Iran-iraq War

Friday, 23 November 2012

$Iran-Iraq war !\$

Iran-Iraq War 1980 to 1988 - Part 2 of 3

Iran & Iraq War, Freedom of Khoramshahr, (Operation Beit ol-Moqaddas) mixed with real footage.

Iran - Iraq war 1980-1988 جنگ ایران و عراق

Iranians' Patriotism During Iran- Iraq War

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Abadan
Abadan (Persian: آبادان‎, Arabic:عبادان, also Romanized as Ābādān) is a city in and the capital of Abadan County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. It lies on Abadan Island (68 km or 42 mi long, 3–19 km or 2–12 miles wide, the island is bounded in the west by the Arvand waterway and to the east by the Bahmanshir outlet of the Karun River), 53 kilometres (33 mi) from the Persian Gulf, near the Iraqi-Iran border. The civilian population of the city dropped to near zero during the eight-years Iran–Iraq War. In 1992, only 84,774 had returned to live in the city. By 2001, the population had jumped to 206,073, and it was 217,988, in 48,061 families, according to 2006 census.Abadan Refinery is one of the largest in the world.
The earliest mention of the island of Abadan, if not the port itself is found in works of the geographer Marcian, who renders the name "Apphadana". Earlier, the classical geographer, Ptolemy notes "Apphana" as an island off the mouth of the Tigris (which is, where the modern Island of Abadan is located). An etymology for this name is presented by 'B. Farahvashi to be derived from the Persian word "ab" (water) and the root "pā" (guard, watch) thus "coastguard station").

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Abadan, Iran
Abadan (Persian: آبادان‎, Arabic:عبادان, also Romanized as Ābādān) is a city in and the capital of Abadan County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. It lies on Abadan Island (68 km or 42 mi long, 3–19 km or 2–12 miles wide, the island is bounded in the west by the Arvand waterway and to the east by the Bahmanshir outlet of the Karun River), 53 kilometres (33 mi) from the Persian Gulf, near the Iraqi-Iran border. The civilian population of the city dropped to near zero during the eight-years Iran–Iraq War. In 1992, only 84,774 had returned to live in the city. By 2001, the population had jumped to 206,073, and it was 217,988, in 48,061 families, according to 2006 census.Abadan Refinery is one of the largest in the world.
The earliest mention of the island of Abadan, if not the port itself is found in works of the geographer Marcian, who renders the name "Apphadana". Earlier, the classical geographer, Ptolemy notes "Apphana" as an island off the mouth of the Tigris (which is, where the modern Island of Abadan is located). An etymology for this name is presented by 'B. Farahvashi to be derived from the Persian word "ab" (water) and the root "pā" (guard, watch) thus "coastguard station").

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Abu Musa
Abu Musa (Persian: بوموسی‎) is a 12.8 km² island part of Hormozgan province in Iran. Located in the eastern Persian Gulf, it is part of a six-island archipelago near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's sovereignty of the islands is disputed by the United Arab Emirates.
Abu Musa's inhabitants call it "Gap-sabzu" (Persian: گپ‌سبزو‎), which in Persian means "the great green place." On old maps, the island is called:
But in recent century it is also called Bum Musa, Persian for "the land of Musa/Moses" instead of "Boum-Sou".
As of 2012, the island had about 2,131 inhabitants, making it Iran's smallest county. The city of Abu Musa had 1,953 inhabitants in 2012, up 248 from 2006.
Abu Musa island is 75 km from Bandar Lengeh and 16 km from Strait of Hormuz. It is the farthest island (out of 14 islands of Hormozgan) from the Iranian coast of the Persian Gulf. It's 46 m above the sea. The highest place is the 110-meter Halva mountain. Abu Musa city is the center of the island. The weather in Abu Musa is warm and humid, although, compared to the place in the Persian Gulf, Abu Musa has a better climate and the most diverse ecosystem, but it lacks suitable soil and water for farming leaving fishing as the main industry for locals. It is one of the main ports for exporting oil from Iran. Due to the depth of sea, oil tankers and big ships, have to pass between Abu Musa and Greater and Lesser Tunbs; this makes these islands one of the most strategic points for Iran in the Persian Gulf.

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Achaemenid Empire
The Achaemenid Empire (/ækəˈmɛnɪˌdi/; Old Persian: Parsā, name of ruling dynasty: Haxāmanišiya) (c. 550–330 BCE), sometimes known as First Persian Empire, was an Iranian empire in Southwest Asia, founded in the 6th century BCE by Cyrus the Great who overthrew the Median confederation. It expanded to eventually rule over significant portions of the ancient world which at around 500 BCE stretched from the Indus Valley in the east, to Thrace and Macedon on the northeastern border of Greece making it the biggest empire the world had yet seen. The Achaemenid Empire would eventually control Egypt as well. It was ruled by a series of monarchs who unified its disparate tribes and nationalities by constructing a complex network of roads.
Calling themselves the Parsa after their original Aryan tribal name Parsua, Persians settled in a land which they named Parsua, bounded on the west by the Tigris River and on the south by the Persian Gulf. This became their heartland for the duration of the Achaemenid Empire. It was from this region that eventually Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II of Persia) would advance to defeat the Median, the Lydian, and the Babylonian Empires, opening the way for subsequent conquests into Egypt and Asia minor.

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Akkadian Empire
Coordinates: 33°6′N 44°6′E / 33.1°N 44.1°E / 33.1; 44.1
The Akkadian Empire (Akkadian ^URUAkkad KI, Hittite KUR A.GA.DÈ.KI "land of Akkad"; Biblical Hebrew אַכַּד Akkad) was an empire centered in the city of Akkad (Sumerian: Agade) and its surrounding region in Mesopotamia.
During the 3rd millennium BC, there developed a very intimate cultural symbiosis between the Sumerians and the Akkadians, which included widespread bilingualism.Akkadian gradually replaced Sumerian as a spoken language somewhere around the turn of the 3rd and the 2nd millennium BC (the exact dating being a matter of debate).
The Akkadian Empire reached its political peak between the 24th and 22nd centuries BC, following the conquests of its founder Sargon of Akkad (2334–2279 BC). Under Sargon and his successors, Akkadian language was briefly imposed on neighboring conquered states such as Elam. Akkad is sometimes regarded as the first empire in history, though there are earlier Sumerian claimants.^{[citation needed]}
The precise archaeological site of the city of Akkad has not yet been found.^{[citation needed]} The form Agade appears in Sumerian, for example in the Sumerian King List; the later Assyro-Babylonian form Akkadû ("of or belonging to Akkad") was likely derived from this. The etymology and meaning of Akkad (written a.ga.dè^KI or URI^KI) are unknown. Centuries later, the neo-Babylonian king Nabonidus mentioned in his archaeological records that Ishtar's worship in Agade was later superseded by that of the goddess Anunit, whose shrine was at Sippar—suggesting proximity of Sippar and Agade. Despite numerous searches, the city has never been found. One theory holds that Agade was situated opposite Sippar on the left bank of the Euphrates, and was perhaps the oldest part of the city of Sippar. Another theory is that the ruins of Akkad are to be found beneath modern Baghdad. Reputedly it was destroyed by invading Gutians with the fall of the Akkadian Empire.

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Ankara
Ankara (Turkish pronunciation: [ˈan.ka.ɾa]; historically known as Angora) is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of 938 metres (3,077 ft), and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million.
Centrally located in Anatolia, Ankara is an important commercial and industrial city. It is the center of the Turkish Government, and houses all foreign embassies. It is an important crossroads of trade, strategically located at the centre of Turkey's highway and railway networks, and serves as the marketing centre for the surrounding agricultural area. The city was famous for its long-haired Angora goat and its prized wool (mohair), a unique breed of cat (Angora cat), Angora rabbits and their prized wool (Angora wool), pears, honey, and the region's muscat grapes.
The historical center of Ankara is situated upon a rocky hill, which rises 150 m (492 ft) above the plain on the left bank of the Ankara Çayı, a tributary of the Sakarya (Sangarius) river. The city is located at 39°52'30" North, 32°52' East (39°52′30″N 32°50′00″E / 39.875°N 32.8333°E / 39.875; 32.8333Coordinates: 39°52′30″N 32°50′00″E / 39.875°N 32.8333°E / 39.875; 32.8333), about 450 km (280 mi) to the southeast of Istanbul, the country's largest city. Although situated in one of the driest places of Turkey and surrounded mostly by steppe vegetation except for the forested areas on the southern periphery, Ankara can be considered a green city in terms of green areas per inhabitant, which is 72 m² per head.

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Arab League
The Arab League (Arabic: الجامعة العربية‎ al-Jāmiʻa al-ʻArabiyya), officially called the League of Arab States (Arabic: جامعة الدول العربية‎ Jāmiʻat ad-Duwal al-ʻArabiyya), is a regional organisation of Arab states in North and Northeast Africa, and Southwest Asia (Middle East). It was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945 with six members: Egypt, Iraq, Transjordan (renamed Jordan in 1949), Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria. Yemen joined as a member on 5 May 1945. The Arab League currently has 22 members (including Syria, whose participation was suspended in November 2011). The main goal of the league is to "draw closer the relations between member States and co-ordinate collaboration between them, to safeguard their independence and sovereignty, and to consider in a general way the affairs and interests of the Arab countries."
Through institutions such as the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO) and the Economic and Social Council of the Arab League's Council of Arab Economic Unity (CAEU), the Arab League facilitates political, economic, cultural, scientific and social programs designed to promote the interests of the Arab world. It has served as a forum for the member states to coordinate their policy positions, to deliberate on matters of common concern, to settle some Arab disputes, and to limit conflicts such as the 1958 Lebanon crisis. The League has served as a platform for the drafting and conclusion of many landmark documents promoting economic integration. One example is the Joint Arab Economic Action Charter which sets out the principles for economic activities in the region.

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Armenia
Armenia ⁱ/ɑrˈmiːniə/ (Armenian: Հայաստան Hayastan [hɑjɑsˈtɑn]), officially the Republic of Armenia (Հայաստանի Հանրապետություն, Hayastani Hanrapetut’yun, [hɑjɑstɑˈni hɑnɾɑpɛtuˈtʰjun]), is a landlocked, mountainous country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia to the north, the de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan to the east, and Iran and the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan to the south.
A former republic of the Soviet Union, Armenia is a unitary, multiparty, democratic nation-state with an ancient and historic cultural heritage. The Kingdom of Armenia became the first state in the world to adopt Christianity as its religion, in the early years of the 4th century (the traditional date is 301 AD). The modern Republic of Armenia recognizes the Armenian Apostolic Church, the world's oldest national church, as the country's primary religious establishment. Armenians have their own unique alphabet invented by Mesrob Mashtots in 406 AD.

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Arvand river
Shatt al-Arab (Arabic: شط العرب‎, literally "Coast/Beach of the Arabs") or Arvand Rūd (Persian: اروندرود‎, "Arvand River"), is a river in Southwest Asia of some 200 km (120 mi) in length, formed by the confluence of the Euphrates and the Tigris in the town of al-Qurnah in the Basra Governorate of southern Iraq. The southern end of the river constitutes the border between Iraq and Iran down to the mouth of the river as it discharges into the Persian Gulf. It varies in width from about 232 metres (761 ft) at Basra to 800 metres (2,600 ft) at its mouth. It is thought that the waterway formed relatively recently in geologic time, with the Tigris and Euphrates originally emptying into the Persian Gulf via a channel further to the west.
The Karun river, a tributary which joins the waterway from the Iranian side, deposits large amounts of silt into the river; this necessitates continuous dredging to keep it navigable.
The area is judged to hold the largest date palm forest in the world. In the mid-1970s, the region included 17 to 18 million date palms, an estimated one-fifth of the world's 90 million palm trees. But by 2002, war, salt, and pests had wiped out more than 14 million of the palms, including around 9 million in Iraq and 5 million in Iran. Many of the remaining 3 to 4 million trees are in poor condition.

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Arvand Rud
Shatt al-Arab (Arabic: شط العرب‎, literally "Coast/Beach of the Arabs") or Arvand Rūd (Persian: اروندرود‎, "Arvand River"), is a river in Southwest Asia of some 200 km (120 mi) in length, formed by the confluence of the Euphrates and the Tigris in the town of al-Qurnah in the Basra Governorate of southern Iraq. The southern end of the river constitutes the border between Iraq and Iran down to the mouth of the river as it discharges into the Persian Gulf. It varies in width from about 232 metres (761 ft) at Basra to 800 metres (2,600 ft) at its mouth. It is thought that the waterway formed relatively recently in geologic time, with the Tigris and Euphrates originally emptying into the Persian Gulf via a channel further to the west.
The Karun river, a tributary which joins the waterway from the Iranian side, deposits large amounts of silt into the river; this necessitates continuous dredging to keep it navigable.
The area is judged to hold the largest date palm forest in the world. In the mid-1970s, the region included 17 to 18 million date palms, an estimated one-fifth of the world's 90 million palm trees. But by 2002, war, salt, and pests had wiped out more than 14 million of the palms, including around 9 million in Iraq and 5 million in Iran. Many of the remaining 3 to 4 million trees are in poor condition.

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Asalouyeh
Asaluyeh (Persian: عسلويه‎, also Romanized as ‘Asalūyeh and Asalu, and sometimes prefixed by bandar, meaning port) is a city in and the capital of Asaluyeh District, in Kangan County, Bushehr Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 4,746, in 875 families.
Located on the shore of the Persian Gulf some 270 km SE of the provincial capital of Bushehr, it is best known as the site for the land based facilities of the huge PSEEZ (Pars Special Energy Economic Zone) project. The town itself is of minor significance, although it is common practice to refer to PSEEZ (established 1998) and Asaluyeh town collectively as Asaluyeh.
Asaluyeh was chosen as the site of the PSEEZ facilities due to it being the closest land point to the largest natural gas field in the world, the South Pars / North Dome Gas-Condensate field. In addition, an existing airport and direct access to international waters via a deep water port were already present.
The PSEEZ (Pars Special Energy/Economic Zone) as it is known has been allocated 100 square kilometres of land at Asaluyeh for the various complexes and facilities. The site is a collection of different plants and refineries (known as "phases") and is administered by the PSEEZ agency onsite.

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Assembly of Experts
The Assembly of Experts (also Assembly of Experts of the Leadership) of Iran (Persian: مجلس خبرگان رهبری, Majles-e Khobregan or Majles-e Khebregan-e Rahbari‎), also translated as Council of Experts, is a deliberative body of 86 Mujtahids (Islamic scholars) that is charged with electing and removing the Supreme Leader of Iran and supervising his activities. Members of the assembly are elected from list of candidates by direct public vote to eight-year terms. Current laws require the assembly to meet for at least two days, twice annually. The current chairman of the Assembly is Mahdavi Kani, who was elected in March 2011.
According to the Iranian Constitution, the assembly is in charge of supervising, dismissing and electing the Supreme Leader. In the event of his death, resignation or dismissal, the Experts shall take steps within the shortest possible time to appoint a new Leader. "Whenever the Leader becomes incapable of fulfilling his constitutional duties, or loses one of the qualifications mentioned in the Constitution, or it becomes known that he did not possess some of the qualifications initially, he will be dismissed." The assembly has never dismissed a sitting Supreme Leader, and as all of their meetings and notes are strictly confidential, the assembly has never been known to challenge or otherwise publicly oversee any of the Supreme Leader's decisions.

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Atlanta
Atlanta ( /ətˈlæntə/, stressed /ætˈlæntə/, locally /ætˈlænə/) is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia with a 2010 population of 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest in the U.S. It is a major component of a growing southeastern megalopolis known as the Piedmont Atlantic Megaregion. Atlanta is the county seat of Fulton County, and a small portion of the city extends eastward into DeKalb County.
Atlanta began as a settlement located at the terminus of a railroad line, and it was incorporated in 1845. Today, the city is a major business city and the primary transportation hub of the Southeastern United States (via highway, railroad, and air), with Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport being the world's busiest airport since 1998. The World Cities Study Group at Loughborough University rated Atlanta as an "alpha(-) world city." With a gross domestic product of US$270 billion, Atlanta's economy ranks 15th among world cities and sixth in the nation. The city is a center for services, finance, information technology, government, and higher education. Metro Atlanta contains the country's third largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies, and is the world headquarters of The Coca-Cola Company, Turner Broadcasting, The Home Depot, AT&T Mobility, UPS, and Delta Air Lines. As of 2010, Atlanta is the seventh most visited city in the United States, with over 35 million visitors per year.

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Baghdad
Baghdad (Arabic: بغداد‎, Baġdād, IPA: [bæɣˈdæːd]) is the capital of Republic of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Province. The population of Baghdad as of 2011 is approximately 7,216,040, making it the largest city in Iraq, the second largest city in the Arab World (after Cairo, Egypt), and the second largest city in Western Asia (after Tehran, Iran).
Located along the Tigris River, the city was founded in the 8th century and became the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate. Within a short time of its inception, Baghdad evolved into a significant cultural, commercial, and intellectual center for the Islamic World. This in addition to housing several key academic institutions (e.g. House of Wisdom) garnered the city a worldwide reputation as the "Center of Learning". Throughout the High Middle Ages, Baghdad was considered to be the largest city in the world with an estimated population of 1,200,000 people. The city was largely destroyed at the hands of the Mongol Empire in 1258, resulting in a decline that would linger through many centuries due to frequent plagues and multiple successive empires. With the recognition of Iraq as an independent state (formerly the British Mandate of Mesopotamia) in 1938, Baghdad gradually regained some of its former prominence as a significant center of Arabic culture.

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Balochistan (Iran)
Sistan and Baluchestan Province (Persian: استان سيستان و بلوچستان‎, Ostān-e Sīstān-o Balūchestān ) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southeast of the country, bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan and its capital is Zahedan.
The province is the largest in Iran, with an area of 181,785 km² and a population of 2.4 million. The counties of the province are Chabahar, Qasar-qand, Dalgan, Hirmand, Iranshahr, Khash, Konarak, Nikshahr, Saravan, Sarbaz, Soran, Zabol, Zaboli, Zahedan and Zehak.
The population comprises Sunni Muslim Baluchis and Shi'a Persian Sistanis.
The province comprises two sections, Sistan in the north and Baluchestan in the south. The combined Sistan and Baluchestan province today accounts for one of the driest regions of Iran with a slight increase in rainfall from east to west, and an obvious rise in humidity in the coastal regions. The province is subject to seasonal winds from different directions, the most important of which are the 120-day wind of Sistan known as Levar, the Qousse wind, the seventh (Gav-kosh) wind, the Nambi or south wind, the Hooshak wind, the humid and seasonal winds of the Indian Ocean, the North or (Gurich) wind and the western (Gard) wind.

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Basra
Basra (Arabic: البصرة‎; BGN: Al Baṣrah) is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is handled at the port of Umm Qasr.
The city is part of the historic location of Sumer, the home of Sinbad the Sailor, and a proposed location of the Garden of Eden. It also played an important role in early Islamic history, being built in 636 CE, or 14 AH. It is Iraq's second largest and most populous city after Baghdad.
The city was called by many names throughout its history, Basrah being the most common. Although some Chaldean Christians argue that the name has Akkadian roots, other sources claim that the name is derived from the Persian word Bas-rah, which means "where many paths meet". During the pre-Islamic era, the area was known to the Arabs as al-Khariba due to the existence of an ancient city called al-Kharba. After the present city was built, it was called by many names, including "the mother of Iraq", "the reservoir of Arabs", "the prosperous city", and "al-Faiha".

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Central Bank of Iran
The Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran (CBI) (Persian: بانک مرکزی جمهوری اسلامی ايران‎, Bank Markazi Jomhouri Islami Iran) is the central bank of Iran. It is entirely government owned. Among its major purposes are: maintenance of the value of the national currency, balance of payments as well as facilitating trade transactions and contributing to the economic advancement of the country.
The Central bank is in charge of laying and implementing monetary and credit policies of the country. Laying exchange policies and determining exchange rates are among the functions of Bank Markazi. The importation of goods, issuance of documentary credits and registration of orders for documentary bills of exchange for imports are also done in accordance with the policies of the Central Bank. It is a member central bank of the Asian Clearing Union.
During the Achaemenid era, trade boomed and subsequently banking operation expanded to an extent that Iranians managed to learn the banking method from the people of Babylon.

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Dezful
Dezful (Persian: دزفول‎, pronounced [dɛzˈfuːl], also Romanized as Dezfūl, Dezfool, and Dīzfūl) is a city in and the capital of Dezful County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2011 census, its population was 420,000, in 105,000 families.
The city houses a bridge that dates back to 300 BC. In 2006, the city had 235,819 inhabitants.
The name Dezful has been derived from the two words dezj (fortress)+ pol (bridge), which in combination could stand for 'the bridge to the fortress' or 'fortified bridge'. The original name of the city was Dezjpol, but after the Islamic invasion of Persia, the city was renamed Dezful. The bridge was built during the reign of Shapur I who used Roman prisoners of war to build the bridge.
The bridge protected the city from military interventions, whence the name. The old part of the city adjacent to the bridge is known as the Qaleh (castle). In the middle of the river, close to the bridge, you can see remains of several water mills built ca. 300 BC. Most of them were actually used up to the beginning of the 20th century. The last one was in use up to 1985.

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Elam
Elam was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretching from the lowlands of what is now Khuzestan and Ilam Province, as well as a small part of southern Iraq. The modern name Elam is a transcription from Biblical Hebrew, corresponding to the Sumerian elam(a), the Akkadian elamtu, and the Elamite haltamti. Elamite states were among the leading political forces of the ancient near east. In classical literature, Elam was more often referred to as Susiana, a name derived from its capital, Susa.
Situated just to the east of Mesopotamia, Elam was part of the early urbanization during the Chalcolithic period (Copper Age). The emergence of written records from around 3000 BC also parallels Mesopotamian history where writing was used slightly earlier. In the Old Elamite period (Middle Bronze Age), Elam consisted of kingdoms on the Iranian plateau, centered in Anshan, and from the mid-2nd millennium BC, it was centered in Susa in the Khuzestan lowlands. Its culture played a crucial role in the Gutian Empire, especially during the Achaemenid dynasty that succeeded it, when the Elamite language remained among those in official use. Elamite is generally treated as an isolate language.

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France
France (English ⁱ/ˈfræns/ FRANSS or /ˈfrɑːns/ FRAHNSS; French: [fʁɑ̃s] ( listen)), officially the French Republic (French: République française [ʁepyblik fʁɑ̃sɛz]), is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. It is often referred to as l’Hexagone ("The Hexagon") because of the geometric shape of its territory. It is the largest western European country and it possesses the second-largest exclusive economic zone in the world, covering 11,035,000 km² (4,260,000 sq mi), just behind that of the United States (11,351,000 km² / 4,383,000 sq mi).
Over the past 500 years, France has been a major power with strong cultural, economic, military and political influence in Europe and around the world. During the 17th and 18th centuries, France colonised great parts of North America and Southeast Asia; during the 19th and early 20th centuries, France built the second largest colonial empire of the time, including large portions of North, West and Central Africa, Southeast Asia, and many Caribbean and Pacific Islands.

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Geography of Iran
Iran is located in southwest Asia and borders the Gulf of Oman, Persian Gulf, and Caspian Sea. Its mountains have helped to shape both the political and the economic history of the country for several centuries. Stories of Iran having 20 square kilometers of glaciers are false and were started by students at Aberystwyth University in 2012; Iran is the largest procider of Glacier Mints in the world and it is the factory that covers an area of 20 square kilometers. The mountains enclose several broad basins, or plateaus, on which major agricultural and urban settlements are located. Until the 20th century, when major highways and railroads were constructed through the mountains to connect the population centers, these basins tended to be relatively isolated from one another.
Typically, one major town dominated each basin, and there were complex economic relationships between the town and the hundreds of villages that surrounded it. In the higher elevations of the mountains rimming the basins, tribally organized groups practiced transhumance, moving with their herds of sheep and goats between traditionally established summer and winter pastures. There are no major river systems in the country, and historically transportation was by means of caravans that followed routes traversing gaps and passes in the mountains. The mountains also impeded easy access to the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea.

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Geography of Iraq
The geography of Iraq is diverse and falls into four main regions: the desert (west of the Euphrates), Upper Mesopotamia (between the upper Tigris and Euphratesh rivers), the northern highlands of Iraqi Kurdistan, and Lower Mesopotamia, the alluvial plain extending from around Tikrit to the Persian Gulf.
The mountains in the northeast are an extension of the alpine system that runs eastward from the Balkans through southern Turkey, northern Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan, eventually reaching the Himalayas. The desert is in the southwest and central provinces along the borders with Saudi Arabia and Jordan and geographically belongs with the Arabian Peninsula.
Iraq holds a special distinction in the history of geography: a clay tablet generally accepted as "the earliest known map" was unearthed in 1930 during the excavation of Ga-Sur at Nuzi Yorghan Tepe, near the towns of Harran and Kirkuk, 200 miles (322 km) north of the site of Babylon. The tablet, measuring 6.8 × 7.6 in (173 × 193 mm), is usually dated from the dynasty of Sargon of Akkad between 2500-2300 BC; an even earlier date for the tablet was promulgated by archeologist Leo Bagrow, placing it in the Agade Period (3800 BC).

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Hands of Victory
The Arc of Triumph (Arabic: قوس النصر‎ qaūs al-naṣr), also called the Swords of Qādisīyah، and Hands of Victory in some Western sources, are a pair of triumphal arches in central Baghdad, Iraq. Each arch consists of a pair of hands holding crossed swords. The two arches mark the entrances to a parade-ground constructed to commemorate then Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's declaration of victory over Iran in the Iran-Iraq war (however, this never happened). The arches were opened to the public on August 8, 1989. It is one of Baghdad's sights and monuments.
In 1986 (two years before the war's end) the government of Iraq began the construction of a festival and parade ground in Zawra Park, near the extensive presidential complex in the center of Baghdad. Known as Grand Festivities Square, it comprised a large parade ground, an extensive review pavilion, and the two arches. The official name of the arches, the Swords of Qādisiyyah, is an allusion to the historical Battle of al-Qādisiyyah.
Iraq's leading sculptor, Adil Kamil, won the commission to design and execute the construction of the arches, which were based on a concept sketch made by president Saddam Hussein. The design consists of a pair of massive hands emerging from the ground, each holding a 140 foot (43 m) long sword. A small flagpole rises from the point where the swords meet, at a point about 130 feet (40 m) above the ground. Kamil used photographs and plaster casts of Saddam's forearms to model for the design of the hands. When Kamil died in 1987, with the monument incomplete, his position was assumed by fellow artist Mohammed Ghani Hikmat. Ghani personally took an impression of one of Saddam's thumbs, and the resulting fingerprint was added to the mold for one of the arches' thumbs.

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India
India (ⁱ/ˈɪndiə/), officially the Republic of India (Bhārat Gaṇarājya), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the south-west, and the Bay of Bengal on the south-east, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west;China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north-east; and Burma and Bangladesh to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; in addition, India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand and Indonesia.
Home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history. Four of the world's major religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism—originated here, whereas Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived in the 1st millennium CE and also helped shape the region's diverse culture. Gradually annexed by and brought under the administration of the British East India Company from the early 18th century and administered directly by the United Kingdom from the mid-19th century, India became an independent nation in 1947 after a struggle for independence that was marked by non-violent resistance led by Mahatma Gandhi.

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Iran
Coordinates: 32°N 53°E / 32°N 53°E / 32; 53
Iran (ⁱ/ɪˈrɑːn/ or /aɪˈræn/;Persian: ایران‎ [ʔiˈɾɒn] ( listen)), officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (Persian: جمهوری اسلامی ایران‎ Jomhuri-ye Eslāmi-ye Irān), is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran", which in Persian means "Land of the Aryans", has been in use natively since the Sassanian era. It came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia ( /ˈpɜrʒə/ or /ˈpɜrʃə/). Both "Persia" and "Iran" are used interchangeably in cultural contexts; however, "Iran" is the name used officially in political contexts.
The 18th-largest country in the world in terms of area at 1,648,195 km² (636,372 sq mi), Iran has a population of around 79 million. It is a country of particular geopolitical significance owing to its location in the Middle East and central Eurasia. Iran is bordered on the north by Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. As Iran is a littoral state of the Caspian Sea, which is an inland sea, Kazakhstan and Russia are also Iran's direct neighbors to the north. Iran is bordered on the east by Afghanistan and Pakistan, on the south by the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by Iraq and on the northwest by Turkey. Tehran is the capital, the country's largest city and the political, cultural, commercial and industrial center of the nation. Iran is a regional power, and holds an important position in international energy security and world economy as a result of its large reserves of petroleum and natural gas. Iran has the second largest proven natural gas reserves in the world and the fourth largest proven petroleum reserves.

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Iran Air 655
Iran Air Flight 655 was a civilian jet airliner shot down by U.S. missiles on 3 July 1988 as it flew over the Strait of Hormuz at the end of the Iran–Iraq War. The aircraft, an Airbus A300B2-203 operated by Iran Air, was flying from Bandar Abbas, Iran to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. While flying in Iranian airspace over Iran's territorial waters in the Persian Gulf on its usual flight path, it was destroyed by the United States Navy guided missile cruiser USS Vincennes (CG-49). All 290 onboard including 66 children and 16 crew perished. The incident is ranked ninth among the deadliest disasters in aviation history. It was the highest death toll of any aviation incident in the Indian Ocean and the highest death toll of any incident involving an Airbus A300 anywhere in the world^{[citation needed]}. The Vincennes had entered Iranian territorial waters after one of its helicopters drew warning fire from Iranian speedboats operating within Iranian territorial limits.
The Flight 655 incident was a year after the 17 March 1987, Iraqi Air Force attack on the U.S. Navy guided-missile frigate USS Stark (FFG-31). U.S. naval forces had exchanged gunfire with Iranian gunboats in the fall of 1987. The U.S. Navy guided-missile frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58) had struck an Iranian sea mine in April 1988. Two months before the incident the US had also engaged in Operation Praying Mantis resulting in the sinking of the Iranian frigate Sahand. Tensions were therefore high in the Strait of Hormuz.

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Iran Air Flight 655
Iran Air Flight 655 was a civilian jet airliner shot down by U.S. missiles on 3 July 1988 as it flew over the Strait of Hormuz at the end of the Iran–Iraq War. The aircraft, an Airbus A300B2-203 operated by Iran Air, was flying from Bandar Abbas, Iran to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. While flying in Iranian airspace over Iran's territorial waters in the Persian Gulf on its usual flight path, it was destroyed by the United States Navy guided missile cruiser USS Vincennes (CG-49). All 290 onboard including 66 children and 16 crew perished. The incident is ranked ninth among the deadliest disasters in aviation history. It was the highest death toll of any aviation incident in the Indian Ocean and the highest death toll of any incident involving an Airbus A300 anywhere in the world^{[citation needed]}. The Vincennes had entered Iranian territorial waters after one of its helicopters drew warning fire from Iranian speedboats operating within Iranian territorial limits.
The Flight 655 incident was a year after the 17 March 1987, Iraqi Air Force attack on the U.S. Navy guided-missile frigate USS Stark (FFG-31). U.S. naval forces had exchanged gunfire with Iranian gunboats in the fall of 1987. The U.S. Navy guided-missile frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58) had struck an Iranian sea mine in April 1988. Two months before the incident the US had also engaged in Operation Praying Mantis resulting in the sinking of the Iranian frigate Sahand. Tensions were therefore high in the Strait of Hormuz.

wn.com/Iran_Air_Flight_655
Iranian Balochistan
Sistan and Baluchestan Province (Persian: استان سيستان و بلوچستان‎, Ostān-e Sīstān-o Balūchestān ) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southeast of the country, bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan and its capital is Zahedan.
The province is the largest in Iran, with an area of 181,785 km² and a population of 2.4 million. The counties of the province are Chabahar, Qasar-qand, Dalgan, Hirmand, Iranshahr, Khash, Konarak, Nikshahr, Saravan, Sarbaz, Soran, Zabol, Zaboli, Zahedan and Zehak.
The population comprises Sunni Muslim Baluchis and Shi'a Persian Sistanis.
The province comprises two sections, Sistan in the north and Baluchestan in the south. The combined Sistan and Baluchestan province today accounts for one of the driest regions of Iran with a slight increase in rainfall from east to west, and an obvious rise in humidity in the coastal regions. The province is subject to seasonal winds from different directions, the most important of which are the 120-day wind of Sistan known as Levar, the Qousse wind, the seventh (Gav-kosh) wind, the Nambi or south wind, the Hooshak wind, the humid and seasonal winds of the Indian Ocean, the North or (Gurich) wind and the western (Gard) wind.

