De-Ba'athification (; sometimes called de-Saddamization) refers to a policy undertaken in Iraq by the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and subsequent Iraqi governments to remove the Iraqi Ba'ath Party's influence in the new Iraqi political system after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. It was considered by the CPA to be Ba'athist Iraq's equivalent to Nazi Germany's denazification after World War II, Nikita Khrushchev's de-Stalinization after 1956 and de-Ottomanization in the Ottoman Empire. It was first outlined in CPA Order 1 which entered into force on 16 May 2003. The order declared that all public sector employees affiliated with the Ba'ath Party were to be removed from their positions and to be banned from any future employment in the public sector.

The policy was highly controversial among many American academics, institutions, government, military, and international media and debate outlets. The policy under the CPA was officially rescinded on 28 June 2004 as part of the transfer of sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government two days later. However, elements of the policy continued under the Iraqi Governing Council and later under the elected Iraqi Parliament.

The de-Baathification order was drafted by relatively unknown mid-level Pentagon officials and emerged from Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld’s office.

Proponents of the policy contend that the policy effectively cleansed Iraqi society of Ba'athist influence, facilitating the creation of a democratic Iraqi government. Critics argue that the policy was not only undemocratic, but also a significant factor in the deteriorating security situation throughout Iraq.Henderson & Tucker, p. 19. The policy became associated with anti-Sunni sectarianism due to it disproportionately affecting Sunni Muslims.

A similar de-Ba'athification also occurred in Syria from December 2024 following the fall of Ba'athist Syria which also removed the influence of the Syrian Ba'ath Party in the new Syrian political system led by the new Syrian caretaker government.

Goal of policy

The goal of the policy is contained in the language of the preamble of Order No. 1:

Recognizing that the Iraqi people have suffered large scale human rights abuses and depravations [sic] over many years at the hands of the Ba'ath Party, Noting the grave concern of Iraqi society regarding the threat posed by the continuation of Ba'ath Party networks and personnel in the administration of Iraq, and the intimidation of the people of Iraq by Ba'ath Party officials, Concerned by the continuing threat to the security of the Coalition Forces posed by the Iraqi Ba'ath Party,

Additionally within the first section of Order No. 1: This order implements the declaration by eliminating the party's structures and removing its leadership from positions of authority and responsibility in Iraqi society. By this means, the Coalition Provisional Authority will ensure that representative government in Iraq is not threatened by Ba'athist elements returning to power and that those in positions of authority in the future are acceptable to the people of Iraq.

Pursuant to the goals of acting on behalf of Iraqi society and attempting to create "secure, stable environment that will sustain freedom and democracy for the Iraqi people," the goal of the policy was to further the establishment of a democratic political system in Iraq. The overarching goal of the invasion was the seizure and removal of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) and the creation of a democratic government in the Middle East to help fight the Global War on Terror (GWOT). Pursuant to these overarching goals, de-Ba'athification was seen as the logical way to ensure that a previously entrenched, undemocratic, and by all accounts unpopular regime and its influences on political culture were removed.

Formation

De-Ba'athification, as a part of the overall occupation strategy, was delegated to the United States Department of Defense per National Security Presidential Directive 24 issued on 20 January 2003, only 60 days prior to the 20 March 2003 invasion. Compared to the nearly five years the Allied Powers spent in World War II planning the post-war occupation of Germany and Japan, this was a short amount of time to plan occupation strategy and operations.See Case Studies Volume I, Ch. 10, "Planning for Reconstruction and Transformation of Japan After WWII," Peter F. Schaefer and P. Clayton Schaefer, Project on National Security Reform, Washington, DC, 2008. Although the idea of a de-Ba'athification policy was articulated by Ahmad Chalabi and Iraqi National Congress, their comparisons to de-Nazification caught the attention of Douglas Feith, the head of the Office of Special Plans.Chandrasekaran, p. 79. The actual time-frame for the development of the policy was a matter of weeks. On 10 March 2003, a National Security Council meeting was held to determine the extent of de-Ba'athification because of disagreements between the Department of Defense, the United States Department of State, and the CIA. The Department of Defense argued for an expansive policy targeting any and all members of the Ba'ath Party. This was in contrast to the State Department and CIA, who advocated a less comprehensive "de-Saddamification" policy which would only target those accused of crimes and upper echelon leadership. A compromise was reached: the top leadership in the Ba'ath Party would be removed and a South African style "Truth and Reconciliation" council would be established to assess the culpability of lower level party members. According to Charles Ferguson's interviews, the next time the policy was discussed outside of the National Security Council or the Department of Defense's Office of Special Plans was on 15 May 2003. On that day, the recently appointed head of the Coalition Provisional Authority, Paul Bremer sent Gen. Jay Garner, administrator of the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA), a draft copy of the order that was to be issued the following day.Chandrasekaran, p. 80.

