Gulf War

A conflict (1990–1991) in which a US-led international coalition expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait following Iraq’s invasion of that country, without advancing to Baghdad or removing Saddam Hussein. The war had major geopolitical consequences, reshaping Middle Eastern security dynamics, motivating Iraqi and Iranian pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, and cementing US military dominance over the Persian Gulf.

Claims that use this term

• The 1991 Gulf War was concluded without occupying Baghdad or toppling Saddam
• The 1991 Gulf War outcome motivated both Iraq and Iran to pursue WMD.
• Arab publics experienced Gulf War defeat as cultural humiliation
• The 1991 Gulf War made the Persian Gulf an American military lake
• Disney renamed Aladdin’s Baghdad setting to avoid Gulf War associations
• Gulf War rhetoric and tanks inflamed Muslim populist anger at the US