The Old Testament listed numerous towns in Mesopotamia named after Hamites and S(h)emites where they seemed to live peacibly for a time.
Quite possibly, the Akkadians could be considered the first aggressors when "Sargon the Great" got ambitious (greedy). According to the Holman Bible Atlas, Akkadians led by "Sargon the Great" and his grandson, Naram-Sin "campaigned eastward into ancient Elam and westward as far as northern Syria". The Akkadian time period is saId to have been between 2371 - 2230 A.D.
The Assyrians took note of this and followed suit after the Akkadians were defeated by Gutians who came from the mountains northeast of the region (from Iran).

Genesis 10:6-12:
6. The sons of Ham: Cush, Mizraim, Put and Canaan.
7. The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan.
8. Cush was the father of Nimrod, who grew to be a mighty warrior on the earth.
9. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; that is why it is said, "Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD."
10. The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Erech, Akkad and Calneh, in Shinar.
11. From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah
12. and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city.