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The War on Terror and its origin
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Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein was an Iraqi politician who served 1979 to 2003. He used an extensive secret-police establishment to suppress any internal opposition to his rule. His goal as president was to achieve complete influence and control over the Persian Gulf. Saddam was also backed up by the United States.
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Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan
Not long after the invasion the KGB had infiltrated the Afghan presidential palace and murdered the president and his ministers. They launched a coup and installed a new leader, Babrak Karmal who was Russia's puppet. The invasion triggered a 9 year long Afghan civil war. -
Iran-Iraq War
Saddam launched an invasion of Iran’s oil fields in September 1980. The Iran-Iraq War finished in a stalemate in 1988. During the war the United States sent weapons to Israel who then sold the guns to the Iranians. Iran purchased United States arms. -
The Soviet Invasion
During the Soviet Invasion, there was a rebel group called the Mujahideen and one man named Osama bin Laden was a part of that group and the fight against the Soviets. A Jordanian man named Abu Musab Zarqawi was also in Afghanistan at that time. -
Soviet Withdrawl
In 1988, after Soviet forces were defeated and withdrew from Afghanistan, Osama bin Laden founded an organization called al-Qaeda to continue the cause of holy war through violence and aggression. -
Operation Desert Shield
U.S., French, Saudi Arabian, United Kingdom, and Egyptian militaries build bases to threaten Iraq. The Operation lasted from August 7, 1990-January 16, 1991. There was no military activity during this time. -
Bin Laden Moves
In 1991, Bin Laden was expelled from Saudi Arabia by its government after repeatedly criticizing the Saudi alliance with the United States. He and his followers moved first to Afghanistan and then relocated to Sudan by 1996. -
Persian Gulf War
Iraq invades Kuwait under Saddam Hussein. His occupation alerted other countries and began the Persian Gulf War. Operation Desert Shield became Desert Storm. Saudi Arabia had asked the United States to set up military camps to threaten Saddam's army and his invasion of Kuwait. Bin Laden had offered the Saudis the use of his soldiers to fight the Iraqi army because he felt that infidel armies have no place in the Holy Land of Islam. Iraq tried to get Israel in the war, so Egypt would back out. -
USA in Somalia
George H.W. Bush sent 28,000 troops to Somalia. He also sent food, but those were intercepted and stolen by warlords. In 1993 18 Americans died when Black Hawk helicopters were shot down in Mogadishu, Somalia. The American bodies were strung up on bridges. Al-Qaeda taught the Somalis how to shoot down helicopters using the US made stinger anti-aircraft guns. -
1st World Trade Center Bombing
Ramzi Yousef, who was a Pakistani national. The attack killed 6 people and injured over 1000. He was sentenced to life imprisonment in the U.S. The attack destroyed the parking garage beneath the World Trade Center. The explosion nearly carved out a 100-foot crater seven stories deep and seven stories high. -
Khobar Towers
On the night of June 25, 1996, a bomb was detonated near the Khobar Tower housing complex in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing 19 Americans and injuring more than 400 U.S. and international military members as well as civilians. The towers housed coalition forces. -
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Embassy Bombings
Two American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed simultaneously. Trucks had exploded at the embassies. The bombing killed more than 200 people and injured more than 4000. The attacks were linked to Al-Qaeda and were deemed as attacks directly on American soil. -
USS Cole
Al-Qaeda operatives sent a suicide bomber aboard a small speed boat and sent it into the USS Cole, a US Navy destroyer, and detonated its bomb, blowing a large hole in the US Navy ship. The blast ripped a 40-foot-wide hole at the bottom of the ship, killing 17 U.S. sailors and injuring nearly 40 other crew members.
