The Marines' campaign to secure Anbar Province in Iraq will rank as one of the Corps' historic battle achievements. This account of that campaign is rich in lessons learned and examples of adaptability. In March 2004, when part of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) was deployed to Anbar Province in the heart of the Sunni triangle, the Marines quickly found themselves locked in a bloody test of wills with al Qaeda, and a burgeoning violent insurgency. By the spring of 2006, according to all accounts, enemy violence was skyrocketing, while predictions for any U.S. success were plummeting. But at that same time new counterinsurgency initiatives were put in place when I MEF returned for its second tour in Anbar, and the Marines began to gain control. By September 2008 the fight was over. Richard Shultz, effectively argues the case for the Marines changing the course of the war at Anbar, which is contrary to the conventional wisdom that the Surge was the turning point. -- From the publisher.

This is Anbar -- 2003: All the wrong moves -- 2004: Ugly surprises -- 2005: Stalemate -- 2006: The tipping point -- 2007: Cashing in -- Conclusion.