UNIT – IV

IRAN – IRAQ WAR

(Watch the video before you study: https://youtu.be/7XL7yNuIsVs )

a) Causes
b) Highlights of the war
c) Result and lessons learnt

CAUSES:

The causes of the Iran-Iraq conflict can be attributed to a wide range of issues

 POLITICAL CAUSES - historical claims of territory, Shatt al-Arab waterway

dispute, and the result of the Six-Day War
 ECONOMIC CAUSES - Occupying of Khuzestan, religious
 CULTURAL CAUSES - Cultural differences between Iran and Iraq and the results of
the Iranian revolution

SHORT-TERM CAUSES:

 Saddam Hussein ordered the exile of Iraqi citizens that had been born in Iran
 Invaded Iran in 1980 as the culmination of disputes between the two countries

LONG-TERM CAUSES:
 Border and Shatt al-Arab waterway disputes
 Overwhelming sense of nationalism
SHATT AL ARAB WATERWAY DISPUTE:
 Shatt al-Arab waterway is responsible for the connection between the Persian Gulf
with the Iranian ports of Khorramshahn and Abadan and the Iraqi port of Basra

IMPORTANCE OF SHAT AL-ARAB:

 The Shatt al-Arab is of utmost significance as it acts as current Iraq’s only access to
the Persian Gulf
 As well allows for the export and import of worldwide oil to and from Iran and Iraq
 The worldwide community soon became involved in the dispute over this river
 The Russians supported the desired claim of the eastern bank waterway to the
Persians, while Britain backed up the Ottoman in occupying both banks
 The support from the Russians and Britain in the occupying of the river would give
them each an upper hand with their trading partners

SHATT AL-ARAB TREATY:

 1847 treaty was established and stated that the Shatt would act as a boundary
Khorramshahn and Abadan
 Iraq would maintain complete control of this waterway and Iran would not be granted
access to the river
 However, Iran only agreed upon these terms in exchange for the two Iraqi cities
 They in turn reduced their dependence on the river

IN 1937:
A revised treaty was established in 1937, between the newly established and
independent Iran and Iraq

 The boundaries were to run along the left bank (east bank) of Shatt al-Arab, except for
a stretch of 8 kilometers in front of Abadan (Iranian town)
 Iran and Iraq maintained a somewhat friendly relationship
 Relationship was later disrupted by the instability of monarchies

NATIONALISM VS RIVALRY FOR POWER

 The participation of Iraq during the October War, more commonly referred to as the
Six Day War, under the governing of the Ba’ath Party was quite minimal
 Their minimal participation is primarily attributed to Iraq’s poor preparation
  This resulted in Iraq’s mentality to improve their warfare and expand militarily
 Iraq purchased 1,600 additional tanks from the USSR and 200 more aircraft.
 Ba’ath Party promoted Saddam to head of military competence, essentially giving
Saddam the right to complete military control

RESULT OF THE IRANIAN REVOLUTION:

 The Shah of Iran was overthrown in 1979 by radical Islamists and Communists
 Ayatollah Khomeini came into power
 The Iranian government led by the Shah, was previously pro-Western and anti-
socialist; turned into a highly religious and theocratic government
 Israel and the United States were now seen as enemies
 The mentality of Iranian government was drastically altered

QUEST FOR DOMINANCE

 With the overthrowing of the Shah dictatorship, the Shi’i Muslims of Iran saw this as
a new beginning for the country
 They developed a strong sense of pride and nationalism in their country
 Ayatollah Khomeini accused Saddam’s regime of being anti-Islamic and overly
secular
 Looking to overthrow the Iraqi regime
 This was part of Khomeini’s broader plan of expanding the Islamic Revolution
throughout the Middle East
 Saddam Hussein, in Iraq, was at the same time looking to establish himself as a great
leader in the Arab community
 Their neighbour’s in the west were seen as their largest threat
 Iran was viewed as militarily vulnerable as a result of their recent revolution in 1979
 It is difficult to pinpoint precisely when the war broke out
 Earliest forms of violence between the two countries include the following: the attack
on Iranian villages of Khmoneini supporting Iraqis in 1979 by Iraq and the support of
rebel groups, and the deportation of Irani-born Iraqi civilians
 Majority of these acts of violence occurred at the border between Iran and Iraq

