Ouster of Saddam Hussein

The opening session of Iraq's Transitional National Assembly, the first freely elected parliament in half a century, marked a milestone on the road to forming a new government.

In March 2003, a coalition led by the United States ousted Saddam Hussein from power through military force. In 2005, Iraqis held their first national election through which a National Assembly was elected and a Transitional Government was approved by the Assembly. Additionally, Iraqis approved a constitution in a national referendum, thus making the transition to Iraq’s first constitutional government in half a century. United States armed forces remained in Iraq under a United Nations Security Council mandate through 2009, and a bilateral security agreement thereafter, to assist in providing security and training to Iraqi security forces.