Flames from a burning oil well rise above an abandoned tank in the Burgan oil field, Kuwait. Getty Images
Flames from a burning oil well rise above an abandoned tank in the Burgan oil field, Kuwait. Getty Images

1990 - The invasion of Kuwait

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Updated 19 April 2025
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1990 - The invasion of Kuwait

1990 - The invasion of Kuwait
  • Saddam’s ‘horrible aggression’ led to the Gulf War, fragmenting the Arab world and creating lasting divisions 

JEDDAH: I was in Baghdad a mere two months before Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait on Aug. 2, 1990. I was there with a group of editors and journalists accompanying the late King Fahd to the 17th Arab Summit in the Iraqi capital on May 30, 1990. I saw Saddam up close, with only a couple of feet between us. 

At that time there was no inkling that he would invade Kuwait. Yes, there were rumblings of discontent and disagreements over Kuwait’s ownership of Bubiyan Island. But nobody imagined that two months after he hosted the Arab leaders, his tanks would roll into Kuwait in what King Fahd rightly described as Iraq’s “most horrible aggression.” 

The invasion of Kuwait set off a chain of events with repercussions that continue today. It shattered forever the idea of Arab unity and fragmented the Arab world. That world never recovered, never returned to “normal” after the Gulf War. 

There were countries that did not side with Saddam, but they remained quiet and this led to a deepening of the suspicions that lingered in the unfortunate post-1945 Arab history. Those suspicions had become reinforced, embedded and fixed in the minds of the Arabs. There was mutual suspicion of each other’s intentions. While the Palestinians, the Jordanians and the Yemenis did not openly support the invasion, their wait-and-see policy angered the Gulf states. 

How we wrote it




Arab News reported King Fahd’s denunciation of Iraq’s “most horrible” aggression against Kuwait and the ensuing international condemnation.

Could we say that today’s problems in our region have their roots in the 1990 invasion of Kuwait? I would say yes. Most of the Arab world’s issues today are a direct result of Saddam’s aggression. 

First, the invasion led directly to the destruction of Iraq. And those responsible were the Iraqi government and, more specifically, Saddam. It was Saddam who handed an excuse to forces that wanted to break up an Arab state. If Saddam had not invaded Kuwait, there would very likely have been no Al-Qaeda, no Daesh. The Kuwaiti invasion was the ultimate moment for those who wished to see Arabs violently disagreeing with, and actually fighting, each other. 

I remember an insightful piece I read in London’s Daily Telegraph newspaper in 1968 about differences that had cropped up during that year’s Arab Summit. It included a quote that is still relevant: “The Arab world, despite its brimming coffers, lacks one thing that money cannot buy — leadership.” 

Coming back to the invasion, and how we at Arab News covered it, I was awakened by a telephone call on the morning of Aug. 2, 1990. Mohammed Ali, the teleprinter operator at Arab News, was on the line. In those days, the teleprinter brought us the news, sometimes in trickles and sometimes in floods. Ali told me that information was trickling in about Kuwait being invaded by Iraqi troops. 

Key Dates

  • 1

    Iraq invades Kuwait.

  • 2

    UN Resolution 660 condemns the invasion and “demands that Iraq withdraw immediately and unconditionally.”

  • 3

    Saddam installs Alaa Hussein Ali, holder of dual Iraq-Kuwaiti nationality and a lieutenant in the Kuwaiti army, as head of a four-day puppet government in Kuwait.

    Timeline Image Aug. 4, 1990

  • 4

    UN Resolution 678 gives Iraq an ultimatum to withdraw from Kuwait by Jan. 15, 1991.

    Timeline Image Nov. 29, 1990

  • 5

    Saudi F-15s and Tornados take part in the first of a series of allied bombing raids on Iraqi military targets in Iraq and Kuwait.

  • 6

    Iraq fires the first of more than 80 Scud missiles it will unleash on Israel and Saudi Arabia during the brief conflict.

  • 7

    Iraqi forces seize the Saudi town of Khafji on the Kuwait border, but are driven out after two days.

    Timeline Image Jan. 29, 1991

  • 8

    Coalition ground troops cross into Iraq from Saudi Arabia.

  • 9

    US and Allied forces enter and begin the swift liberation of Kuwait.

    Timeline Image Feb. 24, 1991

  • 10

    A Scud missile hits US Army barracks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing 28 US soldiers.

