press reports of a Coalition airstrike causing civilian casualties on 13 June 2017. The strike, taking place in the Al Shafaar neighborhood of Mosul, killed between six and 18 civilians. While it is unknown whether Australian aircraft dropped those bombs, it is known that RAAF aircraft were overhead and taking part in strike missions. Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) requested urgent air support, with several ISF under fire from at least 7 ISIS militants in the courtyard next to the building they occupied. RAAF aircraft dropped a 500 pound precision-guided bomb on the attackers, killing them all. While it is likely Australian aircraft dropped bombs near the civilians, it is unknown at this time whether or not they actually killed said civilians.

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TF Taji-8 saw the addition of several soldiers and officers from the Singaporean Armed Forces to the mission. TF Taji-8 also saw a drastic reduction in the need for Coalition training, as the Iraqi Army neared 100 percent efficiency at running several of their own training facilities. TF Taji-8 returned home on 27 June 2019, passing control of the mission on to TF Taji-9. On October 8th, 2019 TF Taji-9 conducted an M4 rifle training course with the 22nd Brigade of the Iraqi Army’s 6th Division. They did so in cooperation with French troops, marking the first time these three nations had worked together during TF Taji. TF Taji-9 ended in early December 2019, with TF Taji-10 picking up the job. TF Taji-10’s job was significantly disrupted by the worldwide outbreak of COVID-19.

Taji Military Complex came under rocket attack twice in March 2020. There were no Australian casualties in either attack, the first of which came on the evening of the 11th, and the second around noon on the 14th. Australia’s forces in Iraq faced a regular threat from Iran-backed forces opposed to the American presence in the country. Task Group Taji came to an end with the 10th rotation, concluding in early June 2020. All told, Taji was responsible for training 47,000 Iraqi troops. Three months later, in September 2020, the RAAF support aircraft deployed as part of Operation Okra (KC-30A MRTT and E-7A Wedgetail) returned to Australia for the final time. With those developments, the only Australian contributions to Iraq as of this writing are support for the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Services (ICTS) and the placement of Australian personnel in command positions for CJTF-OIR. Effectively, Australia’s commitment to the fight against ISIS had come to an end.

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