History of Iraq (post WWI)
The British are coming: The Ottoman Empire dissolved and the British mandated control of Iraq after World War I (1918).
Tensions Begin Tensions Begin: The creation of modern Iraq was not created or determined by Iraqis. It was created in British boardrooms by British rulers.
Artificial country with an artificial king The country the British created wasnt a homogenous group of people.
Three Groups: Kurds in the North (minority) Shiite Muslims in the South (majority) Sunni Muslims in the center (minority) 90% of the worldwide Muslim population is Sunni
The U.S. Enters the Picture: The Eisenhower Doctrine (early 1950s) promised U.S. aid to any country that resisted communism.
US provided military aid to Iraq in While this aid was welcomed by the pro-Western head of state, it was not welcomed by the Iraqi leaders in Parliament.
The Bath Republic: Took power for good in 1968 Republic in name only – they created a dictatorship Saddam Hussein became Vice President
1960s and 1970s Kurds, Turks, Christians, Shiites were deported, arrested, tortured and executed for their disloyalty. (Political purges of opposition)
1970 Saddam Hussein Named President of Iraq (Power transferred to him by his cousin. Had been running the country for years anyway.) He is an example of an oppressive dictator
1980 Iran-Iraq War Saddam becomes US ally
1988 Cease-fire between Iran-Iraq Saddam launches campaign against Kurds to get revenge for their support of Iran during war Thousands dead Hundreds of thousands disappeared Villages destroyed
Saddams stockpiling of weapons, his extreme anti- Israel stance prompted the US to rethink its alliance
1990 Saddam invades Kuwait Declared Kuwait to be part of Iraq Oil rich region UN sets Jan. 15, 1991 as deadline for Iraqi troops to leave Kuwait
Side note about oil…. In the 1970s, many Middle Eastern nations have become more wealthy because of the creation of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
What is OPEC? Organization of 12 oil producing and exporting countries: The members are Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates & Venezuela.
OPEC The organization sets policy on research, drilling, pricing, distribution and investment. Founded in Baghdad, Iraq Current day headquarters are in Vienna, Austria
US dependence on foreign oil
January 17, 1991 UN deadline passes & Iraq troops have still not left Kuwait This started Operation Desert Storm
Operation Desert Storm Took 6 weeks to clear Kuwait of all Iraqi troops Thousands of Iraqi soldiers died most of Saddams defense system was destroyed Saddam was forced to sign a cease- fire. (UN present to make sure this occurred).
1991 Shiite and Kurd rebel against Saddam US dropped leaflets encouraging this, but did not help & these minority groups were easily crushed. Eventually the UN created a Kurdish safe-haven and imposed sanctions of Iraq Caused poverty for Iraq
What are Sanctions? a tool used to persuade a particular govt. to change their policy by restricting trade, investment or other commercial activity. For example, sanctions may be applied to countries which develop weapons of mass destruction, violate human rights or trade unfairly. The extent of the sanctions often depends on the severity of the violation.weapons of mass destructionhuman rights
Saddam carries out campaigns to punish people for the rebellions
March 20, 2003 Operation Iraqi Freedom US and Great Britain invade Iraq The UN Security Council (France & Russia) veto UN involvement in the war
The 2 primary reasons the US & Britain did invade despite the UN vetoes were: Iraq had weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) that threatened nations around the world Iraq sponsored world terrorism
December 2003 Saddam captured
Saddam on trial
November 5, 2006 Found guilty and sentenced to death
December 30, 2006 Saddam executed
December 15, 2011 The US officially declares the end of the Iraq War Nearly 4,500 U.S. service members were killed in more than eight years of war and about 30,000 wounded