Operation Dawn 4 (Persian: عملیات والفجر 4) was an Iranian operation of the Iran–Iraq War launched in October 1983. At the end of the operation Iran had captured a small amount of territory from the Iraqis.

This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (January 2016)

Quick Facts Date, Location ...

Operation Dawn 4
Part of Iran–Iraq War – Northern Front
Date 19 October – mid November 1983 (1 week and 6 days) Location Marivan sector, Iraqi Kurdistan Result Iranian and Kurdish victory Territorial changes Iran captures the strategic Penjwin valley and several villages, an area of 466 square kilometers[1][2]
Belligerents
Iraq	Iran Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK)
Strength
108 infantry battalions 7 armoured battalions 1 mechanized battalion 25 commando battalions 8 Republican Guard battalions 7 artillery battalions[2]	Iran:[2] IRGC: 47 infantry battalions 4 armoured battalions 4 mechanized battalion 3 artillery battalions Army: 17 infantry battalions, 8 artillery battalions PUK: Peshmerga partisans
Casualties and losses
2,800 killed 60 tanks and 20 artillery pieces lost[1]	5,000 killed 15,000 wounded[1]

Close

Units of Iraq's 1st Corps spent two months in their trenches waiting for the Iranians to attack. The offensive began on the 19 October 1983^[3] and the Iranians and Peshmerga guerrillas of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan conquered about 250 square miles (650 km²) of territory. This included exerted a significant amount of pressure on Penjwen.^[3]

Saddam Hussein responded with a counterattack, using the Iraqi Republican Guard and poison gas. However, they failed to dislodge the Iranians, who were dug-in and reinforced by Kurdish fighters.

The focus of the fourth Dawn operation in October 1983 was the northern sector in Iranian Kurdistan. Three Iranian regular divisions, the Revolutionary Guard, and Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) elements amassed in Marivan and Sardasht in a move to threaten the major Iraqi city Suleimaniyah. Iran's strategy was to press Kurdish tribes to occupy the Banjuin Valley, which was within 45 km (28 mi) of Suleimaniyah and 140 km (87 mi) from the oilfields of Kirkuk. To stem the tide, Iraq deployed Mi-8 helicopters equipped with chemical weapons and executed 120 sorties against the Iranian force, which stopped them 15 km (9.3 mi) into Iraqi territory. 5,000 Iranians and 18,000 Iraqis were killed and wounded.

Iran regained 110 km² (42 sq mi) of its territory in the north, captured 15 km² (5.8 sq mi) of Iraqi land, and 785 Iraqi prisoners while Iraq abandoned large quantities of valuable weapons and war materiel in the field. Iraq responded to these losses by firing a series of SCUD-B missiles into the cities of Dezful, Masjid Suleiman, and Behbehan, while the Iraqi naval aircraft mined the port of Bandar Khomeini. Iran's use of artillery against Basra while the battles in the north raged created multiple fronts, which effectively confused and wore down Iraq.

The attack was successful but the Iranians suffered high casualties due to Iraqi gas attacks. Unlike other operations and battles of the Iran–Iraq War, environmental conditions and operative restrictions were of high significance for this operation. Also the military medicine organization of the Pasdaran was important in this battle; they used special methods to save the wounded and carried out rescue operations.^[4]

However, in response to this victory, the Iraqis launched the first Scud missiles into Iran, hitting six cities.

• Operation Dawn 2
• Operation Karbala Ten
• Iran–Iraq War#List of major Iranian operations during the war