Iraq Invades Kuwait: Gulf War Begins

Roughly 100,000 Iraqi troops crossed the Kuwaiti border just after midnight, and within twelve hours the entire country had fallen. Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait on August 2, 1990, was so swift and overwhelming that most resistance collapsed before dawn. Iraqi commandos arrived by helicopter to seize government buildings in Kuwait City while armored columns punched south along the main highway and a flanking force swung west to cut off retreat. The Kuwaiti military, outnumbered and outgunned, managed a fierce stand at the bridges near Al Jahra before being overrun. The invasion had roots in disputes over oil pricing and debt. Kuwait had been overproducing crude oil, driving prices below what Iraq needed to service the massive debts accumulated during its eight-year war with Iran. Saddam also accused Kuwait of slant-drilling into the Rumaila oil field along their shared border. Diplomatic efforts failed, and when U.S. Ambassador April Glaspie appeared to signal that Washington had "no opinion on Arab-Arab conflicts," Saddam interpreted this as a green light. The international response was rapid and nearly unanimous. The UN Security Council condemned the invasion within hours and imposed comprehensive sanctions. President George H.W. Bush declared the aggression "will not stand" and began assembling a multinational coalition of 35 nations. Over the following months, Operation Desert Shield deployed more than 500,000 American troops to Saudi Arabia to prevent further Iraqi expansion and prepare for a liberation campaign. When diplomacy and sanctions failed to dislodge Iraqi forces, the coalition launched Operation Desert Storm on January 17, 1991. A devastating air campaign followed by a 100-hour ground offensive liberated Kuwait and shattered the Iraqi military. The Gulf War reshaped Middle Eastern geopolitics, established American military dominance in the region for a generation, and left unfinished business with Saddam Hussein that would draw the United States back to Iraq twelve years later.