Saddam Hussein

Hussein was a ruthless dictator who ruled Iraq from 1979 to 2003 (Porter, 2017). On 2 August 1990, he invaded Kuwait; he subsequently occupied the country for six months, intentionally ignoring the UN Security Council’s demand for withdrawal until Operation Desert Storm expelled his forces on 27 February 1991 (Yoo, 2003, p. 2). Operation Desert Storm was “a massive U.S.-led air offensive” which attacked Iraq’s air forces, “communications networks, weapons plants, oil refineries and more” (History.com, 2009). On 3 April 1991, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 678, which was authorised by Chapter VII of the UN

Saddam returned to Iraq, but was arrested about a year after he returned, as a result of his attempt to kill Qasim. Shortly after he escaped prison, in the following years he rose in power. During this time he helped to produce the first chemical weapons program. In 1979 he attempted to unite Syria and Iraq, which would have left Saddam powerless, where he forced Al-Bakr to resign. On July 16th 1979, he became president of Iraq. One week later, he called an assembly of the Ba'ath Party. He then called out 68 names, they were arrested and removed from the room. 22 of the 68 were killed. By August 1979 hundreds of Saddam’s political foes were martyred. Ayatollah Khomeini led the Islamic revolution to a success against Iraqi forces. Saddam returned by invading the oil-rich region of Khuzestan in Iran. Soon the conflict became a war. On August 20, 1988, after years of intense war, that left hundreds of thousands dead, the war reached an

Saddam responded by launching eight missiles into Israel, this continued to occur throughout the first six weeks of the war (Saylor organization 2011) . Saddam’s motives behind these air attacks were to force Israel to retaliate so it could join the war against Iraq. In doing so, Saddam hoped that Arab nations would withdraw from the coalition as they would refuse to fight alongside Israel. Saddam failed to achieve his goal as Israel refused to enter the conflict based on a request by the United States (Saylor Organization 2011) . The war also prevented Iraq from the possibility of controlling the price of oil, something George Bush Senior feared would happen, it also failed to overthrow the Iraqi Leader.(Persian Gulf War Encyclopedia) . After the war, rebellions took place by the Shia Muslims in the southern areas and by Kurds in the north. Thousands of Iraqi casualties could also be listed under the outcomes of the Persian Gulf War.

In the Middle East, each country has it’s own form of government. These forms of governments have been consistently changing throughout time. Throughout all the revolutions and overthrows, the national identity of the Middle East has slowly changed, some parts more than others. Over many years, overthrows in countries such as Egypt and Libya have led to a more democratic government. However, many other countries such as Iran and Iraq have remained more oppressive. The Middle East is still changing to this day. For example, Egypt recently overthrew their president Hosni Mubarak. There are also many protests currently going on in Libya.

Saddam Hussein’s Iraq was one that was based upon secular ideals. After the Iranian Revolution, revolutionary Shi’a Islam started to have a large

The Iraq War, also known as the Second Persian Gulf War or Gulf War 2, started in March 2003 with the combined invasion of Iraq by the United States and Great Britain. President George Bush urged the invasion of Iraq for two reasons. First, the vulnerability of the United States following the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001. Secondly, the belief in Iraq producing weapons of mass destruction and their support for terrorist groups in the region. In the early stages of the invasion, Iraqi troops did not stand a chance against the invading countries. Iraqi military forces were forced to flee or surrender which allowed for a relatively easy takeover of the country. With his county being completely dominated by allied forces, Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein went into hiding. He was later found in December 2003, and was turned over to country officials. After being convicted of crimes against humanity, he was executed in 2006. With over 39,000 soldiers remaining in Iraq by the start of Barack Obama’s presidency, the new commander of chief of the United States announced they would be leaving the country upon by the end of 2011 (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2015).

A key decision- maker in Syria during that period, and a direct witness, Abdul-Halim Khaddam, a former Syrian vice President of Hafez Assad, who spoke to the «Middle East» for that period, saying: «before the Iranian revolution in 1979, Syria had relations with the people who were preparing for the Iranian revolution of Khomeini's group via Musa al-Sadr. Musa al-Sadr was a friend and one of Khomeini's groups.

