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Operation Desert Storm
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Operation Desert Storm Facts: Fast Fact Sheet
Fast, fun facts and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
about Operation
Desert Storm.
When did Operation Desert Storm begin?
Operation Desert Storm began on 17 January
1991 following the "wholly defensive"
military build up to the conflict called
Operation Desert
Shield.
When did Operation Desert Storm end?
Operation Desert Storm ended on 28 February
1991 with the collapse of Iraqi resistance
to the US and Coalition military forces when
President Bush declared suspension of
offensive combat and laid out conditions for
permanent cease-fire.
What were the goals of Operation Desert
Storm? The goals of Operation Desert
Storm were to force the withdrawal of Iraqi
forces from Kuwait and restore the Kuwaiti
government, defeat the military capability
of Iraq and destroy Iraq's ability to
produce and employ weapons of mass
destruction.
Who was the general in Operation Desert
Storm?
The name of the US general in Operation
Desert Storm Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr.,
nicknamed "Stormin' Norman", the commander
of United States Central Command (CENTCOM).
General Schwarzkopf led all coalition forces
in the Persian Gulf War.
What
caused Operation Desert Storm?
The conflict known as Operation Desert Storm was
caused by Saddam Hussein's accusations that Kuwait was
over-producing oil, causing oil prices to drop, costing Iraq an
estimated $14 billion a year. This resulted in the Iraqi invasion
and annexation of oil-rich Kuwait. The response to the invasion was
the coalition military build-up in the Middle East known as
'Operation Desert Shield' (2 August 1990, to 16 January 1991) to
prevent oil reserves falling under the control of Saddam Hussein. Iraq
refused to withdraw from Kuwait which led to the 43 day conflict
known as Operation Desert Storm.
The
Persian Gulf War: Operation Desert Storm
Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm
were the US operational codenames used during the Persian Gulf War.
Operation Desert SHIELD was the period of a "wholly defensive"
military build-up in Saudi Arabia, on the southern border of Iraq,
by the United States. Operation Desert STORM was the codename given
to the combat phase of the Persian Gulf War reflecting the 'Shock
and Awe' or rapid dominance military tactics based on the use of
overwhelming power and spectacular displays of force to destroy the
enemy's will to fight.
What
countries were involved in Operation Desert Storm?
A coalition of forces from 34
nations was formed from Canada, Europe and Arab Nations, led by the
United States, in response to the aggression by Iraq. The coalition
of countries involved in Operation Desert Storm were Argentina,
Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Egypt,
France, Greece, Italy, Kuwait, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand,
Niger, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Portugal, Qatar, South Korea, Saudi
Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Spain, Syria, the United
Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Operation Desert Storm:
Military Forces
General Schwarzkopf commanded an
international army of 1,200,000 during Operation Desert Storm,
consisting of 500,000 U.S. troops and 700,000 troops from the
coalition countries. The US provided 2,000 tanks 1800 aircraft and
120 ships. The coalition provided 190 ships and 1700 combat
aircraft. Iraq had the world's fourth largest army at the time of
the conflict consisting of 955,000 standing soldiers and over half a
million paramilitary forces in the Popular Army.
Operation Desert Storm
Timeline
Facts for kids
The following fact
sheet contains interesting facts, timeline and information on
Operation Desert Storm
for kids.
Operation Desert Storm Facts: Timeline of Main Dates and Events
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Jan. 17 -
Following 139 days
of planning and buildup of Operation Desert Shield the
conflict known as Operation Desert Storm began with a
massive air war and missile attacks to destroy Iraq's
military forces and civil infrastructure. The USS
Missouri fired her first Tomahawk missile at Iraqi
targets, followed by 27 additional missiles over the
next five days.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Jan. 18 -
The first scud
missiles from Iraq strike Israel and Saudi Arabia. Scud
missiles are a type of long-range surface-to-surface
guided missile that is fired from a mobile launcher.
General Schwarzkopf announces to the media that the
military action by the Operation Desert Storm coalition
was "just about exactly as we had intended it to go".
