when the us launched operation desert storm it did so

#When the us launched operation desert storm it did so free

On February 26, Saddam Hussein ordered his troops to withdraw from Kuwait.Ī few days later, on February 28, 1991, the war came to an end when President George H. Within a few days, much of Kuwait had been freed. On February 24, a ground force invaded Iraq and Kuwait. They also launched SCUD missiles on the country of Israel. The Iraqi army responded by blowing up Kuwaiti oil wells and dumping millions of gallons of oil into the Persian Gulf. The initial attack was an air war where warplanes bombed Baghdad (the capital city of Iraq) and military targets in Kuwait and Iraq. The attack was codenamed 'Operation Desert Storm.'

#When the us launched operation desert storm it did so free

On January 17, an army of several nations attacked Iraq in order to free Kuwait. In addition, Kuwait had seaports that Iraq wanted and Iraq claimed that the land of Kuwait was historically part of Iraq.įor several months the United Nations tried to negotiate with Iraq to get them to leave Kuwait, but Saddam didn't listen. Conquering Kuwait would help solve Iraq's money problems and control of the oil would make Saddam Hussein very powerful. Kuwait was a very rich country with lots of oil. There are a number of reasons why Iraq invaded Kuwait. Within 12 hours, Iraq had gained control of most of Kuwait. Kuwait had a fairly small army that was no match for the Iraqi forces. A large Iraqi force crossed the border and made for Kuwait City, the capital of Kuwait. He also accused Kuwait of stealing oil from Iraq near the border.

He said they were producing too much oil and driving down prices. In May of 1990, Saddam began to blame the economic woes of his country on Kuwait. The leader of Iraq was a dictator named Saddam Hussein. Building up this army had been expensive and Iraq was in debt to the countries of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. During the war, Iraq had built up a powerful army that included over 5,000 tanks and 1,500,000 soldiers. It began when Iraq invaded Kuwait on Augand ended with a cease fire declared on February 28, 1991.įrom 1980 to 1988, Iraq had been at war with Iran. The Gulf War was fought between Iraq and a coalition of nations that included Kuwait, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Saudi Arabia, and more.