Zusammenfassung
Originally published: La Guerre Iran-Irak, 1980-1988: Premiere guerre du Golfe. Perrin, un department d'Edi8, 2013.

Autorentext

Pierre Razoux

Klappentext

From 1980 to 1988, Iran and Iraq fought the longest conventional war of the twentieth century. The tragedies included the slaughter of child soldiers, the use of chemical weapons, the striking of civilian shipping in the Gulf, and the destruction of cities. The Iran-Iraq War offers an unflinching look at a conflict seared into the region s collective memory but little understood in the West. Pierre Razoux shows why this war remains central to understanding Middle Eastern geopolitics, from the deep-rooted distrust between Sunni and Shia Muslims, to Iran s obsession with nuclear power, to the continuing struggles in Iraq. He provides invaluable keys to decipher Iran s behavior and internal struggle today.

Razoux s account is based on unpublished military archives, oral histories, and interviews, as well as audio recordings seized by the U.S. Army detailing Saddam Hussein s debates with his generals. Tracing the war s shifting strategies and political dynamics military operations, the jockeying of opposition forces within each regime, the impact on oil production so essential to both countries Razoux also looks at the international picture. From the United States and Soviet Union to Israel, Europe, China, and the Arab powers, many nations meddled in this conflict, supporting one side or the other and sometimes switching allegiances.

The Iran-Iraq War answers questions that have puzzled historians. Why did Saddam embark on this expensive, ultimately fruitless conflict? Why did the war last eight years when it could have ended in months? Who, if anyone, was the true winner when so much was lost?

Zusammenfassung
From 1980 to 1988 Iran and Iraq fought the longest conventional war of the century. It included tragic slaughter of child soldiers, use of chemical weapons, striking of civilian shipping, and destruction of cities. Pierre Razoux offers an unflinching look at a conflict seared into the region's collective memory but little understood in the West.

Inhalt
Cover Title Copyright Dedication Contents List of Maps Preface Abbreviations The Media War Saddam Chooses War Final Preparations The Forces on the Field Chapter 2. Saddam's Qadisiyyah Saddam's Falcons Kick Off the War The Iranian Eagles Strike Back The Ground Offensive Attacking Khuzestan The Iraqis Grind to a Halt outside Khorramshahr Old Border Disputes Enter Saddam Hussein The Rivalry for Regional Supremacy The Algiers Accord Ayatollah Khomeini's Arrival in Tehran Changes the Game Saddam Takes Power Chapter 4. Did the United States Push Saddam to Attack? The Islamic Revolution Muddies the Waters The Carter Doctrine Washington Announces Its Neutrality Moscow Punishes Baghdad and Courts Tehran Beijing Banks on Baghdad Iraq, the New Eldorado for French Industrialists Eurodif at the Heart of the Franco-Iranian Dispute Mitterrand Backs Saddam Scattered Europeans Chapter 6. The Arabs Divided King Hussein of Jordan, Herald of the Pro-Iraqi Camp Oman, Egypt, and Algeria's Leaders Refuse to Align Themselves Hafez Al-Assad, Leader of the Pro-Iranian Camp The Gulf Cooperation Council Steps In Chapter 7. Israel Banks on Iran and Turkey Benefits from the War A Pragmatic Strategy Turkey, the Silent Victor Chapter 8. The "Valmy" Effect Prioritizing the Internal Front Combat Starts Again The Fall of Khorramshahr and the Siege of Abadan The Southern Front Prioritized Air Duels over Khuzestan Air and Sea Battle at the Mouth of the Shatt Al-Arab A Highly Disappointing Initial Assessment for Baghdad The Failure of the First Iranian Counteroffensive A New Front Opens in Kurdistan Raid on H-3 Osirak Out of Commission The Elimination of the Secularists Resurgence of Tension between Paris and Tehran Rafsanjani and Khamenei Share Power New Leader, New Doctrine The Rescue of Abadan On the Way to Jerusalem The Iraqi Sappers Hard at Work A Hard Blow for Baghdad An Encouraging Victory Chapter 13. New Mediation The International Community at a Loss Guarded Indifference in the Rest of the World Washington Initiates Rapprochement with Baghdad Iranian Kurdistan Chapter 14. The Iranians Recapture Their Territory The Liberation of Khorramshahr Strategic Withdrawal Rafsanjani and Khomeini Agree to Continue the War Iranian Troops Enter Iraq Oil Blockade Autumn Offensives Moscow and Beijing Hone Their Strategies Chapter 16. Bloody Dawns War of Attrition Dawn 1 Return to Kurdistan Chapter 17. Saddam's Ace in the Hole The Iraqi Equivalent of Enigma Accelerated Training Human Intelligence Bargaining Chip The Iranians Seize the Majnoon Islands Chapter 18. The Lebanese Hostage Crisis France in Iran's Crosshairs Raid on Baalbek American Retaliation Tehran Punishes Washington France Changes Course Paris Negotiates with Tehran Chapter 19. Money Has No Smell Business Is Business The Luchaire Scandal Chemical Weapons under Scrutiny The War of the Cities Raid on Bushehr The Tanker War The Fahd Line The Air Force on the Front Line Mines in the Red Sea Maintaining Troop Morale The Kurdish Independence Movement Forces Turkey into a Rapprochement with Iraq Chapter 21. The Year of the Pilot The Second Battle of the Marshes Another War of the Cities Guerilla Warfare in Iraqi Kurdistan The Presidential Election in Iran Chapter 22. Oil and the War Machine Washington and Riyadh Agree on a New Oil Policy The Soviets Change Tactics Again Objective Kharg The Sacrifice of the Basijis The Iranians Capture the Al-Faw Peninsula The Iraqis Counterattack Combat Shifts to Iraqi Kurdistan Hafez Al-Assad Ups the Ante On the Road to Karbala Escalating Tension between Tehran and Ankara Hunting Season Begins The Mirages Strike in the Gulf Chapter 25. The Iran-Contra Affair The Israeli Connection Arms for Hostages Conflicts of Interest in Tehran A Disastrous Outcome for Washington Chapter 26. All-Out Offensives The Assault on Basra The "Mother of All Battles" At the Gates of Basra Chapter 27. Iran Changes Strategy Military, Diplomatic, and Commercial Maneuvers The Attack on the USS Stark Mines in the Gulf The Al-Anfal Campaign The Gordji Affair Forces France to Intervene in the Gulf Operation Prométhée Chapter 28. The Gulf Set Ablaze The United States Takes Direct Action Iran Defies the U.S. Navy The American Navy Retaliates The Iraqi Army Ups the Ante Tehran Starts the War of the Capitals The Gassing of the Kurds The Iraqi Army Recaptures the Al-Faw Peninsula Chapter 30. The Destruction of Iran Air Flight 655 Air and Sea Battle in the Gulf The Iraqis Recapture Their Other Lost Territories The Destruction of an Iran Air Airbus Revenge, Iranian Style Ayatollah Khomeini Approves the End of Hostilities Final Clashes Paris and Tehran Settle Their Accounts A Terribly Deadly War Epilogue A New Geopolitical Situation What Military Lessons Can Be Retained? Are the Political Lessons Applicable Today? A. Chronology B. Iraq and Iran in 1980 C. Military High Command D. Military Forces E. Armed Opposition F. Foreign Military Assistance G. Oil H. International Naval Presence in the Gulf I. War Losses J. Financial Cost Notes Sources Acknowledgments Index