The Iran-Iraq war
- Duration
- 1 November 1987 - 2 January 1989
- Military personnel
- 343
- Fatalities
- none
- Decorations
- none
The war began on 21 September 1980 with an Iraqi attack on Iran. Iraq wanted to adjust the border demarcation in the Shatt al-Arab river and was demanding that Iran return several small islands in the Persian Gulf to Bahrain and grant autonomy to the Arab-speaking population of the oil-rich Iranian province of Khuzestan.
Playing in the background was the age-old Persian-Arab rivalry, the struggle for power in the Gulf and the ideological clash between the theocratic Iran and the secular-socialist Iraq.
Tanker war
The war at sea focused mainly on the economically vital oil exports and this quickly developed into what became known as the tanker war. In 1985, Iraq launched attacks on Iranian oil tankers. Iran responded with attacks on ships from other Gulf states. The US decided to escort Kuwaiti oil tankers under the American flag, as a result of which the conflict threatened to escalate.
Mines in the Gulf of Oman
Iran even went a step further. Not only did the risk of missiles and mines persist in the Persian Gulf, but Iran also began laying mines in the Gulf of Oman in August 1987. This was where the oil tankers anchored before venturing into the Persian Gulf, and for a number of WEU countries this was the proverbial last straw.