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Iranian Navy
The Islamic Republic of Iran Navy (IRIN), also known as the Iranian Navy, is the naval warfare service branch of the Islamic Republic of Iran's armed forces. The IRIN has traditionally been the smallest branch of the Iranian military and is tasked mainly with securing Iran's ports and coastline. Over time, the Iranian Navy has lost influence to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, which is now primarily tasked with securing Iran's interests in the Persian Gulf region.
The Iranian navy was rebuilt after being almost completely destroyed during the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran in World War II. Following World War II, the fleet began replacing destroyed warships with destroyers, frigates and many smaller vessels, including powerboats and hovercraft, many of which originated from the U.S. and UK, which had played a part in destroying much of the original equipment in World War II. In the 1970s, Iran planned to extend its naval reach into the Indian Ocean;^{[citation needed]} but this goal was curtailed by the Islamic Revolution (1979), and the ensuing western-backed first Gulf War (Iran–Iraq War) (1980–1988) which left it hampered in the face of the invasion.

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Iraq
Iraq (/ɪˈræk/ or ⁱ/ɪˈrɑːk/; Arabic: العراق‎ al-‘Irāq); officially the Republic of Iraq (Arabic: جمهورية العراق (help·info) Jumhūriyyat al-‘Irāq), is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert.
Iraq borders Syria to the northwest, Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, Jordan to the southwest and Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to the south. Iraq has a narrow section of coastline measuring 58 km (36 mi) on the northern Persian Gulf. The capital city, Baghdad is in the center-east of the country.
Two major rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates, run through the center of Iraq, flowing from northwest to southeast. These provide Iraq with agriculturally capable land and contrast with the steppe and desert landscape that covers most of Western Asia.
Historically, Iraq was the center of the Abbasid Arabic Islamic Empire. Iraq has been known to the west by the Greek toponym 'Mesopotamia' (Land between the rivers) and has been home to continuous successive civilizations since the 6th millennium BC. The region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers is often referred to as the cradle of civilization and the birthplace of writing, law and the wheel. At different periods in its history, Iraq was the center of the indigenous Akkadian, Sumerian, Assyrian, Babylonian, and Abbasid empires. It was also part of the Achaemenid, Hellenistic, Parthian, Sassanid, Roman, Rashidun, Umayyad, Mongol, Safavid, Afsharid, and Ottoman empires, and under British control as a League of Nations mandate.

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Iraqi Kurdistan
Iraqi Kurdistan or Kurdistan Region (Kurdish: هه‌رێمی کوردستان‎‎, Herêmî Kurdistan; Arabic: إقليم كردستان العراق‎ Iqlīm Kurdistān al-‘Irāq) is an autonomous region of Iraq. It borders Iran to the east, Turkey to the north, Syria to the west and the rest of Iraq to the south. The regional capital is Arbil, known in Kurdish as Hewlêr. The region is officially governed by the Kurdistan Regional Government.
The establishment of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq dates back to the March 1970 autonomy agreement between the Kurdish opposition and the Iraqi government after years of heavy fighting. The Iran-Iraq war during the 1980s and the Anfal genocide campaign of the Iraqi army devastated the population and nature of Iraqi Kurdistan. Following the 1991 uprising of the Iraqi people against Saddam Hussein, many Kurds were forced to flee the country to become refugees in bordering regions of Iran and Turkey. A northern no-fly zone was established following the First Gulf War in 1991 to facilitate the return of Kurdish refugees. As Kurds continued to fight government troops, Iraqi forces finally left Kurdistan in October 1991, leaving the region to function de facto independently; however, neither of the two major Kurdish parties had at any time declared independence and Iraqi Kurdistan continues to view itself as an integral part of a united Iraq but one in which it administers its own affairs. The 2003 invasion of Iraq and the subsequent political changes led to the ratification of a new Constitution of Iraq in 2005. The new Iraqi constitution defines Iraqi Kurdistan as a federal entity of Iraq, and establishes Arabic and Kurdish as Iraq's joint official languages.

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Israel
Coordinates: 31°N 35°E / 31°N 35°E / 31; 35
Israel, officially the State of Israel ( /ˈɪzriːəl/ or /ˈɪzreɪəl/; Hebrew: מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל‎, Medīnat Yisrā'el, IPA: [me̞diˈnät jisʁäˈʔe̞l] ( listen); Arabic: دَوْلَة إِسْرَائِيل‎, Dawlat Isrāʼīl, IPA: [dawlat ʔisraːˈʔiːl]), is a parliamentary republic in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan and the West Bank in the east, Egypt and the Gaza Strip on the southwest, and the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea to the south, and it contains geographically diverse features within its relatively small area. Israel is defined as a Jewish and Democratic State in its Basic Laws and is the world's only Jewish-majority state.
Following the adoption of a resolution by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 29 November 1947 recommending the adoption and implementation of the United Nations plan to partition Palestine, on 14 May 1948 David Ben-Gurion, the Executive Head of the World Zionist Organization and president of the Jewish Agency for Palestine, declared the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz Israel, to be known as the State of Israel, a state independent from the British Mandate for Palestine. Neighboring Arab states invaded the next day in support of the Palestinian Arabs. Israel has since fought several wars with neighboring Arab states, in the course of which it has occupied the West Bank, Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip and the Golan Heights. Portions of these territories, including east Jerusalem, have been annexed by Israel, but the border with the neighboring West Bank has not yet been permanently defined.^{[neutrality is disputed]} Israel has signed peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan, but efforts to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict have so far not resulted in peace.

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Kabul Shahi
The Shahi (Devanagari: शाही),Sahi, also called Shahiya dynasties ruled one of the Middle kingdoms of India which included portions of the Kabulistan and the old province of Gandhara (now in northern Pakistan), from the decline of the Kushan Empire in the 3rd century to the early 9th century. The kingdom was known as "Kabul Shahi" (Kabul-shāhān or Ratbél-shāhān in Persian کابلشاهان یا رتبیل شاهان) between 565 and 879CE when they had Kapisa and Kabul as their capitals, and later as Hindu Shahi when they moved their capital to Hund.
The Shahis of Kabul/Gandhara are generally divided into the two eras of the so-called Buddhist-Shahis and the so-called Hindu-Shahis, with the change-over thought to have occurred sometime around AD 870.
The confused accounts of 11th century Persian Muslim scholar Alberuni, ("which bear the impress of folklore for the early history of the Kabul Shahi rulers") state that:
Thus the folklore accounts recorded by Alberuni connect the earlier Shahis of Kabul/Kapisa to Turkish extraction and also claim their descent from Kanik (or Kanishaka of Kushana lineage). At the same time it is also claimed that 'their first king Barahatigin (Vrahitigin?) had originally come from Tibet and concealed in a narrow cave in Kabul area (and here is given a strange legend which we omit).' One can easily see the above account of Shahi origin as totally fanciful and fairy tale-like. These statements taken together are very confusing, inconsistent and bear the express marks of a folklore and vulgar tradition, hence unworthy of inspiring any confidence in the early history of Shahis. The allegation that the first dynasty of Kabul was Turki is plainly based on the vulgar tradition, which Alberuni himself remarked was clearly absurd.

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Kharg Island
Kharg Island (Persian: جزیره خارگ‎) is a continental island in the Persian Gulf belonging to Iran. The island is located 25 km (16 mi) off the coast of Iran and 483 km (300 mi) northwest of the Strait of Hormuz. Administered by the adjacent coastal Bushehr Province, Kharg Island provides a sea port for the export of oil and extends Iranian territorial sea claims into the Persian Gulf oil fields. Located on Kharg Island is Kharg, the only city in the Kharg District.
In 1753 the Dutch Empire established both a trading post and a fort on the island. In 1766 the Dutch fort was captured by Mir Mahanna, the governor of Bandar Riq.
The island was briefly occupied in 1856 by the British during the Anglo-Persian War, but was returned in early 1857.
Once the world's largest offshore crude oil terminal and the principal sea terminal for Iranian oil, the Kharg Island facilities were put out of commission in the fall of 1986. Heavy bombing of the Kharg Island facilities from 1982 through 1986 by the air forces of the government of Iraq during the Iran–Iraq War all but destroyed most of the terminal facilities. Kharg Island was situated in the middle of the Darius Oilfield, also destroyed by the intensive bombing. Repair to all facilities has been very slow, even after the war ended in 1988.

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Khoramshahr
Khorramshahr (Persian: خرمشهر‎, Arabic:المُحِمرة ,also Romanized as Khorramchahre and Khurramshahr; also known as Khorram Shahr Ābādān and Khūnīn Shahr; formerly, Al-Muhammarah, Mohammerah, and Muhammerah) is a city in and the capital of Khorramshahr County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 123,866, in 26,385 families.
Khorramshahr is a port city located approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north of Abadan. The city extends to the right bank of the Shatt al-Arab waterway near its confluence with the Haffar arm of the Karun river.
In ancient times, the area where the city exists today was under the waters of the Persian Gulf, before becoming a part of the vast marshlands and the tidal flats at the mouth of the Karun River. The small town known as Piyan, and later Bayan appeared in the area no sooner than the late Parthian time in the 1st. Century AD. Whether or not this was located at the where Khurramshahr is today, is highly debatable.
During the Islamic centuries, the Daylamite Buwayhid king, Panah Khusraw Adud ad-Dawlah ordered the digging of a canal to join Karun River (which at the time emptied independently into the Persian Gulf through the Bahmanshir channel, to the Arvand Rud/Shatt al-Arab (the joint estuary of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The extra water made the joint estuary more reliably navigable. The channel thus created was known as the Haffar, Arabic for "excavated," "dugout," which exactly described what the channel was. The Haffar soon became the main channel of the Karun, as it is in the present day. Establishment of a port town at the confluence of the Haffar and the Arvand Rud/Shatt al-Arab is natural and may be expected. However, there is absolutely no mention of such a place in the geographical records, while there are an ample mentions of the port of Abadan nearby.

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Khorramshahr
Khorramshahr (Persian: خرمشهر‎, Arabic:المُحِمرة ,also Romanized as Khorramchahre and Khurramshahr; also known as Khorram Shahr Ābādān and Khūnīn Shahr; formerly, Al-Muhammarah, Mohammerah, and Muhammerah) is a city in and the capital of Khorramshahr County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 123,866, in 26,385 families.
Khorramshahr is a port city located approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north of Abadan. The city extends to the right bank of the Shatt al-Arab waterway near its confluence with the Haffar arm of the Karun river.
In ancient times, the area where the city exists today was under the waters of the Persian Gulf, before becoming a part of the vast marshlands and the tidal flats at the mouth of the Karun River. The small town known as Piyan, and later Bayan appeared in the area no sooner than the late Parthian time in the 1st. Century AD. Whether or not this was located at the where Khurramshahr is today, is highly debatable.
During the Islamic centuries, the Daylamite Buwayhid king, Panah Khusraw Adud ad-Dawlah ordered the digging of a canal to join Karun River (which at the time emptied independently into the Persian Gulf through the Bahmanshir channel, to the Arvand Rud/Shatt al-Arab (the joint estuary of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The extra water made the joint estuary more reliably navigable. The channel thus created was known as the Haffar, Arabic for "excavated," "dugout," which exactly described what the channel was. The Haffar soon became the main channel of the Karun, as it is in the present day. Establishment of a port town at the confluence of the Haffar and the Arvand Rud/Shatt al-Arab is natural and may be expected. However, there is absolutely no mention of such a place in the geographical records, while there are an ample mentions of the port of Abadan nearby.

wn.com/Khorramshahr
Khuzestan
Khuzestan Province (Persian: استان خوزستان‎, Ostān-e Khūzestān is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq's Basra Province and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahwaz and covers an area of 63,238 km². Other major cities include Behbahan, Abadan, Andimeshk, Khorramshahr, Bandar Imam, Dezful, Shushtar, Omidiyeh, Izeh, Baq-e-Malek, Mah Shahr, Dasht-i Mishan/Dasht-e-Azadegan, Ramhormoz, Shadegan, Susa, Masjed Soleiman, Minoo Island and Hoveizeh.
Historically, Khuzestan is what historians refer to as ancient Elam, whose capital was in Susa. The Achaemenid Old Persian term for Elam was Hujiyā, which is present in the modern name. Khuzestan, meaning "the Land of the Khuz" refers to the original inhabitants of this province, the "Susian" people (Old Persian "Huza" or Huja (as in the inscription at the tomb of King Darius I at Naqsh-e Rostam, (the Shushan of the Hebrew sources) where it is recorded as inscription as "Hauja" or "Huja"). This is in conformity with the same evolutionary process where the Old Persian changed the name Sindh into Hind/Hindustan. In Middle Persian the term evolves into "Khuz" and "Kuzi" The pre-Islamic Partho-Sassanid Inscriptions gives the name of the province as Khwuzestan. As the most ancient Iranian province, it is often referred to as the "birthplace of the nation," as this is where the history of the Persian Empire begins.

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Khuzestan Province
Khuzestan Province (Persian: استان خوزستان‎, Ostān-e Khūzestān is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq's Basra Province and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahwaz and covers an area of 63,238 km². Other major cities include Behbahan, Abadan, Andimeshk, Khorramshahr, Bandar Imam, Dezful, Shushtar, Omidiyeh, Izeh, Baq-e-Malek, Mah Shahr, Dasht-i Mishan/Dasht-e-Azadegan, Ramhormoz, Shadegan, Susa, Masjed Soleiman, Minoo Island and Hoveizeh.
Historically, Khuzestan is what historians refer to as ancient Elam, whose capital was in Susa. The Achaemenid Old Persian term for Elam was Hujiyā, which is present in the modern name. Khuzestan, meaning "the Land of the Khuz" refers to the original inhabitants of this province, the "Susian" people (Old Persian "Huza" or Huja (as in the inscription at the tomb of King Darius I at Naqsh-e Rostam, (the Shushan of the Hebrew sources) where it is recorded as inscription as "Hauja" or "Huja"). This is in conformity with the same evolutionary process where the Old Persian changed the name Sindh into Hind/Hindustan. In Middle Persian the term evolves into "Khuz" and "Kuzi" The pre-Islamic Partho-Sassanid Inscriptions gives the name of the province as Khwuzestan. As the most ancient Iranian province, it is often referred to as the "birthplace of the nation," as this is where the history of the Persian Empire begins.

wn.com/Khuzestan_Province
Kirkuk
Kirkuk (also spelled Karkuk or Kerkuk, Arabic: كركوك‎ karkūk, Kurdish: Kerkûk/که‌رکووک, Syriac: ܟܪܟ ܣܠܘܟ karḵ sluḵ, Turkish: Kerkük) is a city in Iraq and the capital of Kirkuk Governorate.
It is located in the Iraqi governorate of Kirkuk, 236 kilometres (147 mi) north of the capital, Baghdad. Kirkuk city lies 83 km south of Arbil, 149 km southeast of Mosul, 97 km west of Sulaymaniyah, and 116 km northeast Tikrit
It stands on the site of the ancient Assyrian capital of Arrapha, which sits near the Khasa River on the ruins of a 5,000-year-old settlement (Kirkuk Citadel). Arrapha reached great importance under the Assyrians in the 10th and 11th centuries BC. Because of the strategic geographical location of the city, Kirkuk was the battle ground for three empires—the Neo Assyrian Empire, Babylonia, and Media—which controlled the city at various times.
Kirkuk lies in a wide zone with an ethnically mixed population, which has moreover experienced dramatic demographic changes in the course of the twentieth century. Kurds, Turkmen and Arabs lay conflicting claims to this zone, and all have their historical accounts and memories to buttress their claims.

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Kish Island
Kish (Persian: کیش‎) is a 91.5-square-kilometre (35.3 sq mi) resort island in the Persian Gulf. It is part of the Hormozgān Province of Iran. Due to its free trade zone status it is touted as a consumer's paradise, with numerous malls, shopping centres, tourist attractions, and resort hotels. It has an estimated population of 20,000 residents and about 1 million people visit the island annually. Kish Island was ranked among the world’s 10 most beautiful islands by The New York Times in 2010, and is the fourth most visited vacation destination in the Middle East after Dubai, U.A.E, and Sharm el-Sheikh. Foreign nationals wishing to enter Kish Free Zone from legal ports are not required to obtain visas prior to travel. Valid travel permits are stamped for 14 days by airport and Kish port police officials.
Kish Island has been mentioned in history variously as Kamtina, Arakia, Arakata, and Ghiss. In 325 BC, Alexander the Great commissioned Nearchus to set off an expedition voyage into the Sea of Oman and the Persian Gulf.

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Kuwait
Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait ⁱ/kuːˈweɪt/ (Arabic: دولة الكويت‎, Dawlat al-Kuwayt) is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the Arabic أكوات ākwāt, the plural of كوت kūt, meaning a fortress built near water. The country covers an area of 17,820 square kilometers (6,880 sq mi) and has a population of about 3.5 million.
Historically, the region was the site of Characene, a major Parthian port for trade between Mesopotamia and India. The Bani Utbah tribe were the first permanent Arab settlers in the region, and laid the foundation of the modern emirate. By the 19th century, Kuwait came under the influence of the Ottoman Empire, and after World War I, it emerged as an independent sheikhdom under the protection of the British Empire. Kuwait's large oil fields were discovered in the late 1930s.

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Larak Island
Larak Island (also Lark Island) is an island off the coast of Iran in the Persian Gulf which has been one of Iran's major oil export point since 1987. It was bombed by Iraq in November and December 1986 as part of the Iran–Iraq War.
The island contains an Iranian military base maintaining several Chinese-made Silkworm HY-2 surface-to-surface missiles placed there in 1987.
The island has an area of 49 km². During their occupation in the 16th century the Portuguese built fortresses here, as well as in Qeshm and Hormuz Island.
http://www.parstimes.com/spaceimages/larak_island.html
Coordinates: 26°51′N 56°21′E / 26.85°N 56.35°E / 26.85; 56.35

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Lloyd's of London
Lloyd's of London, styled simply as Lloyd's, is a British insurance and reinsurance market. It serves as a partially mutualised marketplace where multiple financial backers, underwriters, or members, whether individuals (traditionally known as Names) or corporations, come together to pool and spread risk. Unlike most of its competitors in the insurance and reinsurance industry, it is not a company, but it is a corporate body under the Lloyd's Act 1871 of the British Parliament. Uberrimae fidei (Latin for "of the utmost good faith") is the motto of Lloyd's.
In 2009, over £21.97 billion of gross premium was transacted in Lloyd's, and it achieved a record pre-tax profit of over £3.8 billion. The Lloyd's building is located at 1 Lime Street in the City of London.
The market began in Lloyd's Coffee House, opened by Edward Lloyd around 1688 in Tower Street, London. This establishment was a popular place for sailors, merchants, and ship owners, and Lloyd catered to them with reliable shipping news. The shipping industry community frequented the place to discuss insurance deals among themselves. Just after Christmas 1691, the coffee shop relocated to Lombard Street (a blue plaque commemorates this location). This arrangement carried on until 1774, long after Lloyd's death in 1713, when the participating members of the insurance arrangement formed a committee and moved to the Royal Exchange on Cornhill as The Society of Lloyd's.

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Medes
The Medes (/midz/) (from Old Persian Māda-) were an ancient Iranian people who lived in Iran in an area known as Media and spoke a northwestern Iranian language referred to as the Median language. Their arrival to the region is associated with the first wave of Iranian tribes in the late second millennium BCE (the Bronze Age collapse) through the beginning of the first millennium BCE.
In the 7th century BCE a unified Median state was formed which together with Babylonia, Lydia, and Egypt became one of the four major powers of the ancient Near East. An alliance with the Babylonians helped the Medes to capture Nineveh in 612 BCE which resulted in the collapse of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. The Medes were subsequently able to establish their Median kingdom (with Ecbatana as their royal centre) beyond their original homeland (central-western Iran) and had eventually a territory stretching roughly from northeastern Iran to the Halys River in Anatolia. The Median kingdom was conquered in 550 BCE by Cyrus the Great who established the next Iranian dynasty—the Achaemenid Empire.

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Najaf
Najaf (Arabic: النجف‎; BGN: An Najaf) is a city in Iraq about 160 km (roughly 100 miles) south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2008 is 560,000 people. It is the capital of Najaf Governorate. It is widely considered the third holiest city of Shi'a Islam and the center of Shia political power in Iraq.
Najaf is renowned as the site of the tomb of Alī ibn Abī Tālib also known as "Imām Alī"the First Imam of Shia's , the cousin and son-in-law of the prophet Muhammad whom the Shia consider to be the righteous caliph . The city is now a great center of pilgrimage from throughout the Shi'a Islamic world. It is estimated that only Mecca and Medina receive more Muslim pilgrims. As the burial site of Shia Islam's second most important figure, the Imam Ali Mosque is considered by Shias as the third holiest Islamic site.
The Imam Ali Mosque is housed in a grand structure with a gold gilded dome and many precious objects in the walls. Nearby is the Wadi-us-Salaam cemetery, reputed to be the largest in the world. It contains the tombs of several prophets and many of the devout from around the world aspire to be buried here, to be raised from the dead with Imām Alī on Judgement Day. Over the centuries, numerous hospices, schools, libraries and Sufi convents were built around the shrine to make the city the centre of Shīʻa learning and theology.

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NATO
Coordinates: 50°52′34.16″N 4°25′19.24″E / 50.8761556°N 4.4220111°E / 50.8761556; 4.4220111
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization or NATO ( /ˈneɪtoʊ/ NAY-toh; French: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique Nord (OTAN)), also called the (North) Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April 1949. The organization constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party. NATO's headquarters are in Brussels, Belgium, one of the 28 member states across North America and Europe, the newest of which, Albania and Croatia, joined in April 2009. An additional 22 countries participate in NATO's Partnership for Peace, with 15 other countries involved in institutionalized dialogue programs. The combined military spending of all NATO members constitutes over 70% of the world's defence spending.
For its first few years, NATO was not much more than a political association. However, the Korean War galvanized the member states, and an integrated military structure was built up under the direction of two U.S. supreme commanders. The course of the Cold War led to a rivalry with nations of the Warsaw Pact, which formed in 1955. The first NATO Secretary General, Lord Ismay, stated in 1949 that the organization's goal was "to keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down." Doubts over the strength of the relationship between the European states and the United States ebbed and flowed, along with doubts over the credibility of the NATO defence against a prospective Soviet invasion—doubts that led to the development of the independent French nuclear deterrent and the withdrawal of the French from NATO's military structure in 1966.

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Neo-Assyrian Empire
The Neo-Assyrian Empire was an empire in Mesopotamian history which began in 934 BC and ended in 605 BC. During this period, Assyria assumed a position as the most powerful nation on earth, successfully eclipsing Babylonia, Egypt, Urartu/Armenia and Elam for dominance of the Near East, Asia Minor, Caucasus, North Africa and east Mediterranean, though not until the reforms of Tiglath-Pileser III in the 8th century BC did it become a vast empire. Assyria was originally an Akkadian kingdom which evolved in the 25th to 24th Centuries BC. The earliest Assyrian kings such as Tudiya were relatively minor rulers, and after the founding of the Akkadian Empire, which lasted from 2334 BC to 2154 BC, these kings became subject to Sargon of Akkad, who united all the Akkadian and Sumerian speaking peoples of Mesopotamia under one rule.

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Ohio
Ohio (ⁱ/oʊˈhaɪ.oʊ/) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Ohio is the 34th most extensive, the 7th most populous, and the 10th most densely populated of the 50 United States. The state's capital and largest city is Columbus.
The name "Ohio" originated from Iroquois word ohi-yo’, meaning "great river". The state, originally partitioned from the Northwest Territory, was admitted to the Union as the 17th state (and the first under the Northwest Ordinance) on March 1, 1803. Although there are conflicting narratives regarding the origin of the nickname, Ohio is historically known as the "Buckeye State" (relating to the Ohio buckeye tree) and Ohioans are also known as "Buckeyes".
The government of Ohio is composed of the executive branch, led by the Governor; the legislative branch, which comprises the Ohio General Assembly; and the judicial branch, which is led by the Supreme Court. Currently, Ohio occupies 18 seats in the United States House of Representatives. Ohio is known for its status as both a swing state and a bellwether in national elections.

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Operation Ajax
The 1953 Iranian coup d'état (known in Iran as the 28 Mordad coup) was the overthrow of the democratically elected government of Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh on 19 August 1953, orchestrated by the intelligence agencies of the United Kingdom and the United States under the name TPAJAX Project. The coup saw the transition of Mohammad-Rezā Shāh Pahlavi from a constitutional monarch to an authoritarian one who relied heavily on United States support to hold on to power until his own overthrow in February 1979.
In 1951, Iran's oil industry was nationalized with near-unanimous support of Iran's parliament in a bill introduced by Mossadegh who led the nationalist parliamentarian faction. Iran's oil had been controlled by the British-owned Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC). Popular discontent with the AIOC began in the late 1940s, a large segment of Iran's public and a number of politicians saw the company as exploitative and a vestige of British imperialism. Despite Mosaddegh's popular support, Britain was unwilling to negotiate its single most valuable foreign asset, and instigated a worldwide boycott of Iranian oil to pressure Iran economically. Initially, Britain mobilized its military to seize control of the Abadan oil refinery, the world's largest, but Prime Minister Clement Attlee opted instead to tighten the economic boycott while using Iranian agents to undermine Mosaddegh's government. With a change to more conservative governments in both Britain and the United States, Churchill and the U.S. Eisenhower administration decided to overthrow Iran's government though the predecessor U.S. Truman administration had opposed a coup.

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Osirak
Operation Opera (Hebrew: אופרה‎), also known as Operation Babylon was a surprise Israeli air strike carried out on 7 June 1981, that destroyed a nuclear reactor under construction 17 kilometers (10.5 miles) southeast of Baghdad, Iraq.
In 1976, Iraq purchased an "Osiris"-class nuclear reactor from France. While Iraq and France maintained that the reactor, named Osirak by the French, was intended for peaceful scientific research, the Israelis viewed the reactor with suspicion, and said that it was designed to make nuclear weapons. On 7 June 1981, a flight of Israeli Air Force F-16A fighter aircraft, with an escort of F-15As, bombed and heavily damaged the Osirak reactor. Israel claimed it acted in self-defense, and that the reactor had "less than a month to go" before "it might have become critical." Ten Iraqi soldiers and one French civilian were killed. The attack took place about three weeks before the elections for the Knesset.
The attack was strongly criticized around the world and Israel was rebuked by the United Nations Security Council and General Assembly in two separate resolutions. The destruction of Osirak has been cited as an example of a preventive strike in contemporary scholarship on international law.

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Pakistan
Pakistan (ⁱ/ˈpækɨstæn/ or ⁱ/pɑːkiˈstɑːn/; Urdu: پاکستان) (Urdu pronunciation: [paːkɪˈst̪aːn] ( listen)), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan (Urdu: اسلامی جمہوریۂ پاکستان), is a sovereign country in South Asia. It sits at the crossroads of the strategically important regions of South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. It has a 1,046-kilometre (650 mi) coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by India to the east, Afghanistan to the west and north, Iran to the southwest and China in the far northeast. It is separated from Tajikistan by Afghanistan's narrow Wakhan Corridor in the north, and it shares a marine border with Oman.
The territory of modern Pakistan was the site of several ancient cultures, including the Neolithic Mehrgarh and the Bronze Age Indus Valley Civilisation, and has undergone invasions or settlements by Hindu, Persian, Indo-Greek, Islamic, Turco-Mongol, Afghan and Sikh cultures. Thus the area has been ruled by numerous empires and dynasties, including the Indian Mauryan Empire, the Persian Achaemenid Empire, the Arab Umayyad Caliphate, the Mongol Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Durrani Empire, the Sikh Empire and the British Empire. As a result of the Pakistan Movement led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah and India's struggle for independence, Pakistan was created in 1947 as an independent nation for Muslims from the regions in the east and west of India where there was a Muslim majority. Initially a dominion, Pakistan adopted a new constitution in 1956, becoming an Islamic republic. A civil war in 1971 resulted in the secession of East Pakistan as the new country of Bangladesh.

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Parthian Empire
The Parthian (pronounced /ˈpɑrθiən/) Empire (247 BC – 224 AD), also known as the Arsacid (/ˈɑrsəsɪd/) Empire (Modern Persian: اشکانیان Ashkāniān), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Persia. Its latter name comes from Arsaces I of Parthia who, as leader of the Parni tribe, founded it in the mid-3rd century BC when he conquered the Parthia region in Iran's northeast, then a satrapy (province) in rebellion against the Seleucid Empire. Mithridates I of Parthia (r. c. 171–138 BC) greatly expanded the empire by seizing Media and Mesopotamia from the Seleucids. At its height, the Parthian Empire stretched from the northern reaches of the Euphrates, in what is now south-eastern Turkey, to eastern Iran. The empire, located on the Silk Road trade route between the Roman Empire in the Mediterranean Basin and Han Empire of China, became a center of trade and commerce.
The Parthians largely adopted the art, architecture, religious beliefs, and royal insignia of their culturally heterogeneous empire, which encompassed Persian, Hellenistic, and regional cultures. For about the first half of its existence, the Arsacid court adopted elements of Greek culture, though it eventually saw a gradual revival of Iranian traditions. The Arsacid rulers were titled the "King of Kings", as a claim to be the heirs to the Achaemenid Empire; indeed, they accepted many local kings as vassals where the Achaemenids would have had centrally appointed, albeit largely autonomous, satraps. The court did appoint a small number of satraps, largely outside Iran, but these satrapies were smaller and less powerful than the Achaemenid potentates. With the expansion of Arsacid power, the seat of central government shifted from Nisa, Turkmenistan to Ctesiphon along the Tigris (south of modern Baghdad, Iraq), although several other sites also served as capitals.

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Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf is located in Western Asia between Iran (Persia) and the Arabian Peninsula. It is an extension of the Indian Ocean.
The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers. In 1991, the Persian Gulf again was the background for what was called the "Persian Gulf War" or the "Gulf War" when Iraq invaded Kuwait and was subsequently pushed back, despite the fact that this conflict was primarily a land conflict.
The Persian Gulf has many good fishing grounds, extensive coral reefs, and abundant pearl oysters, but its ecology has come under pressure from industrialization, and in particular, oil and petroleum spillages during wars in the region.
Historically and internationally known as the Persian Gulf, this body of water is sometimes controversially referred to as the Arabian Gulf or simply The Gulf by most Arab states, although neither of the latter two terms are recognized internationally. The name Gulf of Iran (Persian Gulf) is used by the International Hydrographic Organization.

