I guess every country remembers each anniversary of an invasion.
As regional turmoil surrounds them, Kuwaitis are quietly marking the 25th anniversary of Iraq's invasion.
Megan O'Toole | 02 Aug 2015 10:00 GMT | War & Conflict, Middle East, Iraq, Kuwait, Saddam Hussein
Exhibits at the Kuwait House for National Works tell the story of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and the ensuing Gulf War [Megan O'Toole/Al Jazeera]
Kuwait City - Nasser al-Duwailah is still haunted by a mistake he made 25 years ago. The former Kuwaiti member of parliament, who served as an army captain during Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, sent his soldiers home for a break on August 1, 1990, after negotiators for the two countries (Iraq and Kuwait) indicated they were making progress towards a deal over an oil revenue dispute.
Earlier, Duwailah had issued orders to put his men on alert amid suspicious Iraqi troop movements near the Kuwaiti border.
But political officials played down the threat, calling it "a political crisis, not a military one", he recalled.
"Everything on the ground said the war would start soon," Duwailah told Al Jazeera, noting Iraq duped Kuwait into believing a negotiated solution was on the horizon in order to secure the element of surprise. "[Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein] wanted it done quickly. If Kuwaitis were on alert and ready to fight, it would create obstacles; they would lay down a minefield, the air force would be ready. It would drag out the conflict."
But on that day in early August, Duwailah also let his guard down, taking his soldiers off alert. "That's the first time I was tricked," he said. "This was my one mistake."
RELATED: Kuwait: Class of 1990
Twenty-five years ago today, on August 2, 1990, Iraq invaded its southern neighbour, prompting uneven skirmishes that ended swiftly with an Iraqi victory.
The dispute was rooted in Iraq's fiscal troubles: It was carrying billions of dollars in debt from the Iran-Iraq war, but Kuwait was fuelling a drop in oil prices through overproduction. Iraq also accused Kuwait of drilling diagonally from its side of the border to steal Iraqi oil.
Politician Nasser al-Duwailah said there are many lessons to be learned from the Gulf War [Megan O'Toole/Al Jazeera]
Iraq's rapid takeover of Kuwait in early August was followed by a months-long occupation, which prompted an international military build-up and the commencement of Operation Desert Storm in early 1991.
Hundreds of Kuwaitis died or went missing during the conflict, while hundreds of thousands more were forced to flee the country.
After more than a month of war, coalition forces successfully liberated Kuwait by the end of February - an event that is marked annually by massive street celebrations along the capital's coastline.
No such events, however, mark the annual passing of August 2.
The anniversary of the invasion typically proceeds quietly, residents say, without a national commemoration - even on the milestone 25th anniversary this year.
It is not a day most Kuwaitis want to remember.
"Kuwait is not interested in the invasion. We celebrate only the day of liberation," Tawfiq al-Amir, a 71-year-old retired local cameraman and producer, told Al Jazeera. "It is too hard to mark the invasion date."\\
Continue reading at:
The day Kuwait would rather forget - Al Jazeera English
As regional turmoil surrounds them, Kuwaitis are quietly marking the 25th anniversary of Iraq's invasion.
Megan O'Toole | 02 Aug 2015 10:00 GMT | War & Conflict, Middle East, Iraq, Kuwait, Saddam Hussein
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Exhibits at the Kuwait House for National Works tell the story of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and the ensuing Gulf War [Megan O'Toole/Al Jazeera]
Kuwait City - Nasser al-Duwailah is still haunted by a mistake he made 25 years ago. The former Kuwaiti member of parliament, who served as an army captain during Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, sent his soldiers home for a break on August 1, 1990, after negotiators for the two countries (Iraq and Kuwait) indicated they were making progress towards a deal over an oil revenue dispute.
Earlier, Duwailah had issued orders to put his men on alert amid suspicious Iraqi troop movements near the Kuwaiti border.
But political officials played down the threat, calling it "a political crisis, not a military one", he recalled.
"Everything on the ground said the war would start soon," Duwailah told Al Jazeera, noting Iraq duped Kuwait into believing a negotiated solution was on the horizon in order to secure the element of surprise. "[Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein] wanted it done quickly. If Kuwaitis were on alert and ready to fight, it would create obstacles; they would lay down a minefield, the air force would be ready. It would drag out the conflict."
But on that day in early August, Duwailah also let his guard down, taking his soldiers off alert. "That's the first time I was tricked," he said. "This was my one mistake."
RELATED: Kuwait: Class of 1990
Twenty-five years ago today, on August 2, 1990, Iraq invaded its southern neighbour, prompting uneven skirmishes that ended swiftly with an Iraqi victory.
The dispute was rooted in Iraq's fiscal troubles: It was carrying billions of dollars in debt from the Iran-Iraq war, but Kuwait was fuelling a drop in oil prices through overproduction. Iraq also accused Kuwait of drilling diagonally from its side of the border to steal Iraqi oil.
Politician Nasser al-Duwailah said there are many lessons to be learned from the Gulf War [Megan O'Toole/Al Jazeera]
Iraq's rapid takeover of Kuwait in early August was followed by a months-long occupation, which prompted an international military build-up and the commencement of Operation Desert Storm in early 1991.
Hundreds of Kuwaitis died or went missing during the conflict, while hundreds of thousands more were forced to flee the country.
After more than a month of war, coalition forces successfully liberated Kuwait by the end of February - an event that is marked annually by massive street celebrations along the capital's coastline.
No such events, however, mark the annual passing of August 2.
The anniversary of the invasion typically proceeds quietly, residents say, without a national commemoration - even on the milestone 25th anniversary this year.
It is not a day most Kuwaitis want to remember.
"Kuwait is not interested in the invasion. We celebrate only the day of liberation," Tawfiq al-Amir, a 71-year-old retired local cameraman and producer, told Al Jazeera. "It is too hard to mark the invasion date."\\
Continue reading at:
The day Kuwait would rather forget - Al Jazeera English