THE OCCUPATION OF KHUZESTAN

 Another geographic region that was considered valuable in addition to the Shatt al
Arab, was Khuzestan
  Iraq strategized to seize control over Khuzestan (occurred in 1980), which is located
in southwestern Iran across from the waterway
 Khuzestan is rich with oil and is responsible for majority of Iran’s oil supply
 Saddam was convinced that the capture of this valuable piece of land would result in a
new Iranian revolution that would call for the installation of a government whose
interests were more comparable with Iraq’s

RELIGIOUS AND GOVERNMENTAL DIFFERENCES

 The difference in ideologies and religious beliefs between Iran and Iraq was an
outstanding issue
 newly established leaders caused an increased level of nationalism

IRAN

 Populated by Shi’i Muslims

 Led by Saddam Hussein
 Pro-socialist and Soviet
 Regime was quite secular

IRAQ

 Populated by Sunni Muslims

 Led by Ayatollah Khomeini
 Anti-socialist and Pro-Western under the Ba’ath regime
 Religious and theocratic government under role of Ayatollah Khomeini

THE INVASION OF IRAN BY SADDAM HUSSEIN ACTED AS A

CULMINATION TO FIGHTING.

EFFECTS OF THE IRAN-IRAQ WAR

1. The Final Stages of War
i) The Tanker Wars - 1984-87
ii) The War of the Cities - 1988
iii) Final Phases to Conclusion
2. Ceasefire
3. Effects on Iran
4. Effects on Iraq
THE FINAL STAGES: 1987-1988

 No clear military gain for either side; 1983-84 stalemate

 Iraq began facing difficulties prior to 1987
 Lacked capability to counter-attack Iranian offensives
 Outnumbered by population
 Iran strengthened by war
 Strong initiative in 1987 attacks
 Seemed better able to survive long conflict
 Since regaining all lost territory in 1982, Iran was on the offensive until 1988
 Course of war changed radically in the spring of 1988, moving nations to a cease-fire
 Series of Iraqi victories in 1988 compelled Iran to accept a previously refused
ceasefire agreement

TANKER WAR
  Tanker War of 1984 Iraqi attempt to sabotage Iran
 Strait of Hormuz is one of the most strategically important passages for oil transport
 United States threatened to invade Iran if they closed the Strait
 Iraq attacked Iranian Kharg Island oil tankers in 1984
 Iran retaliated by attacking tankers of all countries that supported Iraq
 Both nations attacked oil tankers and merchant ships in an effort to bankrupt opponent
 US involvement lead to the death of 290 innocent passengers on the mistaken airline,
a strike on 5 Iranian oil vessels
 Damaged Iranian American relations

WAR OF THE CITIES

 Stalemate 1985-1987
 Iraqi forces better trained, outnumbered by Iranian forces
 Civilians became the new target
 Started by Iraq in February 1988
 Iraq attacked 65 Iranian cities in 42 days

EFFECTS:

 8 missile targets killed 65 children in an elementary school

 Iranian civilian aircraft, trains
 Tehran Oil Refinery
 100,000 total casualties
 Iraq launched 520 Scuds at Iran and received 177 in return
 In March, Iran retaliated by launching 3 Scud missiles at Baghdad
 Gave Iraq an excuse to sharply escalate the war
 Iran was losing morale after 8 years of conflict
 Repeated offensives exhausted Iranian capabilities for the war
 Iranians no longer supported the war
 Publicizing the war pushed for a UN ceasefire
 Iran ambiguously 'accepted'
 USSR and China denied the US, UK, and France's arms embargo
 Iraq angrily denied USSR’s limited missile ceasefire
 Paralyzed UN
IRAQ'S CHEMICAL CAPABILITY

 Iraqi-controlled portion
 Historically oppressed by the Iraqi government
 Kurdish support for Iran angered Iraq
 Iraq launched heavy poison gas attacks on Halabjah, in March 1988
 Iraqi military had used both mustard and tabun nerve gas.

IRAQI KURDISTAN

 Khomeini showed the will to accept resolution 598

"Happy are those who have departed through martyrdom...Unhappy am I that I have
drunk this poisoned chalice."