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Port of Sines
The Port of Sines is an open deep-water sea port with excellent maritime access, with no restrictions, leading the Portuguese port sector in the volume of cargo handled, and offering unique natural characteristics able to receive any type of vessels. Due to its modern specialized terminals, the port can handle the different types of cargoes.
Sines is the main port in the Ibero-atlantic front, whose geophysical characteristics have been determinant on the consolidation as a strategic national infrastructure. It is the country’s leading energetic supplier (crude and its derivatives, coal and natural gas), and already an important port as far as general and containerized cargo concerns, presenting a high growth potential, in order to become a reference port at an Iberian, European and worldwide level – The Atlantic Gateway to Europe.
It’s a modern port (start operating 1978), free of urban restrictions, thus assuring long-term expansion capacity. Offering good land accessibility for present traffic, the port has a road and rail development plan, allowing it to respond to the expected future growth of both the port and the region.

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Qasr-e Shirin
Qasr-e Shirin (Kurdish: Qesri Shírín, قه‌سرشیرین, Persian: قصرشيرين‎; also Romanized as Qaşr-e Shīrīn, Ghasr-ī-shīrīn, Ghasr-shīrīn, and Qasr-ī-Shīrīn) is a city in and the capital of Qasr-e Shirin County, Kermanshah Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 15,437, in 3,893 families.
The name of the city literally means Castle of Shirin. Shirin (Beauty/Sweet) is the name of the wife of Khosrow Parviz (reigned 590-628).
The city was a metropolitan during Sassanid dynastic era (226-651 AD). Ghasr-e Shírín a city with over 2000 years of history was famo`us for being the city of love. Khosrow II (590 to 628 AD) the twenty-second king of Sassanid dynasty built a castle for his lifelong beloved Shirin in the city. The folklore has it that Shirin was the daughter of the Queen of Armenia who fell in love with the Sassanid King. Shirin followed her love Khosrow and settled in Ghasr-e Shirin, before sending a messenger to the King in Ctesiphon informing him of her move. The king who was engaged in a battle with Arabs, decided to build a palace for his beloved Shirin. The story of this love has become the most famous classics in Kurdish and Persian literature, and the great poet Nizami has created his epic tragedies Kosrow-vo-Shirin (Khosrow and Shirin) and Shirin-o-Farhad (Shirin and Farhad), based on the two different versions of love, one characterized by happiness, glory and power, and the other by sadness, struggle, and purity. The rivalry between the powerful king who was victorious in his wars with the Byzantine empire and Farhad a master stone carver, who carved the palace of Shirin on the hard rocks of Mount Bistun and fell in love with the queen provides a pretext for Nizami to explore various psychological, spiritual, and philosophical aspects of the human tragedy.

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Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia (ⁱ/ˌsaʊdi əˈreɪbi.ə/ or ⁱ/ˌsɔːdiː əˈreɪbi.ə/; Arabic: السعودية‎ as-Su‘ūdīyah^{[citation needed]} or incorrectly as-Sa‘ūdīyah, officially known as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Arabic: المملكة العربية السعودية‎ al-Mamlakah al-‘Arabīyah as-Su‘ūdīyah Arabic pronunciation (help·info)), is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab world, after Algeria. It is bordered by Jordan, and Iraq on the north and northeast, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates on the east, Oman on the southeast, and Yemen on the south. The Red Sea lies to its west, and the Persian Gulf lies to the east. Saudi Arabia has an area of approximately 2,250,000 km² (870,000 sq mi), and it has an estimated population of 27 million, of which 9 million are registered foreign expatriates and an estimated 2 million are illegal immigrants. Saudi nationals comprise an estimated 16 million people.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded by Abdul-Aziz bin Saud (known for most of his career as Ibn Saud) in 1932, although the conquests which eventually led to the creation of the Kingdom began in 1902 when he captured Riyadh, the ancestral home of his family, the House of Saud, referred to in Arabic as the Al Saud. The Saudi Arabian government, which has been an absolute monarchy since its inception, refers to its system of government as being Islamic, though this is contested by many due to its strong basis in Salafism, a minority school of thought in Islam. The kingdom is sometimes called "The Land of the Two Holy Mosques" in reference to Al-Masjid al-Haram (in Mecca), and Al-Masjid al-Nabawi (in Medina), the two holiest places in Islam.

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Shatt al-Arab
Shatt al-Arab (Arabic: شط العرب‎, literally "Coast/Beach of the Arabs") or Arvand Rūd (Persian: اروندرود‎, "Arvand River"), is a river in Southwest Asia of some 200 km (120 mi) in length, formed by the confluence of the Euphrates and the Tigris in the town of al-Qurnah in the Basra Governorate of southern Iraq. The southern end of the river constitutes the border between Iraq and Iran down to the mouth of the river as it discharges into the Persian Gulf. It varies in width from about 232 metres (761 ft) at Basra to 800 metres (2,600 ft) at its mouth. It is thought that the waterway formed relatively recently in geologic time, with the Tigris and Euphrates originally emptying into the Persian Gulf via a channel further to the west.
The Karun river, a tributary which joins the waterway from the Iranian side, deposits large amounts of silt into the river; this necessitates continuous dredging to keep it navigable.
The area is judged to hold the largest date palm forest in the world. In the mid-1970s, the region included 17 to 18 million date palms, an estimated one-fifth of the world's 90 million palm trees. But by 2002, war, salt, and pests had wiped out more than 14 million of the palms, including around 9 million in Iraq and 5 million in Iran. Many of the remaining 3 to 4 million trees are in poor condition.

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Soviet
The Soviet Union (Russian: Советский Союз, tr. Sovetsky Soyuz), officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR; Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик, tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik; IPA: [sɐˈjus sɐˈvʲetskʲɪx sətsɨəlʲɪˈstʲitɕɪskʲɪx rʲɪsˈpublʲɪk] ( listen); abbreviated СССР, SSSR), was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991.
The Soviet Union was a single-party state ruled by the Communist Party from its foundation until 1990. A union of 15 subnational Soviet republics, the Soviet state was structured under a highly centralized government and economy.
The Russian Revolution of 1917 caused the downfall of the Russian Empire. Following the Russian Revolution, there was a struggle for power between the Bolshevik party, led by Vladimir Lenin, and the anti-communist White movement. In December 1922, the Bolsheviks won the civil war, and the Soviet Union was formed with the merger of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic and the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.

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Soviet Union
The Soviet Union (Russian: Советский Союз, tr. Sovetsky Soyuz), officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR; Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик, tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik; IPA: [sɐˈjus sɐˈvʲetskʲɪx sətsɨəlʲɪˈstʲitɕɪskʲɪx rʲɪsˈpublʲɪk] ( listen); abbreviated СССР, SSSR), was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991.
The Soviet Union was a single-party state ruled by the Communist Party from its foundation until 1990. A union of 15 subnational Soviet republics, the Soviet state was structured under a highly centralized government and economy.
The Russian Revolution of 1917 caused the downfall of the Russian Empire. Following the Russian Revolution, there was a struggle for power between the Bolshevik party, led by Vladimir Lenin, and the anti-communist White movement. In December 1922, the Bolsheviks won the civil war, and the Soviet Union was formed with the merger of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic and the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.

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Strait of Hormuz
The Strait of Hormuz /hɔrˈmuːz/ (Arabic: مَضيق هُرمُز‎ Maḍīq Hurmuz, Persian: تَنگِه هُرمُز‎ Tangeh-ye Hormoz) is a narrow, strategically important strait between the Gulf of Oman in the southeast and the Persian Gulf. On the north coast is Iran and on the south coast is the United Arab Emirates and Musandam, an exclave of Oman.
The strait at its narrowest is 21 nautical miles (39 km) wide. It is the only sea passage to the open ocean for large areas of the petroleum-exporting Persian Gulf and is one of the world's most strategically important choke points. Around 20% of the world's oil, which is about 35% of seaborne traded oil, passes through the strait.
The opening to the Persian Gulf was described, but not given a name, in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, a 1st-century mariner's guide:
In the 10th to 17th centuries AD, the Kingdom of Ormus, which seems to have given the strait its name, was located here. Scholars, historians and linguists derive^{[dead link]} the name "Ormuz" from the local Persian word هورمغ Hur-mogh meaning date palm.^{[dubious – discuss]} In the local dialects of Hurmoz and Minab this strait is still called Hurmogh and has the aforementioned meaning.^{[citation needed]} The resemblance of this word with the name of the Persian God هرمز Hormoz (a variant of Ahura Mazda) has resulted in the popular belief^{[citation needed]}^{[neutrality is disputed]} that these words are related.

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Susangerd
Susangerd (Persian: سوسنگرد‎,Arabic:الخفاجية, also Romanized as Sūsangerd, Sūsangird, and Sūsangurd; also known as Dasht-e Āzādegān, Dashte’ Mishan, Dasht-i-Mishān, Khafajiyah, Khafajiyaz, and Khafajiyeh) is a city in the Central District of Dasht-e Azadegan County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 43,591, in 7,636 families.

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Tehran
Tehran ( pronunciation (help·info)) (Persian: تهران‎ Tehrān; pronounced [tehˈɾɒːn]), sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, the largest city in Western Asia, one of the largest in Southern Asia, and the 19th-largest city globally.
In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to mass-migration of people from all around Iran. The city is home to many historic mosques, churches, synagogues and Zoroastrian fire temples. Contemporary Tehran is a modern city featuring many structures, of which the Azadi (Freedom) Tower and the Milad Tower have come to be symbols of Tehran itself. In 2008 Tehran was the least expensive capital in the world and the second-least expensive city globally based on the cost-of-living index presenting the best value for money in the world. Globally it stands 19th by city population, 56th by the size of its GDP and 29th by the population of its metropolitan area. Throughout Iran's history, the capital city has been relocated many times, with Tehran being the 32nd national capital of Iran. Persian is the city's native tongue, with roughly 98% of the population able to speak and understand it. The majority of people in Tehran identify themselves as Persians. In pre-Islamic and early Islamic times, Tehran was called Ray (which in the Avesta occurs in the form of Ragha)^{[citation needed]}.

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Tigris
The Tigris River (/ˈtaɪɡrɪs/; Arabic: دجله) is the eastern member of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of southeastern Turkey through Iraq.
The Tigris is 1,850 km long, rising in the Taurus Mountains of eastern Turkey about 25 km southeast of the city of Elazig and about 30 km from the headwaters of the Euphrates. The river then flows for 400 km through Turkish territory before becoming the border between Syria and Turkey. This stretch of 44 km is the only part of the river that is located in Syria. The remaining 1,418 km are entirely within the Iraqi borders.
The Tigris unites with the Euphrates near Basra, and from this junction to the Persian Gulf the mass of moving water is known as the Shatt-al-Arab. According to Pliny and other ancient historians, the Euphrates originally had its outlet into the sea separate from that of the Tigris.
Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, stands on the banks of the Tigris. The port city of Basra straddles the Shatt al-Arab. In ancient times, many of the great cities of Mesopotamia stood on or near the Tigris, drawing water from it to irrigate the civilization of the Sumerians. Notable Tigris-side cities included Nineveh, Ctesiphon, and Seleucia, while the city of Lagash was irrigated by the Tigris via a canal dug around 2400 BC.

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UAE
The United Arab Emirates ⁱ/juːˌnaɪtɨd ˌærəb ˈɛmɪrɨts/ (Arabic: دولة الإمارات العربية المتحدة‎, Al Imārāt al ‘Arabīyah al Muttaḥidah), sometimes simply called the Emirates or the UAE, is a country situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman to the east and Saudi Arabia to the south, as well as sharing sea borders with Qatar to the west and Iran to the north.
The UAE is a federation of seven emirates (equivalent to principalities), each governed by a hereditary emir, with a single national president. The constituent emirates are Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah, and Umm al-Quwain. The capital is Abu Dhabi, which is also the state's center of political, industrial, and cultural activities.
Prior to independence in 1971, the UAE was known as the Trucial States or Trucial Oman, in reference to a 19th-century truce between the local sheikhs, hereditary rulers of the territories, and the United Kingdom. The term Pirate Coast was also used by some to refer to the emirates from the 18th to the early 20th century, owing to the preponderance of pirates operating from Emirati ports.

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Umm Qasr
Umm Qasr (Arabic: أم قصر‎, also transliterated as : Um-qasir, Um-qasser), is a port city in southern Iraq. It stands on the canalised Khawr az-Zubayr, part of the Khawr Abd Allah estuary which leads to the Persian Gulf. It is separated from the border of Kuwait by a small inlet. A bridge across the waterway linked the port with Kuwait prior to the 1991 Persian Gulf War.
Umm Qasr was originally a small fishing town, but was used as a military port on several occasions before advancing trades and jobs by building a deep-water port on the coast. It was said to have been the site of Alexander the Great's landing in Mesopotamia in 325 BC. During the Second World War a temporary port was established there by the Allies to unload supplies to dispatch to the Soviet Union. It fell back into obscurity after the war, but the government of King Faisal II sought to establish a permanent port there in the 1950s.
After the Iraqi Revolution of 1958, a naval base was established at Umm Qasr. The port was subsequently founded in 1961 by the Iraqi ruler General Abdul-Karim Qassem. It was intended to serve as Iraq's only "deep water" port, reducing the country's dependence on the disputed Shatt al-Arab waterway that marks the border with Iran. The port facilities were built by a consortium of companies from West Germany, Sweden and Lebanon, with a railway line connecting it to Basra and Baghdad. The port opened for business in July 1967.

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USSR
The Soviet Union (Russian: Советский Союз, tr. Sovetsky Soyuz), officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR; Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик, tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik; IPA: [sɐˈjus sɐˈvʲetskʲɪx sətsɨəlʲɪˈstʲitɕɪskʲɪx rʲɪsˈpublʲɪk] ( listen); abbreviated СССР, SSSR), was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991.
The Soviet Union was a single-party state ruled by the Communist Party from its foundation until 1990. A union of 15 subnational Soviet republics, the Soviet state was structured under a highly centralized government and economy.
The Russian Revolution of 1917 caused the downfall of the Russian Empire. Following the Russian Revolution, there was a struggle for power between the Bolshevik party, led by Vladimir Lenin, and the anti-communist White movement. In December 1922, the Bolsheviks won the civil war, and the Soviet Union was formed with the merger of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic and the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.

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Yazd
Yazd (pronounced /jæzd/) (Persian: یزد‎, also Romanized as Yezd) is the capital of Yazd Province in Iran, and a centre of Zoroastrian culture. The city is located 270 km southeast of Isfahan. At the 2006 census, the population was 423,006, in 114,716 families.
Because of generations of adaptations to its desert surroundings, Yazd is an architecturally unique city. It is also known in Iran for the high quality of its handicrafts, especially silk weaving, and its sweet shops.
Yazd with the area of 131,551 km²^{[citation needed]} is situated at an oasis where the Dasht-e Kavir desert and the Dasht-e Lut desert meet, the city is sometimes called "the bride of the Kavir" because of its location, in a valley between Shir Kuh, the tallest mountain in the region at 4075 m. above sea level, and Kharaneq. The city itself is located at 1203 m. above sea-level, and covers 16,000 km².
According to the administrative division rules, the Yazd province is divided into 10 districts, each includes at least one town and a number of villages. These districts are: Abarkuh, Ardakan, Bafq, Khatam, Maybod, Mehriz, Tabas, Sadough, Taft and Yazd.

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Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian: Jugoslavija; Cyrillic: Југославија) was a country in the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century which was established three times under differing forms of government.
The first country to be known by this name was the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, which before 3 October 1929 was known as the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. It was established on 1 December 1918 by the union of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs and the Kingdom of Serbia (the Kingdom of Montenegro was annexed on 13 November 1918, and the Conference of Ambassadors in Paris gave international recognition to the union on 13 July 1922). The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was invaded by the Axis powers in 1941, and because of the events that followed, was officially abolished in 1943 and 1945.
The second country with this name was the Democratic Federal Yugoslavia, proclaimed in 1943 by the Yugoslav Partisans resistance movement during World War II. It was renamed to the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia in 1946, when a communist government was established. In 1963, it was renamed again to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY). This was the largest Yugoslav state, as Istria, Rijeka and Zadar were added to the new Yugoslavia after the end of World War II.

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Zagros Mountains
The Zagros Mountains (Arabic: جبال زغروس, Aramaic: ܛܘܪ ܙܪܓܣ, Kurdish: زنجیره‌چیاکانی زاگرۆس, Lurish: کو یه لی زاگروس, Persian: رشته كوه زاگرس‎‎) are the largest mountain range in Iran and Iraq. With a total length of 1,500 km (932 mi), from northwestern Iran, and roughly correlating with Iran's western border, the Zagros range spans the whole length of the western and southwestern Iranian plateau and ends at the Strait of Hormuz. The highest points in the Zagros Mountains are Zard Kuh-bakhtiari and Dena. The Hazaran massif in the Kerman province of Iran forms an eastern outlier of the range, the Jebal Barez reaching into Sistan.
The Zagros fold and thrust belt was formed by collision of two tectonic plates — the Eurasian and Arabian Plates. Recent GPS measurements in Iran have shown that this collision is still active and the resulting deformation is distributed non-uniformly in the country, mainly taken up in the major mountain belts like Alborz and Zagros. A relatively dense GPS network which covered the Zagros in the Iranian part also proves a high rate of deformation within the Zagros. The GPS results show that the current rate of shortening in SE Zagros is ~10 mm/yr and ~5mm/yr in the NW Zagros. The NS strike-slip Kazerun fault divides the Zagros into two distinct zones of deformation. The GPS results also show different shortening directions along the belt, i.e. normal shortening in the South-East and oblique shortening in the NW Zagros.

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Abdul Aziz al-Hakim
Sayyed Abdul Aziz al-Hakim (Arabic: سید عبد العزيز الحكيم‎) (1953 - August 26, 2009) was an Iraqi theologian and politician and the leader of Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, a party that enjoys approximately 5% support in the Iraqi Council of Representatives.
He was a member of the United States-appointed Iraqi Governing Council and served as its president in December 2003. Brother of the Shia leader Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, he replaced him as leader of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq when Mohammed Baqir was assassinated in August 2003 in Najaf.
He was born in 1953, the son of Grand Ayatollah Muhsin Al-Hakim. Raised in Najaf and then received his theological education through the religious school there, known as the Hawza. He was married to the daughter of Mohammed Hadi al-Sadr and he was the father of two girls and two boys. His son Muhsin Abdul Aziz al-Hakim was a political adviser for him while his other son Ammar al-Hakim is the Secretary General of Al-Mihrab Martyr Foundation. Seven of Abdul Aziz al-Hakim brothers have been killed, six of them on the orders of Saddam Hussein.

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Abdul Karim Qassim
Abd al-Karim Qasim (Arabic: عبد الكريم قاسم‎ `Abd al-Karīm Qāsim) (21 November 1914 – 9 February 1963), was a nationalist Iraqi Army general who seized power in a 1958 coup d'état, wherein the Iraqi monarchy was eliminated. He ruled the country as Prime Minister of Iraq until his downfall and death in 1963.
His name can be transliterated from the Arabic in a number of ways, e.g. Abdel Karim Kassem, Abdul Karim Kassem, Abdulkarim Kasem, Abdel-Karim Qaasim, `Abdul Karim Qasem, Qassem. During his rule, he was popularly known as al-za‘īm (الزعيم) or, "The Leader".
Abd al-Karim Qasim's father was a Sunni Muslim of Arab descent who died shortly after his son's birth during World War I as a soldier for the Ottoman Empire. Qasim's mother was a Shiite and the daughter of a Feyli Kurd farmer from Baghdad.
When Qasim was six years of age his family moved to Suwayra, a small town near the Tigris, then to Baghdad in 1926. Qasim was an excellent student; he entered secondary school on a government scholarship. After graduation in 1931, he taught at Shamiyya Elementary School from Oct 22 of that year until Sept 3 1932, when he was accepted into Military College. In 1934, he graduated as a second lieutenant. Qasim then attended al-Arkan (Iraqi Staff) College and graduated with honor (grade A) in December 1941. In 1951, he completed a senior officers’ course in Britain.

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Abulhassan Banisadr
Abulhassan Banisadr (Persian: ابوالحسن بنی‌صدر‎; born 22 March 1933) is an Iranian politician, economist and human rights activist who served as the first President of Iran from 4 February 1980 after the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the abolition of the monarchy until his impeachment on 21 June 1981 by the Parliament of Iran. Prior to his presidency, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Interim Government.
Banisadr was born in 22 March 1933 in Hamedan in a religious family. His father was close to the Ruhollah Khomeini. He studied Finance and Economics at the Sorbonne.
Banisadr had participated in the anti-Shah student movement during the early 1960s, was imprisoned twice, and was wounded during an uprising in 1963. He then fled to France and joined the Iranian resistance group led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Banisadr returned to Iran together with Khomeini as the revolution was beginning in February 1979. He wrote a book on Islamic finance, Eghtesad Tohidi, an Arabic phrase that roughly translates as "The Economics of Monotheism."

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Adnan Khairallah
General Adnan Khairallah (Arabic: عدنان خير الله طلفاح ; died May 4, 1989), was Saddam Hussein's brother-in-law (Sajida Talfah's brother and Khairallah Talfah's son) and cousin. He held several titles and was a member of the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council. He also served as the Defence Minister of Iraq from 1979 to his death, having been appointed days after Saddam Hussein succeeded to the Presidency. It was initially believed that he died in a helicopter crash near Mosul in the late eighties during a sandstorm. However, there was speculation his death was caused due to the detonation of four explosive charges of the helicopter he was in. Accused of orchestrating his death are Hussein Al Kamel .
Although a relative of Saddam's, he remains a popular figure and a square named in his honour exists to this day in the al-Karkh area of Baghdad where a statue of him still stands, unlike statues of other members of the previous government, which have all been removed following the fall of Baghdad in 2003.

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Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr
Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr (Arabic أحمد حسن البكر 'Aḥmad Ḥasan al-Bakr; 1 July 1914 – 4 October 1982) was the fourth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 17 July 1968 until 16 July 1979. A leading member of the revolutionary Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, and later, the Baghdad-based Ba'ath Party and its regional organisation Ba'ath Party – Iraq Region (the Ba'ath Party's Iraqi cell), which espoused ba'athism, a mix of Arab nationalism and Arab socialism.
Al-Bakr first rose to prominence following the 14 July Revolution which overthrew the monarchy. In the newly-established regime, al-Bakr was involved in improving Iraqi–Soviet relations. In 1959 al-Bakr was forced to resign from the Iraqi military; the then Iraqi regime accused him of being involved in anti-government activities. Following his forced retirement, he became the chairman of the Ba'ath Party's Iraqi cell's Military Bureau. Through this office he was able to recruit members to the ba'athist cause through patronage and cronyism. Prime Minister Abd al-Karim Qasim was overthrown in the Ramadan (8 February) Revolution; al-Bakr was appointed Prime Minister, and later, Vice President of Iraq in a ba'ath-nasserist coalition government. The government lasted for little more than a year, and was ousted in November 1963.

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Ak Koyunlu
The Aq Qoyunlu or Ak Koyunlu, also called the White Sheep Turkomans (Persian/Azeri: آق قویونلو), was an Sunni Oghuz Turkic tribal federation that ruled parts of present-day Eastern Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, northern Iraq, and Iran from 1378 to 1508.
According to chronicles from the Byzantine Empire, the Aq Qoyunlu were present in eastern Anatolia from at least 1340, and most of their leaders, including the dynasty's founder, Uzun Hassan, married Byzantine princesses.
The Aq Qoyunlu Turkomans first acquired land in 1402, when Timur granted them all of Diyarbakır in present-day Turkey. For a long time, the Aq Qoyunlu were unable to expand their territory, as the rival Kara Koyunlu or "Black Sheep Turkomans" kept them at bay. However, this changed with the rule of Uzun Hassan, who defeated the Black Sheep Turkoman leader Jahān Shāh in 1467.
After the defeat of a Ilkhanate leader, Abu Sa'id, Uzun Hassan was able to take Baghdad along with territories around the Persian Gulf. He expanded into Iran as far east as Khorasan. However, around this time, the Ottoman Empire sought to expand eastwards, a serious threat that forced the Aq Qoyunlu into an alliance with the Karamanids of central Anatolia.

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Al-Anfal Campaign
The al-Anfal Campaign (Arabic: حملة الأنفال‎), also known as the Kurdish Genocide,Operation Anfal or simply Anfal, was a genocidal campaign against the Kurdish people (and other non-Arab populations) in Northern Iraq, led by the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein and headed by Ali Hassan al-Majid in the final stages of Iran-Iraq War. The campaign takes its name from Surat al-Anfal in the Qur'an, which was used as a code name by the former Iraqi Baathist regime for a series of systematic attacks against the Kurdish population of northern Iraq, conducted between 1986 and 1989 and culminating in 1988. The campaign also targeted other minority communities in Iraq including Assyrians, Shabaks, Yazidis, Jews, Mandeans, and many villages belonging to these ethnic groups were also destroyed. Writer Joost R. Hiltermann has said the United States government and US State Department was particularly important in helping their then ally the Saddam Hussein government in avoiding any serious censure for the campaign and in particular the attack on rebels and civilians in the city of Halabja. Hiltermann writes; "The deliberate American prevarication on Halabja was the logical, although probably undesired, outcome of a pronounced six-year tilt toward Iraq, seen as a bulwark against the perceived threat posed by Iran's zealous brand of politicized Islam."

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Alavids
The Alavids or Alavians (سلسله علویان طبرستان in Persian; also Alijds), also known as the Zaydids, were a Zaidi Shia emirate based in Mazandaran (Tabaristan) of Iran. They were descendants of the second Shi'a Imam (Imam Hasan ibn Ali) and brought Islam to the south Caspian Sea region of Iran. Their reign was ended when they were defeated by the Samanid empire in 928 AD. After their defeat some of the soldiers and generals of the Alavids joined the Samanid dynasty. Mardavij the son of Ziar was one of the generals that joined the Samanids. He later founded the Ziyarid dynasty. Ali, Hassan and Ahmad the sons of Buye [bu:je] (that were founders of the Buyid or Buwayhid dynasty) were also among generals of the Alavid dynasty who joined the Samanid army.
Their capital was the city of Amol.
Split of Alavis: Anti-Samanid & Pro-Samanid:
Anti-Samanids:
Pro-Samanids:

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Ali
Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (Arabic: علي بن أﺑﻲ طالب, Transliteration: ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, [ʕaliː ibn ʔæbiː t̪ˤɑːlib]; 13^thRajab, 24 BH–21^stRamaḍān, 40 AH; approximately October 23, 598 or 600 or March 17, 599 – January 27, 661). The son of Abu Talib, Ali was also the cousin and son-in-law of Islamic prophet Muhammad, ruling over the Islamic Caliphate from 656 to 661, and was the first male convert to Islam.Sunnis consider Ali the fourth and final of the Rashidun (rightly guided Caliphs), while Shias regard Ali as the first Imam and consider him and his descendants the rightful successors to Muhammad, all of which are members of the Ahl al-Bayt, the household of Muhammad. This disagreement split the Ummah (Muslim community) into the Sunni and Shia branches.
Muslim sources, especially Shia ones, state that since Muhammad's time, Ali was the only person born in the Kaaba sanctuary in Mecca, the holiest place in Islam. His father was Abu Talib and his mother was Fatima bint Asad, but he was raised in the household of Muhammad, who himself was raised by Abu Talib, Muhammad's uncle, and Ali's father. When Muhammad reported receiving a divine revelation, Ali was the first male to accept his message, dedicating his life to the cause of Islam.

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Ali Akbar Velayati
Ali Akbar Velayati (علی‌اکبر ولایتی; born June 25, 1945) is an Iranian politician, academic and diplomat. He was the Foreign Minister of Iran from 1981 to 1997. Currently he is an advisor on International Affairs to the Supreme Leader.
Born in Shemiran, Velayati acquired his M.D. from University of Tehran and pediatrics degrees from the Johns Hopkins University, respectively in 1971 and 1974 with the help of his cousin, Arman Moussavi.
After winning the presidential election on October 13, 1981, President Ali Khamenei proposed Velayati as his Prime Minister to the Parliament of Iran, but Parliament voted against him (74/80/38) on October 22. Khamenei later proposed Mir-Hossein Mousavi, who gained Parliament's approval.
Under Prime Minister Mousavi, Velayati served for two terms as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1981 to 1989. He remained in that post for two more terms under President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani from 1989 to 1997.
Velayati was under consideration by the conservative alliance of Iran as a possible candidate for 2005 presidential election, but he announced that he did not accept candidacy of the conservative alliance and would run as an Independent. He finally decided not to run. It was speculated that he did not want to run against Rafsanjani.

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Ali Hassan al-Majid
Ali Hassan Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti ʿAlī Ḥasan ʿAbd al-Majīd al-Tikrītī, Arabic: علي حسن عبد المجيد التكريتي‎, (30 November 1941 – 25 January 2010) was a Ba'athist Iraqi Defense Minister, Interior Minister, military commander and chief of the Iraqi Intelligence Service. He was also the governor of annexed Kuwait during the Gulf War.
A first cousin of former President of Iraq Saddam Hussein, he became notorious in the 1980s and 1990s for his role in the Iraqi government's campaigns against internal opposition forces, namely the ethnic Kurdish rebels of the north, and the Shia religious dissidents of the south. Repressive measures included deportations and mass killings; al-Majid was dubbed "Chemical Ali" by Iraqi Kurds for his use of chemical weapons in attacks against them.
Al-Majid was captured following the 2003 invasion of Iraq and was charged with war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. He was convicted in June 2007 and was sentenced to death for crimes of genocide against the Kurds committed in the al-Anfal campaign of the 1980s. His appeal of the death sentence was rejected on 4 September 2007, and he was sentenced to death for the fourth time on 17 January 2010 and was hanged eight days later, on 25 January 2010.

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Ali Khamenei
Grand Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei (Persian: سید علی حسینی خامنه ای‎, Azerbaijani: سید علی حسینی خامنه‌ای – Seyyid Əli Xameneyi, pronounced [ʔæˈliː hoseiˈniː xɒːmeneˈʔiː] ( listen); born 17 July 1939) is the Supreme Leader of Iran, and a Twelver Shi'a marja. He had also served as the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran from 1981 to 1989. In 2010, Forbes selected him 26th in the list of 'World's Most Powerful People'.
Holding absolute power in his country, he has been described as one of only three people having "important influence" during the history of the Islamic Republic of Iran . Khamenei was the victim of an attempted assassination in June 1981 that paralyzed his right arm, although so far the biggest challenge to his leadership has been the mass protests following the June 2009 presidential elections during which he strongly supported president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. They have had a falling out since.
Khamenei holds the title of Sayyed, which means that he claims direct patrilineal descent from Ali ibn Abi Talib. Some^[which?] of Khamenei's ancestors are from Tafresh in today's Markazi province, and had migrated from their original home in Tafresh to Tabriz. Born in Mashhad, he is second eldest of eight children, and two of his brothers are also clerics. His younger brother, Hadi Khamenei, is a renowned newspaper editor and cleric. Khamenei is Iranian Azeri on his father's side and his mother is a Yazd-native Persian.