  • 11

    Iraqi forces flee Kuwait, setting fire to oil wells as they leave. Thousands die on Highway 80, the so-called Highway to Death, when retreating troops are attacked by allied aircraft.

    Timeline Image Feb. 26, 1991

  • 12

    With Kuwait liberated, US President George H.W. Bush declares a cease-fire and Kuwait’s government returns from exile.

    Timeline Image Feb. 28, 1991

I jumped out of bed, dressed and headed straight to the office at around 6 a.m. We called a couple of other staff members and started reading the reports. In those days, communication was far from quick. There was no internet and no mobile phones. To get a firsthand report of what was actually happening, I called one of my friends in Kuwait who had worked with the Arab Times. 

He said: “Yes, I see Iraqi tanks in the streets. There is no resistance from the Kuwaitis.” We maintained contact for about three-and-a-half hours before his phone went dead. 

Armed with all the information and leads I had, I sat with the editorial team and discussed the next day’s edition. However, there was an order from the Ministry of Information telling newspapers not to write about the invasion. From the editor-in-chief’s point of view, this was a great story but there were directives not to print it. 

I was unwilling to take no for an answer, so I got in my car with my colleague, Khaled Nazer, and we went to the office of the minister of information at the time, Ali Al-Shaer. Once there, I begged and pleaded with him, saying how important it was to report this story, but he refused to budge. It was the darkest day in my life as a journalist. 

Luckily, there was an Islamic conference taking place in Cairo at the time, and we used that story as a way to discuss the rumblings and tensions along the border between Iraq and Kuwait. That was it. 




US Air Force fighters during Operation Desert Storm. Getty Images

The next day, however, we began reporting details of plundering and rampaging by Saddam’s troops in Kuwait. I told the publishers how important it was for the paper to have a full team close to the Saudi border with Iraq, in addition to the office we already had in the Eastern Province. 

On Aug. 8, I went to the Eastern Province and, by September, we had a full team in place. It included Wahib Ghorab, Khaled Nazer, Mohammed Samman, Saeed Haider, Maher Abbas, Hani Naqshbandi, the photographer Giovanni Pasquale and an American intern, Aldo Svaldi. 

By that time, an army of international journalists had arrived in the Eastern Province. The liberation of Kuwait was still a couple of weeks away. 

When King Fahd addressed the nation, and the world, on Thursday, Aug. 9, 1990, we were given detailed information about the invasion. Our front-page headline the following day was “Fahd denounces Iraq’s ‘most horrible aggression’.” 

From the Eastern Province, we began writing reports, war dispatches and human-interest stories. Everything was new to us and our circulation soared. The “Green Truth,” as Arab News was known in those days, became the most sought-after publication, the go-to source for information. 

International journalists from Voice of America, the BBC and CNN visited our offices, and we formed lifelong friendships with many of them. They were surprised by our knowledge, keenness and openness. There was even a story about a small burger joint that was making Scud Burgers, named for the missiles that Saddam was using to attack the Kingdom. 

None of my staff was allowed to feel any less important than those high and mighty foreign journalists. I made sure of that. 

Arab News was the first newspaper to enter liberated Kuwait, while the oil wells were still burning. 

  • Khaled Almaeena was editor in chief of Arab News for almost 25 years, serving two terms, from May 1, 1982, to Feb. 20, 1993, and from March 1, 1998, to Oct. 8, 2011. 


UN says ‘deeply troubled’ by Kenya protest killings

UN says ‘deeply troubled’ by Kenya protest killings
Updated 1 min 34 sec ago
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UN says ‘deeply troubled’ by Kenya protest killings

