This conflict has many names. It is best known as the Iran-Iraq war. This term is especially common in foreign and Soviet/Russian sources. The Persians call this war the "Holy Defense", as they (Shia) defended themselves against the encroachments of the Sunni Arabs. The epithet "imposed" is also used. Iraq has a tradition of calling the conflict Saddam's Qadisiyah. Hussein was the leader of the state and directly supervised all operations. Kadisiya is a place near which the decisive battle took place during the Arab conquest of Persia in the 7th century, when Islam was introduced to the surrounding peoples. Thus, the Iraqis compared the war of the 20th century with the legendary campaign to the East against the pagans. This is one of the largest (more than a million dead) and long (1980-1988) armed conflicts of the last century.
Causes and reasons for the conflict
The cause of the war was a border dispute. He had a long backstory. Iran and Iraq border on a large stretch of land - from Turkey to the Persian Gulf. In the south, this line runs along the Shatt al-Arab (also called Arvandrud), which is formed from the confluence of two other great water arteries - the Tigris andEuphrates. The first human cities appeared in their interfluve. At the beginning of the 20th century, Iraq was part of the Ottoman Empire (now Turkey). After its collapse, due to the defeat in the First World War, an Arab republic was formed, which concluded an agreement with Iran, according to which the border between them should pass along the left bank of an important river. In 1975, an agreement appeared to move the boundary to the middle of the channel.
After the Islamic Revolution took place in Iran, Ruhollah Khomeini came to power there. Purges began in the army, during which officers and soldiers loyal to the Shah were fired and repressed. Because of this, inexperienced commanders appeared in leadership positions. At the same time, both Iraq and Iran staged provocations against each other with militants and underground fighters. The parties were clearly not against inciting the conflict.
Iraqi intervention
The Iran-Iraq War began when Iraqi soldiers crossed the disputed Shatt al-Arab River on September 22, 1980, and invaded the province of Khuzestan. The official media announced that the attack was caused by the provocations of the Persian border guards, who violated the border regime.
The offensive stretched over a stretch of 700 kilometers. The main direction was the southern direction - closer to the Persian Gulf. It was here that the most fierce battles were fought for all eight years. The central and northern fronts were supposed to cover the main grouping so that the Iranians could not go behind their lines.
After 5 days, the large city of Ahvaz was taken. In addition, destroyed oilterminals important to the economy of the defending country. The fact that the region is rich in this important resource also exacerbated the situation. In the next decade, Hussein will also attack Kuwait, the reason is the same - oil. Then the American-Iraqi war began, but in the 80s the world community distanced itself from the conflict between Sunnis and Shiites.
The ground operation was accompanied by aerial bombing of civilian cities in Iran. The capital Tehran was also attacked. After a week of marching, Hussein stopped the troops and offered peace to his rivals, which was associated with heavy losses near Abadan. It happened on October 5th. Hussein wanted to end the war before the holy holiday of Eid al-Adha (the 20th). At this time, the USSR was trying to decide which side to help. Ambassador Vinogradov offered the Iranian prime minister military support, but he refused. Iraqi peace proposals were also rejected. It became clear that the war would be protracted.
Prolonging the war
Initially, the Iraqis had a certain superiority: they played into the hands of the effect of the surprise of the attack, and the numerical advantage, and the demoralization of the Iranian army, where purges took place the day before. The Arab leadership made a bet that the campaign would be short-term and that they would be able to put the Persians at the negotiating table. Troops advanced 40 kilometers.
In Iran, urgent mobilization began, which allowed to restore the balance of power. In November, there were bloody battles for Khorramshahr. It took a whole month for street fighting, after which the Arab commanders lost the initiativein conflict. By the end of the year, the war became positional. The front line has stopped. But not for long. After a short lull, the Iran-Iraq war, the reasons for which were the irreconcilable hatred of the parties to each other, resumed.
Public confrontation in Iran
In February 1981, the Iran-Iraq war moved to a new stage, when the Iranians tried to conduct the first counter-offensive. However, it ended in failure - the losses amounted to two-thirds of the personnel. This led to a split in Iranian society. The military opposed the clerics, who believed that the officers had betrayed the country. Against this background, President Banisadr was removed from power.
