The insurgent groups operated almost freely in Latifiya and the neighboring Sunni dominated Al-Yusufiyah.

One known case was the ambush to agents of the Centro Nacional de Inteligencia from Spain in November 2003.

[2] Nearly all of the Shia citizens were ethnically cleansed, being chased off to Mahmoudiyah, Nasiriya and Iskandariya nearby.

With their defeat in 2017, once again the Shia returned, but this time it was the turn for the Sunni population to be harassed and deported.

It is home to the 1/4/6 Iraqi Army Battalion and US Patrol Base Latifiya (FOB ROW).