UN says ‘deeply troubled’ by Kenya protest killings
GENEVA: The United Nations on Tuesday expressed serious concern over the deaths of at least 10 people in Kenya where police and protesters clashed during anti-government demonstrations the previous day.
The violence erupted on Saba Saba Day (meaning Seven Seven) when demonstrators annually mark the events of July 7, 1990 when Kenyans rose up to demand a return to multi-party democracy after years of autocratic rule by then-president Daniel arap Moi.
“We are deeply troubled by the killings yesterday of at least 10 people, as well as looting and destruction of property in Kenya,” UN rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.
She said that “lethal ammunition, rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannons were used” as police responded to the protests.
She highlighted that Kenyan police had reported that at least 11 people were killed, 52 police officers injured and 567 arrests made.
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights meanwhile reported at least 10 deaths, 29 injuries, 37 arrests and two abductions, she added.
“We have also received reports of looting and damage to public and private property by unidentified individuals in multiple locations.”
Shamdasani said the violence came “barely two weeks after 15 protesters were reportedly killed and many more injured in Nairobi and other parts of Kenya on 25 June.”
UN rights chief Volker Turk renews “his call for calm and restrain, and full respect for the freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly,” she said.
“It is essential that legitimate grievances at the root of these protests are addressed,” the spokeswoman said.
The UN rights office noted that Kenyan police had announced an investigation into earlier incidents.
Shamdasani stressed that “under international human rights law, intentional lethal force by law enforcement officers, including with firearms, should only be used when strictly necessary to protect life from an imminent threat.”
Turk reiterates “his call for all reported killings and other alleged violations and abuses of international human rights law, including with respect to use of force, to be promptly, thoroughly, independently and transparently investigated,” she said.
“Those responsible must be held to account.”

Acropolis shuts, outdoor work halted as heatwave scorches Greece

Acropolis shuts, outdoor work halted as heatwave scorches Greece
Updated 20 sec ago
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Acropolis shuts, outdoor work halted as heatwave scorches Greece

Acropolis shuts, outdoor work halted as heatwave scorches Greece
  • To protect outdoor workers, the labor ministry has decreed a work stoppage from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. in various parts of the country, including several islands
  • The Greek culture ministry said the world renowned site would be shut till 5:00 p.m

ATHENS: Greece’s top archaeological monument, the Acropolis, was partially shut Tuesday as part of emergency measures to protect visitors and workers around the country during a four-day heatwave.
The Greek culture ministry said the world-renowned site would be shut till 5:00 p.m. (1400 GMT) “for the safety of workers and visitors, owing to high temperatures.”
The four-day heatwave confirmed by meteorologists began Sunday is the second to grip Greece since late June.
Temperatures are expected to reach 42 Celsius (107.6 Fahrenheit) on Tuesday, with a maximum of 38 Celsius in Athens.
Similar temperatures are expected on Wednesday.
To protect outdoor workers, the labor ministry has decreed a work stoppage from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. in various parts of the country, including several islands.
The stoppage mainly affects construction work and delivery riders.
“Days with a heatwave make my job more difficult,” cycle-riding courier Michalis Keskinidis told AFP.
“We drink a lot of water to protect ourselves from the heat, combined with electrolytes, and take breaks whenever possible,” the 43-year-old said.
The 2,500-year-old Acropolis, built on a rock overlooking the capital that offers little shade, draws tens of thousands of visitors daily.
Last year it recorded some 4.5 million visitors, an increase of over 15 percent compared to 2023.
Officials had been forced to order similar shutdowns in the past two years in heatwave conditions.

The Greek civil protection authority has warned of high fire risk in the greater Athens area, in central Greece and the Peloponnese peninsula.
Greece’s fire department has been dealing with up to 50 fires daily, the head of the Greek fire service officers’ union Constantinos Tsigkas told state TV ERT.
Elsewhere, Serbia’s hydrometeorological service RMHZ warned that weather conditions could fuel more fires, after 620 fires were recorded Monday.
But there are also thunderstorms expected in Serbia’s northern Vojvodina region, as well as in western and central areas.
RHMZ has also warned of the possibility of hail and hurricane-force gusts of wind.
Croatia has already felt the impact of storms since Monday, with several of the country’s regions affected.
Two people were injured and hospitalized in Vinkovci after a storm knocked down a power line on a family house near the eastern town, police said.
The authorities said they had taken dozens of calls over wind-related emergencies including trees blocking roads, damaged roofs and power failures.
On Tuesday, heavy rain and gale-force winds flooded roads, knocked down trees and caused power outages at the Croatian port town of Split, the state-run HRT broadcaster reported.
At the town’s port, a ferry broke its moorings and hit a catamaran and a tourist excursion boat, sinking the latter.
There was similar trouble further north, with storms raging in Hungary and Slovakia.
In Budapest, strong winds damaged roofs, felled trees onto roads and downed power lines on Monday, with the national meteorological service HungaroMet measuring winds up to 137 kilometers (85 miles) per hour locally.
Rail traffic was severely disrupted across Hungary with full restoration of services potentially requiring weeks, according to Construction and Transport Minister Janos Lazar.
In Slovakia, gale-force winds caused power outages and blew off the roof of a block of flats in the eastern town of Gelnica and fallen trees disrupted road and railway transport across the region.
The country’s weather service SHMU has issued a storm warning with heavy rain, wind and hail for Tuesday, mainly for central and eastern Slovakia.


