Operation Dawn 10
1988 Iranian offensive of the Iran–Iraq War
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Operation Dawn-10 or Walfajr-10[4] (Persian: عملیات والفجر ۱۰) was an offensive operation launched by Iran against Iraq on March 15, 1988, near the end of the Iran–Iraq War. Led by the Pasdaran and supported by some regular army forces, the five-phase operation marked a shift in Iranian focus from southern to northern Iraq.[4]
changes Iran captured 1,200 square kilometres of Iraqi territory, including 3 towns and 100+ villages
| Operation Dawn 10 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Iran–Iraq War | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Iraq |
 Iran Supported by:  Peshmerga | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Saddam Hussein Kokeb Mohammad Amin Abdul-Wahid Shannan ar-Ribat Hisham Fakhri |
Ayatollah Khomeni Mohsen Rezaee Ali Sayad Shirazi Ali Shamkhani Yahya Rahim Safavi Masoud Barzani | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
|
10,000+ killed or wounded 5,440 captured 270 tanks destroyed[1][2] | 3,000+ killed[3] | ||||||||
The battle
Launched with the code of "Ya Rasūl Allāh (s)" (Persian: (یا رسول الله (ص)[5] (likewise "Ya Muhammad ibn Abdullah"),[6][7][1] Operation Dawn-10[8][9] was executed on the west heights overlooking Darbandikhan Lake in the Sulaymaniyah Governorate in Iraq[5] with the operational goal of preparing a full-on assault on the Darbandikhan Dam.[10][11] Iranian forces quickly encircled their main objectives with ease, and the Iraqis did not have the time to reinforce the threatened area. The siege caught them by surprise, as they were expecting an attack from the southern front, from where Iran mainly operated. Roughly 10,000 Iraqi troops were killed or wounded,[1] while some 5,440 more were captured.[1][12] Iraq also lost hundreds of tanks, armoured vehicles, and equipment[13] whereas Iran sustained many fewer losses.[14]
Aftermath
Overall, the operation led to the capture of three towns[5] and around 100 villages[15] in the 1,200-square-kilometer operational area,[16] including Halabja, Kharmal, Biareh, and Tawileh. Iran also claimed that the town of Nosud was retaken from Iraqi forces. The offensive forced Iraq to divert important divisions from the south to the northern Iraqi mountains, disrupting the overall war effort.
To punish Kurds involved in the battle, Saddam ordered the Iraqi military to chemically bombard Halabja the next day, killing thousands of civilians and destroying the town.[17]