alternatehistory.com

In 2003, after the invasion of Iraq, Paul Brenner, the US Administrator of the country, issued Coalition Provisional Authority Order 2, which dissolved Saddam Hussein's military. The justification for the order was that Iraqi military bases had already been destroyed, that Shi'ite draftees would not respond to orders from their Sunni superiors and that it would've been a public relations disaster, given that the Iraqi military had committed atrocities against the Iraqi people under Hussein's orders.

14 years on, this is seen as the worst mistake of the US occupation, since most of the suddenly unemployed former soldiers went underground and contributed to the Iraqi insurgency with some officers even joining the ranks of ISIL.

But what if CPA Order 2 was not issued and instead, the army was recalled to active duty to support the US occupation?
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