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Desert Shield/Desert Storm –
The Persian Gulf War (1990-1991)
History of The Iowa National Guard
CW2 David L. Snook
On August 2, 1990, Iraq invaded the small neighboring sheikdom of
Kuwait. A long-standing border dispute and alleged Kuwait violations of OPEC (Organization
of Petroleum Exporting Countries) production quotas were the reasons given for the attack.
An underlying reason, however, was the desire of Iraq’s leader, President Saddam
Hussein, to make his nation the dominant military and economic power in the whole Middle
East region.
Iraq is a complex society. It is predominantly Arab and Muslim.
However, there is a large Kurdish minority (about one-fourth of the total population) in
the north. Most Kurds are Muslims, but they have their own language and culture. The
Muslim community is also divided. About half are Shiites, while the remainder are Sunnis.
There is also a small but influential Christian minority. Since 1979, Iraq has been
governed by President Saddam Hussein, a Sunni, and the absolute ruler of the Bath Party,
Iraq’s only legal political party.
On first coming to power, Hussein was strongly anti-Western and
anti-Israeli. He moderated his policies somewhat during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988) but
resumed his strident rhetoric almost as soon as the war was over.
Militarily, the Iran-Iraq War was indecisive, but it did elevate
Saddam Hussein to a position of leadership in the Arab World. He saw himself as the leader
destined to reunite the Arab people, by force if necessary, and lead them to a new period
of glory. He also hoped to assume control over the oil reserves of the Middle East and
drive the Israelis out of the region. He did not disband his million-man army after the
war with Iran, but, instead, began to spend billions on new weapons (including Soviet Scud
missiles, T-72 tanks and MiG-29 jet fighters). He also pushed ahead with Iraqi research
and development of chemical and nuclear weapons.
On July 17, 1990, in a bitter and threatening speech, Hussein
accused Kuwait of building military installations on Iraqi territory, of stealing billions
of dollars worth of oil from the Iraqi portion of the Rumaila oil field that overlaps a
section of their common border, and of overproducing oil, thus driving world prices down.
He also began massing troops along the Kuwaiti border.
On August 2, the Iraqis launched their invasion. Kuwait’s
outnumbered forces were soon overwhelmed. The emir, Sheik Jaber al-Ahmed al-Sabah, fled to
Saudi Arabia by helicopter; his younger brother, Sheik Fahd, was killed defending the
palace. As soon as military action had been completed, Saddam Hussein announced the formal
annexation of Kuwait as Iraq’s 19th province. He also began massing troops
along the border with Saudi Arabia.
By annexing Kuwait, Hussein doubled Iraq’s oil reserves, which
now constituted about 20% of the world oil supply. If he were to invade Saudi Arabia,
while seemed alarmingly possible, he would control nearly 50%.
Hussein clearly miscalculated the international response to the
Iraqi invasion. The United Nations Security Council quickly condemned the attack and
demanded the immediate withdrawal of Iraqi forces. An international trade embargo was also
organized. Eventually, a military coalition of more than thirty nations, authorized by the
United Nations and led by the United States, was created.
Iraq failed to get any significant international support, even from
fellow Arabs. Twelve members of the Arab League, led by Egypt, demanded that Iraq withdraw
from Kuwait and pledged their military forces to defend Saudi Arabia and any other Arab
state threatened by Iraq.
The military buildup in the Middle East, organized primarily by the
United States, had two goals – the defense of Saudi Arabia and the liberation of
Kuwait. Military operations in support of the first goal came to be called Operation
Desert Shield. The actual military offensive against Iraqi military forces in Kuwait would
be termed Operation Desert Storm.
The first U. S. forces to reach the region were the 82nd
and 101st airborne divisions and three Marine brigades. The combined Allied
force would eventually number about 700,000, with 540,000 being Americans. Other nations
making significant contributions included Syria (20,000), Egypt (35,000), Saudi Arabia
(40,000), Britain (35,000), France (10,000), and Kuwait (7,000).
By November, it was clear that economic pressure alone would not
force an Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait. On November 29, the United Nations voted to set a
January 15 deadline for the removal of Iraqi troops. On January 12, Congress gave
President George Bush the authority to use the American military to carry out U. N.
Resolution 678 for the restoration of Kuwaiti independence. With the failure of a
last-minute diplomatic mission to Baghdad, led by U. N. Secretary General Javier Perez de
Cuellar, all possibilities of a peaceful end to the crisis appeared to have been
exhausted.
With the passage of the U. N. deadline, the war began. The Persian
Gulf War was essentially fought in two phases – a six-week air assault and a
follow-up, 100-hour, ground campaign.
Allied air attacks devastated Iraqi defenses. The Iraqi air forces
were either destroyed or driven into hiding, leaving ground forces with little or no
protection. Using sophisticated new weapons systems, such as Tomahawk cruise missiles and
GBU-15 "smart" bombs, the Allies inflicted enormous damage, not only on military
targets but on supply bases and communication centers as well.
On February 22, President Bush announced that Iraq would have until
noon (EST) the next day to begin withdrawing from Kuwait. If not, the Allied offensive
would continue, a clear signal that the land war was about to begin. Iraq gave no reply
but signaled continued defiance by dynamiting Kuwaiti oil fields.