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Jan. 19 -
Scud missiles
explode in Tel Aviv, Israel and the government, fearing
missiles could be the filled with nerve agents such as
sarin, issue gas masks to Israeli citizens. The
Battle of Ad-Dawrah was a naval engagement victory for
the coalition.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 20 -
Nine Scud missiles
fired at Saudi Arabia are intercepted. General
Schwarzkopf announced that Iraq's nuclear test
reactors had been destroyed
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 21 -
The Iraqi mobile
Scud missile launchers that were hidden in desert areas
continued to pose a threat. The U.S. announces more than
8,000 sorties in the first five days of Operation Desert
Storm.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 22 -
Iraq began
retreating from Kuwait and began an "environmental
war", blowing up over 700 Kuwaiti oil wells as part of a
scorched earth policy. Iraqi forces continue to launch
scud missiles.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 23 -
President George
H. Bush urges the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein should
be brought to justice, suggesting that removal of the
president of Iraq could be a goal
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 24 -
The Battle for
Qurah and Umm al Maradim, were several naval and land
battles for control over the islands off the coast of
Kuwait fought between 24–29 January 1991 during
Operation Desert Storm
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 25 -
Iraq begins
another element of "environmental war" by pumping
millions of gallons of crude oil into the Persian Gulf.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Jan. 26 -
The oil release
causes massive environmental damage throughout the
Persian Gulf and two great oil slicks are reported in
Saudi Arabia. The USS Louisville is first submarine to
launch a cruise missile in combat. (A cruise missile is
a guided missile launched against terrestrial targets at
cruise speed)
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Jan. 27 -
General
Schwarzkopf reports that the Operation Desert Storm
coalition has total air superiority in Iraq and are
reducing the Iraqi Scud threat. The coalition bomb
Iraq-held oil wells in Kuwait to stop Iraq from dumping
more oil into the Persian Gulf.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 28 -
Concerns continue
to grow about the "environmental war" being waged by the
Iraqi's and the possible use of chemical warfare during
Operation Desert Storm.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 29 -
Iraqi forces
invade Saudi territory and Khafji is captured. U.S.
Marines and Saudis engage Iraq in a ground Battle of
Khafji which is eventually won by coalition forces.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 30 -
Attacks by scores
of Iraqi tanks and thousands of troops in Saudi Arabia
are countered by U.S. Marines, Saudi and Qatari troops.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Jan. 31 -
Iraq is forced to withdraw from Saudi
Arabia.
Continued...
Operation Desert Storm Facts: Timeline of Main Dates and Events of
Operation Desert Storm
Operation Desert Storm
Timeline
Facts for kids
The following fact
sheet history timeline continues with facts about Operation
Desert Storm for kids.
Operation Desert Storm Facts: Timeline of Main Dates and Events of
Operation Desert Storm
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 01 -
US Secretary of
Defense Dick Cheney warns that the United States would
retaliate if Iraq used chemical or unconventional
weapons during the Gulf War. The Coalition forces bomb a
ten mile-long column of Iraqi armored vehicles headed
into Saudi Arabia.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 02 -
The Battle of
Bubiyan naval engagement ended in a Coalition victory
with Iraqi Naval Forces destroyed.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 03 -
The massive Operation Desert Storm
coalition air campaign continues and reaches over 40,000
sorties.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 04 -
U.S.S. Missouri shells Iraqi
positions with 16-inch guns
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 05 -
Allies fly 2,000
sorties, targeting Iraqi Republican Guards and bridges.
Radio Baghdad broadcasting in coded messages, calls for
worldwide attacks against coalition interests
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 06 -
King Hussein of
Jordan raises objections to the U.S. heavy bombardment
of neighboring Iraq. Iraq announced it was breaking
diplomatic ties with U.S., UK, France, Italy, Egypt and
Saudi Arabia.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 07 -
Allied air attacks against Iraqi
troops in Kuwait increase dramatically with 2600 sorties
flown.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 08 -
2500 sorties are
flown targeting bridges and troops. Joint Chiefs
Chairman Colin Powell and Dick Cheney arrive in Saudi
Arabia for consultations. General Schwarzkopf confirms
that CENTCOM has destroyed over 600 tanks during
Operation Desert Storm.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 09 -
2400 sorties are
flown, the Operation Desert Storm total is now over
57,000 sorties. Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev warns
the allied offensive threatens to exceed UN mandate,
publicly appeals to Saddam Hussein to "show realism."
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 10 -
2800 sorties
against bridges and Iraqi troops. Saddam pledges victory
and praises his people for “steadfastness, faith and
light in the chests of Iraqis.”
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 11 -
Allies fly 2600
sorties and emphasize attempts to avoid civilian
casualties. President Bush says allies will continue
with "very, very effective" air campaign "for a while"
before beginning ground operations in Operation Desert
Storm.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 12 -
The coalition
conducts heavy bombardment of Baghdad and begin combined
land-sea-air operations against Iraqis in Kuwait
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 13 -
An allied missile
lands on an air-raid shelter in Baghdad, killing nearly
400 people. The Bush administration asserts that it was
a military target. Dick Cheney states that Saddam
Hussein is "deliberately placing civilians in harm's
way."
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 14 -
The Pentagon
announces that coalition allied planes have
destroyed at least 1,300 of Iraq’s 4,280 tanks, 800 of
Iraq’s 2,870 armored vehicles and 1,100 of Iraq’s 3,110
artillery pieces.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 15 -
Iraq proposes
withdrawal of forces from Kuwait. President George H.
