Invasion of Kuwait

Invasion of Kuwait
Part of the Gulf War and the
Date 2–4 August 1990 (2 days) Location Kuwait Result Iraqi victory Iraqi-backed puppet state installed Kuwaiti resistance movement formed Start of the Gulf War
Belligerents
Iraq	Kuwait
Commanders and leaders
Saddam Hussein	Jaber III
Strength
88,000	Kuwaiti Army 16,000 Kuwaiti Air Force 2,200 Kuwaiti Navy 1,800 Kuwait National Guard Kuwait Police US contractors
Casualties and losses
39 aircraft (est.). 295 killed, 361 wounded ≈120 tanks and other armored vehicles 4 ships sunk	57 aircraft lost, At least 8 aircraft captured (Mirage F1s) 4,200 killed, 12,000 captured ≈200 tanks destroyed/captured 850+ other armored vehicles destroyed/captured 17 ships sunk, 6 captured

Iraqi victory

Kuwaiti Army 16,000
Kuwaiti Air Force 2,200
Kuwaiti Navy 1,800

Kuwait National Guard
Kuwait Police

The Invasion of Kuwait, also known as the Iraq–Kuwait War, was a major conflict between Ba'athist Iraq and the State of Kuwait, which resulted in the seven-month-long Iraqi occupation of Kuwait, and subsequently led to direct military intervention by US-led forces in the Gulf War and the setting alight by Iraq of 600 Kuwaiti oil wells.

In 1990 Iraq accused Kuwait of stealing Iraqi petroleum through slant drilling, although some Iraqi sources indicated Saddam Hussein's decision to attack Kuwait was made a few months before the actual invasion. Some feel there were several reasons for the Iraqi move, including Iraq's inability to pay more than US$14 billion that had been borrowed to finance the Iran–Iraq war, and Kuwaiti production of a large amount of petroleum which kept revenues down for Iraq. The invasion started on 2 August 1990, and within two days of intense combat, most of the Kuwait Armed Forces were either overrun by the Iraqi Republican Guard or fell back to neighboring Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. The State of Kuwait was annexed, and Saddam Hussein announced a few days later that it was the 19th province of Iraq.

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