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Ali Sayad Shirazi
Ali Sayad Shirazi (1944–1999) (Persian: علی صياد شیرازی‎) was chief-of-staff of the Iranian forces during Iran's 8-year war with Iraq. He was assassinated in 1999. Prior to that, he had a central role in suppressing the armed rebellion in Kordestan province in 1979.
Shirazi was born in Kaboud Gonbad in 1944. His father being a non-commissioned officer in the Army motivated him to join and in 1964 he joined as a cadet. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Artillery and in 1974 he was sent to the United States for drill and educating. When he returned to his homeland Iran he demonstrated against The Shah and joined the Islamic revolution. Therefore he was sacked from his commission and jailed by the Shah. After the revolution he served in the Iranian army and became a general.
During the Iran–Iraq War Sayad Shirazi became one of the most important generals of Iran. In 1981, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini appointed him commander of the Ground Forces of the Iranian Army. In 1982, he did something that made him famous, he led the Iranian Pasdaran and Basij soldiers to victory in the Iranian Operation Undeniable Victory, this was the first time Iran was able to defeat Iraq in a major battle, Iran broke through Iraq's "impenetrable" defense lines and expelled them from the Dezful-Shush area, this operation is considered by many as the turning point in the war. During Iran's attempt to capture Basra with Operation Ramadan Shirazi was said: We will continue the war until Saddam Hussein is overthrown so that we can pray at Karbala and Jerusalem. In 1988, the People's Mujahedin of Iran with help of Saddam Hussein attacked West-Iran and battled Iranian forces for Kermanshah. Iran smashed them with their counter offensive: Operation Mersad, which was led by Brigadier-General Ali Sayad Shirazi. In 1989, Shirazi was awarded the highest military distinction in the Iranian armed forces, the Fath (Conquest) medal.

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Armenians in Iran
Iranian-Armenians (Armenian: Իրանահայ Iranahye), sometimes called Persian-Armenians (Պարսկահայ Parskahye), are Iranian citizens of Armenian or both Iranian and Armenian origin. Their number is about 3,000,000. They mostly live in Tehran and Jolfa district, Isfahan. The Iranian-Armenians were very influential and active in the modernization of Iran during the 19th and 20th centuries. After the Iranian Revolution, many Armenians immigrated to Armenian diasporic communities in North America and Western Europe.Today the Armenians are Iran's largest Christian religious minority. Despite their cultural Armenian identity in Iran, no sizeable numbers of Iranian-Armenians hold Armenian citizenship.
Since Antiquity there has always been much interaction between Ancient Armenia and Persia (Iran).
On the Behistun inscription of 515 BC, Darius the Great indirectly confirmed that Urartu and Armenia are synonymous when describing his conquests. Armenia became a satrap of the Persian Empire for a long period of time. Regardless, relations between Armenians and Persians were cordial.

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Aryan
Aryan /ˈɛərjən/ is an English language loanword derived from the Sanskrit ārya ('Noble'). In present-day academia, the terms "Indo-Iranian" and "Indo-European" have, according to many, made most uses of the term 'Aryan' minimal, and 'Aryan' is now mostly limited to its appearance in the term "Indo-Aryan" to represent (speakers of) North, West and Central Indian languages.
Western notions of an "Aryan race" rose to prominence in late-19th and early-20th century racialist thought, an idea most notably embraced by Nazi ideology (see master race). The Nazis believed that the "Nordic peoples" (who were also referred to as the "Germanic peoples") represent an ideal and "pure race" that was the purest representation of the original racial stock of those who were then called the Proto-Aryans. The Nazis declared that the Nordics were the true Aryans because they claimed that they were more "pure" (less racially mixed with non-native Indo-European peoples) than other people of what were then called the Aryan peoples (now generally called the Indo-European peoples).

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Assyrian people
The Assyrian people, most commonly known as Assyrians and other later names, such as: Chaldeans, Syrians, Syriacs (see names of Syriac Christians), are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia. They are Eastern Aramaic speaking Semites who trace their ancestry back to the Sumero-Akkadian civilisation that emerged in Mesopotamia circa 4000- 3500 BC, and in particular to the northern region of the Akkadian lands, which would become known as Assyria by the 24th Century BC. The Assyrian nation existed as an independent state, and often a powerful empire, from the 24th century BC until the end of the 7th century BC.
Today that ancient territory is part of several nations; Assyria remained a Geo-political entity after its fall, and was ruled as an occupied province under the rule of various empires from the late 7th century BC until the mid 7th century AD when it was dissolved, and the Assyrian people have gradually become a minority in their homelands since that time. They are indigenous to, and have traditionally lived all over what is now Iraq, north east Syria, north west Iran, and Southeastern Turkey. They are predominantly Christian.

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Baloch people
The Baloch or Baluch (Balochi: بلوچ) are an ethnic group who mainly inhabit the Balochistan region in the southeast corner of the Iranian plateau in Western Asia.
The Baluch people mainly speak Baluchi, which is a branch of the Iranian languages, and more specifically of the North-western Iranian languages, that is highly influenced by that of Mesopotamia and shares similarities with Kurdish and other languages of the region. It also contains archaic features reminiscent of Old Persian and Avestan. They inhabit mountainous terrains and deserts, and maintain a very distinct cultural identity. The Baloch-speaking population worldwide is estimated to be in the range of 10 to 15 million.^{[citation needed]} However, the exact number of Baloch and those who are or claim to be of Baloch ancestry is difficult to determine. In the Punjab province of Pakistan almost 10% of peoples are Balochi.^{[citation needed]} Most of them speak Saraiki but in the Jhang area of Punjab, the majority of the Baloch population speak Punjabi also.^{[citation needed]}

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Bashar al-Assad
Bashar Hafez al-Assad (Arabic: بشار حافظ الأسد‎, Baššār al-ʾAsad, ‎‎‎Arabic pronunciation: [bæʃˈʃɑːɾɪlˈʔæsæd])‎; born 11 September 1965) is the current President of Syria and Regional Secretary of the Syrian-led branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party. His father Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria for 29 years until his death in 2000.
Al-Assad graduated from the medical school of the University of Damascus in 1988, and started to work as a doctor in the army. Four years later, he attended postgraduate studies at the Western Eye Hospital, in London, specializing in ophthalmology. In 1994, Al-Assad entered the military academy and in 1998, Al-Assad took charge of the Syrian occupation of Lebanon. In December 2000, Assad married Asma Assad, née Akhras. Al-Assad was elected as President of Syria in 2000 and 2007, unopposed each time. During the Syrian uprising, activists and protesters have called for President al-Assad's resignation.
Bashar Hafez al-Assad was born in Damascus on 11 September 1965, the son of Aniseh (née Makhluf) and Hafez al-Assad. His father, Hafez al-Assad, born to a poor family of Alawite background, had risen through the Party ranks, to take control of the Syrian-led branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party in the 1970 Corrective Revolution, thus installing himself as president. Hafez al-Assad purged the Party, and introduced effective Alawite rule of Syria.

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Bint al-Huda
Bint al-Huda was an Iraqi educator and political activist who was executed by Saddam Hussein along with her brother, Ayatullah Sayyid Mohammad Baqir al-Sadr, in 1980.
Also called Aminah Haidar as-Sadr, Bint al-Huda was born in 1938 in Kazimiyah, Baghdad where she would eventually establish several religious schools for girls. Bint al-Huda played a significant role in creating Islamic awareness among the Muslim women of Iraq. She was in her twenties when she began writing articles in al-Adwaa, the Islamic magazine printed by the religious intellectuals of Najaf, Iraq in 1959. She was also well known for her participation in the Safar Uprising in 1977.

Bint al-Huda grew up with a serious love of learning. She soon became aware of what she perceived to be the Muslim women’s sufferings and the great disasters which were damaging Islamic ideology in her country.
In 1980, the religious leader Ayatollah Sayyid Mohammad Baqir al-Sadr and his sister, Bint-al-Huda, were arrested and later executed by the Iraqi regime. The regime never returned her body, and her burial site is still unknown.

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Demographics of Iran
Iran's population increased dramatically during the later half of the 20th century, reaching about 75 million by 2011. In recent years, however, Iran's birth rate has dropped significantly. Studies project that Iran's rate of population growth will continue to slow until it stabilizes above 100 million by 2050. In 2009, the number of households stood at 15.3 million (4.8 person/household). According to the central bank of Iran in 2012, in 22.5 per cent of Iranian families, all family members were unemployed. Families earn some 11.4 million rials (around $930) per month on the average (2012).
According to the OECD/World Bank statistics population growth in Iran from 1990 to 2008 was 17.6 million and 32 %. The literacy rate was 80% in 2007.
While nearly 100% of Iran's population is fluent in modern Persian, approximately 75-80% of Iran's peoples exclusively speak Iranian languages (the most common language known as Persian - or "Farsi" as it is known in the Persian language). The major groups in this category include Persians, Kurds, Gilakis, Mazandaranis, Lurs, and Baluchis. Turkic speakers, such as the Azeri, Turkmen, and the Qashqai peoples, comprise a substantial minority. The remainder are primarily Semitics such as Arabs and Assyrians or other Indo-Europeans such as Pashtuns and Armenians. There are also small communities of Brahui in southeastern Iran. The Georgian language is spoken only by those Iranian Georgians that live in Fereydan and Fereydunshahr. All other communities of Iranian Georgians in Iran have already lost their language.

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Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Henry Rumsfeld (born July 9, 1932) is an American politician and businessman. Rumsfeld served as the 13th Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and as the 21st Secretary of Defense from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush. He is both the youngest and the oldest person to have served as Secretary of Defense. Additionally, Rumsfeld was a four-term U.S. Congressman from Illinois (1962–1969), Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity (1969–1970), Counsellor to the President (1969–1973), the United States Permanent Representative to NATO (1973–1974), and White House Chief of Staff (1974–1975).
Born in Illinois, Rumsfeld attended Princeton University, graduating in 1954 with a degree in political science. After serving in the Navy for three years, he mounted a campaign for Congress in Illinois' 13th Congressional District, winning in 1962 at the age of 30. Reelected four times, he was a leading co-sponsor of the Freedom of Information Act. Rumsfeld was reluctantly appointed by President Richard Nixon to head the Office of Economic Opportunity in 1969; appointed Counselor by Nixon and entitled to Cabinet-level status, he would also head up the Economic Stabilization Program before being appointed Ambassador to NATO. Called back to Washington in August 1974, Rumsfeld was appointed Chief of Staff by President Ford, recruiting a young one-time staffer of his, Dick Cheney, to succeed him when Ford nominated Rumsfeld Secretary of Defense in 1975.

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Execution of Saddam
The execution of Saddam Hussein took place on December 30, 2006 (the first day of Eid-al-Adha). Saddam was sentenced to death by hanging, after being found guilty and convicted of crimes against humanity by the Iraqi Special Tribunal for the murder of 148 Iraqi Shi'ite in the town of Dujail in 1982, in retaliation for an assassination attempt against him.
Saddam Hussein was President of Iraq from July 16, 1979 until April 9, 2003, when he was deposed during the 2003 invasion by a U.S.-led allied coalition. After the capture of Saddam in ad-Dawr, near his hometown Tikrit, he was incarcerated at Camp Cropper. On November 5, 2006, he was sentenced to death by hanging.
On December 30, 2006, he was taken to the prison to be executed. The Iraqi government released an official videotape of his execution, showing him being led to the gallows, and ending after his head was in the hangman's noose. International public controversy arose when an unauthorized mobile phone recording of the hanging showed him falling through the trap door of the gallows. The unprofessional and undignified atmosphere of the execution drew criticism around the world from nations that both oppose and support capital punishment. On December 31, 2006, Saddam Hussein's body was returned to his birthplace of Al-Awja, near Tikrit, and was buried near the graves of other family members. Saddam's body was never shown.

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Frans Van Anraat
Frans Cornelis Adrianus van Anraat (born August 9, 1942 in Den Helder) is a Dutch businessman who sold raw materials for the production of chemical weapons to Iraq during the reign of Saddam Hussein.
During the 1970s Van Anraat worked at engineering companies in Italy, Switzerland and Singapore that were building chemical plants in Iraq. Having learned about the trade in chemicals, he founded his own company, "FCA Contractor", based in Bissone, Switzerland. From 1984 he supplied thousands of tons of chemicals to Iraq. Among these chemicals were the essential raw materials for producing mustard gas and nerve gas. Both gases were used during the Iran-Iraq war between 1980-1988 as well as during the Halabja poison gas attack the military carried out on Iraqi Kurds in 1988, in which some 5,000 people were killed. This attack was part of the Al-Anfal campaign of the Iraqi regime against Kurds in the north of the country.
After his arrest and release in Italy in 1989, Van Anraat fled to Iraq, where he lived for the next 14 years. When Saddam's regime fell in 2003, Van Anraat returned to the Netherlands. He was arrested on December 6, 2004 for complicity in war crimes and genocide. On December 23, 2005, he was sentenced to fifteen years in prison for complicity in war crimes, but the court decided the charges of complicity in genocide could not be substantiated. Both the public prosecutor as well as Van Anraat appealed the verdict. In May 2007, the appeal court sentenced Van Anraat to seventeen years in prison, this time for complicity in multiple war crimes which explains the two extra years, but not for complicity in genocide.

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Gabrielle Giffords
Gabrielle Dee "Gabby" Giffords (born June 8, 1970) is an American politician. As a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, she represented Arizona's 8th congressional district from 2007 until her resignation on January 25, 2012, having been elected to Congress three times. She is the third woman in Arizona's history to be elected to the U.S. Congress. Considered a "Blue Dog" Democrat, her stances on health care reform and illegal immigration were sources of attention for those opposed to her candidacy and have made her a recipient of criticism from various conservative groups. She has described herself as a "former Republican."
Giffords is a native of Tucson, Arizona, and a graduate of Scripps College and Cornell University. Prior to her election to the United States Congress, Giffords served in the Arizona House of Representatives from 2001 until 2003 and the Arizona State Senate from 2003 until 2005, when she resigned to run for the seat held by then-Congressman Jim Kolbe. She also worked as an associate for regional economic development in New York City and as CEO of El Campo Tire Warehouses, a local automotive chain owned by her grandfather. She is married to former astronaut and Space Shuttle Commander Mark E. Kelly.

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Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein (Arabic: جمال عبد الناصر حسين‎, IPA: [ɡæˈmæːl ʕæbdenˈnɑːsˤeɾ ħeˈseːn]; 15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of modernization, and socialist reform in Egypt together with a profound advancement of pan-Arab nationalism, including a short-lived union with Syria.
Nasser is seen as one of the most important political figures in both modern Arab history and politics in the 20th century. Under his leadership, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal Company and came to play a central role in anti-imperialist efforts in the Arab World and Africa. The imposed ending to the Suez Crisis made him a hero throughout the Arab world. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the international Non-Aligned Movement. He is well known for his nationalist policies and version of pan-Arabism, also referred to as Nasserism, which won a great following in the Arab World during the 1950s and 1960s. Although his status as "leader of the Arabs" was badly damaged by the Israeli victory over the Arab armies in the Six-Day War, as well as Egypt's failure to win the subsequent War of Attrition against Israel, many in the general Arab population still view Nasser as a symbol of Arab dignity and freedom.

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Gary Sick
Gary G. Sick (born 1935) is an American academic and analyst of Middle East affairs, with special expertise on Iran, who served on the U.S. National Security Council < under Presidents Ford, Carter, and Reagan. He has authored two books on U.S.-Iran relations, in addition to a number of co-edited books and numerous articles and scholarly contributions. He blogs at http://www.tumblr.com/blog/garysick

Sick is a retired captain in the U.S. Navy. He received a B.A. from Kansas University in 1957, and later earned a Master of Science degree at George Washington University (1970), followed by a PhD in political science at Columbia University (1973).
Sick served on the staff of the National Security Council under President Carter, and was the principal White House aide for Persian Gulf affairs from 1976 to 1981, a period which included the Iranian revolution and the hostage crisis.
After leaving government service, Sick served as Deputy Director for International Affairs at the Ford Foundation from 1982 to 1987, and is the executive director of the Gulf/2000 Project at Columbia University (1993–present), which has published five books and numbers many of the leading scholars on the Persian Gulf among its global membership. He is an adjunct professor of International Affairs and a senior research scholar at Columbia's School of International & Public Affairs, where he has been voted one of the top professors. He is emeritus member of the board of directors of Human Rights Watch, and serves as founding chair of the Advisory Committee of Human Rights Watch/Middle East.

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Ghurid Dynasty
The Ghurids or Ghorids (Persian: سلسله غوریان‎; self-designation: Shansabānī) were a medieval Muslim dynasty of Iranian origin that ruled during the 12th and 13th centuries in Khorasan. At its zenith, their empire, centred at Ghōr (now a province in Afghanistan), stretched over an area that included the whole of modern Afghanistan, the eastern parts of Iran, Pakistan and the northern section of the India, as far as Delhi. The Ghurids were succeeded in Persia by the Khwārazm-Shāh dynasty and in North India by the Mamluk dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate.
In the 19th century, some European scholars, such as Mountstuart Elphinstone, favoured the idea that the Ghurid dynasty was Pashtun, but this is generally rejected by modern scholarship, and, as explained by Morgenstierne in the Encyclopaedia of Islam, is for "various reasons very improbable". Instead, the consensus in modern scholarship (incl. Morgenstierne, Bosworth, Dupree, Gibb, Ghirshman, Longworth Dames and others) holds that the dynasty was most likely of Tajik origin.Bosworth further points out that the actual name of the Ghurid family, Āl-e Šansab (Persianized: Šansabānī), is the Arabic pronunciation of the originally Middle Persian name Wišnasp, perhaps hinting at a (Sassanian) Persian origin.

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Graham Fuller
Graham E. Fuller is an American author and political analyst, specializing in Islamic extremism. Formerly vice-chair of the National Intelligence Council, he also served as Station Chief in Kabul for the CIA. A "think piece" that Fuller wrote for the CIA was identified as instrumental in leading to the Iran-contra affair. After a career in the United States State Department and CIA lasting 27 years, he joined Rand Corporation as senior political scientist specializing in the Middle East. As of 2006, he was affiliated with the Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada as an adjunct professor of history. He is the author of a number of books, including The Future of Political Islam.
Fuller attended Harvard University, where he earned a Master of Arts degree in Russian and Middle Eastern Studies. Thereafter he took employment with the State Department of the United States, entering Foreign Service in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. In 1982, the CIA appointed him National Intelligence Officer for Near East and South Asia, and in 1986 appointed him vice-chairman of the National Intelligence Council.

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Great Seljuq Empire
The Great Seljuq Empire (Turkish: Büyük Selçuklu Devleti, Persian: دولت سلجوقیان‎) was a medieval Persianate,Turko-Persian Sunni Muslim empire, originating from the Qynyq branch of Oghuz Turks. The Seljuq Empire controlled a vast area stretching from the Hindu Kush to eastern Anatolia and from Central Asia to the Persian Gulf. From their homelands near the Aral sea, the Seljuqs advanced first into Khorasan and then into mainland Persia before eventually conquering eastern Anatolia.
The Seljuq empire was founded by Tughril Beg in 1037 after the efforts by the founder of the Seljuq dynasty, Seljuq Beg, back in the first quarter of the eleventh century. Seljuq Beg's father was in a higher position in the Oghuz Yabgu State, and gave his name both to the state and the dynasty. The Seljuqs united the fractured political scene of the Eastern Islamic world and played a key role in the first and second crusades. Highly Persianized in culture and language, the Seljuqs also played an important role in the development of the Turko-Persian tradition, even exporting Persian culture to Anatolia. The Seljuqs conquest gave impetus to the progressive Turkicization of parts of Anatolia, Iran and the Caucasus.

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Hafez al-Assad
Hafez ibn 'Ali ibn Sulayman al-Assad or more commonly Hafez al-Assad (Arabic: حافظ الأسد‎ Ḥāfiẓ al-Asad, 6 October 1930 – 10 June 2000) was the President of Syria for three decades.
Born to a poor family of minority Alawite background, he served in the Syrian air force, before rising through the ranks of the Syrian-led branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, and seizing power in the 1970 Corrective Revolution. He purged the party, introducing Alawite rule of Syria, who came to occupy leading positions in every sector of Syrian society.
On the one hand, Assad's rule consolidated the power of the central government, bringing stability after decades of coups and counter-coups, and continued foreign influence related to the cold war. His rule brought changes, including the 1973 constitution which stated that it guaranteed women's "equal status in society". Assad attempted to industrialize the country, and it was opened up to foreign markets. Oil was discovered, and some degree of the revenue invested in infrastructure, education, medicine, literacy and urban construction.

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Henry Kissinger
Heinz Alfred "Henry" Kissinger ( /ˈkɪsɪndʒər/; born May 27, 1923) is a German-born American writer, political scientist, diplomat, and businessman. A recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, he served as National Security Advisor and later concurrently as Secretary of State in the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. After his term, his opinion was still sought by many subsequent presidents and many world leaders.
A proponent of Realpolitik, Kissinger played a dominant role in United States foreign policy between 1969 and 1977. During this period, he pioneered the policy of détente with the Soviet Union, orchestrated the opening of relations with the People's Republic of China, and negotiated the Paris Peace Accords, ending American involvement in the Vietnam War. Various American policies of that era, including the bombing of Cambodia, remain controversial to many.
Kissinger is still a controversial figure today. He is the founder and chairman of Kissinger Associates, an international consulting firm.

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Hephthalites
The Hephthalites (also spelled Ephthalites) were a Central Asian nomadic confederation of the AD 5th–6th centuries whose precise origins and composition remain obscure. According to Chinese chronicles, they were originally a tribe living to the north of the Great Wall and were known as Hoa or Hoa-tun. Elsewhere they were called White Huns, known to the Greeks as Hephthalite and the Indians as the Sveta Huns/Turushkas. It is likely that they spoke an East Iranian language.
Although the Hephtalite empire was known in China as Yanda (嚈噠), Chinese chroniclers recognized this designated the leaders of the empire. The same sources document that the main tribe called themselves Uar (滑). The modern Chinese variation Yanda has been given various Latinised renderings such as "Yeda", although the more archaic Korean pronunciation "Yeoptal" 엽달 is more compatible with the Greek Hephthal and is certainly a more archaic form.
According to B.A. Litvinsky, the names of the Hephtalite rulers used in the Shahnameh are Iranian. According to Xavier Tremblay, one of the Hephthalite rulers was named Khingila, which has the same root as the Sogdian word xnγr and the Wakhi word xiŋgār, meaning "sword". The name Mihirakula is thought to be derived from Mithra-kula which is Iranian for "Relier upon Mithra", and Toramāna is also considered to have an Iranian origin. Accordingly, in Sanskrit, "Mihirakula" would mean from the "Kul (family or race) of Mihir (Mithra or Sun)". Janos Harmatta gives the translation "Mithra's Begotten" and also supports the Iranian theory.

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Husayn ibn Ali
Hussein ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (Arabic: حسين بن علي بن أبي طالب‎)‎ (3rd Sha'aban 4 AH – 10th Muharram 61 AH; 8 January 626 CE – 10 October 680 CE, also spelled Hussayn) was the son of ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (final Rashidun Caliph and first Shia Imam) and Fātimah Zahrā (daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad) and the younger brother of Hasan ibn Ali. Husayn is an important figure in Islam as he is a member of the Ahl al-Bayt (the household of Muhammad) and Ahl al-Kisa, as well as being a Shia Imam, and one of The Fourteen Infallibles of Shia Twelvers.
Husayn ibn ‘Alī is exalted by all the Shia as a martyr who fought tyranny as he refused to pledge allegiance to Yazid I, the Umayyad caliph. He rose up to create a regime that would reinstate a "true" Islamic polity as opposed to what he considered the unjust rule of the Umayyads. As a consequence, Husayn was killed and beheaded in the Battle of Karbala in 680 (61AH) by Shimr Ibn Thil-Jawshan. The annual funeral in the memory of him, his family, his children and his As'haab (companions) is called Ashura (tenth day of Muharram) and is a day of mourning for Shia Muslims.

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Iranian Languages
The Iranian languages (also called Iranic languages) form a subfamily of the Indo-Iranian languages which in turn are a subgroup of the Indo-European language family. The speakers of Iranian languages are known as Iranian peoples.
The Iranian languages are considered in three stages of Old (until 400 BCE), Middle (400 BCE – 900 CE), and New (since 900 CE). From the Old Iranian languages the better understood and recorded ones are Old Persian (a language of Achaemenid Iran) and Avestan (the language of Zarathushtra). Middle Iranian languages included Middle Persian (a language of Sassanid Iran) and Parthian (a language of Arsacid Iran). There are many Iranian languages, the largest amongst them are Persian, Pashto, Kurdish, and Balochi.
Today, there are an estimated 150–200 million native speakers of Iranian languages. The Ethnologue lists 87 Iranian languages.Persian has about 65 million native speakers, Pashto about 50 million, Kurdish about 18 million, Balochi about 7 million, and Lurish about 2.3 million.

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Iranian peoples
The Iranian peoples (Iranic peoples) are an Indo-European ethnic-linguistic group that comprise the speakers of Iranian languages, a major branch of the Indo-European language family, as such forming a branch of the Indo-European-speaking peoples. Their historical areas of settlement were on the Iranian plateau, and comprised most of Iran and certain areas of Central Asia such as Tajikistan and Uzbekistan and most of Afghanistan, some parts of western Pakistan, northern Iraq and eastern Turkey, and scattered parts of the Caucasus Mountains. Their current distribution spreads across the Iranian plateau, and stretches from Pakistan's Indus River in the east to eastern Turkey in the west, and from Central Asia and the Caucasus in the north to the Persian Gulf in the south – a region that is sometimes called the Iranian cultural continent, or Greater Persia by scholars, and represents the extent of the Iranian languages and influence of the Persian People, through the geopolitical reach of the Persian empire.

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Iraqi people
The Iraqi people (Arabic: العراقيون ʿIrāqīyūn, Kurdish: گه‌لی عیراق Îraqîyan, Aramaic: ܥܡܐ ܥܝܪܩܝܐ‎ ʿIrāqāyā) or Mesopotamian people (Arabic: شعب بلاد ما بين النهرين) are the native inhabitants of the country of Iraq, (also known as Mesopotamia), and their related diaspora. From late Assyrian and Babylonian times until the early Islamic era, the Iraqi people spoke Aramaic but also witnessed a minority Arab presence.
Arabic had been a minority language in Iraq since the 8th century BC, it was spoken in Hatra in the 1st and 2nd centuries, and by Iraqi Christians in Al-Hirah from the 3rd century, and from the 8th century following the Muslim conquest of Mesopotamia it became the common language of Iraqi Muslims, due to Arabic being the language of the Qur'an and the Caliphate. This change was facilitated by the fact that Arabic being a Semitic language, shared a close resemblance to Iraq's traditional languages of Akkadian and Aramaic. Some of Iraq's Christians and Mandaeans retained dialects of Aramaic, since it remained the liturgical language of their faiths. Kurdish-speaking Iraqis live in the mountainous Zagros region of northeast Iraq to the east of the upper Tigris. The Kurds and Arabs of Mesopotamia have interacted and intermarried for well over a millennium. Modern genetic studies indicate that Iraqi Arabs and Kurds are very closely related. Arabic and Kurdish are Iraq's national languages.

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Iraqi Turkmen
The Iraqi Turkmens (also spelled Turcomans, Turkomens, and Iraqi Turkmans), Iraqi Turks, or Turks of Iraq (Turkish: Irak Türkmenleri/Irak Türkleri) are the third largest ethnic group in Iraq who are the ethnic kin of the Turks. They mainly reside in northern Iraq and share close cultural and linguistic ties with Turkey.
The Iraqi Turkmen are the descendants of various waves of Turkic migration to Mesopotamia dating from the 7th century until Ottoman rule. The first wave of migration dates back to the 7th century when some 1,000 Turkmen soldiers were recruited in the Muslim armies of Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad; however, most of today's descendants of these first migrants have been assimilated into the local Arab population. The second wave of migrants were the Turks of the Great Seljuq Empire; finally, the third wave, and largest number of Turkmen migrants into Iraq arose during the Ottoman Empire. With the conquest of Iraq by Suleiman the Magnificent in 1534, followed by Sultan Murad IV's capture of Baghdad in 1638, a large influx of Turks settled down in the region. Thus, most of today's Iraqi Turkmen are the descendants of the Ottoman soldiers, traders and civil servants who were brought into Iraq during the rule of the Ottoman Empire.

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Jalal Talabani
Jalal Talabani (Sorani: جەلال تاڵەبانی Celal Tallebanî, Arabic: جلال طالباني‎ Jalāl Ṭālabānī; born November 12, 1933) is the sixth and current President of Iraq, a leading Kurdish politician. He is the first non-Arab president of Iraq, although Abdul Kareem Qasim was of partial Kurdish heritage.
Talabani is the founder and secretary general of one of the main Kurdish political parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). He was a prominent member of the Interim Iraq Governing Council, which was established following the overthrow of the Saddam Hussein regime by the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Talabani has been an advocate for Kurdish rights and democracy in Iraq for more than 50 years.
Talabani was born in 1933 in Talaban Village and descends from the Talabani tribe that has produced many leading social figures^{[citation needed]}. He received his elementary and intermediate school education in Koya (Koysanjak) and his high school education in Erbil and Kirkuk. In the late 1950s Mustafa Barzani sent him to Syria to study law. He is fluent in Kurdish and Arabic and has working knowledge in Persian with Kurdish accent and English. His youngest son, Qubad, is the representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government in the United States. Talabani is a member of the Socialist International.

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John Keegan
Sir John Keegan OBE FRSL (born 15 May 1934) is a British military historian, lecturer, writer and journalist. He has published many works on the nature of combat between the 14th and 21st centuries concerning land, air, maritime, and intelligence warfare, as well as the psychology of battle.
John Desmond Patrick Keegan was born in Clapham, London, to a family of Irish Catholic extraction. His father served in the First World War.
At the age of 13 Keegan contracted orthopaedic tuberculosis, which has subsequently affected his gait. The long-term effects of his tuberculosis rendered him unfit for military service, and the timing of his birth made him too young for service in World War II, as mentioned in his works as an ironic observation on his profession and interest. The illness also interrupted his education during his teenage years; however, his education included a period at King's College, Taunton, and two years at Wimbledon College, which led to entry to Balliol College, Oxford in 1953. Following graduation he worked at the American Embassy in London for three years.^{[citation needed]}

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Kara Koyunlu
The Kara Koyunlu or Qara Qoyunlu, also called the Black Sheep Turkomans (Persian/Azeri: قرا قویونلو), were a Shi'ite Oghuz Turkic tribal federation that ruled over the territory comprising the present-day Armenia (1406), Azerbaijan, north-western Iran, eastern Turkey and Iraq from about 1375 to 1468.
The Kara Koyunlu Turkomans at one point established their capital in Herat in eastern Persia, and were vassals of the Jalayirid dynasty in Baghdad and Tabriz from about 1375, when the leader of their leading tribe, ruled over Mosul. However, they rebelled against the Jalayirids, and secured their independence from the dynasty with the conquest of Tabriz by Qara Yusuf. In 1400, the armies of Tamerlane defeated the Kara Koyunlu, and Qara Yusuf fled to Egypt seeking refuge with the Mamluks. He gathered an army and by 1406 had taken back Tabriz. In 1410, the Kara Koyunlu captured Baghdad. The installation of a subsidiary Black Sheep Turkomans line there hastened the downfall of the Jalayirids whom they had once served. Despite internal fighting amongst Kara Yusuf's descendants after his death in 1420, and the increasing threat of the Timurids, the Black Sheep Turkomans maintained a strong grip over the areas they controlled.

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Kaveh Golestan
Kāveh Golestān Taghavi Shirazi (8 July 1950 - April 2, 2003), (Persian: کاوه گلستان ‎) was an Iranian photojournalist and artist. Golestan was educated at Millfield School in Somerset, England.
In 1988, working as a freelance photographer, he took the first pictures of the aftermath of Halabja poison gas attack during the Iran-Iraq War.
On April 2, 2003, he was killed at the age of 53, as a result of stepping on a land mine while working for the BBC in Kifri, Iraq. He is buried in a cemetery in the east of Tehran.
Kaveh was the son of the Iranian filmmaker and writer Ebrahim Golestan and the brother of Lili Golestan, translator and the owner-artistic director of the Golestan Gallery in Tehran, Iran.
Kaveh was married to Hengāmeh Golestān, with a son, Mehrak.