At 0400 hours on the 24th of February, coalition ground
forces began their attack. The strategic plan, developed by General Norman Schwarzkopf and
his staff, contained three basic elements – a decoy maneuver to draw Iraqi forces to
the coast and two coordinated ground attacks, one from the south and the other from the
west.
The first element of the attack was a well-planned feint. A
17,000-man Marine force seemed poised to make an amphibious landing at Kuwait City. The
attack never came, but thousands of Iraqi troops were drawn to the coast and wound up, in
effect, facing the wrong direction.
The second element of the offensive was a coordinated attack by
Kuwaiti, Syrian, Saudi and other Arab units, with the aid of the U. S. Marines, through
Iraqi mine fields and other defenses into southern Kuwait. The attack was a complete
success, and Iraq forces were soon in total disarray, either retreating or surrendering.
The final element of the plan was a massive attack from the west by
American, British, French, and Arab forces. Perhaps the most daring maneuver was the
launching of the largest helicopter assault in military history, as 4,000 men of the 101st
Airborne Division were airlifted 60 miles inside Iraqi territory to establish a forward
supply base. This maneuver allowed rapidly advancing Allied forces to occupy much of
southern Iraq and block all escape routes for retreating Iraqi forces. In the most intense
engagements of the war, the U. S. VII Corps and XVIII Corps met and overwhelmed units of
Iraq’s elite Republican Guards in northern Kuwait and southern Iraq.
By the fourth day of the land war, February 27, it was clear that
fighting was coming to an end. The 1st Marine Division seized Kuwait
International Airport. Meanwhile, the 2nd Marine Division secured all entrances
into Kuwait City, allowing Kuwaiti forces the honor of being the first to enter the
capital. By evening, the 100-hour war was over.
The Persian Gulf War was the first test for the Army’s Total
Force Policy. Seventy-five thousand National Guardsmen were mobilized, 43,000 of whom
actually deployed to the Middle East. Due to a combination of inadequate supply and
Regular Army prejudice, only a limited number of combat arms (infantry, armor, artillery)
National Guard units were mobilized. The great majority of National Guard soldiers sent to
the Middle East served in combat service support units. All of the Iowa units that served
in the war were combat service support units.
The first callup of Iowa Army National Guard soldiers began in
September of 1990. This marked the first federal mobilization of the Iowa National Guard
since 1968. On September 30, the 1133rd Transportation Company (Mason City)
deployed to the mobilization station at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin. On Veterans Day, 1991, they
flew from Volk Field, Wisconsin, aboard U. S. Air Force C141s, to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.
It would be 267 days before they would return home.
Other Iowa Guard units followed. In November, the 134th
Medical Company (Washington), the 209th Medical Company (Iowa City), 1034th
Quartermaster Company (Camp Dodge) and the 1187th Medical Company (Boone) were
mobilized. In December, the 1168th Transportation Company (Red Oak and Perry)
was mobilized, followed by the 186th Military Police Company (Camp Dodge). In
January, 1991, the Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 34th Military
Police Battalion, and the 3654th Maintenance Company (Knoxville, Chariton,
Oskaloosa and Camp Dodge) were mobilized. The last units of the Iowa National Guard to be
mobilized were those of the 224th Engineer Battalion from Fairfield, Mount
Pleasant, Burlington, Ottumwa, Centerville, Muscatine and Keokuk. Individual membersof the
132nd Tactical Fighter Wing (Sioux City) and the 185th Tactical
Fighter Group (Des Moines) were also mobilized. All told, 2,016 Iowa Guardsmen (1886 ARNG
and 130 ANG) were called to active duty during Desert Shield/Desert Storm.
The record of accomplishment of the Iowa units is a tribute to their
hard work and professionalism. The 1133rd Transportation Company drove over 2.1
million miles while sustaining the highest operability rate (98%) of any unit in their
battalion. The 1168th Transportation Company logged over 525,000 miles and
received the Meritorious Unit Citation for its outstanding contributions during then war.
Medics of the 209th Medical Company treated thousands of patients, including
prisoners of war. The 209th Clearing Company (Iowa City) was the only medical
unit in the U. S. Army to serve in three nations during the conflict – Saudi Arabia,
Kuwait and Iraq. Iowa military police units escorted and processed over 38,000 enemy
soldiers and handled security at prisoner of war compounds. The 1034th
Quartermaster Company provided millions of gallons of fresh water, while serving in their
new role as a water distribution company at Log Base Echo near the Tri-Border region of
Saudi Arabia.
The 3654th Maintenance Company was called upon to serve
stateside at Fort Irwin, California, and the 224th Engineer Battalion was
stationed in Germany to serve as the combat engineer battalion for the 8th
Infantry Division.
Iowa Guardsmen returned home with a sense of accomplishment. Nearly
one-fourth (23.9%) of the total personnel of the Iowa National Guard had been mobilized.
This was the highest percentage of any state in the Fourth Army region and one of the
highest in the nation. In addition to the awards and decorations earned, Iowa soldiers
returned with many personal reminiscences, such as Michelle Rhodes’ unique assignment
as "caretaker" of the 1133rd Transportation Company’s mascot, a
goat named "Alice." Memories connected with service in the Gulf War and the
feelings of pride they engendered would remain with these Iowans for the rest of their
lives.
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