20 years ago today, large American forces invaded Iraq, when the official reason for the invasion was weapons of mass destruction being developed by Saddam Hussein, a claim that eventually turned out to be false. This invasion developed into a major war that claimed the lives of tens of thousands of Iraqis and changed the face of the Middle East | This is the story of the second Gulf War
20 years after it broke out with a storm, the Second Gulf War continues to resonate around the world and fascinate countless readers who are thirsty for all the information revealed about it and the personalities who took part in it. The names of the main characters in this bloody war – which took place on Iraqi soil, swept dozens of countries into it and resulted in more than 100,000 deaths on both sides – continue to arouse great interest all over the world.
This war cannot be understood without first getting to know Saddam Hussein, the man who terrorized the entire world and threatened the existence of the State of Israel. Hussein, a member of the Iraqi Ba’ath Party, took a significant part in the 1968 coup that took place in his country, and a little more than a decade later he became the president of Iraq. In this capacity, he led Iraq in its war against Iran, and worked hard to develop nuclear weapons – until it was bombed by the Israeli Air Force.
In 1990, Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait, which triggered an international reaction against them. A coalition of 34 countries led by the USA was formed, and after the expiration of the ultimatum they had given to Hussein, they invaded Kuwait and within about 100 hours freed it from the tyrant. During these hours, the citizens of the State of Israel hid in their shelters while Iraq mercilessly bombarded them with Scud missiles. Israel was asked not to respond to the Iraqi attack, And Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir chose with great courage indeed not to take part in the war.
After the Gulf War, relations between Bin Saddam Hussein and the US remained strained. The US and other countries saw him as a tyrant who suppressed the rights of his people, and issued various condemnations against his government. After the severe attack on the United States on September 11, 2011, during which hijacked planes attacked various scenes in America, among them the twin towers that collapsed in a short time, Russian President Vladimir Putin began to whisper in the ears of the United States that Iraq was planning to carry out attacks against it.
The trauma in the United States was great at the time, and the fear in the White House began to grow. In January 2002, in his well-known speech, President Bush referred to the “axis of evil”, which according to his theory consists of North Korea, Iran, and Iraq. Even then, the suspicion arose that Hussein was developing weapons of mass destruction, and Bush expressed the fear publicly He said that this endangers the entire world. The Bush administration presented various evidences of the presence of nuclear weapons in Iraq, while at the same time there was also concern that the country maintains ties with Al Qaeda, the organization responsible for the September 11 attacks.
These and other concerns regarding the Hussein regime and its potential consequences led Bush to formulate a decision together with Britain: launch a combined attack against Iraq on its territory, with the support of other countries. The prepared operation was called “Cobra 2”, and was planned to include huge military forces.
On March 20, 2003, 20 years ago today, the signal was given to launch the attack, with the official reason being the search for nuclear weapons that Hussein was developing. At the beginning of the operation and during its continuation, the invading forces numbered about 300,000 equipped soldiers, compared to 375,000 Iraqis and members of organizations that cooperated with Hussein. At the beginning of the operation, the American Air Force forces hit government facilities in Baghdad and the rest of Iraq, terrorizing the country’s residents and searching for the leader Hussein and his family members.
At the same time, special forces searched for any trace of the presence of nuclear weapons. The searches were futile, and in January 2005 the inspectors had to stop them immediately. The accepted assumption today is that Hussein never possessed the nuclear weapons, and that he created a false representation as if he did have one in order to prevent rebellions against him.
During the days of the invasion, anxiety in Israel was great. The memories of the first Gulf War were still fresh, and the State of Israel feared that it would happen again. With the invasion of Iraq, a state of emergency was declared throughout the country, and the residents were once again forced to carry the protective kits against a chemical or biological attack. The Israeli Air Force also prepared for the attack, but in the end it did not come and the sights from 1991 did not return.
A few weeks after the invasion of Iraq, the Ba’ath regime headed by Hussein was overthrown, and a new government was established under him that excluded the Sunnis from power. At the behest of the US, Iraq adopted a new constitution, which won the support of 78% despite the terrorism that tried to prevent it.
The following years in Iraq were also characterized by the great terror that plagued it, in which hundreds of soldiers from the coalition forces were murdered. In total, the Iraqis and their supporters were killed about 120 thousand, while the US forces and their supporters were killed about 4,800. It was only in October 2011 that US President Barack Obama announced the evacuation of the last American force from Iraq.
And what about Saddam Hussein? The tyrant was captured about nine months after the beginning of the invasion, and the documents from his capture were distributed around the world. On the morning of December 30, 2006, Hussein was hanged, and he was 69 years old when he died. “The Butcher of Baghdad” changed the face of the Middle East from one end to the other, and was responsible for some of the worst wars that took place in his lands in recent decades.