Timeline: 1990 Gulf War
On August 2, 1990, Saddam Hussein’s Iraq invaded neighbouring Kuwait.
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May 28-30, 1990: Saddam Hussein, the then Iraqi president, says oil overproduction by Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates is “economic warfare” against Iraq.
July 15-17: Iraq accuses Kuwait of stealing oil from the Rumaylah oil field on the Iraq-Kuwait border and warns of military action.
July 22: Iraq begins a military buildup.
August 2: Iraq invades Kuwait and seizes Kuwaiti oil fields. Kuwait’s emir flees. Iraq masses troops along the Saudi border. The UN security council condemns Iraq’s invasion and demands its withdrawal.
August 6: The UN security council imposes a trade embargo on Iraq.
August 7: Saudi Arabia requests that US troops defend it against a possible Iraqi attack.
August 8: Saddam Hussein proclaims the annexation of Kuwait.
August 9: The first US military forces arrive in Saudi Arabia. The UN security council declares the Iraqi annexation of Kuwait void.
August 10: The Arab League demands Iraq withdraw from Kuwait.
August 12: A naval blockade of Iraq begins. All shipments of Iraqi oil are halted.
August 28: Iraq declares Kuwait its 19th province and renames Kuwait City al-Kadhima.
September 14-15: The UK and France announce the deployment of 10,000 troops to the Gulf.
December 17: The UN sets a deadline for Iraqi withdrawal on January 15, 1991. Saddam Hussein rejects all UN resolutions.
January 10, 1991: Talks between James Baker, the then US secretary of state, and Tariq Aziz, the then Iraqi foreign minister, end in stalemate.
January 12: The US congress grants George H.W. Bush, the then US president, authority to wage war against Iraq.
January 16: Operation Desert Storm begins at 1130 GMT.
January 18: The first Iraqi scud missiles strike Israel’s largest city, Tel Aviv, and Haifa.
January 22 -25: Iraq begins blowing up Kuwaiti oil wells. Iraq begins ‘environmental war’ by pumping millions of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf.
January 30: Iraqi and coalition forces engage in the first important ground battle in Khafji, Saudi Arabia.
February 1: Dick Cheney, the then US secretary of defence, warns that the US will retaliate if Iraq uses chemical or unconventional weapons.
February 8: The total number of US troops in the Gulf reaches over half a million.
February 13: Air bombardment of Baghdad destroys three major bridges and kills Iraqi civilians.
February 19: A Soviet-Iraqi peace plan is rejected by Bush. Oil spill in the Gulf now estimated at 1.5 million barrels.
February 22: Bush issues a 24-hour ultimatum: Iraq must withdraw from Kuwait to avoid the start of ground war.
February 24: Allied ground campaign begins.
February 25: Iraqi scud missile hits US barracks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing US soldiers.
February 26: Saddam Hussein announces Iraq’s withdrawal from Kuwait. Iraqi troops flee Kuwait City.
February 28: Coalition forces enter Kuwait City. Bush declares Kuwait liberated.