Thousands told to stay home as Spain forest fire rages on

Thousands told to stay home as Spain forest fire rages on
Updated 2 min 8 sec ago
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Thousands told to stay home as Spain forest fire rages on

Thousands told to stay home as Spain forest fire rages on
  • Forest fire stoked by fierce winds has burned more than 2,300 hectares
  • Spain has in recent days sweltered through a heatwave that parched the land and heightened the risk of forest fires

MADRID: Spanish firefighters on Tuesday were battling a forest fire stoked by fierce winds that has burned more than 2,300 hectares (5,680 acres), with authorities urging thousands of residents to stay home.

The Spanish army’s emergency response unit said it had deployed overnight near the northeastern city of Tarragona to assist local authorities.

The blaze has devoured “around 2,377 hectares of land, mostly forest,” countryside rangers in the Catalonia region wrote on X.

The protected Els Ports natural park makes up 30 percent of the affected area, they added.

Firefighters released video footage shot from a helicopter on Monday showing hills enveloped in a cloud of grey and orange smoke stretching into the distance.

Winds of up to 90 kilometers per hour (56 miles per hour) made it harder to extinguish the fire overnight, firefighters said.

The national civil protection authority urged residents in the area to close their doors and windows and stay home, saying that around 18,000 people were affected.

Scientists say human-induced climate change is increasing the intensity, length and frequency of the extreme heat that causes some forest fires.

Spain has in recent days sweltered through a heatwave that parched the land and heightened the risk of forest fires.

National weather agency AEMET said last month was Spain’s hottest June on record and that the frequency of extreme heat had tripled in the past 10 years.

According to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), some 500 fires destroyed 300,000 hectares in Spain in 2022, a record for the continent.

Around 21,000 hectares have burned so far this year.


South Sudan’s president fires army chief after seven months in post

South Sudan’s president fires army chief after seven months in post
Updated 20 min 20 sec ago
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South Sudan’s president fires army chief after seven months in post

South Sudan’s president fires army chief after seven months in post
  • No reason was given for the firing of army chief Paul Nang Majok

NAIROBI: South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has fired the country’s army chief after seven months in the post and named a replacement, according to an announcement on state radio.
No reason was given for the firing of Paul Nang Majok in the announcement late on Monday. Majok had been in the post since December. The announcement said Kiir had appointed Dau Aturjong as the Chief of Defense Forces.
Majok was in charge of the army while fighting raged between the army and the White Army, an ethnic militia largely comprising Nuer youths, triggering the country’s latest political crisis.
“There has been a tradition that when you are appointed, or reassigned there are no reasons (given) for getting appointed and there are no reasons given for getting relieved. It is normal,” said Lul Ruai Koang, South Sudan army spokesperson.
South Sudan has been formally at peace since a 2018 deal ended the five-year conflict responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths, but violence between rival communities flares frequently.
In March, First Vice President Riek Machar was put under house arrest, stirring fears of renewed conflict.
Information Minister Michael Makuei said the arrest was due to Machar contacting his supporters and “agitating them to rebel against the government with the aim of disrupting peace so that elections are not held and South Sudan goes back to war.”
Machar’s party has previously denied government accusations that it backs the White Army, which clashed with the army in the northeastern town of Nasir in March. In May, South Sudan’s army said it had recaptured the town from the White Army.


Kremlin says former minister’s suicide is shocking

Kremlin says former minister’s suicide is shocking
Updated 1 min 41 sec ago
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Kremlin says former minister’s suicide is shocking

Kremlin says former minister’s suicide is shocking

MOSCOW: The Kremlin said on Tuesday that the suicide of former Transport Minister Roman Starovoit just hours after his dismissal by President Vladimir Putin was shocking.

Starovoit was found dead in his car outside Moscow with a gunshot wound and the principal hypothesis is that he took his own life, state investigators said on Monday, hours after Putin fired him.

A presidential decree published on Monday gave no reason for the dismissal of Starovoit after barely a year in the job.