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Kingdom of Iraq
The Kingdom of Iraq (Arabic: المملكة العراقية‎ al-Mamlakah al-'Irāqiyyah) was officially declared as an independent state in 1932, granting full sovereign rights to Hashemites and ending the British Mandate regime.
Although the League of Nations mandate was awarded to Britain in 1920, the 1920 Iraqi revolt resulted in the scrapping of the original mandate plan in favor of British administered semi-independent kingdom, under the Hashemite allies of Britain. The kingdom of Iraq was granted full independence in 1932, following the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty (1930).
The kingdom ended in 1958, when the monarchy was over thrown in a military coup, led by Abd al-Karim Qasim.
Mandatory Mesopotamia was created under the League of Nations Class A mandate under Article 22 and entrusted to Britain, when the Ottoman Empire was divided in August 1920 by the Treaty of Sèvres, following World War I. This award was prepared on April 25, 1920, at the San Remo conference in Italy. France controlled the Mandates of Syria and Lebanon. Faisal ibn Husayn, who had been proclaimed King of Syria by a Syrian National Congress in Damascus in March 1920, was ejected by the French in July of the same year. Faisal was then granted the territory of Iraq, to rule it as a kingdom, with the British RAF retaining certain military control, though de facto, the territory remained under British Mandate until 1932.

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Kurd
The Kurdish people, or Kurds (Kurdish: کورد Kurd), are an Iranic people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. They speak the Kurdish language, which is a member of the Iranian branch of Indo-European languages. The Kurds number about 30 million, the majority living in the Middle East, with significant Kurdish diaspora communities in the cities of western Turkey, in Armenia, Georgia, Israel, Azerbaijan, Russia, Lebanon and, in recent decades, some European countries and the United States. The Kurds are an indigenous ethnic minority in countries where the Kurdistan region is located, although they have enjoyed partial autonomy in Iraqi Kurdistan since 1991. An irredentist movement pushes for the creation of a Kurdish nation state.
The exact origins of the name, "Kurd", are unclear. Reynolds believes that the term Kurd is most likely related to the ancient term Qardu. The common root of Kurd and Qardu is first mentioned in a Sumerian tablet from the third millennium B.C. as the "land of Kar-da." Qardu is etymologically related to the Assyrian term Urartu corresponding to Ararat. According to Asatrian, the most reasonable explanation of this ethnonym is its possible connections with the Cyrtii (Cyrtaei)

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Mandaeans
Mandaeism or Mandaeanism (Modern Mandaic: Mandaʻiūtā‎ (מנדעיותא); Arabic: مندائية‎ Mandāʼīyah/Mandāʾiyyah; Persian: مندائیان‎ Mandâ'iyân) is a gnostic religion^{[citation needed]} (Aramaic manda means "knowledge", as does Greek gnosis) with a strongly dualistic worldview.
Its adherents, the Mandaeans, revere Adam, Abel, Seth, Enosh, Noah, Shem, Aram and especially John the Baptist, but reject Jesus of Nazareth and are hostile to Christianity. They are sometimes identified with mentions in the Quran of the Sabian religion, particularly in an Arabian context, but the Sabian religious community is extinct today.
According to most scholars, Mandaeans migrated from the Southern Levant to Mesopotamia in the first centuries CE and are certainly of pre-Arab and pre-Islamic origin. They are Semites and speak a dialect of Eastern Aramaic known as Mandaic. They may well be related to the "Nabateans of Iraq" who were pagan, Aramaic speaking indigenous pre-Arab and pre-Islamic inhabitants of southern Iraq.

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Mandaeism
Mandaeism or Mandaeanism (Modern Mandaic: Mandaʻiūtā‎ (מנדעיותא); Arabic: مندائية‎ Mandāʼīyah/Mandāʾiyyah; Persian: مندائیان‎ Mandâ'iyân) is a gnostic religion^{[citation needed]} (Aramaic manda means "knowledge", as does Greek gnosis) with a strongly dualistic worldview.
Its adherents, the Mandaeans, revere Adam, Abel, Seth, Enosh, Noah, Shem, Aram and especially John the Baptist, but reject Jesus of Nazareth and are hostile to Christianity. They are sometimes identified with mentions in the Quran of the Sabian religion, particularly in an Arabian context, but the Sabian religious community is extinct today.
According to most scholars, Mandaeans migrated from the Southern Levant to Mesopotamia in the first centuries CE and are certainly of pre-Arab and pre-Islamic origin. They are Semites and speak a dialect of Eastern Aramaic known as Mandaic. They may well be related to the "Nabateans of Iraq" who were pagan, Aramaic speaking indigenous pre-Arab and pre-Islamic inhabitants of southern Iraq.

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Maryam Rajavi
Maryam Rajavi (born Maryam Azodanlu in 1953 in Tehran, Iran) is the wife of Massoud Rajavi, a founder of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI). She's the "president-elect" of the National Council of Resistance of Iran., a coalition of exiled groups opposed to the Islamic Republic regime. In 1985, she became co-leader of the PMOI along with Massoud Rajavi, and together they made women a main portion of the group's fighting force.
Maryam Rajavi was born in 1953 to a middle class family in Tehran. She has a degree in metallurgical engineering. She speaks English, French and Persian. Mrs. Rajavi became acquainted with the anti-Shah movement in 1970.
In 1982 Maryam Rajavi left Iran for Paris, where the headquarters of the National Council of Resistance was located. In 1993 Rajavi was elected President-Elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, an umbrella coalition of which the PMOI is the primary member organization. As President-Elect, Rajavi has continued to place women in nearly all of the leadership roles within her resistance movement, and believes that women should have equal opportunity with men to participate in social and political activities.

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Massoud Barzani
Massoud Barzani (Kurdish: مەسعوود بارزانی; Arabic: مسعود بارزاني‎; born 16 August 1946) is the current President of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region and the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party. Barzani was born in Mahabad, Iran, during the rule of the Republic of Mahabad. He has five sons (including Masrour) and three daughters.
Massoud Barzani succeeded his father, the former Kurdish nationalist leader Mustafa Barzani, as the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in 1979. Working closely with his brother Idriss Barzani until Idriss' death, Barzani and various other Kurdish groups fought Baghdad during the Iran-Iraq War. For much of this time, the Kurdish leadership was exiled to Iran.
With Saddam Hussein's defeat in the first Gulf War, Kurdish forces were able to retake much of the traditional homeland of the Kurds in Iraq. However, as Iraqi forces regrouped they pushed the Kurdish fighters back and hundreds of thousands of civilians fled to the mountains bordering Iran and Turkey, where thousands died under heavy fire from Iraqi gunships and many more succumbed to starvation and exposure. United States-led allies started Operation Provide Comfort to establish a safe zone within Iraq. This zone, protected by a no-fly zone, eventually developed into an autonomous Kurdish zone under the control of the two dominant Kurdish political parties, the KDP led by Massoud Barzani and the PUK led by Jalal Talabani. This zone incorporated most of the three governorates of Duhok, Hewler, and Silemani.

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Massoud Rajavi
Massoud Rajavi (Persian: مسعود رجوی‎, born 18 August 1948), is the president of the National Council of Resistance of Iran and the leader of People's Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI, also known as the MEK), an opposition organization active inside and outside of Iran. After leaving Iran in 1981, he resided in France and Iraq. Since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, he has not made any public appearances, although it is believed he has sent several audio messages to his followers. The last of these messages was sent on 22 August 2011 congratulating the overthrow of Gaddafi in Libya and the great victory of the people.
Massoud Rajavi is a graduate of political law from Tehran University. He joined the PMOI when he was 20 and a law student at Tehran University. Later on he was arrested by SAVAK (the Shah's secret police) and was sentenced to death. Due to efforts by his brother Prof. Kazem Rajavi, Amnesty International, the International Committee of the Red Cross, as well as distinguished European personalities such as François Mitterrand, he was not executed and remained in prison until released by the people during the revolution in 1979. His death sentence was commuted as a result of international pressure. Prof. Kazem Rajavi was assassinated in April 1990 in Geneva by agents of the Iranian Islamic regime. Massoud Rajavi was released from prison three weeks before the revolution in February 1979. Upon his release, Rajavi assumed leadership of the Islamic MEK, reclaiming the name from the Marxists. This was the beginning of the MEK as it exists today. Rajavi and the MEK actively opposed the Shah of Iran and participated in the 1979 Iranian Revolution.

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Medes
The Medes (/midz/) (from Old Persian Māda-) were an ancient Iranian people who lived in Iran in an area known as Media and spoke a northwestern Iranian language referred to as the Median language. Their arrival to the region is associated with the first wave of Iranian tribes in the late second millennium BCE (the Bronze Age collapse) through the beginning of the first millennium BCE.
In the 7th century BCE a unified Median state was formed which together with Babylonia, Lydia, and Egypt became one of the four major powers of the ancient Near East. An alliance with the Babylonians helped the Medes to capture Nineveh in 612 BCE which resulted in the collapse of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. The Medes were subsequently able to establish their Median kingdom (with Ecbatana as their royal centre) beyond their original homeland (central-western Iran) and had eventually a territory stretching roughly from northeastern Iran to the Halys River in Anatolia. The Median kingdom was conquered in 550 BCE by Cyrus the Great who established the next Iranian dynasty—the Achaemenid Empire.

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Mehdi Bazargan
Mehdi Bazargan (Persian: مهدی بازرگان‎; Azerbaijani: Mehdi Bazərgan; 1 September 1907 – 20 January 1995) was a prominent Iranian scholar, academic, long-time pro-democracy activist and head of Iran's interim government, making him Iran's first prime minister after the Iranian Revolution of 1979. He was the head of the first engineering department of Tehran University. A well-respected religious intellectual, known for his honesty and expertise in the Islamic and secular sciences, he is credited with being one of the founders of the contemporary intellectual movement in Iran.
Bazargan was born to an Iranian Azeri family in Azerbaijan, but grew up in Tehran. His father, Hajj 'Abbasqoli Tabrizi (d.1954) was a self-made merchant and a devout religious activist who was the head of the Azarbaijani mosque and community in Tehran.
Bazargan was educated in thermodynamics and engineering at the École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures in Paris. After his graduation, Bazargan voluntarily joined the French army and fought against Nazi Germany. Bazargan then came back from France and became the head of the first engineering department at Tehran University in the late 1940s. In 1951, with the leadership of Mohammad Mossadegh, the Iranian parliament nationalized the Iranian oil industry (National Iranian Oil Company) and removed it from British control. Bazargan served as the first Iranian head of the National Iranian Oil Company under the administration of Prime Minister Mossadegh.

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Michel Aflaq
Michel Aflaq (Arabic: ميشيل عفلق‎, Damascus, 1910 – Paris, 23 June 1989) was a Syrian philosopher, sociologist and Arab nationalist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of Ba'athism and its political movement; he is considered by several Ba'athists to be the principal founder of Ba'athist thought. He published various books during his lifetime, the most notable being The Battle for One Destiny (1958) and The Struggle Against Distorting the Movement of Arab Revolution (1975).
Born into a middle class family in Damascus, Syria, Aflaq studied at the Sorbonne, where he met his future political companion Salah al-Din al-Bitar. He returned to Syria in 1932, and began his political career in communist politics. Aflaq became a communist activist, but broke his ties with the communist movement when the Syrian–Lebanese Communist Party supported France's colonial policies. Later in 1940 Aflaq and al-Bitar established the Arab Ihya Movement (later renaming itself the Arab Ba'ath Movement, taking the name from Zaki al-Arsuzi's group by the same name). The movement proved successful, and in 1947 the Arab Ba'ath Movement merged with al-Arsuzi's Arab Ba'ath organisation to establish the Arab Ba'ath Party. Aflaq was elected to the party's executive committee and was elected "'Amid" (meaning the party's leader).

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Mir-Hossein Mousavi
Mir-Hossein Mousavi Khameneh (Persian: میرحسین موسوی خامنه‎, pronounced [miːɾ hoˈsein muːsæˈviː xɒːmeˈne], Mīr-Hoseyn Mūsavī Khāmené; Azerbaijani: میرحسین موسوی, Mir Hüseyn Musəvi; born 2 March 1942) is an Iranian reformist politician, artist and architect who served as the seventy-ninth and last Prime Minister of Iran from 1981 to 1989. He was a Reformist candidate for the 2009 presidential election and eventually the leader of the opposition in the post-election unrest. Mousavi served as the president of the Iranian Academy of Arts until 2009, when Conservative authorities removed him.
In the early years of the revolution, Mousavi was the editor-in-chief of the official newspaper of the Islamic Republican Party, the Islamic Republic newspaper, before being elevated to Minister of Foreign Affairs and eventually the post of Prime Minister. He was the last Prime Minister in Iran before the 1989 constitutional changes which removed the post of prime minister, and went into semi-retirement for the next 20 years. He remains a member of the Expediency Discernment Council and the High Council of Cultural Revolution. However, he has not participated in their meetings for years, which is interpreted by political analysts and commentators as a sign of his disapproval.

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Mohammad Beheshti
Ayatollah Dr. Seyyed Mohammad Hosseini Beheshti (Persian: محمد حسینی بهشتی‎), (October 24, 1928 - June 28, 1981) was an Iranian scholar, writer, jurist and one of the main architects of the constitution of the Islamic Republic in Iran. He was the secretary-general of the Islamic Republic Party, and the head of Iran's judicial system. He was assassinated together with more than seventy members of the Islamic Republic party on June 28, 1981.
Beheshti was born in Isfahan and studied both at the University of Tehran and under Allameh Tabatabaei in Qom. He received
Between 1965 and 1970, he led the Islamic Center in Hamburg [3], where he was responsible for the spiritual leadership of religious Iranian students in Germany and Western Europe. In Hamburg, he also worked with Mohammad Khatami and was among his influences. Since the early 1960s, he was involved in activities against the monarchy and was arrested several times by the Shah's secret police, the SAVAK.
Following the Islamic Revolution, he became one of the original members of the Council of Revolution of Iran and soon its chairman. As vice-president, he played a particularly important role in promoting the principle of velayat-e faqih as the basis for the new constitution. In the first post-revolutionary Iranian parliament, he led the Islamic Republic party together with Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. (He never campaigned for the parliament though, as he was already the head of Iran's Supreme Judicial System). He was also planning to run for the presidency in the first presidential elections, but withdrew after Ayatollah Khomeini told a delegation of Rafsanjani and Khamenei that he preferred non-clerics as presidents, which led to the Islamic Republic party's endorsement of first Jalaleddin Farsi and then, inevitably, Abolhassan Banisadr.

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Mohammad-Ali Rajai
Mohammad Ali Rajai (Persian: محمدعلی رجایی‎) was the second elected President of Iran from 2 to 30 August 1981, after serving as Prime Minister under Abolhassan Banisadr. He was also Minister of Foreign Affairs from 11 March 1981 to 15 August 1981, while he was Prime Minister. He was assassinated in a bombing on 30 August 1981, along with prime minister Mohammad Javad Bahonar.
Mohammad-Ali Rajai was born on 15 June 1933 in Qazvin, Iran. His father, Abdulsamad, died when Mohammad-Ali was only 4 years old, after which he lived with his mother and brother. Rajai grew up in Qazvin, and moved to Tehran in 1946. After moving to Tehran, he had a close relationship with the anti-Shah groups and parties. He known with Ayatollah Mahmoud Taleghani. In 1958, He moved to Bijar for a short period, but after a year, he moved back to Tehran and graduated with a degree in Education from Tarbiat Moallem University in 1959.[1] He was arrested by the Shah's government in May 1974, but was set free after four years.

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Morteza Avini
Sayyed Morteza Avini (also spelled Aviny; 1947 – 9 April 1993) was an Iranian photographer of the Iran-Iraq war.
Avini was born in 1947 in Rey, south of Tehran. After earning a master's degree in architecture from Tehran University, he switched to photography and film, especially after the 1979 revolution of Iran.
He gained national recognition and reputation for his documentary works during the Iran-Iraq war. Some of his team members died while filming in war zones. He is especially remembered for the series The Chronicles of Victory (روایت فتح), which aired regularly on IRIB.
In 1989, Iran's supreme leader established a foundation to help continue documenting and commemorating the war. The result was the 10-part series A City in the Skies (شهری در آسمان).
Avini was killed on April 9, 1993 by a landmine while making a documentary about the missing soldiers in the former war fronts of southwestern Iran. He left numerous publications.

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Mostafa Chamran
Mostafa Chamran Savei (1932 – 21 June 1981) was an Iranian scientist who served as first Defence Minister of post-revolutionary Iran and as member of parliament, as well as commander of paramilitary volunteers in Iran–Iraq War. He was killed during the war. He helped found the Amal Movement in southern Lebanon, and fought alongside Amal guerrillas in the late 1970s.
Born in 1932 in Tehran, he became a young student of Ayatollah Taleqani and Morteza Motahari. He studied at Alborz High School and then graduated from Tehran University.
In the late 1960s, he moved to the United States for higher education, obtaining an M.S. degree from the Texas A&M University. He then went on to obtain his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Plasma Physics in 1963 from the University of California, Berkeley .
He was then hired as a senior research staff scientist at Bell Laboratories and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
He was fluent in Persian, English, Arabic, French, and German.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Chamran became politically active. He became a leading and founding member of the Islamic revolutionary movement in the Middle East, organizing and training guerrillas and revolutionary forces in Algeria, Egypt, Syria, especially Amal Movement in southern Lebanon.

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Muammar Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (Arabic: معمر محمد أبو منيار القذافي‎) (June 1942 – 20 October 2011), commonly known as Muammar Gaddafi /ˈmoʊ.əmɑr ɡəˈdɑːfi/ (Arabic: مُعَمَّر القَذَّافِي‎ Muʿammar al-Qaḏḏāfī audio (help·info)) or Colonel Gaddafi, was the official ruler of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 and then the "Brother Leader" of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from 1977 to 2011. Gaddafi seized power in a bloodless military coup in 1969 and served as the country's head of state until 1977, when he stepped down from his official executive role as Chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council of Libya, and claimed subsequently to be merely a symbolic figurehead. He styled himself as "Leader of the Revolution"; in 2008 a meeting of traditional African rulers bestowed on him the title "King of Kings". A leading advocate for a United States of Africa, he served as Chairperson of the African Union (AU) from 2 February 2009 to 31 January 2010.
Gaddafi replaced the Libyan Constitution of 1951 with laws based on the political ideology he had formulated, which he called the Third International Theory and published in The Green Book. After establishing the Jamahiriya (جماهيرية, "state of the masses") system in 1977, he officially stepped down from power and after that time held a largely symbolic role within the country's official governance structure. Rising oil prices and extraction in Libya led to increasing revenues. By exporting as much oil per capita as Saudi Arabia and through various welfare programs, Libya achieved the highest living standards in Africa; Libya remained debt-free.

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Nawshirwan Mustafa
Nawshirwan Mustafa (Kurdish: Newşîrwan Mistefa) is the General Coordinator (رێکخەری گشتی / rêkxerî giştî) of the Movement for Change and the leader of the official opposition in the Kurdistan Region.
Nawshirwan Mustafa was born in Silemani, Kurdistan Region 1944, the eldest of two sons of Mustafa Émin, Mustafa's grandfather Émin Khider was a financier of the Kingdom of Kurdistan and it's government according to the newspaper Pêşkewtin. Nawshirwan whose name means the immortal soul, was named by his father after the twentieth Sassanid Emperor Khusro I Anōšīravān (dadgar). Silemani has been the seat of the Mustafa family since the city was founded in 1784. Unlike Kurdistan's other prominent political leaders Masoud Barzani and Jalal Talabani, Mustafa hails from a city not a village and is not a member of a tribe.
Mustafa attended the Royal King Faisal school at Silemani and was also taught foreign languages by private tutors at an early age, he went onto study at Baghdad University and then later at Vienna University.

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Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire or Turkish Empire or Sublime Ottoman State or sometimes also referred to as Turkey (Ottoman Turkish: دَوْلَتِ عَلِيّهٔ عُثمَانِیّه Devlet-i ʿAliyye-yi ʿOsmâniyye (also عثمانلى دولتى Osmanlı Devleti),Modern Turkish: Osmanlı Devleti or Osmanlı İmparatorluğu) was a Turkish empire which lasted from 27 July 1299 to 1 November 1922, when the Sultanate was abolished.
The Ottoman Empire was one of the largest and longest lasting empires in history; such that the Ottoman State, its politics, conflicts, and cultural heritage in a vast geography provide one of the longest continuous narratives. During the 16th and 17th centuries, in particular at the height of its power under the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, the empire was one of the most powerful states in the world – a multinational, multilingual empire that stretched from the southern borders of the Holy Roman Empire to the outskirts of Vienna, Royal Hungary (modern Slovakia) and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the north to Yemen and Eritrea in the south; from Algeria in the west to Azerbaijan in the east; controlling much of southeast Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. At the beginning of the 17th century the empire contained 32 provinces and numerous vassal states, some of which were later absorbed into the empire, while others were granted various types of autonomy during the course of centuries.

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Persian peoples
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians. The synonymous usage of Iranian and Persian has persisted over the centuries although some modern Western sources use Iranic/Iranian as a wider term that includes the term Persian as well as related Iranian languages and ethnic groups. However, these terms have been used both synonymously as well as in a complementary fashion since ancient times; as the Ancient Iranian peoples such as the Old Persians, Medes, Bactrians, Parthians and Avesta peoples considered themselves to be part of the greater Iranian ethnic stock.
The term Persian translates to "from or of Persis" which is a region north of the Persian Gulf located in Pars, Iran. It was from this region that Cyrus the Great, the founder of the Achaemenid empire, united all other Iranian empires (such as the Medes and the Elamites), and expanded the Persian cultural and social influences by incorporating the Babylonian empire, and the Lydian empire. Although not the first Iranian empire, the Achaemenid empire is the first Persian empire well recognized by Greek and Persian historians for its massive cultural, military and social influences going as far as Athens, Egypt, and Libya.

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President of Iran
The President of Iran is the highest popularly elected official in, and the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Iran; although subordinate to the Supreme Leader of Iran, who functions as the country's head of state. According to the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran the president is responsible for the "functions of the executive", such as signing treaties, agreements etc. with other countries and international organizations; the national planning and budget and state employment affairs; appointing ministers, governors, and ambassadors subject to the approval of the parliament.
Unlike some other countries, for example the United States, in Iran the office of president does not bestow full control over foreign policy, the armed forces, or the nuclear policy of the Iranian state, which are ultimately under the control of the Supreme Leader.
The President of Iran is elected for a four-year term by the direct vote of the people and may not serve for more than two consecutive terms.

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Qusay Hussein
Qusay Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti (Arabic: قصي صدام حسين‎) (or Qusai) (17 May 1966 – 22 July 2003) was the second son of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. He was appointed as his father's heir apparent in 2000.
Qusay's older brother Uday Hussein was viewed as Saddam's heir until he sustained serious injuries in a 1996 assassination attempt. Unlike Uday, who was known for extravagance and erratic, violent behavior, Qusay Hussein kept a low profile. He was married to the daughter of a top ranking military official and had three sons; One of the sons, Mustapha Hussein (born 3 January 1989 in Tikrit), was killed alongside his father in the shootout with U.S. troops. The other two: Yahya Hussein (born 1991) and Yaqub Hussein are presumed alive, but their whereabouts are unknown.
Unlike other members of his family and the government, little information is known about Qusay, politically or personally. It is believed that until the 2003 Invasion of Iraq Qusay was the supervisor of the Iraqi Republican Guard and the head of internal security forces (possibly the Special Security Organization (SSO)), and had authority over other Iraqi military units.

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Robert Fisk
Robert Fisk (born 12 July 1946) is an English writer and journalist from Maidstone, Kent. As Middle East correspondent of The Independent, he has primarily been based in Beirut for more than 30 years. He has published a number of books and has reported on the United States's war in Afghanistan and its 2003 invasion of Iraq. Fisk holds more British and International Journalism awards than any other foreign correspondent.
The New York Times once described Robert Fisk as "probably the most famous foreign correspondent in Britain." He reported the Northern Ireland troubles in the 1970s, the Portuguese Revolution in 1974, the Lebanese Civil War, the Iranian revolution in 1979, the Soviet war in Afghanistan, the Iran–Iraq War, the Gulf War and the invasion of Iraq in 2003. A vernacular Arabic speaker, he is one of few Western journalists to have interviewed Osama bin Laden, and did so three times between 1994 and 1997. His awards include being voted International Journalist of the Year seven times.

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Ruhollah Khomeini
Sayyed Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini (روح‌اللّه مصطفوی موسوی خمینی, Persian pronunciation: [ruːholˈlɑːhe muːsæˈviːje xomeiˈniː], 22 or 24 September 1902 – 3 June 1989) was an Iranian religious leader and politician, and leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution which saw the overthrow of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran. Following the revolution, Khomeini became the country's Supreme Leader — a position created in the constitution as the highest ranking political and religious authority of the nation – until his death.
Khomeini was a marja ("source of emulation") in Twelver Shi'a Islam, author of more than forty books, but is primarily known for his political activities. He spent more than 15 years in exile for his opposition to the last Shah. In his writings and preachings he expanded the Shi'a Usuli theory of velayat-e faqih, the "guardianship of the jurisconsult (clerical authority)" to include theocratic political rule by the Islamic jurists. This principle (though not known to the wider public before the revolution) was installed in the new Iranian constitution after being put to a referendum.

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Saddam
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti (Arabic: صدام حسين عبد المجيد التكريتي Ṣaddām Ḥusayn ʿAbd al-Maǧīd al-Tikrītī; 28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003. A leading member of the revolutionary Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, and later, the Baghdad-based Ba'ath Party and its regional organisation Ba'ath Party – Iraq Region, which espoused ba'athism, a mix of Arab nationalism and Arab socialism, Saddam played a key role in the 1968 coup, later referred to as the 17 July Revolution, that brought the party to long-term power of Iraq.
As vice president under the ailing General Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr, and at a time when many groups were considered capable of overthrowing the government, Saddam created security forces through which he tightly controlled conflict between the government and the armed forces. In the early 1970s, Saddam nationalized oil and other industries. The state-owned banks were put under his control, leaving the system eventually insolvent mostly due to the Iran–Iraq War, the Gulf War, and UN sanctions. Through the 1970s, Saddam cemented his authority over the apparatuses of government as oil money helped Iraq's economy to grow at a rapid pace. Positions of power in the country were filled with Sunnis, a minority that made up only a fifth of the population.

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Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti (Arabic: صدام حسين عبد المجيد التكريتي Ṣaddām Ḥusayn ʿAbd al-Maǧīd al-Tikrītī; 28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003. A leading member of the revolutionary Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, and later, the Baghdad-based Ba'ath Party and its regional organisation Ba'ath Party – Iraq Region, which espoused ba'athism, a mix of Arab nationalism and Arab socialism, Saddam played a key role in the 1968 coup, later referred to as the 17 July Revolution, that brought the party to long-term power of Iraq.
As vice president under the ailing General Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr, and at a time when many groups were considered capable of overthrowing the government, Saddam created security forces through which he tightly controlled conflict between the government and the armed forces. In the early 1970s, Saddam nationalized oil and other industries. The state-owned banks were put under his control, leaving the system eventually insolvent mostly due to the Iran–Iraq War, the Gulf War, and UN sanctions. Through the 1970s, Saddam cemented his authority over the apparatuses of government as oil money helped Iraq's economy to grow at a rapid pace. Positions of power in the country were filled with Sunnis, a minority that made up only a fifth of the population.

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Saddam Kamel
Saddam Kamel Hassan al-Majid (? - 1996) was the second cousin and son-in-law of deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
He was married to Rana Hussein and was the brother of Hussein Kamel al-Majid (who was also married to a daughter of Saddam, Raghad Hussein).
For a time he was head of the Republican Guard. He was removed from the position in 1986 in favour of Saddam Hussein's son, Qusay Hussein.
Due to his close resemblance to the Iraqi leader he played the part of Saddam Hussein in the film The Long Days, a highly propagandistic account of Saddam Hussein's life.
In 1995, he defected from Iraq with his brother and their wives and his brother gave information to UNSCOM, the CIA and MI6 about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.
In 1996, the group returned to Iraq believing they had been pardoned for their actions; however, the brothers were executed in a prolonged gun battle shortly after they returned.

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Sadegh Khalkhali
Hujjat al-Islam Sadeq Givi aka Sadegh Khalkhali (Persian: صادق خلخالی‎)(July 27, 1926 – November 26, 2003) was a hardline Twelver Shi'a cleric of the Islamic Republic of Iran who is said to have "brought to his job as Chief Justice of the revolutionary courts a relish for summary execution" that earned him a reputation as Iran's "hanging judge". A farmer's son born in Givi (Ardabil Province, Iran) [1] in appearance Khalkhali was "a small, rotund man with a pointed beard, kindly smile, and a high-pitched giggle." He was married with a son.
Khalkhali is known to have been one of Khomeini's circle of disciples as far back as 1955 and is reported to have reconstructed the former secret society of Islamic assassins known as the Fadayan-e Islam after its suppression, but was not a well-known figure to the public prior to the Islamic Revolution.
On February 24, 1979, however, Khalkhali was chosen by Ayatollah Khomeini to be the Sharia ruler (حاکم شرع in Persian) or head the newly established Revolutionary Courts, and to make Islamic rulings. In the early days of the revolution he sentenced to death "hundreds of former government officials" on charges such as "spreading corruption on earth" and "warring against God." Most of the condemned did not have access to a lawyer or a jury.

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Salah Aboud Mahmoud
Major-General Salah Aboud Mahmoud (Arabic: صلاح عبود محمود) is an Iraqi former military commander during Saddam Hussein's reign. On 29 January 1991, he was involved in battle with coalition forces to take control of the Saudi Arabian city of Khafji. Mahmoud took part in the Iran-Iraq War of 1980-88. He also took part in the tank battle of 73 Easting.
He was appointed commander of the III corps in the aftermath of the war, a regular process in Iraq's military to ensure that former high-ranking officers did not pose a threat to the regime. He was later governor of Dhi Qar Province, a Shia province which had briefly been taken by the 1991 Iraqi insurgency before it was brutally suppressed.
In December 1994, Major General Wafiq Al-Samarrai defected to Jordan and called on officers to revolt against Saddam Hussein's regime. Salah was one of them he called on. He did not, and despite his connections to many of the purged officers he was never executed. Rather, he was gradually forced out of his government roles. President Hussein divided Iraq into four administrative regions in 1998. Many expected Salah would be recalled to the military and appointed to the Central Euphrates governorship as governor Mizban had been dismissed. However this did not come to pass and Mizban was reinstated.

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Salah Jadid
Salah Jadid (1926 – 19 August 1993, Arabic: صلاح جديد) was a Syrian general and political figure in the Arab Socialist Baath Party in Syria, and the country's de facto leader from 1966 until 1970.
Jadid was born in 1926 in the village of Duwayr B'abda, near the coastal city of Jableh, which in turn was close to Lattakia, to a Alawite family. He studied at the Homs Military Academy, and entered the Syrian Army in 1946. Jadid was originally a member of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP), but later became a member of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, led by Michel Aflaq and Salah al-Din al-Bitar, in the 1950s through an associate of Akram al-Hawrani. Even so, Jadid remained close to the SNPP; his brother, Ghassan, was one of its most prominent members in Syria. He changed allegiance again in the 1950s, when he became a member of the Arab Liberation Movement, a party supporting Gamal Abdel Nasser's ideological beliefs. Jadid supported Syria's ascension into the United Arab Republic (UAR), a union republic consisting of Egypt and Syria.