 The United States only nation that did not publicly condemn the use of chemical
warfare

FINAL STAGES - MOVING TOWARDS CEASEFIRE

 1988 critical turning point in war's outcome

3 FACTORS

 The decline of Iran's ability to continue fighting due to political and military losses
 Western presence in Gulf combined with Iran's diplomatic isolation
 Critical changes to Iraq's armed forces and methods of warfare

CEASEFIRE

 Following major setbacks, Iran accepted Peace Resolution 598 on August 20 1988
 Both sides agreed to pre-war boundaries

RESOLUTION 598:

 Accept ceasefire and withdraw forces

 Settle border disputes under UN-held negotiations
 Same terms as 1982 Resolution
 Final exchange of POW in 2003

AFTERMATH:
IRAN
POLITICAL EFFECTS
 Immediately rebuilt broken ties with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain
 Relations with European countries
 Diplomatic problems with the West untouched
 US was looking to contain Iran

NEW IRANIAN LEADERSHIP 1989:

 Ayatollah Khomeini dies, Ali Khamenei elected as Supreme Leader of Iran by the
Assembly of Experts
 Akbar Rafsanjani elected as President
 Adopted the 'Economy First' policy
 Attempted to boost foreign investment and trade by liberalizing Iranian markets
 Supported privatization policy
 Economic reforms helped spur Iranian regrowth

ECONOMIC EFFECTS

 A collapsing economy, further declined collapse from Islamic Revolution

 1 million casualties
 Exhausted foreign reserves (14.6 billion to 1 billion)
 Saudi Arabia vetoed the Iranian OPEC attempt to cut production and raise prices
 Oil revenue dropped from $20 billion in 1982 to $5 billion in 1988
 Oil reserves have yet to recover from extensive damages
 Cheaper investments lead to less debt
 Ayatollah's interpretation stopped borrowing

CULTURAL EFFECTS

 Shi'a Muslims continued to dominate

 Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps was created to defend theocratic rule (Shiite
National Guard)
 Before his death, Khomeini tried influencing Sunni Iranians with his own theocratic
beliefs
 The 90s saw an imbalance of religion and republicanism
TECHNOLOGICAL EFFECTS

 Outcome of the war influenced scientific advancements in Iran

 Experienced technological and research revival
 Has the fastest scientific growth rate

AFTERMATH:
IRAQ
POLITICAL EFFECTS
 US-Iraq ties
 US largest Western supporter of Iraq during war
 Iraq believed it could act without consequence in Gulf War
 President Bush signed NSD 26
 US wanted to maintain 'friendly relations' with Gulf oil states
 National security for US and stability in Gulf

PATHWAY TO GULF WAR

 Iraq relied on oil exports to rebuild the economy

 Law of Supply: As supply increases, price decreases (and vice versa)
 Kuwait refused to implement a quota
 Iraq's economy unable to rebuild from war reparations
 Accusations of Kuwait drilling illegally in Iraqi oil fields
 Lead to the invasion of Kuwait in 1990
 Hussein introduced austerity measures to mobilize the population for the war effort
 All citizens required to donate blood
 To gain Shiite support, more were let into the government
 Bought support by making generous contributions to Shia waqf

CULTURAL EFFECTS
 Hussein introduced austerity measures to mobilize the population for the war effort
 All citizens required to donate blood
 To gain Shiite support, more were let into the government
 Bought support by making generous contributions to Shia waqf
 Systematic attacks against Kurdish population
 The US assisted Iraq in avoiding repercussions from worldwide condemnation
  Mustard gas, Sarin chemical weapons
 Massacred 50,000 - 100,000 civilians
 Destroyed 4,000 villages, 4,500 schools, mosques, hospitals, and 27 churches

HALABJAH MASSACRE, MARCH 1988

 Poison gas attack on Iraqi Kurds in Southern Kurdistan

 Iraqi method of punishing Kurds for supporting Iranian forces
 5000 immediately dead, 7000 suffered from poisoning
 War brought international attention to Kurdish oppression
 UN passed Resolution 688 in 1991, condemning Iraqi oppression of Kurds
 Demanded access to humanitarian aid

ECONOMIC EFFECTS
 500,000 casualties
 $600 billion debt accumulated with the destruction of economic developments
 Relations with allies grew tense as Iraq unable to pay back debts
 Slowed GDP growth
 Eventually became the most indebted poor country in the world

CONCLUSION

 8 years of fighting in vain, for both sides

 Deadliest conflicts since WWII
 Both countries were devastated economically
 Iran seemed to have learnt from mistakes, while bankrupt Iraq found itself involved in
another conflict
 In 1990, Saddam Hussein recognized Iranian rights over eastern half of Shaat-Al Arab
 First widespread use of chemical warfare since 1918
 Iran became more militaristic and anti-western