Saddam Hussain forced Khomeini out of Iraq, Khomeini moved to Paris France and it was from there he would continue his teaching against the west and in particular the Shah. His exile appeared to promote the Islamic leader who became ayatollah and had nearly 180,000 followers soon after being exiled. The revolution began to form after pressure from the Carter

The successor to Muhammad Ali was assassinated in the city of Najaf, Iraq in the year 661. The Shia put so much emphasis on the assassination death of Ali in 661 that the city in which he was killed has become an important place of pilgrimage for some Shia Muslims. Another important figure in the eyes of the Shia Muslims is the grandson of Muhammad Husayn who was murdered in Karbala, Iraq in 680. The Shia recognize the event each year on Ashura, which is a day or mourning recognized throughout the Shia branch, with a number of Pilgrimages to the city of Karbala. (Patheos.com)

“The expansion of Islam in the eighth century transferred the seat of the Islamic caliphate from Damascus to Baghdad . . . it became the most powerful state west of China”. The rule of Iraq transferred many times, from the Mongols in the 13th century to the Prussians who held power until the 16th century and then resting with the Ottoman Empire up into the 20th century. “The Ottomans divided Iraq into three vilayets centered on Mosul, in the Kurdish north; Baghdad, a largely Sunni city in the centre; and Basra, in the Shi’ite south”. The fall of the Ottoman Empire brought British occupation to Iraq during World War I; subsequently Iraq received authorization from the League of Nations to establish a responsible government. Incrementally Iraq gained its independence and throughout the next seventy-five years, military strongmen ruled the country, resting finally with Saddam Hussein during the U.S. invasion. While attending the university in Bagdad he joined the Ba’ath party and rising through the ranks, assumed the position of head of state of Iraq in 1979. The ethnic divide in the population of Iraq dates back as far as the 16th century and has devolved even further with the

During the 1980’s, Saddam Hussein and the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party controlled the Iraqi government. During their rule, Iraq had and unprecedented amount of high economic growth and soaring prosperity, but they also faced social and political stagnation. The annual income for an average citizen had decreased because of foreign sanctions, and several Ba’ath party economic policies. Hussein surrounded himself with those who were most loyal to him and became the father of the nation to the Iraqi people. During this period, Iraq was considered a stable state and considering the fact that many horrific criminal acts were committed by the regime, the state of Iraq was a functional one. As history has shown us many developing countries with dictator’s states tend to be more successful under an oppressive regime than having a democratic society. The Ba 'ath Party also created what would become a propaganda center for pro-Saddam literature, Movies, songs, and more. It was said that the propaganda campaign created a common sense of

A period of civil unrest and revolt plagued the British mandate government in Iraq. Arab nationalist and other political activists led an uprising against the Regent monarch resulting in a coup d’etat in July 1958 by members of the newly formed Ba’ath Party. (4) A series of power struggles ended 10 years later placing Ahmed Hasan al-Bakr as President, with a young Saddam Hussein as his deputy.

Although the era of Saddam was stained with corruption and ethnic cleansing, the stable period proved to be the height of modern Iraq’s existence.

Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein ordered the invasion and occupation of neighboring Kuwait in early August 1990. Alarmed by these actions, fellow Arab powers such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt called on the United States and other Western nations to intervene. Hussein defied United Nations Security Council demands to withdraw from Kuwait by mid-January 1991 and the Persian Gulf War began with a massive U.S.-led air offensive known as Operation Desert Storm4. After 42 days of relentless attacks by the allied coalition in the air and on the ground, U.S. President George H.W. Bush declared a cease-fire on February 28; by that time, most Iraqi forces in Kuwait had either surrendered or run away. Though the Persian Gulf War was initially considered an unqualified success for the international coalition, simmering conflict in the troubled region led

In recent years, the Iraqi nation has endured a crisis that will forever remain in the hearts and minds of the Middle Eastern culture. However, the outcomes of the War on Iraq will not change the long-lasting and passionate traditions and memories that have been held in the country for decades. One major event that happened in Iraq’s history is that on October 3, 1932 Iraq was established as an independent nation. Iraq has always been a country in which respect and generosity have been highly valued and play an important cultural role in everyday life. Additionally, approximately ninety-five percent of Iraqis are Muslim, and therefore Islam is the official religion of this nation (Gutierrez 1). Furthermore, Iraq is a