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Taha Yassin Ramadan
Taha Yasin Ramadan al-Jizrawi (February 22, 1938 – March 20, 2007) (Arabic: طه ياسين رمضان الجزراوي‎) was a prominent Iraqi Kurd, serving as Vice President of Iraq from March 1991 to the fall of Saddam Hussein in April 2003.
In October 2002, four months before the United States invaded Iraq, Ramadan suggested U.S. President George W. Bush and Saddam Hussein settle their difference in a duel. He reasoned this would not only serve as an alternative to a war that was certain to damage Iraq's infrastructure, but that it would also reduce the suffering of the Iraqi and American peoples. Ramadan's offer included the possibility that a group of US officials would face off with a group of Iraqi officials of same or similar rank (President v. President, Vice President v. Vice President, etc.). Ramadan proposed that the duel be held in a neutral land, with each party using the same weapons, and with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan presiding as the supervisor. On behalf of President Bush, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer declined the offer.

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Tajik people
Tajik (Persian: تاجيک‎, Tājīk; Tajik: Тоҷик) is a general designation for a wide range of Persian-speaking people of Iranic origin, with traditional homelands in present-day Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. There are also smaller communities living in Iran and Pakistan; consisting mainly of refugees from Afghanistan and immigrants from Tajikistan.
In terms of language, culture, and history the Tajiks are closely related to the Persians of Iran.
As a self-designation, the term Tajik, which earlier on had been more or less pejorative, has become acceptable only during the last several decades, particularly as a result of Soviet administration in Central Asia. Alternative names for the Tajiks are Fārsī (Persian), Fārsīwān (Persian-speaker), and Dīhgān (cf. Tajik: Деҳқон, Dehqon, literally "farmer or settled villager", in a wider sense "settled" in contrast to "nomadic").
The Tajiks of China, although known by the name Tajik, speak Eastern Iranian languages and are distinct from Persian Tajiks.

wn.com/Tajik_people
Tariq Aziz
Tariq Aziz (Arabic: طارق عزيز‎ Ṭāriq ʿAzīz, né: Mikhail Yuhanna (Syriac: ܡܝܟܐܝܠ ܝܘܚܢܢ Mīḵāil Yōḥānon, Arabic: ميخائيل يوحنا‎ Mīḫāʾīl Yūḥannā baptized Manuel Christo; born 28 April 1936) was the Foreign Minister (1983 – 1991) and Deputy Prime Minister (1979 – 2003) of Iraq and a close advisor of former President Saddam Hussein. Their association began in the 1950s when both were activists for the then-banned Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party. He is an ethnic Assyrian but an Arab Nationalist and a member of the Chaldean Catholic Church.
Because of security concerns, Hussein rarely left Iraq, so Aziz would often represent Iraq at high-level diplomatic summits. What the United States wanted, he averred, was not "regime change" in Iraq but rather "region change". He summed up the Bush Administration's reasons for war against Iraq tersely: "oil and Israel."
Since surrendering to American forces on 24 April 2003, Aziz has been held in prison, first by American forces and subsequently by the Iraqi government. He is currently in prison in Camp Cropper in western Baghdad. He was acquitted of some charges on 1 March 2009 following a trial, but was sentenced to 15 years on 11 March 2009 for the executions of 42 merchants found guilty of profiteering in 1992 and another 7 years for relocating Kurds. On 26 October 2010, he was sentenced to death by the Iraqi High Tribunal, and this has sparked regional and international condemnation from Iraqi bishops and other Iraqis, the Vatican, the United Nations, and the human rights organization Amnesty International, as well as various governments around the world, such as those of the European Union and Russia. On 28 October 2010, it was reported that Tariq Aziz, as well as 25 fellow prison inmates, had begun a hunger strike to protest the fact that they could not receive their once-monthly visit from friends and relatives, which was normally set for the last Friday of each month.

wn.com/Tariq_Aziz
Ted Koppel
Edward James "Ted" Koppel (born February 8, 1940) is an English-born American broadcast journalist, best known as the anchor for Nightline from the program's inception in 1980 until his retirement in late 2005. After leaving Nightline, Koppel worked as managing editor for the Discovery Channel before resigning in 2008. Koppel is currently a senior news analyst for National Public Radio and contributing analyst to BBC World News America, and contributes to the new NBC News primetime newsmagazine Rock Center with Brian Williams.
Koppel, an only child, was born in Nelson, Lancashire, England, after his German Jewish parents fled Germany due to the rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazism. Koppel, at 13, immigrated to the United States in 1953 with his family. His mother, Alice, was a singer and pianist, and his father, Edwin, was a tire factory owner. He graduated from Syracuse University with a Bachelor of Science Degree and from Stanford University with a Master of Arts Degree in Mass Communications Research and Political Science. In 1987, he received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Duke University. In 2007, the University of Southern California awarded Koppel an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Koppel returns to Syracuse University regularly as a guest speaker. He was a member of the student-run WAER and keeps in touch with the student media at Syracuse. He is a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity.

wn.com/Ted_Koppel
Uday Hussein
Uday Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti (18 June 1964 – 22 July 2003), (Arabic: عُدي صدّام حُسين‎) was the eldest son of Saddam Hussein from his first wife, Sajida Talfah, and the brother of Qusay Hussein. Uday was for several years seen as the heir apparent of his father; however, Uday lost his place in the line of succession due to injuries sustained in an assassination attempt, his erratic behavior and his troubled relationship with his father and brother. Following the United States-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, he was killed along with his brother by a secretive combined Special Operations Task Force (Task Force 20) during a brief gunfight in Mosul.
Uday produced the newspaper Babel and a local Iraqi TV channel called "Al-shabab TV". He was briefly married to the daughter of Izzat Ibrahim ad-Douri, who was Vice President and Deputy Chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council, but he later divorced her.
Uday Saddam was born in Baghdad to Saddam Hussein and Sajida Talfah while his father was in prison.

wn.com/Uday_Hussein
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of South Vietnam, supported by the United States and other anti-communist countries. The Viet Cong (also known as the National Liberation Front, or NLF), a lightly armed South Vietnamese communist-controlled common front, largely fought a guerrilla war against anti-communist forces in the region. The Vietnam People's Army (North Vietnamese Army) engaged in a more conventional war, at times committing large units into battle. U.S. and South Vietnamese forces relied on air superiority and overwhelming firepower to conduct search and destroy operations, involving ground forces, artillery, and airstrikes.
The U.S. government viewed involvement in the war as a way to prevent a communist takeover of South Vietnam as part of their wider strategy of containment. The North Vietnamese government and Viet Cong viewed the conflict as a colonial war, fought initially against France, backed by the U.S., and later against South Vietnam, which it regarded as a U.S. puppet state. American military advisors arrived in what was then French Indochina beginning in 1950. U.S. involvement escalated in the early 1960s, with troop levels tripling in 1961 and tripling again in 1962. U.S. combat units were deployed beginning in 1965. Operations spanned international borders, with Laos and Cambodia heavily bombed. American involvement in the war peaked in 1968, at the time of the Tet Offensive. After this, U.S. ground forces were gradually withdrawn as part of a policy known as Vietnamization. Despite the Paris Peace Accords, signed by all parties in January 1973, fighting continued.

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Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance (1955–1991), more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty between eight communist states of Eastern Europe in existence during the Cold War. The founding treaty was established under the initiative of the Soviet Union and signed on 14 May 1955, in Warsaw. The Warsaw Pact was the military complement to the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CoMEcon), the regional economic organization for the communist states of Eastern Europe. The Warsaw Pact was a Soviet military response to the integration of West Germany into NATO in 1955, per the Paris Pacts of 1954.
In the West, the Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance is often called the Warsaw Pact military alliance; abbreviated WAPA, Warpac, and WP. Elsewhere, in the former member states, the Warsaw Treaty is known as:

The Warsaw Treaty’s organization was two-fold: the Political Consultative Committee handled political matters, and the Combined Command of Pact Armed Forces controlled the assigned multi-national forces, with headquarters in Warsaw, Poland. Furthermore, the Supreme Commander of the Unified Armed Forces of the Warsaw Treaty Organization was also a First Deputy Minister of Defense of the USSR, and the head of the Warsaw Treaty Combined Staff also was a First Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR. Therefore, although ostensibly an international collective security alliance, the USSR dominated the Warsaw Treaty armed forces.

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William J. Crowe
Admiral William James Crowe, Jr. (January 2, 1925 – October 18, 2007) was a United States Navy Admiral who served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush, and as the ambassador to the United Kingdom under President Bill Clinton.
Crowe was born in La Grange, Kentucky. At the beginning of the Great Depression, Crowe's father moved the family to Oklahoma City. In June 1946, Crowe completed a war-accelerated course of study and graduated with the Class of 1947 from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. From 1954 to 1955, he served as assistant to the Naval Aide of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. From 1956 to 1958, Crowe served as executive Officer of the submarine USS Wahoo. In 1958, he served as an aide to the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations. In 1960, Crowe took command of USS Trout, homeported in Charleston, South Carolina, and served as Commanding Officer of that ship until 1962. From there, Crowe earned a master's degree in education at the Stanford University School of Education, and then, turning down an invitation from Admiral Hyman G. Rickover to enter the Navy's nuclear-power course, earned an M.A. and a PhD in Political Science at Princeton University. During the Vietnam War he was the senior advisor to the Vietnamese Riverine Force. In 1969, he returned to service to take command of Submarine Division 31, homeported in San Diego, California.

wn.com/William_J._Crowe
World War I
World War I (WWI), which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939 (World War II), and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918. It involved all the world's great powers, which were assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies (based on the Triple Entente of the United Kingdom, France and Russia) and the Central Powers (originally centred around the Triple Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy; but, as Austria–Hungary had taken the offensive against the agreement, Italy did not enter into the war). These alliances both reorganised (Italy fought for the Allies), and expanded as more nations entered the war. Ultimately more than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history. More than 9 million combatants were killed, largely because of enormous increases in lethality of weapons, thanks to new technology, without corresponding improvements in protection or mobility. It was the sixth-deadliest conflict in world history, subsequently paving the way for various political changes such as revolutions in the nations involved.

wn.com/World_War_I
Zaki al-Arsuzi
Zakī al-Arsūzī (in Arabic: زكي الأرسوزي; Latakia, June 1899 – Damascus, 2 July 1968) was a Syrian philosopher, philolog, sociologist, historian, and Arab nationalist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of Ba'athism and its political movement. He published several books during his lifetime, the most notable being The Genius of Arabic in its Tongue (1943).
Born into a middle class family in Latakia, Syria, al-Arsuzi studied at the Sorbonne, where he became interested in nationalism. In 1930, he returned to Syria, where he became a member of the League of National Action (LNA) in 1933. In 1938 he moved to Damascus because of his disillusionment with party work, and in 1939 left the LNA. In Damascus al-Arsuzi established, and headed, a group consisting of mostly secondary school pupils who would often discuss European history, nationalism and philosophy. Shortly after leaving the LNA al-Arsuzi established the Arab National Party, an Arab nationalist party with a "defined creed". It was not a success and, on his return to Syria in November 1940, after a brief stay in Baghdad, al-Arsuzi established a new party, the Arab Ba'ath; by 1944, however, most of its members had left and joined Michel Aflaq's and Salah al-Din al-Bitar's Arab Ba'ath Movement, which subscribed to a nearly identical doctrine.

wn.com/Zaki_al-Arsuzi

Iran-Iraq War 1980 to 1988 - Part 1 of 3

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During the years 1980 to 1988 Iran and Iraq were involved in a conflict which left one mil...

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this video clip is about the war between iran and iraq which lasted for 8 yrs with victory...

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published: 22 Nov 2011

author: Press TV

Moyers & Company Show 111: Moving Beyond War

Nine years after Baghdad erupted in “shock and awe,” we’re once again hearing in America t...

published: 23 Mar 2012

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Andrew Bacevich on Changing Our Military Mindset

Nine years after Baghdad erupted in “shock and awe,” we’re once again hearing in America t...

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published: 12 Mar 2010

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photo: AP / Pablo Martinez Monsivais

U.S. President Barack Obama, right, waves as he embraces Myanmar's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, left, after addressing members of the media at Suu Kyi's residence in Yangon, Myanmar, Monday, Nov. 19, 2012.

Burma's and America's Ongoing Storms

WorldNews.com

20 Nov 2012

Article by WN.com Correspondent Dallas Darling President Barack Obama's whirlwind tour of southeast Asia and meetings with dignitaries will have to walk a tightrope between either appearing to endorse military juntas or truly being committed to ongoing pro-democracy movements. Specifically at issue is Burma's Aung San Suu Kyi, a democratic advocate...(size: 5.0Kb)

photo: AP / Sebastian D'souza

FILE - In this Nov. 26, 2008 file photo, Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, the accused gunman walks at the Chatrapathi Sivaji Terminal railway station in Mumbai, India.

India hangs gunman from 2008 Mumbai attack

Herald Tribune

21 Nov 2012

MUMBAI, India - India executed the lone surviving gunman from the 2008 terror attack on Mumbai early Wednesday, India's home ministry said. Ajmal Kasab, a Pakistani citizen, was one of 10 gunmen who rampaged through the streets of India's financial capital in November 2008, killing 166 people. Kasab was hung at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday at a jail in...(size: 4.5Kb)

photo: AP / Melanie Gouby

People walk past as M23 rebel soldier's take positions near the Heal Africa hospital in the center of Goma, Congo, Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2012.

DR Congo soldiers surrender to M23

Al Jazeera

21 Nov 2012

Hundreds of government soldiers and police in the Democratic Republic of Congo have surrendered to rebels at a stadium in Goma, Al Jazeera's Nazanine Moshiri has reported from the scene. The M23 rebel group, believed to be backed by Rwanda seized the strategic, provincial capital of Goma in eastern Congo on Tuesday, home to more than 1 million...(size: 18.7Kb)

photo: AP / Emilio Morenatti

Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry arrives at the Supreme Court compound in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Tuesday, March 24, 2009.

Pakistan's powerful military under scrutiny

Al Jazeera

22 Nov 2012

A new battle is underway in Pakistan with its powerful military front-and-centre, but the fight is not against armed insurgents or ideological extremists - this opponent is a muscle-flexing Supreme Court. For the first time in decades, the military's iron grip over the South Asian country has been challenged, and it remains to be seen if it will...(size: 23.7Kb)

photo: AP

On March 10, 1973, more than one week after seizing Wounded Knee, S.D., and starting a standoff with federal authorities, members of the Oglala Sioux tribe march to the cemetery where their ancestors were buried following the 1890 massacre at the site.

Amerindians and Politics of Thanksgiving and Black Friday

WorldNews.com

23 Nov 2012

Article by WN.com Correspondent Dallas Darling. I was fortunate to have been raised near an American Indian archaeological spot located on the Great Plains. In elementary school, a fellow classmate would periodically bring and show grinding stones, arrow- and spearheads, stone farming implements, and pictures of what the excavated site may have...(size: 7.1Kb)

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An Interview with Diana Johnstone

CounterPunch

23 Nov 2012

I read the article you co-authored with Jean Bricmont regarding the Norwegian Nobel Committee’s declaring EU the Nobel Peace Prize laureate of 2012. Why do you think they have made such a decision? I think they already knew that their choice will lead to widespread controversy, but they apparently selected the EU to help the European nations...(size: 14.4Kb)

U.S. must act in Middle East

The Charlotte Observer

23 Nov 2012

The civil war in Syria may well be the last act in the story of the disintegration of the Middle East as we know it. The opportunity to hold the region together and to rebuild it on a firmer foundation of tolerance, freedom and, eventually, democratic stability is slipping from our grasp. Egypt and Iran are states with long, continuous histories...(size: 5.4Kb)

Iraq’s Kurds: we don’t want a new war with Iraq

Middle East Online

23 Nov 2012

Recent clashes between the Iraq army and troops from Iraqi Kurdistan have alarmed many. But while troop numbers in the area grow, the locals don’t seem to be convinced. Is it just pre-election sabre rattling? Geo-political? Or is what the politicians say true, and war is imminent? “It is the sound of war echoing again. The Kurdish may soon see...(size: 8.5Kb)

Iraqi prime minister nixes Biden request

WorldNetDaily

23 Nov 2012

Editor’s Note: The following report is excerpted from Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin, the premium online newsletter published by the founder of WND. Subscriptions are $99 a year or, for monthly trials, just $9.95 per month for credit card users, and provide instant access for the complete reports. BEIRUT, Lebanon – Iranian sources report...(size: 3.9Kb)

Army Facing Budget Cuts, Uncertainty About Future Role

my SA

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WASHINGTON — For much of this year, Sgt. Maj. Raymond Chandler, the Army's top enlisted soldier, has traveled to bases around the world with a simple message: “We've allowed ourselves to get out of control.” His solution has been a raft of new regulations governing tattoos, the length of soldiers' sideburns and the color of the backpacks they are...(size: 5.3Kb)

US Army facing budget cuts

The Independent

23 Nov 2012

For much of this year, Sgt. Maj. Raymond Chandler, the Army's top enlisted soldier, has traveled to bases around the world with a simple message: "We've allowed ourselves to get out of control." His solution has been a raft of new regulations governing tattoos, the length of soldiers' sideburns and the color of the backpacks they are allowed to...(size: 6.9Kb)

Army at crossroads as it grapples with budget cuts, future role

Stars and Stripes

23 Nov 2012

For much of this year, Sgt. Maj. Raymond F. Chandler III, the Army’s top enlisted soldier, has traveled to bases around the world with a simple message: “We’ve allowed ourselves to get out of control.” His solution has been a raft of new regulations governing tattoos, the length of soldiers’ sideburns and the color of...(size: 7.4Kb)

Is Middle East Peace a Mirage?

Antiwar

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With the truce in the week-long Gaza war, Barack Obama is being prompted by right and left to re-engage and renew U.S. efforts to solve the core question of Middle East peace. Before he gets reinvolved in peacemaking, our once-burned president should ask himself some hard questions. Is real peace between Palestinians and Israelis even possible? Is...(size: 5.8Kb)

Cold War update is awkwardReview

Tampa Bay Online

23 Nov 2012

The army invading the United States in "Red Dawn," an ill-advised remake of the campy 1984 original, was changed in post-production from Chinese to North Korean. With a few snips here, a few re-dubs there, the filmmakers re-edited and re-shot, fearful of offending China and its increasingly important movie-going market. But why stop there? Can't we...(size: 2.7Kb)

South of Damascus bears brunt of Syrian troops bombing

The Himalayan

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9 more Iraq, Afghan war veterans joining Congress

Fox News

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In this Nov. 6, 2012 file photo taken in Elk Grove Village, Ill., U.S. Rep. elect for the Illinois' 8th congressional district Tammy Duckworth, celebrates on election night with husband Bryan Bowlsbey after defeating U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh.AP Nov. 15, 2012: Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran who lost both legs in combat before turning to politics, arrives...(size: 7.8Kb)

Syrian troops bomb southern parts of capital

Herald Tribune

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BEIRUT - Activists say Syrian troops have shelled southern neighborhoods of the capital as they try to advance in rebel-held areas. Enlarge This citizen journalist image made from video provided by Shaam News Network which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows Syrian rebels celebrating the takeover of Mayadeen...(size: 5.0Kb)

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Stars and Stripes

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WASHINGTON -- As Tammy Duckworth sees it, her path to Congress began when she awoke in the fall of 2004 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. She was missing both of her legs and faced the prospect of losing her right arm. Months of agonizing therapy lay ahead. As the highest-ranking double amputee in the ward, Maj. Duckworth became the go-to person...(size: 7.2Kb)

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Iran-Iraq War

Part of the Persian Gulf conflicts

Clockwise from above: Iranian soldiers wearing gas masks to counter Iraqi chemical weapons, Iranian soldiers rejoicing after the liberation of Khorramshahr, Donald Rumsfeld and Saddam Hussein meeting in Baghdad to discuss US military aid to Iraq, Iranian oil platform burning after attack by US Navy in Operation Nimble Archer

Date	22 September 1980 - 20 August 1988
Location	Iran–Iraq border
Result	Stalemate Both Iraq and Iran accepted United Nations Security Council Resolution 598 to cease fighting
Territorial changes	Status quo ante bellum; observed by UNIIMOG based on Security Council Resolution 619

Belligerents

Iran

KDP
PUK
SCIRI
Da'awa

Iraq¹

MEK ^[1]

Commanders and leaders

Ruhollah Khomeini

Abulhassan Banisadr
Mohammad-Ali Rajai (KIA)
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
Ali Khamenei
Mir-Hossein Mousavi
Mostafa Chamran (KIA)
Mohsen Rezaee
Ali Sayad Shirazi
Massoud Barzani
Jalal Talabani
Nawshirwan Mustafa
Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim
Abdul Aziz al-Hakim

Saddam Hussein

Ali Hassan al-Majid
Taha Yassin Ramadan
Izzat Ibrahim ad-Douri
Salah Aboud Mahmoud
Tariq Aziz
Adnan Khairallah
Saddam Kamel
Uday Hussein
Qusay Hussein
Massoud Rajavi
Maryam Rajavi

Strength

600,000 soldiers,
100,000 to 150,000 Pasdaran and Basij, 100,000 militia,
1,000 tanks,
4,000 armored vehicles,
7,000 artillery pieces,
747 aircraft,
750 helicopters^[2]

850,000 in 1980,
1,500,000 by 1988,
3,500 tanks,
8,630 armored vehicles,
12,330 artillery pieces,
3000+ aircraft,
1900+ helicopters^[3]

Casualties and losses

320,000–720,000 soldiers and militia killed^[4]^[5]^[6]^[7]^[8]^[9]

Economic loss of more than US$500 billion^[7]

150,000–375,000 soldiers and militia killed^[10]^[11]

Economic loss of more than US$500 billion^[7]

100,000+ civilians killed on both sides^[12]

¹ With support from the USSR, France, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United States, and other Arab, NATO and Warsaw Pact countries for Iraq.^[13]^[14]

Iran–Iraq War

Invasion

Stalemate (1981)

Dezful

Iranian offensive (1982)

Strategic stalemate (1983-1984)

Duel offensives (1985-1986)

Final stages

International incidents

v t e Persian Gulf Wars

Iran-Iraq War Gulf War 1991 uprisings Iraqi no-fly zones conflict Iraq War

The Iran–Iraq War (also known as the First Persian Gulf War and by various other names) was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the 20th century.^[15]^[16]^[17] It was initially referred to in English as the "Persian Gulf War" prior to the "Gulf War" of 1990.^[18]

The war began when Iraq invaded Iran, launching a simultaneous invasion by air and land into Iranian territory on 22 September 1980 following a long history of border disputes, and fears of Shia Islam insurgency among Iraq's long-suppressed Shia majority influenced by the Iranian Revolution. Iraq was also aiming to replace Iran as the dominant Persian Gulf state. Although Iraq hoped to take advantage of the revolutionary chaos in Iran and attacked without formal warning, they made only limited progress into Iran and were quickly repelled by the Iranians who regained virtually all lost territory by June 1982. For the next six years, Iran was on the offensive.^[19]

Despite calls for a ceasefire by the United Nations Security Council, hostilities continued until 20 August 1988. The war finally ended with a United Nations brokered ceasefire in the form of United Nations Security Council Resolution 598, which was accepted by both sides. It took several weeks for the Iranian armed forces to evacuate Iraqi territory to honor pre-war international borders between the two nations (see 1975 Algiers Agreement). The last prisoners of war were exchanged in 2003.^[19]^[20]

The war came at a great cost in lives and economic damage—half a million Iraqi and Iranian soldiers as well as civilians are believed to have died in the war with many more injured—but it brought neither reparations nor change in borders. The conflict is often compared to World War I,^[21] in that the tactics used closely mirrored those of that conflict, including large scale trench warfare, manned machine-gun posts, bayonet charges, use of barbed wire across trenches, human wave attacks across no-man's land, and extensive use of chemical weapons such as mustard gas by the Iraqi government against Iranian troops and civilians as well as Iraqi Kurds. At the time, the UN Security Council issued statements that "chemical weapons had been used in the war." However, in these UN statements it was never made clear that it was only Iraq that was using chemical weapons, so it has been said that "the international community remained silent as Iraq used weapons of mass destruction against Iranian[s] as well as Iraqi Kurds."^[22]^[23]^[24]

1 Name
2 Origins
3 Geographic considerations
- 3.1 Reasons for the Iraqi invasion
- 3.2 Trade routes
4 History
5 Home front
- 5.1 Iraq
- 5.2 Iran
6 Comparison of Iraqi and Iranian military strength
7 Foreign support to Iraq and Iran
8 Financial support
9 Use of chemical weapons by Iraq
10 Distinctions and peculiarity
- 10.1 Human wave
- 10.2 "War of the Cities"
11 Aftermath
12 Leaked Iraqi intelligence documents
13 See also
14 Notes
15 References
16 External links

Name [link]

The war was commonly referred to as the Gulf War until the Iraq-Kuwait conflict (Jan–Feb 1991), and for a while thereafter as the First Persian Gulf War. The Iraq-Kuwait conflict, while originally known as the Second Persian Gulf War, later became known simply as the "Gulf War". The United States-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the following occupation of the country from 2003–2011 has since been called the "Second Persian Gulf War".

The war of 1980-1988 is also known in Iran as the Imposed War (جنگ تحمیلی, Jang-e Tahmīlī) and the Holy Defense (دفاع مقدس, Defā'-e Moqaddas). In Iraq, the president, Saddam Hussein initially dubbed the conflict the "Whirlwind War".^[25] It was also referred in Iraq as Saddām's Qādisiyyah (قادسية صدام, Qādisiyyat Ṣaddām), in reference to the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah.

Origins [link]

Post-colonial era [link]

One of the factors contributing to hostility between the two powers was a dispute over full control of the Arvand Rud waterway (known as Shatt al-Arab in Iraq) at the head of the Persian Gulf, an important channel for the oil exports of both countries. In 1937, Iran and Iraq signed a treaty that settled the long-standing dispute, which dated back to the Ottoman-Persian wars of the 16th and 17th centuries over the control of the Shatt.^[26] In the same year, Iran and Iraq both joined the Saadabad Pact, and relations between the two nations remained good for decades afterwards.^[26]

In 1955, both nations joined the Baghdad Pact.^[26] The 1937 treaty recognized the Iranian-Iraqi border as along the low-water mark on the eastern side of the Shatt except at Abadan and Khorramshahr where the frontier ran along the thalweg (the deep water line) which gave Iraq control of almost the entire waterway; provided that all ships using the Shatt fly the Iraqi flag and have an Iraqi pilot, and required Iran to pay tolls to Iraq whenever its ships used the Shatt.^[27]

The overthrow of the Hashemites in Iraq in 1958 brought to power a new regime that was more stridently nationalist, and which promptly left the Baghdad Pact. On 18 December 1959, the new leader of Iraq, General Abdul Karim Qassim, declared: "We do not wish to refer to the history of Arab tribes residing in Al-Ahwaz and Mohammareh [Khorramshahr]. The Ottomans handed over Mohammareh, which was part of Iraqi territory, to Iran." The Iraqi regime's dissatisfaction with Iran's possession of the oil-rich Khuzestan province (which Iraqis called Arabistan) that had a large Arabic-speaking population was not limited to rhetorical statements. Iraq began supporting secessionist movements in Khuzestan, and even raised the issue of its territorial claims at a meeting of the Arab League, without success.^[26]

Iraq showed reluctance in fulfilling existing agreements with Iran—especially after the death of Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser in 1970 and the rise of the Ba'ath Party which took power in a 1968 coup, led Iraq to take on the self-appointed role of the "leader of the Arab world". At the same time, by the late 1960s, the build-up of Iranian power under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who had gone on a gargantuan military spending spree, led Iran to take a more assertive stance in the Near East.^[26]

In April 1969, Iran abrogated the 1937 treaty over the Shatt al-Arab river, and as such, Iran ceased paying tolls to Iraq when its ships used the Shatt.^[28] The Shah justified his move by arguing that almost all river borders all over the world ran along the thalweg, and by claiming that because most of the ships that used the Shatt were Iranian, the 1937 treaty was unfair to Iran.^[29] Iraq threatened war over the Iranian move, but when on 24 April 1969 an Iranian tanker escorted by Iranian warships sailed down the Shatt, Iraq—being the militarily weaker state—did nothing.^[27]

The Iranian abrogation of the 1937 treaty marked the beginning of a period of acute Iraqi-Iranian tension that was to last until the Algiers Accords of 1975.^[27] In 1969, the deputy prime minister of Iraq stated: "Iraq's dispute with Iran is in connection with Khuzestan which is part of Iraq's soil and was annexed to Iran during foreign rule." Soon Iraqi radio stations began exclusively^{[citation needed]} broadcasting into "Arabistan", encouraging Arabs living in Iran and even Balūchīs to revolt against the Shah of Iran's government. Basra TV stations even began showing Iran's Khuzestan province as part of Iraq's new province called Nasiriyyah, renaming all its cities with Arabic names.

In 1971, Iraq broke diplomatic relations with Iran after claiming sovereignty rights over the islands of Abu Musa, Greater Tunb and Lesser Tunb in the Persian Gulf, following the withdrawal of the British.^[30] Iraq then expropriated the properties of 70,000 people it said were Iraqis of Iranian origin and expelled them from its territory, after complaining to the Arab League and the UN without success. Many, if not most of those expelled were in fact Iraqi Shias who had little to no family ties with Iran, and the vast majority of whom spoke Arabic, rather than Persian.^[31]

In retaliation for Iraq's claims to Khuzestan, Iran became the main patron of Iraq's Kurdish rebels in the early 1970s, giving the Iraqi Kurds bases in Iran and providing the Kurdish groups with weapons.^[27] In addition to Iraq's fomenting of separatism in Iran's Khuzestan and Iranian Balochistan provinces, both countries encouraged separatist activities by Kurdish nationalists in the other country. In the winter of 1974–75, Iran and Iraq almost went to war over Iran's support of the Kurds in Iraq.^[27] However, given Iran's greater military strength and population, the Iraqis decided against war, and chose to make concessions to Tehran to end the Kurdish rebellion.^[27]

In the 1975 Algiers Agreement, Iraq made territorial concessions—including the Shatt waterway—in exchange for normalized relations.^[27] In return for Iraqi recognition that the frontier on the Shatt ran along the entire thalweg, Iran ended its support of the Iraqi Kurdish guerrillas.^[27] The Algiers Agreement was widely seen as a national humiliation in Iraq.^[27]^[32] However, the Algiers Agreement meant the end of Iranian and US support for the Peshmerga, who were defeated by the Iraqi government in a short campaign that claimed 20,000 lives.^[33] The British journalist Patrick Brogan wrote that "...the Iraqis celebrated their victory in the usual manner, by executing as many of the rebels as they could lay their hands on".^[33]

The relationship between the Iranian and Iraqi governments briefly improved in 1978, when Iranian agents in Iraq discovered a planned pro-Soviet coup d'état against the Iraqi government. When informed of this plot, Saddam Hussein, who was vice president at the time, ordered the execution of dozens of his army officers, and to return the favor, expelled Ruhollah Khomeini, an exiled leader of clerical opposition to the Shah, from Iraq.