Bush rejects offer as a "cruel hoax." seeking an
unconditional surrender.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 16 -
Abdul Amir al-Anbari,
Iraq’s ambassador to the United Nations states that Iraq
will use weapons of mass destruction if U.S. bombing
continues. All U.S. ground forces are in position to
launch the ground .
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 17 -
U.S. military and
intelligence officials estimate that 15% of Iraq’s
military forces in Kuwait have been killed or wounded.
Signs are growing that allied offensive may be imminent.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 18 -
U.S.S. Tripoli and
U.S.S. Princeton strike mines. U.S. ground forces are
said to be "ready and waiting."
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 19 -
General
Schwarzkopf says allies are destroying more than 100
Iraqi tanks every day. President Bush rejects a
Soviet-Iraqi peace plan that would allow three weeks for
their withdrawal from Kuwait.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 20 -
The 5 day Battle
of Wadi Al-Batin ends in victory for the Coalition.
U.S. forces report destruction of 450-500 tanks in
intensive ground action. General Schwarzkopf is quoted
as saying Iraq’s military is on the "verge of collapse".
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 21 -
Defense Secretary
Dick Cheney says allies are preparing "one of the
largest land assaults of modern times". Saddam Hussein
delivers a defiant speech in Baghdad.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 22 -
President Bush
issues a 24-hour ultimatum to Iraq to begin an
"immediate and unconditional withdrawal from Kuwait" or
face a coalition ground attack within one week.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 23 -
Stealth
fighters attack Iraqi intelligence headquarters
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 24 -
U.S. ground attack
commences in Kuwait and Iraq. Coalition forces launch a
combined ground, air and sea assault which overwhelms
the Iraqi army within 100 hours.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 25 -
Saudi-led Arab
forces attacked Kuwait City, two U.S. Marine Corps
divisions struck at the oil fields, and the VII Corps
and XVIII Airborne Corps on the left flank struck
cut off the Iraqi forces from the west, which would
later be known as the "Left Hook" maneuver of General
Schwarzkopf.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 26 -
The Battle of 73
Easting and the Battle of Al Busayyah were decisive tank
victories for the coalition. Saddam Hussein announces
Iraq's withdrawal from Kuwait, but still refuses to
accept all the UN resolutions passed against it.
Coalition forces bombed thousands of vehicles
littering the “Highway of Death”.
Operation
Desert Storm Facts and Timeline:
Feb. 27 -
The U.S. 1st
Armored Division fought the tank Battle of Medina Ridge
against Iraqi's outside Basra, Iraq. It was the largest
tank battle in US history and ended in a decisive
victory for the United States. The Battle of Kuwait
International Airport led the 1st Marine Division
straight into Kuwait City. Coalition forces liberate
Kuwait City. President Bush declares a cease-fire for
February 28
Operation
Desert Storm Facts:
Feb. 28 -
With the total
collapse of Iraqi resistance Operation Desert Storm is
brought to a conclusion and the first Gulf War ends.
Operation Desert Storm Facts: Timeline of Main Dates and Events of
Operation Desert Storm
Operation Desert Storm
Battles:
The battles fought
during Operation Desert Storm are as follows:
Operation Desert Storm
Battles
Operation
Desert Storm Battles:
January 19 - Battle of Ad-Dawrah
Operation
Desert Storm Battles:
January 24 - Battle for Qurah and
Umm al Maradim
Operation
Desert Storm Battles:
January 29 - Battle of Khafji
Operation
Desert Storm Battles:
February 02 - Battle of Bubiyan
Operation
Desert Storm Battles:
February 20 - Battle of Wadi Al-Batin
Operation
Desert Storm Battles:
February 26 - Battle of 73 Easting
Operation
Desert Storm Battles:
February 26 - Battle of Al Busayyah
Operation
Desert Storm Battles:
February 27 - Battle of Medina
Ridge
Operation
Desert Storm Battles:
February 27 - Battle of Kuwait
International Airport
Facts
about
Operation Desert Storm:
For visitors interested in the history of
Operation Desert Storm refer to the following articles:
Operation Desert Storm - President George H Bush Video
The article on
Operation Desert Storm provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office. The following
George H Bush video will
give you additional important facts and dates about his presidency.
Operation Desert Storm
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Interesting Facts about Operation Desert Storm for kids and schools
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Summary of Operation Desert Storm in US history
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Operation Desert Storm of important, key
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Operation Desert Storm Timeline of important dates
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Fast, fun facts and timeline of Operation Desert Storm
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Operation Desert Storm Timeline of important dates
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