Drafting and planning phase

The drafting and planning of the policy began with a paper, which was issued by Ahmad Chalabi and the Iraqi National Council, describing the possibility of removing Ba'ath Party influence from the Iraqi political sphere and comparing such a possibility to the Allied policy of De-Nazification articulated in the Potsdam Agreement of 1945. During the 60 days allotted for post-war occupation, the more stringent Department of Defense version was drafted by the Office of Special Plans in spite of the 10 March National Security Council compromise. Prior to Paul Bremer's arrival in Iraq on 12 May 2003, he met with Douglas Feith and the Office of Special Plans, where he received his first briefing regarding de-Ba'athification. Following the meeting, the final draft was written, and was sent via courier to Iraq after Bremer's arrival.

Architects of the policy

Per National Security Presidential Directive 24, the U.S. Department of Defense was the principal organization in charge of the occupation. To this end, Paul Wolfowitz and Douglas Feith created the Office of Special Plans in order to devise Department of Defense strategy for occupying Iraq. In addition to Wolfowitz and Feith, Walter Slocombe accepted the position of overseeing the implementation of the Department of Defense's occupation strategy. All of this occurred under the purview of the then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. According to Charles Ferguson's film interview with Gen. Jay Garner, Paul Bremer told Garner that "I was given my orders." This led Garner to believe that Bremer was not responsible for the content of the policy, but was executing Department of Defense policy.

In a 2016 interview with PBS, Colin Powell described his surprise over the authorization to issue CPA 1 and 2 orders saying "Some have said in their memoirs, well, the NSC was told about it. But I can tell you, I wasn't told about it. Condi wasn't told about it. The president wasn't told about it. The CIA was stunned, and the commanders in the field out there were stunned, because this was the solution to the security problem." Powell recalls phoning Rice who told him that Paul Bremer had made the decision and it would not be their place to overturn it. Then director of the Central Intelligence Agency George Tenet later wrote "We knew nothing about it until de-Baathification was a fait accompli... Clearly, this was a critical policy decision, yet there was no NSC Principals meeting to debate the move."

Another important actor in the creation of the policy of de-Ba'athification was exile leader of the Iraqi National Congress (INC) Ahmad Chalabi.Chandrasekaran, pp. 79–80. Considered an unreliable informant by the CIA and the State Department, Chalabi was nonetheless influential within the Department of Defense's construction of a post-war occupation strategy for dealing with the Ba'ath Party. According to Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Douglas Feith, one of the primary architects of the de-Ba'athification policy, was heavily influenced by the ideas promoted by Chalabi and the Iraqi National Congress.

Other organizations and individuals involved in the process of challenging the implementation of the de-Ba'athification policy included the US Department of State, the CIA, Gen. Jay Garner, Col. Paul Hughes (Director of Strategic Policy for the US Occupation, 2003), Robert Hutchings (Chairman, 2003–2005, National Intelligence Council), Ambassador Barbara Bodine, and Col. Lawrence Wilkerson (Chief of Staff for Secretary of State Colin Powell, 2002–2005).

Precedents

In the previous post-war occupations of Germany and Japan, the United States, in partnership with other Allied Powers, pursued a policy of total removal of any influence related to Nazi or Imperial Japanese ideologies. These strategies are found in the Potsdam Agreement of 1945, the German Instrument of Surrender, and the General Order No. 1 for post-war Japan. The most frequently compared strategy was the US de-Nazification policy in post-war Germany.

100 Orders

During the tenure of the CPA, the Administrator, Paul Bremer, was charged with overseeing the US occupation and democratization process. As the highest authority in Iraq, orders issued from his office carried the force of law in Iraq. It was through CPA orders that Bremer and his administrative team enacted the policy of de-Ba'athification crafted in the Office of Special Plans at the Department of Defense. A total of 100 orders were issued by the CPA between May 2003 and June 2004.

Order No. 1

Entering into force on 16 May 2003, Order No. 1, entitled "De-Ba'athification of Iraqi Society", describes the objectives of the de-Ba'athification policy developed by the Office of Special Plans.

Specifically, the order states that all members of the Ba'ath Party, from senior leadership to 'Udw (Member) are "removed from their positions and banned from future employment in the public sector." It demonstrates its broad sweep of society by stating:

Individuals holding positions in the top three layers of management in every national government ministry, affiliated corporations and other government institutions (e.g., universities and hospitals) shall be interviewed for possible affiliation with the Ba'ath Party, and subject to investigation for criminal conduct and risk to security.

Order No. 2