The Persian Gulf War (S) Big George and Baby George

9th Grade Review Iran and Iraq Iran=Persia, sort of Iraq=Mesopotamia, sort of Later years, the area was controlled by the Mongols and the powerful Ottomans

modern Middle East

The Iran/Iraq Wars 1980-1988 In 1980, Saddam Hussein of Iraq attacked Iran thinking the new religious leader, the Ayatollah Khomeini could not win and he could be dominant in the area known as the Persian Gulf Fighting was brutal and included chemical weapons against both military and civilian targets. The US and the west supported Iraq while the Soviets supported Iran. Iran was finally forced to accept a UN negotiated peace deal

Attack on Kuwait August 1990 Just a few years after the conflict with Iran ended, Saddam attacked his tiny neighbor to the south, oil rich Kuwait People began to compare him to Hitler and talked about the failure of appeasement in the 1940’s. Click for video Click for video Click for video

The First Persian Gulf War Operation Desert Storm George Bush I asked for a world wide effort to stop Hussein From January to February 1991, the United States led a UN and worldwide sponsored team in the Middle East to drive Saddam out of Kuwait. Click for video

EFFECTS OF DESERT STORM CLICK FOR VIDEO Saddam’s forces were no match for the US…Iraq quickly fell apart and soldiers deserted In a last ditch effort, Saddam set fire to Kuwaiti oil fields, destroying many before the US arrived. Saddam finally admitted defeat, but safe inside Iraq, he stayed in power.

United Nations Weapons Inspectors The defeated Saddam agreed to allow UN weapons inspectors search for weapons of mass destruction such as nuclear and chemical arsenals Saddam was uncooperative and the US and UN agreed to an embargo by refusing to trade with Iraq. Iraq said hundreds of thousands of their people starved to death. Iraq kicked all weapons inspectors out of Iraq

9/11 On September 11, 2001, nine terrorists with ties to Al Qaeda terrorist organizations hijacked four US commercial planes Two were flown into the world trade center in New York. One in the Pentagon. The fourth crashed into a Pennsylvania farm field Almost 3,000 people died. Click for video

9/11 Effect on the US America became involved in at tremendous sense of patriotism George Bush had tremendous support by the people and by Congress.

George Bush II begins his War on Terrorism Click for video

US War in Afghanistan The Islamic fundamentalist group, the Taliban had control of Afghanistan since after the Soviet withdrawal In 2002, the US and Britain led an invasion of the country to take the Osama and the Taliban out of power The results have been mixed…the Taliban are mostly out but not dead…Osama is still at large.

Persian Gulf War II Operation Enduring Freedom In January 2003, Bush asked Congress for approval to send troops to invade Iraq. They agreed George Bush tried to get the UN and NATO to support an attack on Iraq and they refused only Britain agreed to help.

“Weapons of Mass Destruction” Part of Bush’s claim for war was the fact that he had evidence that there were weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq. With Saddam not cooperating with the UN and the war on terrorism rising…it was easy to believe??? The United Nations and other countries refused to acknowledge any evidence of weapons Within a few year, the Bush administration began to backtrack from the WMD claim Video: Rumsfield on Weapons

The Second Persian Gulf War Even without UN and worldwide support, the US attacked Iraq in March 2003. Saddam’s government collapsed within months but leaders escaped into hiding. The US has been trying to rebuild Iraq and get a new government into power ever since…despite incredible opposition from a group of Iraqi civilians who do not trust the US

Saddam Hussein 1937-2006 A target for US troops, Saddam managed to hide successfully from American forces until 2003 when he was captured. His sons and his fourteen year old grandson were killed in fighting against the US He was captured by US forces and put on trial in Iraq. He was hanged in 2006 for war crimes. Click for video of Saddam Hussein's’ trial as his verdict was being read