The Marines Take Anbar

Focusing on the U.S. Marine Corps' campaign against al Qaeda in Anbar from 2004 to 2008, the book highlights how strategic adaptations and lessons learned from past conflicts led to a significant turning point in the Iraq War. Initially facing overwhelming violence and skepticism about success, the Marines implemented new counterinsurgency tactics during their second deployment, ultimately regaining control of the region by September 2008. Richard Shultz challenges the prevailing narrative that the Surge was the key turning point, emphasizing the Marines' crucial role in altering the war's trajectory.