After the Islamic Revolution [link]

File:Saddam-Iraqi-25-dinar.jpg

Iraqi 25-dinar note, as with the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah depicted in the background

Ba'athism
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Organisations Arab Ba'ath (1940–1947) Arab Ba'ath Movement (1940–1947) Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party (1947–1966) Iraqi-led Ba'ath Party (1966–present) Syrian-led Ba'ath Party (1966–present)
People Zaki al-Arsuzi Michel Aflaq Salah al-Din al-Bitar Fuad al-Rikabi Salah Jadid Hafez al-Assad Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr Saddam Hussein Bashar al-Assad Izzat Ibrahim ad-Douri
Literature Ba'ath Constitution On the Way of Resurrection The Battle for One Destiny The Genius of Arabic in its Tongue
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Iran's Pan-Islamism and revolutionary Shia Islamism and Iraq's Arab nationalism were central to the conflict. Initially, the Iraqi government welcomed the Islamic revolution in Iran in 1978–79, having had a common enemy with them in the deposed Shah.^[34] The call, first made by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in June 1979 for Iraqi Shias to overthrow the Ba'ath regime was therefore received with considerable shock in Baghdad.^[34] On 17 July 1979, despite Khomeini's call, the Iraqi President Saddam Hussein gave a speech praising the Iranian revolution, and called for Iraqi-Iranian friendship based upon non-interference in each other's internal affairs.^[34]

When Khomeini ignored Hussein's overture, and continued with his call for a Shia revolution in Iraq, the Iraqi regime was seriously alarmed.^[35] The new Islamic regime in Iran was regarded in Baghdad as an irrational, existential threat to the Ba'ath regime.^[36] This was especially the case as the Ba'ath regime, despite its secular nature, was dominated by Arab Sunnis, with the Arab Shia majority together with the Kurdish minority being assigned the status of an underclass.^[37]

Above all, Hussein was keenly interested in elevating Iraq to a strong regional power.^[38] A successful invasion of Iran would enlarge Iraq's petroleum reserves and make Iraq the dominant power in the Persian Gulf region^{[citation needed]}. With Iran engulfed in chaos, an opportunity for Iraq to annex the oil-rich Khuzestan Province materialised.^[39] In addition, Khuzestan's large ethnic Arab population would allow Hussein to pose as the liberator of the Arabs from Persian rule.^[32]

In 1979–80, Iraq was the beneficiary of an oil boom that saw it take in $33 billion US, which allowed the Iraqi government to go on a lavish spending spree on both civilian and military projects.^[36] On several occasions Hussein alluded to the Islamic conquest of Iran in propagating his position against Iran. For example, on 2 April 1980, half a year before the outbreak of the war, in a visit by Hussein to al-Mustansiriyyah University in Baghdad, drawing parallels with the 7th century defeat of Persia in the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah, he announced:

In your name, brothers, and on behalf of the Iraqis and Arabs everywhere we tell those Persian cowards and dwarfs who try to avenge Al-Qadisiyah that the spirit of Al-Qadisiyah as well as the blood and honor of the people of Al-Qadisiyah who carried the message on their spearheads are greater than their attempts."^[40]

In turn, the Ayatollah Khomeini believed Muslims—particularly the Shias in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait, whom he saw as oppressed—could and should follow the Iranian example and rise up against their governments to join a united Islamic republic.^[41] Khomeini and Iran's Islamic revolutionaries despised Hussein's secularist, Arab nationalist Ba'athist regime in particular as un-Islamic and "a puppet of Satan,"^[42] and called on Iraqis to overthrow it. In 1979–1980, there were anti-Ba'ath riots in the Shia areas of Iraq, and the Iranian government extended its support to Iraqi Shia militants working toward an Islamic revolution in their country.^[43]

In April 1980 alone, 20 Ba'ath officials were assassinated by Shia militants, and Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz was almost killed in an assassination attempt on 1 April.^[34] Later in April, Iraqi Information Minister Latif Nusseif al-Jasim barely survived an assassination attempt by Shia militants.^[34] The repeated calls for the overthrow of the Ba'ath regime and the support extended to Iraqi Shia groups by the new regime in Iran led Hussein to increasingly perceive the Iranian regime as a mortal threat that if ignored, might one day overthrow him.^[36] In April 1980, Ayatollah Mohammad Baqir al-Sadr and his sister Amina Haydar (better known as Bint al-Huda) were hanged as part of the crackdown on Iraqi Shia activists.^[44] The hanging of Iraq's senior most Ayatollah caused outrage throughout the Shia world. Starting in May 1980, skirmishes on the Iranian-Iraqi border became a daily event.^[36]

At the same time in Iran, severe officer purges (including several executions ordered by Sadegh Khalkhali, the post-revolution sharia ruler), and spare parts shortages for Iran's US-made equipment, had crippled Iran's once mighty military. Between February and September 1979, the Iranian government executed 85 senior generals and forced all major-generals and most brigadier-generals into early retirement.^[45] By September 1980, the Iranian government had purged 12,000 army officers.^[45] These purges resulted in a drastic decline in the operational capacities of the Iranian military.^[45] The bulk of the Iranian military was now made up of poorly-armed—though loyal and committed—militias.^{[citation needed]} Iran had minimal defenses at the Arvand river.^{[citation needed]}

Iraqi pretext for war and Iraqi war aims [link]

Iraq's pretext was an alleged assassination attempt on Foreign Minister Tariq Aziz in southern Iraq, which Saddam blamed on "Iranian agents", in one of his speeches^{[citation needed]}.

The Arvand river waterway on the Iran–Iraq border

Relations deteriorated rapidly until in March 1980, Iran unilaterally downgraded its diplomatic ties to the charge d'affaires level, withdrew its ambassador, and demanded that Iraq do the same. The tension increased in April following the attempted assassination of Aziz and, three days later, the bombing of a funeral procession being held to bury students who had died in an earlier attack. Iraq blamed Iran, and in September, attacked.^[46]

An armed Iranian militia woman in front of a mosque during the Iraqi invasion of Khorramshahr, September–October 1980

On 17 September, in a statement addressed to the Iraqi parliament, Saddam stated that "The frequent and blatant Iranian violations of Iraqi sovereignty...have rendered the 1975 Algiers Agreement null and void... This river...must have its Iraqi-Arab identity restored as it was throughout history in name and in reality with all the disposal rights emanating from full sovereignty over the river.",^[47]

The objectives of Iraq's invasion of Iran were^{[citation needed]}:

Control of the Arvand river waterway by Iraqis
Acquisition of the three islands of Abu Musa and the Greater and Lesser Tunbs, on behalf of the UAE
Annexation of Khuzestan to Iraq
Prevent the spread of the Islamic Revolution in the region

Geographic considerations [link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2012)

The border between Iran and Iraq is very mountainous, which made a deep ground invasion almost impossible. The ferocity Iran showed in defending its territory made a ground attack to the heart of Iran even more difficult.^[48] Therefore, air strikes were used instead to attack in depth. The first waves of the invasion were a series of airstrikes targeted at Iranian airfields. Iraq also attempted to bomb Iran's capital (and command centre) Tehran into submission.

This strategy did not succeed as planned. Saddam Hussein underestimated the importance of the vast distances that made up Iran and overestimated the firing capacity and range of his nation's aircraft. The Iraqi air force barely hit Iranian airfields and was only able to slightly damage Tehran's airport and take out a few planes there. The airstrikes were largely ineffective due to the sheer size of Iran.^[49] This was a costly mistake for Iraq—large sums of money were spent to carry out these strategies only to for them to fall far short of expectation. This did not deter Hussein, however, who remained focused on the potential gains.

Reasons for the Iraqi invasion [link]

Although the ideological rivalry between Iraq and Iran contributed to tensions in the region, Saddam Hussein's motivation for invading Iran stemmed from economic reasons. Gaining control of Iranian oil fields would result in Iraq becoming one of the most feared powers in the Middle East and an economic contender in the world. Iran was (and remains) one of the world's leading producers of oil.^[50] Not only was Iran rich in resources, it also had within it an extensive set of old trade routes^{[citation needed]} established between the Soviet Union and Iran connecting the Persian Gulf, opening on Africa and Asia, and Eastern Europe/Russia to the north.

Though the reasons for taking Iran were favorable, the conditions were not. Rough terrain, vast distances and overestimating strategies all went to the disadvantage of Iraq's war efforts. Due to the natural resources and geographic proximity to the Soviet Union, Iraq would have become one of—if not the most—powerful nations in the Middle East had it taken over Iran.

Trade routes [link]

Iran's rich natural resources were one reason that made it economically desirable to Iraq. They also had various trade routes established throughout the country. This territory was a strategic prize, as it would have given Iraq access to these trade routes along the Gulf and access to trade with Iran's neighbors, such as Pakistan, Armenia, India, and others. Iran was also considered to be a gateway to Russia, direct train lines were established from the capital region into the Soviet Union along the west coast of the Caspian sea and taking it over would allow for practically direct trade between Iraq and Russia: “any appreciable flow of materials can be attained by the various Iranian routes to Russia.”.^[51] If Iraq took over Iran, it would have become a very powerful force on the global scale.

History [link]

1980: Iraqi invasion [link]

Location of Khūzestān Province in Iran

Iraq launched a full-scale invasion of Iran on 22 September 1980. The Iraqi Air Force launched surprise airstrikes on ten Iranian airfields with the objective of destroying the Iranian Air Force on the ground.^[52] The attack damaged some of Iran's airbase infrastructure, but failed to destroy a significant number of aircraft. The Iraqi Air Force was only able to strike in depth with a few MiG-23BN, Tu-22 and Su-20 aircraft, and the strikes were largely ineffective due to Iran's large size. Three MiG-23s managed to attack Tehran, striking its airport but damaging only a few aircraft.^[53]

The next day, Iraq launched a ground invasion of Iran along a front measuring 644 kilometres in three simultaneous thrusts.^[52] The purpose of the invasion, according to Saddam, was to blunt the edge of Khomeini's movement and to thwart his attempt to export his Islamic revolution to Iraq and the Persian Gulf states.^[46] Saddam hoped that by annexing the oil-rich province of Khuzestan that he would send such a blow to the prestige of the Islamic Republic that it would lead to the downfall of the new government, or at very least put an end to Iranian calls for his overthrow.^[54]

Of the six Iraqi divisions that were invading, four were sent against the Iranian province of Khuzestan, which was located near the southern end of the border, to cut off the Arvand river from the rest of Iran, and to establish a territorial security zone.^[52] The other two divisions invaded across the northern and central part of the border, to prevent an Iranian counter-attack into Iraq.^[55] Two of the four Iraqi divisions operating near the southern end, one mechanised and one armoured, began a siege of the strategically important towns of Abadan and Khorramshahr.^[52]

The other two divisions, both armoured, secured the territory bounded by the line Khorramshahr-Ahvaz-Susangerd-Musian, due to an enveloping movement.^[52] On the central front, the Iraqis occupied Mehran, advanced towards the foothills of the Zagros Mountains; and were able to block the traditional Tehran–Baghdad invasion route by securing some territory forward of Qasr-e Shirin.^[55] On the northern front, the Iraqis attempted to establish a strong defensive position opposite Suleimaniya to protect the Iraqi Kirkuk oil complex.^[55] Iraqi hopes of an uprising by the ethnic Arabs of Khuzestan failed to materialise; most of the ethnic Arabs—who were Shia—remained loyal to Iran.^[54] The Iraqi troops advancing into Iran in 1980 were described by the British journalist Patrick Brogan as "badly led and lacking in offensive spirit".^[39]

The Iranian regular military and the Pasdaran resisted, but conducted their operations separately. As a result, the Iraqi invading forces did not face coordinated resistance.^[55] The Pasdaran fought against the Iraqi invasion with "great fervour and tenacity",^[56] and bore the brunt of the invasion.^[57] By the second day of the invasion, dozens of Iranian F-4s attacked Iraqi targets, and in a few days the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force gained air superiority over the Iraqis, allowing them to conduct ground attack missions with fighter-bombers and helicopters against Iraqi forces. The Iraqi Army was also subjected to attacks by entrenched Iranian artillery.^[58] On 24 September, though, the Iranian Navy attacked Basra and, on the way, had destroyed two oil terminals near the Iraqi port of Fao, which reduced Iraq's ability to export oil.^[59] The Iranian Air Force also began air strikes in September against strategically important Iraqi targets, including oil facilities, dams, petrochemical plants, and a nuclear reactor near Baghdad.^[59]

On 28 September, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution urging Iran and Iraq to cease hostilities and accept mediation.^[3]

Baghdad had been subjected to eight air attacks by 1 October.^[59] In response to these air attacks, Iraq launched a number of aerial strikes against Iranian targets.^[59] In October 1980, a prolonged urban battle took place for Khorramshahr with both sides losing about 7,000 dead.^[54] Reflecting the bloody nature of the struggle, both sides came to call Khorramshar "Khunistan" (City of Blood).^[54] On 24 October, Khorramshahr was finally captured^[56] and by November, Saddam ordered his forces to advance towards Dezful and Ahvaz,^[59] but their thrusts were repulsed.^[59]

The Iraqi invasion had ground to a halt by December 1980, bogged down by unexpectedly fierce resistance and technical limitations. Rather than turning against the Islamic Republic as some experts had predicted, the people of Iran rallied around their country and resisted. An estimated 200,000 fresh troops had arrived at the front by November, many of them "ideologically committed" volunteers.^[3] On 7 December, Hussein announced that Iraq was going on the defensive.^[60] For the next eight months, both sides were to be on a defensive footing (with the exception of the Battle of Dezful) as the Iranians needed more time to reorganize their forces to undo the damage inflicted by the purge of 1979–80.^[27] During this period, fighting consisted mainly of artillery duels and raids.^[60] Iraq had mobilized 21 divisions for the invasion, while Iran countered with only 13 regular army divisions and one brigade. Of these divisions, only seven were deployed to the border.

1981: Stalemate [link]

On 5 January 1981 the Iranians launched an armoured offensive at Susangerd that saw the Iranians break through the Iraqi lines.^[61] However, the Iranian tanks had raced through the Iraqi lines with their flanks unprotected; as a result, the Iranian armoured division was cut off by Iraqi tanks.^[62] In the ensuing Battle of Dezful, the Iranian division was almost totally destroyed in one of the biggest tank battles of the entire war.^[62] The Iraqis lost 50 T-62 tanks while the Iranians lost 100 Chieftain and M-60 tanks.^[62] The battle had been ordered by President Abulhassan Banisadr who was hoping that a victory might shore up his deteriorating political position; instead the failure of the offensive helped to hasten his fall.^[63] Iran was further distracted by internal fighting between the regime and the leftist Mujaheddin e-Khalq group on the streets of Iran's major cities in June 1981 and again in September.^[64]

In May 1981, the Iranians retook the high ground above Susangerd, and in September 1981, the Iranians put an end to the Iraqi Siege of Abadan, which had commenced in November 1980.^[65] By the fall of 1981, serious morale problems had developed in the Iraqi Army, with many Iraqi soldiers seeing no point to the invasion of Iran.^[66] On 29 November 1981 Iran began Operation Tariq al-Qods (Operation Jerusalem Way) with three Army brigades and seven Revolutionary Guard brigades retaking the town of Bostan from the Iraqi division that was holding it by 7 December.^[66] Operation Jerusalem Way saw the first use of the Iranian "human wave" tactics with the Revolutionary Guard charging the Iraqi positions time after time without the support of artillery or air power until victory.^[67] The fall of Bostan massively increased the Iraqi logistical problems as to supply their troops, Iraq was forced to use the roundabout route from Ahvaz far to the south.^[67]

1982: Iraqi retreat, Iranian offensive [link]

Iranian victories [link]

Iraqi prisoners of war at Khorramshahr.

For about a year after the Iraqi offensive stalled in March 1981 there was little change in the front, but in mid-March 1982 Iran took the offensive and the Iraqi military was forced to retreat. By June 1982, an Iranian counter-offensive had recovered all the areas lost to Iraq earlier in the war. In Operation Beit ol-Moqaddas launched on 24 April 1982, 70,000 Revolutionary Guardsmen using infiltration tactics at night and human wave attacks by day had by 12 May driven all Iraqi forces out of the Susangerd area.^[68]

On 20 May 1982 the Iranians began the drive towards Khorramsahr,^[68] culminiating in the decisive Liberation of Khorramshahr from the Iraqis on 24 May 1982. A total of 7,000 Iraqis were killed or wounded in Khorramshahr^[69] and 19,000 taken prisoner, while the Iranians suffered 10,000 casualties.

Saddam decided to withdraw his armed forces completely from Iran, redeploying them along the international border between Iraq and Iran.^[55] Efraim Karsh states that Saddam made this choice because he believed that his army was now too demoralised and damaged to hold onto any territory in Iran, and that Iran could be successfully resisted through a line of defence on Iraqi land near the border.^[55] Equally important, in April 1982, the rival Ba'athist regime in Syria at the request of Iran closed the Kirkuk–Banias pipeline that allowed Iraqi oil to reach tankers on the Mediterranean, which reduced the Iraqi budget by $5 billion US/month.^[70] The effects of the Syrian move was to place Iraq under dire financial pressure.^[70] The British journalist Patrick Brogan wrote:

From the time the southern front stabilized at the end of 1980, Iran was able to prevent all Iraqi oil exports through the Shatt. In April 1982, as the tide of war turned against Iraq, Syria closed Iraq's pipeline to the Mediterranean, and it appeared for a while that Iraq would be strangled economically before it was defeated militarily.^[71]

After Syria closed the pipeline, Iraq's only means of exporting oil was the pipeline to Turkey that had a capacity of only 500,000 barrels per day (79,000 m³/d), which was quite insufficient to pay for the war.^[72] Only generous financial support from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the other Gulf states, who feared the consequences of an Iranian victory, saved Iraq from bankruptcy.^[73] It was estimated that the Gulf states provided Iraq with an average of $60 billion US in subsides/per year.^[71] Brogan wrote in 1989:

The other Arab states came to the rescue. Iraq has one of the most unpleasant governments in the region and had shown constant hostility to the monarchies in Jordan, the Gulf and Saudi Arabia. However, the threat of Persian fundamentalism was far more feared, and thus the conservative Arab states could not afford to let Iraq be defeated.^[71]

The Gulf states were especially inclined to fear an Iranian victory after Khomeini announced that monarchy was an illegitimate and un-Islamic form of government.^[73] Khomeini's statement was widely understood as a call for the overthrow of the Gulf monarchies.^[73] Both Kuwait and Saudi Arabia had less than friendly relations with Iraq before 1982, and the reluctant decision to support Iraq was taken only because the consequences of an Iranian victory were considered worse than the continued existence of Saddam's regime.^[74] The British journalists John Bulloch and Harvey Morris wrote:

The virulent Iranian campaign, which at its peak seemed to be making the overthrow of the Saudi regime a war aim on a par with the defeat of Iraq, did have an effect on the Kingdom, but not the one the Iranians wanted: instead of becoming more conciliatory, the Saudis became tougher, more self-confident, and less prone to seek compromise.^[75]

Saudi Arabia was said to provide Iraq with $1 billion US/month starting in mid-1982.^[72]

Ceasefire proposal [link]

On 20 June 1982 Saddam announced that he was prepared to accept a ceasefire on the basis of the pre-war status quo.^[68] Bulloch and Morris wrote:

If the leaders in Tehran had accepted [the Iraqi ceasefire offer], they might have gained at the conference table what over six years they failed to achieve at a huge cost in men and material; but true to the bitterness and intransigence shown by both sides, Ayatollah Khomeini rejected the ceasefire offer and the Iranian troops fought on. Iran would remain at war until all of its demands were met, the Ayatollah said - and one of those demands was the removal of Saddam Hussein, the one condition which the Iraqi President could never accept^[76]

On 21 June 1982 Khomeini rejected the Iraqi peace offer in a speech and proclaimed that Iran would invade Iraq and would not stop until the Ba'ath regime was replaced by an Islamic Shia republic.^[68] Given that Saddam's offer of 1982 served as the basis of the 1988 ceasefire, Khomeini's decision extended the war for the next six years.^[77]

The decision to invade Iraq was taken after much debate within the Iranian government.^[78] One faction comprising Prime Minister Mir-Hossein Mousavi, the Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati, President Ali Khamenei and the Army Chief of Staff General Ali Sayad Shirazi urged that now that all of Iranian soil had been liberated to accept the Iraqi ceasefire offer rather embark upon an invasion that was likely to take a heavy toll on Iran's youth and with uncertain prospects for victory.^[78] In particular, General Shirazi was opposed to the invasion of Iraq on logistical grounds and said he was considering resignation if "unqualified people continued to meddle with the conduct of the war".^[78]

On the other side, there was a hardline fraction led by clerics on the Supreme Defence Council, whose leader was the politically powerful Speaker of the Majlis Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who favored continuing the war until the Ba'athists in Iraq were overthrown.^[78] Khomeini sided with the hardliners.^[78] In Baghdad, at a cabinet meeting, the Minister of Health Dr. Riyadh Ibrahim Hussein suggested that Hussein step down temporarily as a way of easing Iran towards a ceasefire.^[76] Saddam, annoyed, asked if anyone else in the Cabinet agreed with the Health Minister's idea. None raised their hands in support, and Dr. Hussein was shot later that day for treason.^[76]

Under the slogans "War, War until Victory" and "The Road to Jerusalem Goes through Karbala",^[79] Iran advanced. A tactic used in this advance noted throughout the world was the encouragement of heroism among young Iranian basij volunteers who launched human wave attacks on Iraqi positions. The volunteers were inspired before battle by tales of Ashura, the Battle of Karbala, and the supreme glory of martyrdom, and sometimes by an actor (usually a more mature soldier), playing the part of Imam Hossein himself riding a white horse, galloping along the lines, providing the inexperienced soldiers a vision of "the hero who would lead them into their fateful battle before they met their God".^[80] The "martyrs" signed "Passports to Paradise" (as admission forms to the basij were called), received a week of basic military training by the Pasdaran, and were sent directly to the front.^[78] Iran suffered massive losses in these attacks, as they were met with fierce resistance from defensive positions, along with artillery and rocket fire.^[58]

A great advantage that the Iraqis were to enjoy in the defence of their country was logistical.^[81] The front was close to all of the main Iraqi bases and arms depots, and Iraq's excellent roads allowed the Iraqi Army to be efficiently supplied.^[32] By contrast, the front in Iran was a considerable distance from the main Iranian bases and arms depots, and as such, Iranian troops and supplies had to travel through difficult roads across several mountain ranges before arriving at the front.^[32]

On 13 July, Iranian units crossed the border in force, aiming towards the city of Basra, the second most important city in Iraq. However, the Iraqi troops facing them had entrenched themselves in formidable defences.^[82] Unlike the hastily improvised defences that the Iraqis had manned in Iran during the 1980–1981 occupation of the conquered territories, the border defences were, by necessity, well-developed even before the war, and the Iraqis were able to utilize a sophisticated network of bunkers and artillery positions.^[82] Iraqi morale, once greatly reduced by the failed invasion of Iran, improved markedly in 1982 when the Iraqis were fighting in the defence of their own nation.^[73] Saddam had also more than doubled the size of the Iraqi army from 200,000 soldiers (12 divisions and 3 independent brigades) to 500,000 (23 divisions and nine brigades).^[82]

Saddam's efforts paid off. Iran had been using combined-arms operations to great effect when it was attacking the Iraqi troops in its country, and had launched the iconic human-wave attacks with great support from artillery, aircraft, and tanks. However, lack of ammunition meant that the Iranians were now launching human-wave assaults with no support from other branches of the military. Tens of thousands of Iranian soldiers fell victim to the superior defences of the Iraqis in most operations after 1982; these defences would continue to hold in most sectors. During the advance on Basra, the Basij were used to clear the Iraqi minefields with their own feet in order to allow the Pasdaran to advance.^[82]

In the Basra offensive, or Operation Ramadan, five Iranian human-wave attacks were met with withering fire from the Iraqis. The young, inexperienced Basij suffered particularly severe losses, especially since they volunteered to run into minefields in order to clear the way for the regular Iranian soldiers behind them. The Iranians were also hard-hit by the employment of chemical weapons and mustard gas by the Iraqis.

International reactions [link]

In 1982, with Iranian success on the battlefield, the U.S. made its backing of Iraq more pronounced, supplying it with intelligence, economic aid, normalizing relations with the government (broken during the 1967 Six-Day War), and also supplying "dual-use" equipment and vehicles. Dual use items are civilian items such as heavy trucks, armored ambulances and communications gear as well as industrial technology that can have a military application.^[83] President Ronald Reagan decided that the United States "could not afford to allow Iraq to lose the war to Iran", and that the United States "would do whatever was necessary to prevent Iraq from losing the war with Iran".^[84] President Reagan formalized this policy by issuing a National Security Decision Directive ("NSDD") to this effect in June, 1982. The Security Council passed Resolution 552 condemning attacks on commercial ships in the region.

1983–84: Strategic stalemate [link]

Furthest ground gains.

Ali Khamenei, with Iranian soldiers on the front-line. Khamenei opposed Khomeini's decision to extend the war into Iraq.^[85]

In January 1983, an Iraqi-Soviet arms deal was signed in Moscow, which led to the Soviet Union supplying Iraq with T-62 and T-72 tanks; Mig-23 and Mig-25 jets; and SS-21 and Scud-B missiles.^[86] By 1987, the Soviet Union had provided Iraq with 800 T-72 tanks, and dozens upon dozens of modern fighters and bombers.^[86] Between 1980–82, France had supplied Iraq with $5.6 billion US worth of weapons such as fighters, tanks, self-propelled guns and helicopters.^[86]

After the failure of the 1982 summer offensives, Iran believed that a major effort along the entire breadth of the front would yield the victory that they desired. Iranian numerical superiority might have achieved a break-through if they had attacked across all parts of the front at the same time, but they still lacked the organization for such and assault.^{[citation needed]} Iran was getting supplies from countries such as North Korea, Libya^{[citation needed]}, and China. The Iraqis had many more suppliers, including the USSR, NATO members (France, the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Germany, the United States, etc.), Brazil, Yugoslavia, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia.

During the course of 1983, the Iranians launched five major assaults along the front.^[87] None met with substantial success as the Iranians staged more massive "human wave" attacks on well-dug Iraqi positions without artillery, air, or armoured support.^[87] Khomeini's position on a truce remained unchanged.

On 7 February 1984, Saddam ordered aerial and missile attacks against eleven strategic Iranian cities that he had selected.^[88] The bombardment ceased on 22 February 1984. Iran soon retaliated against Iraqi urban centers, and these exchanges become known as the first "war of the cities". There would be five such exchanges throughout the course of the war.

The attacks on the Iranian cities, however, did not destroy the Iranian resolve to fight. On 15 February 1984 the Iranians launched a major attack against the central section of the front where the Second Iraqi Army Corps was deployed, with 250,000 Iraqis facing 250,000 Iranians.^[88] The Iranian "final blow" offensives entitled Operation Dawn 5 (5–22 February 1984) and Dawn 6 (22–24 February 1984) saw the Iranians attempting to take Kut al-Amara and sever the highway connecting Baghdad to Basra. Capture of this road would have made it extremely difficult for the Iraqis to supply and co-ordinate their defences, but the Iranian forces only came within 15 miles (24 km) of the highway. After advancing to within 15 miles (24 km) of the highway after much heavy fighting, the Iranians began Operation Kheibar on 24 February. This offensive intended to take Basra, but ended in failure as the Iraqi trenches proved to be impenetrable to the Iranian onslaught.^[89]

However, Operation Kheibar met with much greater success, at least initially. Involving a number of thrusts towards the key Iraqi city of Basra, the operation started on 24 February and lasted until 19 March. The Iraqi defences, under continuous strain since 15 February, seemed close to breaking conclusively. The Iranians fought their way through the marshes of southern Iraq and captured Majnoon Island, 40 miles (64 km) to the north of Basra.^[89] However, the Iraqis were saved by use of "defence-in-depth"—i.e., layering of one defensive line after another; even if the Iranians stormed through the first line, they were usually so exhausted and had taken such heavy losses that attempts to storm through the second line resulted in failure.^[90]

The Iraqis managed to successfully stabilise the front, but despite a heavy Iraqi counterattack coupled with the use of mustard gas and sarin nerve gas, the Iranians held their gains and would continue to hold them almost until the end of the war.^[3] The Iranian offensive ended on 19 March 1984 after much desperate fighting in the marshland with the Iraqis making heavy use of chemical weapons to halt the Iranian advance on Basra, though the Iraqis failed in their attempts to re-take Majnun.^[89] At least 3,000 Iranians were killed in the fighting in the marshes, with Iraqi helicopter gunships being deployed to "hunt" the Iranian troops through the swampy land.^[89]

1984: 'Tanker War' in Persian Gulf [link]

Hengam LSLH logistical transport

The so-called "Tanker War" started when Iraq attacked Iranian tankers and the oil terminal at Kharg Island in early 1984.^[91] Iran struck back by attacking tankers carrying Iraqi oil from Kuwait and then any tanker of the Persian Gulf states supporting Iraq. Both nations attacked oil tankers and merchant ships, including those of neutral nations, in an effort to deprive the opponent of trade. Iraq declared that all ships going to or from Iranian ports in the northern zone of the Persian Gulf were subject to attack.^[91]

In early 1984, Iraq was hard-pressed by a major Iranian offensive, and Saddam's hope in beginning the attacks on Iranian shipping was that the Iranians might do something extreme in retaliation, such as closing the Strait of Hormuz to all maritime traffic, and thereby bring American intervention into the war.^[91] The United States had threatened several times to go to war if the Strait of Hormuz was closed.^[91] For this reason, the Iranians limited their retaliatory attacks to Iraqi shipping, leaving the Strait open to general passage.^[92] Iran attacked tankers carrying Iraqi oil from Kuwait, and then any tanker of the Persian Gulf states supporting Iraq. The air and small boat attacks did very little damage to Persian Gulf state economies, and Iran simply moved its shipping port to Larak Island in the strait of Hormuz.^[93]

Iraq used its air power to enforce its threats, primarily helicopters, F-1 Mirage, and MiG-23 fighters armed with Exocet anti-ship missiles. After repeated Iraqi attacks on Iran's main exporting facility on Kharg Island, Iran attacked a Kuwaiti tanker near Bahrain on 13 May 1984, and a Saudi tanker in Saudi waters on 16 May. Attacks on ships of noncombatant nations in the Persian Gulf sharply increased thereafter, and this phase of the Iraq-Iran war was dubbed the "Tanker War". The Iranian attacks against Saudi shipping led to Saudi F-15s shooting down an Iranian aircraft on 5 June 1984.^[92]

Cargo Ship under attack

The Iranian Navy imposed a naval blockade of Iraq, using its British-built frigates to stop and inspect any ships thought to be trading with Iraq. They operated with virtual impunity, as Iraqi pilots had little training in hitting naval targets. Some Iranian warships attacked tankers with ship-to-ship missiles, while others used their radars to guide land-based anti-ship missiles to their targets.^[94]^{[Full citation needed]}

Though attacks on international shipping alarmed the United States, no significant American response occurred until 1987.^[92] After several Iranian attacks on Kuwaiti shipping, the United States Navy started to escort Kuwaiti tankers in March 1987, provided that they flew the American flag.^[92] In April 1987, the Soviet Navy also started escorting Kuwaiti tankers.^[92]

A US Navy ship, the USS Stark, was struck on 17 May 1987 by two Exocet anti-ship missiles fired from an Iraqi F-1 Mirage^[95]^[96] plane. The Iraqi fighter fired the Exocet missiles at about the time the fighter was given a routine radio warning by the Stark.^[97] The frigate did not detect the missiles with radar and warning was given by the lookout only moments before the missiles struck.^[98] Both missiles hit the ship, and one exploded in crew quarters, killing 37 sailors and wounding 21.^[98]

Attacks on shipping [link]

Lloyd's of London, a British insurance market, estimated that the Tanker War damaged 546 commercial vessels and killed about 430 civilian sailors. The largest portion of the attacks was directed by Iran against Kuwaiti vessels, and on 1 November 1986, Kuwait formally petitioned foreign powers to protect its shipping. The Soviet Union agreed to charter tankers starting in 1987, and the United States offered to provide protection for tankers flying the U.S. flag on 7 March 1987 (Operation Earnest Will and Operation Prime Chance).^[99]

During the course of the war, Iran attacked two Soviet Navy ships which were protecting Kuwaiti tankers.^[100] Notably, the Seawise Giant, the largest ship ever built, was struck and damaged by Iraqi Exocet missiles as she was carrying Iranian crude oil out of the Gulf.^[101]

1985–86: Offensives and retreats [link]

With Iraqi armed forces now benefitting from financial support from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other Persian Gulf states, and substantial arms purchases from the Soviet Union, China and France (among others), Saddam launched a new offensive on 28 January 1985, for the first time since early 1980. This, however, did not produce any significant gains, and the Iranians responded in kind with another offensive directed against Basra, codenamed Operation Badr, on 11 March 1985.^[102] Ayatollah Khomeini urged Iranians on, declaring, "It is our belief that Saddam wishes to return Islam to blasphemy and polytheism … if America becomes victorious … and grants victory to Saddam, Islam will receive such a blow that it will not be able to raise its head for a long time … The issue is one of Islam versus blasphemy, and not of Iran versus Iraq."^[103]

The failure of the unsupported human wave attacks during 1984 had prompted Iran to develop a better working relationship between the army and the Pasdaran.^[102] The Iranian government also worked on molding the Revolutionary Guard units into a much more conventional fighting force. The attack did succeed in capturing a part of the Baghdad-Basra highway that had proven elusive during Operation Dawn 5 and Operation Dawn 6. As a result of the improved Iranian tactics, Iraqi forces suffered 10,000–12,000 casualties in Badr, while the Iranians took 15,000 casualites.^[102] Saddam responded to this strategic emergency by launching chemical attacks against the Iranian positions along the highway and by initiating the second "war of the cities" with a massive air and missile campaign against twenty Iranian population centres, including Tehran.^[102]

On 9 February 1986, the Iranians launched Operation Dawn 8, in which 100,000 troops comprising 5 Army divisions and 50,000 men from the Pasdaran and the Basij advanced in a two-pronged offensive into southern Iraq.^[104] Unlike the earlier offensives, Dawn 8 was planned entirely by professional Army officers, all of whom had began their careers under the Shah.^[104] The Iranians launched a feint attack against Basra, which was stopped by the Iraqis.^[104] Meanwhile, the main Iranian blow fell on the strategically important Fao peninsula, which fell after only 24 hours of fighting.^[104]

The Iranians launched their assault on the peninsula at night, their men arriving on rubber boats.^[105] After taking the Fao, the Iranians built a pontoon bridge and began to dig in.^[105] On 12 February 1986, the Iraqis began a counter-offensive to re-take the Fao, which failed after a week of intense fighting.^[104]

Saddam sent one of his best commanders, General Maher Abd-Rashid and the Republican Guard to begin an new offensive to re-capture the Fao on 24 February 1986.^[104] A new round of intensive fighting took place, with the Iraqis losing 10,000 men and the Iranians 30,000 over the next four days.^[104] The Iraqi offensives were supported by helicopter gunships, hundreds of tanks and a huge bombing offensive by the Iraqi Air Force.^[106] Despite having an advantage in firepower and the extensive use of chemical warfare, the Iraqi attempt to re-take the Fao again ended in failure.^[104] The fall of the Fao and the failure of the Iraqi counter-offensives were huge blows to the prestige of the Ba'ath regime, and led to fears all over the Gulf that Iran might win the war.^[104] In particular, Kuwait felt menaced with Iranian troops only ten miles away, and increased its support of Iraq accordingly.^[107]

In March 1986, the Iranians tried to follow up their success by attempting to take Umm Qasr, which would have had the effect of severing Iraq from the Gulf and placing Iranian troops on the border with Kuwait.^[104] This offensive failed, however.^[104] In May 1986, the Iraqis took the Iranian border town of Mehran, and made a proposal for swapping Mehran for Fao.^[108] The Iraqi offer was rejected, and in July 1986, the Iranians re-took Mehran.^[108]

1987–88: Towards a ceasefire [link]

The People's Mujahedin of Iran, supported by Saddam, started a ten-day operation after both the Iranian and Iraqi governments accepted UN Resolution 598. Casualty estimates range from 2,000 to 10,000.

