Persian Gulf War Mr. Chojnacki US II

Background  US, USSR, and China began shipping weapons to Iraq in the 1980’s Help w/ war against Iran  Rumored use of chemical and biological weapons by Saddam Hussein were largely ignored

Cooling of Relations  After Iran-Iraq War, US began sanctioning Iraq to prevent human rights violations Sanctions were eventually lifted for political and economic reasons  “Normal” relations were resumed until the invasion of Kuwait in 1990

Invasion of Kuwait  August 2, 1990  Iraq had claimed the small, oil rich country of Kuwait was rightfully theirs  Negotiations over boarders had been going on for years Eventually, Saddam just decided to take Kuwait

Operation Desert Shield  U.S. feared that Saddam would next attempt to take Saudi Arabia’s rich oil fields Iraq and Saudi Arabia had been disputing their boarder for years as well  U.S. sends in military to protect Saudi Arabia from invasion

Iraqi Response  Saddam immediately rips the moderate Saudi Royal Family for allowing American infidels into the Muslim Holy Land Mecca and Medina (Holy Cities of Islam)  Tries to ally himself w/ militant Islamists in Iran and Saudi Arabia

UN Coalition  30 Nations agreed to liberate Kuwait from Iraq U.S. sends the majority of the troops (500,000)  UN set deadline of Jan. 15, 1991 for Iraq to withdraw

Propaganda in the U.S.  Kuwait hired a PR firm to study U.S. public opinion  Told stories of Iraqi soldiers pulling babies out of incubators and watching them die on the floor Fabricated but effective Senate approves use of military 52-47

Operation Desert Storm  U.S. begins massive bombing campaign (broadcast live on CNN) Smart Bombs (GPS) Cluster Bombs Cruise Missiles Patriot Missiles

Iraqi Response  Send SCUD missiles into Israel for 6 weeks  Trying to draw Israel in so other Islamic countries would fight Failed

The Ground Campaign  U.S. air strikes crippled Iraq’s infrastructure  Late January: ground forces sent in to drive Iraq’s Army out of Kuwait  As Iraqi Army retreated they burned oil wells to slow U.S. advance

Highway of Death  As Iraqi Army retreated, US planes bombed the convoys constantly  Wiped out huge portion of Iraq’s army as well as many civilians

Decision to not Invade Iraq  U.S. forces briefly chased Iraqi Army into Iraq  President Bush chose not to attempt to remove Saddam from power Felt it would destroy coalition Would cost too many lives U.S. would have to occupy Iraq for years

CIA Propaganda  CIA told the Shiites in the South and Kurds in the North to overthrow Saddam and we would come in to support Uprisings took place, but U.S. did not come in for support  Those that revolted were crushed by Saddam’s Generals

Death Tolls  147 American Combat Deaths  24,000 Iraqi Military Deaths  Civilian Casualties: (Controversial) 80,000 men 39,000 women 36,000 children

Aftermath of the War  UN sends in “inspectors” to certify that Iraq is not building offensive chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons Saddam is generally defiant in granting them full access  Leads to bombings of suspected weapons sites by Clinton in

Future Issues  Failure of UN Inspectors to gain access leads President George W. Bush to invade Iraq after Sept. 11 Attacks Claimed Iraq was developing WMD’s  UN refused to approve war as they felt sanctions and inspectors could prevent Saddam from gaining weapon’s of mass destruction

Gulf War Syndrome  Veterans return home w/ increased levels of Brain Cancer, Lou Gehrig’s Disease, and Birth Defects in Children  Possible Causes: Anthrax Vaccine Chemical Weapons Depleted Uranium Munitions Exposure to Diseases