Operation Desert Shield (Gulf War)

Gulf War

Clockwise from top: USAF F-15Es, F-16s, and a F-15C flying over burning Kuwaiti oil wells; British troops from the Staffordshire Regiment in Operation Granby; camera view from a Lockheed AC-130; Highway of Death; M728 Combat Engineer Vehicle.

Date

Invasion of Kuwait
2–4 August 1990
Operation Desert Storm
17 January – 28 February 1991
(1 month, 1 week and 4 days)

Location

Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Persian Gulf

Result

Coalition victory

Iraq expelled from Kuwait
Kuwaiti monarchy restored
Destruction of Iraqi and Kuwaiti infrastructure
Failed Shia/Kurdish uprisings against the Iraqi government
Iraqi Kurdistan obtains autonomy, establishment of the northern Iraq no fly zone by the U.S.
Saddam Hussein retains power
U.N. sanctions against Iraq maintained until 2003
United Nations Security Council Resolution 687 establishes cease-fire terms, beginning of the Iraq disarmament controversies

Belligerents

Kuwait
United States
United Kingdom
France
Saudi Arabia

Coalition forces

Iraq

Commanders and leaders

George H. W. Bush
Colin Powell
Norman Schwarzkopf
John J. Yeosock
Walter E. Boomer
Charles Horner
Stanley Arthur
King Fahd
Saleh Al-Muhaya
Khalid bin Sultan
John Major
Peter de la Billière
Brian Mulroney
Hussain Muhammad Ershad
François Mitterrand

Michel Roquejeoffre

Saddam Hussein
Ali Hassan al-Majid
Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri
Salah Aboud Mahmoud
Hussein Kamel al-Majid

Abid Hamid Mahmud

Strength

956,600, including 700,000 US troops

650,000 soldiers

Casualties and losses

Coalition:
292 killed (147 killed by enemy action, 145 non-hostile deaths)
467 wounded in action
776 wounded
31 Tanks destroyed/disabled
32 Bradley IFVs destroyed/damaged

1 M113 APC destroyed
2 British Warrior APCs destroyed
1 Artillery Piece destroyed
75 Aircraft destroyed
Kuwait:
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
Hundreds tanks destroyed/captured
about 1000 IFVs and APCs
dozens aircraft
dozens ships

Iraqi:
20,000–35,000 killed
75,000+ wounded
3,700 tanks destroyed
2,400 APCs destroyed
2,600 Artillery Pieces destroyed
110 Aircraft destroyed
137 Aircraft escaped to Iran
19 naval ships sunk, 6 damaged

Kuwaiti civilian losses:
Over 1,000 killed
600 missing people
Iraqi civilian losses:
About 3,664 killed

Other civilian losses:
300 civilians killed, more injured

Coalition victory

Kuwait
United States
United Kingdom
France
Saudi Arabia

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Wikipedia