Haifa Street
Coordinates: 33°20′11.4″N 44°22′53.4″E / 33.3365°N 44.3815°E Haifa Street (or Hayfa Street) (Arabic: شارع حيفا) is a two mile long street in Baghdad, Iraq.[1] Along with Yafa Street (named after the port city of Jaffa), it runs southeast to the Assassin's Gate, an archway that served as the main entrance to the American-run Green Zone during the 2003 invasion of Iraq,[1] paralleling the Tigris river.[2] It was named "Haifa" in the 1980s by Saddam Hussein in honor of the port city of Haifa. The street is lined with many high-rise buildings. Prior to the 1990-1991 gulf war, the British Embassy in Iraq was located on Haifa Street.
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[edit] During the American invasion of Iraq
Haifa Steet was the location of the June 2004 Operation Haifa Street,[3] and the September 2004 Haifa Street helicopter incident, in which a helicopter fired on a burning American Bradley Fighting Vehicle and killed 12 civilians, including journalist Mazen al-Tumeizi. Two days later a massive car bombing on Haifa Street killed 47.[4] American troops stationed in Baghdad at the time, C Company, 1/153 IN of the Arkansas Army National Guard, which was attached to Task Force 1/9, dubbed the street "Purple Heart Boulevard".[5] On December 24, 2004 U.S. Soldiers from B Co. 3/325th AIR of the 82d Airborne Division in taking over a palace, later dubbed Predator Palace, and made it the 3/325th A.I.R. home for 4 months. During this time the paratroopers performed combat missions to assist weeding out the enemy. Ultimately the efforts of B Co. 3/325 AIR, made Haifa Street a safer place. By mid-2005 there were reports that conditions on Haifa Street had calmed,[1][6] and control of the street was turned over to Iraqi forces in February of 2006[7] but as of early 2007 the street remained riddled with insurgent hideouts. Fifty people were killed in a US-led operation there on January 9, 2007[8] and another thirty were killed on January 24.[9]
[edit] Gallery
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Haifa street, as seen from the medical city hospital across the Tigris river
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High rising residential buildings in Haifa street
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King Faisal's statue at a square named after him at the end of Haifa street
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Burns, John F. (March 21, 2005). "There Are Signs the Tide May Be Turning on Iraq's Street of Fear". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/21/international/middleeast/21haifa.html?ex=1269061200&en=36d6a947386fdf34&ei=5088. Retrieved 2007-01-10.
- ^ "(Special Reference Graphic) NIMA 2003" (JPG). University of Texas. http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/middle_east_and_asia/baghdad_nima_2003.jpg. Retrieved 2006-06-25.
- ^ "Operation Haifa Street". Globalsecurity.org. 2006-06-15. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/oif-haifa-street.htm. Retrieved 2006-01-10.
- ^ Cockburn, Patrick (September 15, 2004). "Blast Kills 47 in Baghdad - Hell on Haifa Street". http://www.counterpunch.org/patrick09152004.html. Retrieved 2006-01-10.
- ^ Burgess, Lisa (September 22, 2004). "Patrols Turn Ugly on Baghdad's Haifa Street". Stars and Stripes European Edition. http://www.military.com/NewContent/0,13190,SS_092204_Ugly,00.html. Retrieved 2006-01-10.
- ^ Peterson, Scott (May 26, 2005). "A violent street finds calm". The Christian Science Monitor. http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0526/p01s02-woiq.html. Retrieved 2007-01-10.
- ^ "Baghdad street becomes new Fallujah". The Australian. January 10, 2007. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21038060-2703,00.html. Retrieved 2007-01-10.
- ^ "50 killed in US-led operation in Iraq". January 10, 2007. http://www.dawn.com/2007/01/10/top14.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-10.
- ^ Mauer, Richard (January 24, 2007). "U.S. and Iraqi troops storm Baghdad neighborhood again". McClatchy Newspapers. http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/16537080.htm. Retrieved 2006-01-25.
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