Another factor was the Organization of the Mujahideen of the Iranian People (OMIN). Its members wanted to create a socialist republic. They unleashed terror against the government. The new president, Mohammed Rajai, was killed, as was Prime Minister Mohammed Bahonar.
The leadership of the country, rallied around the Ayatollah, responded with mass arrests. In the end, it held on to power by destroying the revolutionaries.
Interference from other countries in the Middle East
The Iraq war continued by Iran, meanwhile, took an unexpected turn. The Israeli Air Force carried out Operation Opera. It was aimed at destroying the Osirak nuclear center. The reactor for it was purchased by Iraq from France for research. The Israeli Air Force struck at a time when Iraq was not expecting an attack from the rear at all. Air defense could not do anything. Although this eventdid not directly affect the course of the battles, but Iraq's nuclear program was thrown back many years ago.
Another third-party factor was Syria's support for Iran. This was due to the fact that Shiites were also in power in Damascus. Syria blocked the oil pipeline from Iraq, which passed through its territory. It was a powerful blow to the country's economy, because it was heavily dependent on "black gold".
Use of chemical weapons
In 1982, the Iran-Iraq war again entered the active phase, when the Iranians launched a second counter-offensive. This time it was successful. The Iraqis have withdrawn from Khorramshahr. Then the ayatollah offered his terms of peace: the resignation of Hussein, the payment of reparations and an investigation into the causes of the war. Iraq refused.
Then the Iranian army for the first time crossed the border of the enemy and tried to take Basra (unsuccessfully). Up to half a million people participated in the battle. The battle unleashed in a hard-to-reach swampy area. Iran then accused Iraq of using banned chemical weapons (mustard gas). There is evidence that such technologies were borrowed before the war from Western countries, including Germany. Some parts were made only in the USA.
Gas attacks have become the subject of special attention of the world media. Already at the end of the conflict in 1988, the Kurdish city of Halabja was bombed. By this time, only the civilian population, consisting of an ethnic minority, remained there. Hussein took revenge on the Kurds, who either supported Iran or refused to fight it. Mustard gas was usedtabun and sarin are lethal substances.
War on land and at sea
The next Iranian attack on Baghdad was stopped 40 kilometers from the capital. During this throw, 120 thousand soldiers were killed. In 1983, Iranian troops, supported by the Kurds, invaded the north of the country. The greatest tactical success was achieved by the Shiites in 1986, when Iraq was effectively cut off from the sea due to the loss of control over the Faw Peninsula.
War at sea has led to the destruction of oil tankers, including those belonging to foreign countries. This prompted world powers to do everything to stop the conflict.
Many were waiting for the end of the Iraq war. The US has brought a navy into the Persian Gulf to escort its tankers. This led to clashes with the Iranians. The worst tragedy was the crash of the A300 passenger plane. It was an Iranian airliner flying from Tehran to Dubai. It was shot down over the Persian Gulf after being fired upon by a US Navy guided missile cruiser. Western politicians said it was a tragic accident, as the plane was allegedly mistaken for an Iranian fighter.
At the same time, a scandal broke out in the United States, known as the Iranian Watergate, or Iran-Contra. It became known that some influential politicians authorized the sale of weapons to the Islamic Republic. There was an embargo on Iran at the time, and it was illegal. Assistant Secretary of State Ellot Abrams turned out to be involved in the crime.
US vs. Iran
In the last yearwar (1987-1988) Iran again tried to seize the strategically important port of Basra. It was a desperate attempt to end such a bloody campaign as the Iraq war. The reasons for it were that both countries were exhausted.
The war in the Persian Gulf again affected the US Navy. This time, the Americans decided to attack two Iranian oil platforms, which were used as platforms for attacks on neutral ships. The Marine Corps, an aircraft carrier, 4 destroyers, etc. were involved. The Iranians were defeated.
Make peace
After this, the ayatollah realized that new attempts to drag out the conflict are useless. The Iraqi war was ending. Losses on both sides were huge. According to various estimates, they amounted to from half a million to a million victims. This makes this war one of the largest conflicts of the second half of the 20th century.
Veterans of the Iraq war applauded Saddam, who was considered the savior of the nation. Country borders have returned to the status quo. Despite the terror of his own people, Hussein was supported both in NATO and in the Warsaw bloc, because the world leaders did not want the spread of the Islamic revolution.
