Chief of the Iraqi General Staff
رئاسة اركان الجيش (Arabic)
Incumbent GeneralAbdel Emir Yarallah since 8 June 2020
Armed Forces of Iraq
Reports to	Minister of Defense
Seat	Green Zone,Baghdad
Appointer	Prime Minister of Iraq
Formation	6 January 1921
First holder	Nuri al-Said
Website	Official website

Thechief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Iraq (Arabic:رئاسة اركان الجيش العراقي,romanized: Riʼāsat Arkān al-Jaysh al-ʻIrāqī; is thechief of the General Staff of theArmed Forces of Iraq. He is appointed by thePrime Minister of Iraq, who is thecommander-in-chief. The position dates to the period of theIndependence of Iraq.^[1] Up until the2003 invasion of Iraq, the Chief of Staff was the second most senior officer in the Armed Forces behind theMinister of Defence.

Since 8 June 2020, the current chief of the General Staff is GeneralAbdel Emir Yarallah.^[2]

No.	Photo	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Lieutenant general Nuri al-Said (1888–1958)	6 January 1921	20 November 1922	1 year, 318 days	[3]
2		Lieutenant general Taha al-Hashimi (1888–1961)	20 November 1922	28 July 1924	1 year, 251 days
In 1924, the position of Chief of Staff of the Army was abolished and his duties were transferred to the position of Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.[4][5]
–		Lieutenant general Nuri al-Said (1888–1958) as Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces	28 July 1924	28 May 1928	3 years, 305 days	[6]
Position reinstated 1928
2		Lieutenant general Taha al-Hashimi (1888–1961)	28 May 1928	29 October 1936	8 years, 154 days
3		Lieutenant general Bakr Sidqi (1890–1937)	29 October 1936	11 August 1937  X	286 days
4		Lieutenant general Abdul Latif Nouri [ar] (1888–1957)	15 August 1937	22 August 1937	7 days	[7][8]
5		Lieutenant general Hussein Fawzi [ar] (1889–?)	22 August 1937	20 February 1940	2 years, 182 days	[9][10]
6		Lieutenant general Amin Zaki Suleiman [ar] (1884–1971)	25 February 1940	29 May 1941	1 year, 93 days
7		Lieutenant general Mohammed Amin Ahmed Al-Omari	29 May 1941	2 June 1941	4 days
8		Lieutenant general Ismail Namik [ar]	2 June 1941	20 December 1944	3 years, 201 days	[11]
9		General Saleh Saeb al-Jubouri [ar] (1898–1993)	20 December 1944	18 August 1951	6 years, 241 days	[12]
10		General Nureddin Mahmud (1899–1981)	18 August 1951	29 January 1953	1 year, 164 days	[12]
11		Major general Hussein Makki Khammas [ar]	29 January 1953	17 September 1953	231 days	[12]
12		Lieutenant general Rafik Arif [ar] (1908–1992)	17 September 1953	14 July 1958	4 years, 300 days	[12]

No.	Photo	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Lieutenant general Ahmed Saleh al-Abdi [ar] (1912–1968)	14 July 1958	8 February 1963	4 years, 209 days	[12]
2		Lieutenant general Tahir Yahya (1916–1986)	8 February 1963	20 November 1963	285 days	[12]
3		Lieutenant general Abdul Rahman Arif (1916–2007)	20 November 1963	15 April 1966	2 years, 146 days	[12]
4		Lieutenant general Hamudi Mahdi [ar]	15 April 1966	17 July 1967	1 year, 93 days	[12]
5		Major general Ibrahim Faisal Ansari [ar] (1920–2010)	17 July 1967	5 August 1968	1 year, 19 days	[12]

No.	Photo	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Lieutenant general Hammad Shihab [ar] (1922–1973)	5 August 1968	3 April 1970	1 year, 241 days	[12]
2		General Abdul Jabbar Shanshal (1920–2014)	3 April 1970	15 January 1984	13 years, 287 days	[12]
3		General Abdul Jawad Dhanuun (1936–2020)	15 January 1984	1986	1–2 years	[12]
4		Major general Saaduddin Aziz Mustafa	1986	25 July 1987	0–1 years	[12]
5		General Nizar Al-Khazraji [ar] (born 1936)	25 July 1987	19 September 1990	3 years, 56 days	[12]
6		General Hussein Rashid (born 1940)	19 September 1990	1991	0–1 years	[12]
7		General Iyad Futayyih (1942–2018)	1991	1995	3–4 years	[12]
8		General Sultan Hashim Ahmad al-Tai (1945–2020)	1995	18 July 1995	0 years	[12]
9		General Abdul-Wahid Shannan ar-Ribat (born 1944)	18 July 1995	1999	3–4 years	[12]
10		General Ibrahim Ahmad Abd al-Sattar (1950–2010)	1999	9 April 2003	3–4 years	[12]
On23 May 2003, the Iraqi Army was dissolved, and all of its officers and personnel were discharged. It was later re-established on 8 August 2003.

No.	Photo	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		General Babaker Zebari (born 1947)	8 August 2003	29 June 2015	11 years, 325 days	[13]
2		General Othman al-Ghanmi (born 1958)	29 June 2015	7 May 2020	4 years, 313 days	[14][15] [16][17]
3		General Abdel Emir Yarallah (born 1964)	7 May 2020	Incumbent	5 years, 172 days	[18][19]

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