During the lead up to the Gulf War in 1990 , several Western hostages were held as a human shield at a suspected ammunition factory in the area from September 1990 until their release 6 December 1990 . These included a crew member from British Airways Flight 149 . Nationals of Britain , Japan and France were held on the site . Only the British were detained until December , the French and Japanese being released in October and November 1990 respectively . The nature of their internment makes it difficult to pinpoint the exact location , but they were told by their Iraqi minders that they were at " a factory in Amiriyah " During the Iraq War the city witnessed violent clashes such as those seen in the cities of Fallujah and Ramadi , as well as explosions and car bombs with chlorine attacks , but by 2007 the Anbar police had taken over the city
British Airways Flight 149
British Airways Flight 149
Amiriyah Fallujah