1987 saw a renewed wave of Iranian offensives against targets in both the north and south of Iraq. Iranian forces launched Operation Karbala-5 in an attempt to capture Basra, but repulsed after more than two months of fighting, resulting in 20,000 Iraqi and 65,000 Iranian casualties. Among those killed was Iranian commander Hossein Kharrazi. The Iranians came close to breaking through the Iraqi lines and taking Basra, but in the end, the strength of the Iraqi lines again halted the Iranian offensive.^[71] However, the Iranians came close enough to Basra to bring up their artillery, and in the ensuing bombardments, the city was largely destroyed.^[71]

The Iranians encountered more success later in the year in the north with Operations Nasr 4 and Karbala-10, threatening to capture the oil-rich Iraqi city of Kirkuk and other northern oilfields. However, the Iranian forces were unable to consolidate their gains and continue their advance, and so little land changed hands in 1987. On 20 July, the Security Council of the United Nations passed the US-sponsored Resolution 598, which called for an end to fighting and a return to pre-war boundaries.^[109]

In February 1988, Saddam began the fifth and most deadly "war of the cities".^[110] Over the next two months, Iraq launched over 200 missiles at Iranian cities.^[110] In March 1988, the Iranians began an offensive in Iraqi Kurdistan with the aim of capturing the Darbandi Khan reservoir and the power plant at Dukan, which supplied Iraq with much of its electricity.^[111] Though the Iranians advanced to within sight of Dukan, and captured 400 square miles (1,000 km²) and 4,000 Iraqi troops, the offensive failed due to the Iraqi use of chemical warfare.^[111]

On 17 April 1988, a new Iraqi offensive was launched, retaking the Fao peninsula after three days of fighting.^[110] Following this, the Iraqis began a sustained drive to clear the Iranians out of all of southern Iraq.^[111] In May 1988, the Iraqis expelled the Iranians from Salamchech and retook Majnoon Island.^[110] During the fighting in the spring of 1988, the Iranians showed signs of collapsing morale.^[81] The British journalist Patrick Brogan reported:

Reports from the front, both at Faw [Fao] and outside Basra, indicated that the Iranian resistance was surprisingly weak. The army that had shown such courage and élan early in the war now broke in a rout, and fled before the Arabs.^[81]

During the 1988 battles, the Iranians seemed tired and worn out by nearly eight years of war, and "put up very little resistance" to the Iraqi offensives.^[112] As the Iraqis systematically cleared the Iranians from the vicinity of Basra, a series of American-Iranian naval clashes in the Gulf led Iran to fear American intervention.^[113] At this point, elements of the Iranian leadership, led by Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, decided to sue for peace.^[114] On 20 July 1988, Iran announced its willingness to accept a ceasefire by accepting Resolution 598.^[115] In a radio address, an announcer read out a statement by Khomeini, in which he expressed his deep displeasure and reluctance about accepting the ceasefire:

Happy are those who have departed through martyrdom. Happy are those who have lost their lives in this convoy of light. Unhappy am I that I still survive and have drunk the poisoned chalice...^[116]

Iraq, on the other hand, announced it was not willing to accept Resolution 598 until Khomeini explicitly disavowed his call for the overthrow of Saddam .^[117] Over the next few weeks, Iraq launched several limited offensives into Iran to seize border territory as a way of pressuring Khomeini to disavow his calls for regime change in Iraq.^[118] At the same time, Saddam came under heavy pressure from the Gulf states, who were his largest creditors to accept the Iranian offer and finally end the war.^[119]

In July 1988 Iraqi airplanes dropped chemical cyanide bombs on the Iranian Kurdish village of Zardan (as they had done four months earlier at their own Kurdish village of Halabja). Hundreds were killed at once, and the survivors are still suffering from a variety of physical and mental disorders.^{[citation needed]} Following these major setbacks, Iran accepted the terms of U.N. Security Council Resolution 598 and, on 20 August 1988, peace was restored.^[120] The news of the end of the war was greeted with scenes of wild celebration in Baghdad with people dancing in the streets; in Tehran, however, the end of the war was greeted with a glum, sad silence as Iran settled for the same terms it had rejected in 1982, thus meaning that the last six years of the war had been in vain.^[121]

The People's Mujahedin of Iran started their ten-day operation (Operation Mersad) after the Iranian government accepted UN Resolution 598. While Iraqi forces attacked Khuzestan, the Mujahedin attacked western Iran and battled the Pasdaran for Kermanshah. Close air support from the Iraqis contributed to the gains that the Mujahedin made. However, under heavy international pressure for ending the war, Saddam withdrew his fighter aircraft, allowing Iranian paratroopers landed Mojahedin lines. The operation ended in a defeat for the Mujahedin. Casualty figures range from 2,000 to as high as 10,000.^{[citation needed]}

Home front [link]

Iraq [link]

At first, Saddam followed a policy of attempting to ensure that Iraqi population suffered from the war as little as possible.^[122] There was little rationing, and civilian projects began before the war continued.^[122] At the same time, the already extensive personality cult around Saddam reached new heights of adulation while the regime tightened its control over the military.^[123] After the Iranian victories of the spring of 1982 and the Syrian closure of Iraq's main pipeline, Saddam did a volte-face on his policy towards the home front.^[124]

A policy of austerity and total war was introduced, with the entire population being mobilized for the war effort.^[124] All Iraqis were ordered to donate blood, mass demonstrations of loyalty towards Saddam became more common, and some 100,000 Iraqi civilians were ordered to clear the reeds in the southern marshes.^[124] To secure the loyalty of the Shia population, Saddam began a policy of allowing more Shias into the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party and the government, and started efforts to improve Shia living standards, which tended to be much lower than those of the Iraqi Arab Sunnis.^[125] As part of the effort to ensure Iraqi Shia support for the war, Saddam had the Iraqi state pay for the costs of restoring the tomb of the Imam Ali with white marble being imported from Italy.^[125]

Despite the costs of the war, the Iraqi regime made generous contributions to Shia waqf (religious endowments) as part of the price of buying Iraqi Shia support.^[126] The importance of winning Shia support was such that the expansion of welfare services in Shia areas went on at a time when the Iraqi regime was pursuing a policy of rigid austerity in all other fields other than the military.^[127] Khomeini's behavior during his time in exile in Najaf in the 1960s-1970s where he often quarrelled with the leaders of the Iraqi ulema helped to explain why many of the Iraqi Shia ulema supported the Iraqi regime against him in the 1980s.^[128] On the whole, Iraqi Shias supported their country's war effort against Iran.^[129] The British journalist Patrick Brogan reported:

Even the Shiites of Iraq preferred the vicious tyranny of Saddam Hussein, Sunni though he was, to the Ayatollah's Shiite paradise: Hussein was an Arab, Khomeini a Persian, and 13 centuries of hostility are not to be dispersed by a Friday sermon.^[112]

During the first years of the war in the early 1980s, the Iraqi government tried to accommodate the Kurds in order to focus on the war against Iran. In 1983, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan agreed to cooperate with Baghdad, but the Kurdish Democratic Party remained opposed.^[130] In 1983, Saddam signed an autonomy agreement with Jalal Talabani of the PUK, through subsequently Saddam reneged on his promise of Kurdish autonomy.^[63] By 1985, the PUK and KDP had joined forces, and Iraqi Kurdistan become the scene of widespread guerrilla warfare right up to the end of the war in 1988.^[63]

At the same time that these conciliatory policies were being implemented, however, Saddam's government began a campaign of terror in the summer of 1982. More than 300 Iraqi Army officers were executed for their failures on the battlefield.^[125] In 1983, a major crackdown was launched on the leadership of the Shia community. Ninety members of the al-Hakim family (an influential family of Shia clerics whose leading members were the émigrés Mohammad Baqir al-Hakim and Abdul Aziz al-Hakim) were arrested and six hanged.^[125] Even more extensive was the crackdown on the Kurds that saw 8,000 members of the Barzani clan, whose leader Massoud Barzani was also the leader of the KDP summarily executed.^[63] From 1983 onwards, a campaign of increasingly brutal repression was started against the Iraqi Kurds, characterised by Israeli historian Efraim Karsh as having "assumed genocidal proportions" by 1988.^[63] The Al-Anfal Campaign was intended to "pacify" Iraqi Kurdistan permanently.^[63]

Iran [link]

The Iranian government saw the outbreak of war as a heaven-sent chance to strengthen its position and consolidate the Islamic revolution.^[63] The war was presented to the Iranian people as a glorious jihad and a test of Iranian national character.^[131] From the very beginning, the Iranian regime followed a policy of total war, and attempted to mobilize the entire nation for the struggle.^[132] The war furthered the decline of the Iranian economy that began with the Islamic revolution in 1978–79.^[133] Between 1979 and 1981, foreign exchange reserves fell from $14.6 billion US to $1 billion.^[134] As a result of the war, living standards dropped dramatically in Iran in the 1980s.^[134] The British journalists John Bulloch and Harvey Morris described 1980s Iran as "a dour and joyless place" ruled by a harsh regime that "seemed to have nothing to offer, but endless war".^[135]

As part of the total war effort, the regime established a group known as the Reconstruction Campaign. Members of this group enjoyed exemption from conscription and were instead sent into the countryside to work on the farms to replace the men serving at the front.^[136] Iranian workers had a day's pay deducted from their pay cheques every month to help finance the war, and mass campaigns were launched to encourage the public to donate food, money and blood for the soldiers.^[134] To further help finance the war, the Iranian government banned the import of all non-essential items, and started a major effort to rebuild the damaged oil plants.^[136] Iranian oil technicians did much to keep their nation's oil industry going in the face of much difficulty, and thus ensured that Iran could pay for the war.^[136]

In 1981, severe civil unrest broke out on the streets of Iranian cities as the left-wing Mujaheddin e-Khalq (MEK) attempted to seize power.^[137] In June 1981, street battles between the MEK and the Revolutionary Guard raged for several days with hundreds killed on both sides.^[138] The MEK started an assassination campaign that had killed hundreds of regime officials by the fall of 1981.^[139] On 28 June 1981, the MEK assassinated the secretary-general of the Islamic Republican Party, Mohammad Beheshti, and killed the President, Mohammad-Ali Rajai, on 30 August.^[139]

In September 1981, street battles again raged between the MEK and the Revolutionary Guard.^[139] Thousands of left-wing Iranians (many of whom were not associated with the MEK) were shot and hanged by the government in the aftermath.^[139] Even after their defeat, the MEK waged a campaign of bombings and assassinations which was met with a policy of mass executions of suspected MEK members that lasted until 1985.^[137]

In addition to the open civil conflict with the MEK, the Iranian government was faced with an Iraqi-supported rebellion in Iranian Kurdistan, which was gradually put down through a campaign of systematic repression.^[136] Anti-war student demonstrations also took place in 1985, which were crushed by government activists.^[134]

One of the few exceptions to the repressive policies of the government was the tolerance shown to the anti-war Islamic Liberation Movement led by former prime minister Mehdi Bazargan.^[136] In January 1985, Bazargan criticized the war after 1982 in a telegram to the United Nations as un-Islamic and illegitimate, arguing that Khomeini should have accepted Saddam's truce offer of 1982 instead of attempting to overthrow the Ba'ath.^[136] Khomeini was annoyed by Bazargan's telegram, and issued a lengthy public rebuttal in which he defended the war as both Islamic and just.^[136]

By 1987, Iranian morale had begun to crumble, reflected in the failure of several government campaigns to recruit "martyrs" for the front.^[134] Israeli historian Efraim Karsh points to the decline in morale in 1987–88 as being a major factor in Iran's decision to accept the ceasefire of 1988.^[134] The British journalist Patrick Brogan wrote that by 1988:

The economy was collapsing. War and revolution had taken their toll. Only war industries survived, and the standard of living was dropping precipitously. There were no longer enough recruits for the Revolutionary Guards; the Iranian war machine was no longer capable of supplying the huge armies that had marched singing to war in the early days … The country was sliding steadily into bankruptcy. Strict Islamic law forbids usury, and Khomeini interpreted that to mean Iran could not borrow against future oil revenues to meet the expenses of war. Iran paid cash, and when the reserves were exhausted, Iran had to rely on income from its oil exports. Oil revenue dropped from $20 billion in 1982 to $5 billion in 1988. At an OPEC meeting in June 1988, Saudi Arabia, who had broken diplomatic relations with Iran two months earlier, vetoed a last, desperate Iranian initiative to cut production and thus raise prices again^[140]

In a public letter to Khomeini sent in May 1988, Bazargan wrote:

Since 1986, you have not stopped proclaiming victory, and now you are calling upon population to resist until victory. Is that not an admission of failure on your part?^[140]

Bazargan went to criticize Khomeini for the war, which Bazargan stated was bankrupting Iran, and slaughtering its youth for no good purpose.^[140]

Comparison of Iraqi and Iranian military strength [link]

Main article: Order of battle during the Iran–Iraq War

At the beginning of the war, Iraq held a clear advantage in armour, while both nations were roughly equal in terms of artillery. The gap only widened as the war went on. Iran started with a stronger air force, but over time, the balance of power reversed in Iraq's favour. The United States and the United Kingdom sold arms and weaponry to Iraq throughout the eight year war.^[141]^[142] Estimates for 1980 and 1987 were:^[143]

Imbalance of Power (1980–1987)	Iraq	Iran
Tanks in 1980	2700	1740
Tanks in 1987	4500+	1000
Fighter aircraft in 1980	332	445
Fighter aircraft in 1987	500+	65 (serviceable)
Helicopters in 1980	40	500
Helicopters in 1987	150	60
Artillery in 1980	1000	1000+
Artillery in 1987	4000+	1000+

Foreign support to Iraq and Iran [link]

Main article: International aid to combatants in the Iran–Iraq War

Donald Rumsfeld as US special envoy to the Middle East, meets Saddam in December 1983 (video). Rumsfeld would later become US Defense Secretary during the 2003 Iraq War which saw Saddam ousted from power, and ultimately executed.

During the war, Iraq was regarded by the West (specifically the United States) and Soviet Union as a counterbalance to post-revolutionary Iran.^[144] The Soviet Union, which was Iraq's main arms supplier for the entire duration of the war did not wish for the end of its alliance with Iraq, and was alarmed at Saddam's threats if the Kremlin did not provide him with the weapons he wanted, then Iraq would find new arms suppliers in the West and in China.^[145] The British journalists John Bulloch and Harvey Morris wrote:

Throughout the war the Soviet Union remained Iraq's main supplier, as it had always been - the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation signed by Moscow and Baghdad in 1972 was a formalisation of the special relationship between the two countries which had existed from the time of the overthrow of the monarchy, and survived the rift between the Ba'ath and the Communist Party of Iraq, with all the bloodshed that entailed.^[146]

In addition, the Soviet Union hoped to use the prospect of reducing arms supplies to Iraq as leverage for forming a Soviet-Iranian alliance.^[147] The basis of American policy was described by Bulloch and Morris as follows:

Part of the US dilemma in the Gulf was that the United States was committed to the territorial integrity of a state, Iran, whose rulers were implacably hostile to it. Washington wished to protect other states in the region from Iranian expansionism as well as protecting Iran from that of the Soviet Union, so that coupled with a natural and publicly supported wish to do down the Khomeini regime was a more pragmatic need to see the survival of a stable, independent and anti-communist Iran. The central importance of Iran in America's geopolitical strategy until the advent of the Gorbachev era forced a reappraisal, was outlined by Henry Kissingner in 1982:

"The focus of Iranian pressure at this moment is Iraq. There are few governments in the world less deserving of our support and less capable of using it. Had Iraq won the war, the fear in the Gulf and the threat to our interest would be scarcely less than it is today. Still, given the importance of the balance of power in the area, it is in our interests to promote a ceasefire in that conflict; through not a cost that will preclude an eventual rapprochement with Iran either if a more moderate regime replaces Khomenini's or if the present rulers wake up to geopolitical reality [sic] that the historic threat to Iran's independence has always come from the country with which it shares a border of 1,500 miles (2,400 km): the Soviet Union. A raprochement with Iran, of course, must await at a minimum Iran's abandonment of hegemonic aspirations [sic] in the Gulf".

Iran, in other words, should be befriended if possible, but must above, be contained.^[148]

The support of Iraq took the form of technological aid, intelligence, the sale of dual-use and military equipment and satellite intelligence to Iraq. While there was direct combat between Iran and the United States, it is not universally agreed that the fighting between the U.S. and Iran was specifically to benefit Iraq, or for separate, although occurring at the same time, issues between the U.S. and Iran. American ambiguity towards which side to support was summed up by Henry Kissinger when the American statesman remarked that "it's a pity they [Iran and Iraq] both can't lose."^[149]

Richard Murphy, the Assistant Secretary of State testified to Congress in 1984 that the Reagan administration believed that a victory for either Iran or Iraq was "neither militarily feasible nor strategically desirable".^[150] France, which from the 1970s onwards had been one of Iraq's closest allies, was a major supplier of military hardware to Iraq.^[151] The French sold weapons equal to the sum of US$5 billion^{[year needed]}, which comprised well over a quarter of Iraq's total arms stockpile.^[151] The People's Republic of China, which had no direct stake in the victory of either side and whose interests in the war were entirely commercial, freely sold arms to both sides.^[152]

More than 30 countries provided support to Iraq, Iran, or both. Iraq, in particular, had a complex clandestine procurement network to obtain munitions and critical materials, which, in some transactions, involved 10–12 countries. Also, a number of Arab mercenaries and volunteers from Egypt^[153] and Jordan called the Yarmouk Brigade^[154] participated in the war alongside Iraqis.

Country	Foreign policy	Support to Iraq	Support to Iran
All countries	International aid to combatants in the Iran–Iraq War
United States		United States support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war	Secret arms sales - see Iran–Contra affair
Israel			Israeli support for Iran during the Iran–Iraq war
United Kingdom		British support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
Saudi Arabia		Saudi support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
Soviet Union	The Soviet Union and the Iran–Iraq War	Soviet support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war	Soviet support for Iran during the Iran–Iraq war
People's Republic of China		Chinese support for Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War	Chinese support for Iran during the Iran-Iraq War
France		French support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
Kuwait		Kuwait support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
Italy		Italian support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
West Germany		West German support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
Egypt		Egyptian support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
Jordan		Jordanian support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
Singapore		Singapore support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
North Korea			North Korean support for Iran during the Iran–Iraq war
Yugoslavia		Yugoslav support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war	Yugoslav support for Iran during the Iran–Iraq war

Iraqi attack on U.S. warship [link]

Main article: USS Stark incident

Stark listing following two hits by Exocet missiles.

On 17 May 1987, an Iraqi Mirage F1 attack aircraft launched two Exocet missiles at the USS Stark, a Perry class frigate. The first struck the port side of the ship and failed to explode, though it left burning propellant in its wake; the second struck moments later in approximately the same place and penetrated through to crew quarters, where it exploded, killing 37 crewmembers and leaving 21 injured. Whether or not Iraqi leadership authorized the attack is still unknown. Initial claims by the Iraqi government (that Stark was inside the Iran–Iraq War zone) were shown to be false, so the motives and orders of the pilot remain unanswered. Though American officials claimed he had been executed, an ex-Iraqi Air Force commander since stated that the pilot who attacked Stark was not punished, and was still alive at the time.^[when?]^[155] The attack remains the only successful anti-ship missile strike on an American warship.^[156]^[157]

U.S. military actions toward Iran [link]

U.S. attention was focused on isolating Iran as well as maintaining freedom of navigation, criticizing Iran's mining of international waters, and sponsored UN Security Council Resolution 598, which passed unanimously on 20 July, under which it skirmished with Iranian forces during Operation Earnest Will. During the Operation Nimble Archer in October 1987, the U.S. attacked Iranian oil platforms in retaliation for an Iranian attack on the U.S.-flagged Kuwaiti tanker Sea Isle City.^[99]

On 14 April 1988, the frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts was badly damaged by an Iranian mine, wounding 10 sailors. U.S. forces responded with Operation Praying Mantis on 18 April, the United States Navy's largest engagement of surface warships since World War II. Two Iranian oil platforms were damaged, and five Iranian warships and gunboats were sunk. An American helicopter also crashed.^[99] These actions and others led to the International Court of Justice case Oil Platforms (Islamic Republic of Iran v. United States of America), which was eventually dismissed in 2003.

U.S. shoots down civilian airliner [link]

Main article: Iran Air Flight 655

A missile departs the forward launcher of Vincennes during a 1987 exercise. This ship later shot down civilian airliner Iran Air 655.

In the course of these escorts by the U.S. Navy, the cruiser USS Vincennes shot down Iran Air Flight 655 on 3 July 1988, killing all 290 passengers and crew on board. The American government claimed that the airliner had been mistaken for an Iranian F-14 Tomcat, and that the Vincennes was operating in international waters at the time and feared that it was under attack, which later appeared to be untrue.^[156]^[158] The Iranians, however, maintain that the Vincennes was in fact in Iranian territorial waters, and that the Iranian passenger jet was turning away and increasing altitude after take-off. U.S. Admiral William J. Crowe also admitted on Nightline that the Vincennes was inside Iranian territorial waters when it launched the missiles. At the time, the captain of the Vincennes claimed that the Iranian plane did not identify itself and sent no response to warning signals from the Vincennes.

According to an investigation conducted by ABC News Nightline, decoys were set during the war by the U.S. Navy inside the Persian Gulf to lure out the Iranian gunboats and destroy them, and at the time USS Vincennes shot down the Iranian airliner, it was performing such an operation.

In 1996 the U.S. expressed regret for the loss of innocent life.^[156]^[159]

Iraq [link]

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Among major powers, the United States began to pursue policies in favour of Iraq by reopening diplomatic channels, lifting restrictions on the export of dual-use technology, overseeing the transfer of third-party military hardware, and providing operational intelligence on the battlefield.

Iraq made extensive use of front companies, middlemen, secret ownership of all or part of companies all over the world, forged end user certificates and other methods to hide what it was acquiring. Some transactions may have involved people, shipping, and manufacturing in as many as 10 countries.^[160]

British support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war especially illustrated the ways by which Iraq would circumvent export controls. Iraq bought at least one British company with operations in the U.K. and the U.S. Iraq had a complex relationship with France and the Soviet Union, its major suppliers of actual weapons, to some extent having the two nations compete for its business.

Although the United Nations Security Council called for a cease-fire after a week of fighting and renewed the call on later occasions, the initial call was made while Iraq occupied Iranian territory. Moreover, the UN refused to come to Iran's aid to repel the Iraqi invasion. The Iranians thus interpreted the UN as subtly biased in favor of Iraq.^[161]

Iran [link]

While the United States directly fought Iran, citing freedom of navigation as a major casus belli, it also indirectly supplied weapons to Iran as part of a complex and partially illegal program that became known as the Iran-Contra Affair.

North Korea was a major arms supplier to Iran, often acting as a third party in arms deals between Iran and the Communist bloc.^{[citation needed]}. DPRK support included domestically manufactured arms and Eastern-Bloc weapons for which the major powers wanted deniability.^{[citation needed]}. Muammar Gaddafi's Libya^{[citation needed]} and the People's Republic of China were arms suppliers and supporters of Iran as well.

Both countries [link]

Besides the US and the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia also sold weapons to both countries for the entire duration of the conflict. Likewise, Portugal helped both countries; it was not unusual seeing Iranian and Iraqi flagged ships moored side-by-side at the Port of Sines.^{[citation needed]}

From 1980 to 1987 Spain sold €458 million^{[year needed]} in weapons to Iran and €172 million^{[year needed]} in weapons to Iraq. Spain sold 4x4 vehicles, BO-105 Helicopters, explosives and ammunition to Iraq. A research party discovered that an unexploded chemical Iraqi warhead in Iran was manufactured in Spain.^[162]^{[year needed]}

Although neither side acquired any weapons from Turkey, both sides enjoyed Turkish civilian help during the conflict. Having managed to remain neutral and refused to support trade embargo imposed by US, Ankara turned out to be the one upon whom both warring sides developed high degree of economic dependancy, since Turkey was one of their few outlets to the west and source of local goods. Turkey's export jumped from $220 million in 1981 to $2 billion in 1985, making up 25% of Turkey's overall exports. Additionally, Turkish construction projects in Iraq totaled $2.5 billion between 1974 and 1990. These benefits helped Turkey to offset the ongoing Turkish economic crisis, though they decreased with the end of the war and vanished with the Invasion of Kuwait by Iraq and Turkish response to it.^[163]

Financial support [link]

Iraq's main financial backers were the oil-rich Persian Gulf states, most notably Saudi Arabia ($30.9 billion), Kuwait ($8.2 billion) and the United Arab Emirates ($8 billion).^[164]

The Iraqgate scandal revealed that an Atlanta branch of Italy's largest bank, Banca Nazionale del Lavoro, relying partially on U.S. taxpayer-guaranteed loans, funneled $5 billion to Iraq from 1985 to 1989. In August 1989, when FBI agents finally raided the Atlanta branch of BNL, the branch manager, Christopher Drogoul, was charged with making unauthorized, clandestine, and illegal loans to Iraq – some of which, according to his indictment, were used to purchase arms and weapons technology.

The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and ABC's Ted Koppel, covered the Iraq-gate story, and the investigation by the U.S. Congress.^[165] This scandal is covered in Alan Friedman's book The Spider's Web: The Secret History of How the White House Illegally Armed Iraq.^{[clarification needed]}

Beginning in September 1989, the Financial Times laid out the first charges that BNL, relying heavily on U.S. government-guaranteed loans, was funding Iraqi chemical and nuclear weapons work. For the next two and a half years, the Financial Times provided the only continuous newspaper reportage (over 300 articles) on the subject. Among the companies shipping militarily useful technology to Iraq under the eye of the U.S. government, according to the Financial Times, were Hewlett-Packard, Tektronix, and Matrix Churchill, through its Ohio branch.^{[clarification needed]}

In all, Iraq received $35 billion in loans from the West and between $30 and $40 billion from the Persian Gulf states during the 1980s.^[166]

Use of chemical weapons by Iraq [link]

Distinctions and peculiarity [link]

Iran attacked and partially damaged the Osirak nuclear reactor on 30 September 1980 with two F-4 Phantoms, shortly after the outbreak of the Iran–Iraq War. This was the first attack on a nuclear reactor and one of only three on a nuclear facility in the history of the world. It was also the first instance of a pre-emptive attack on a nuclear reactor to forestall the development of a nuclear weapon, though it did not achieve its objective as France repaired the reactor after the Iranian attack.^[182] It took a second pre-emptive strike by the Israeli Air Force to disable the reactor, in the process killing a French engineer and causing France to pull out of Osirak. The decommissioning of Osirak has been cited as causing a substantial delay to Iraqi acquisition of nuclear weapons, which Saddam announced an intention to develop in response to the Iranian revolution.^[183]^[183]^[184]^[185]^[186]^[186]^[187]^[188]

The Iran–Iraq War was also the first and only conflict in the history of warfare in which both forces used Ballistic Missiles against each other.^[184]

This war also saw the only confirmed air-to-air helicopter battles in history of warfare with the Iraqi Mi-25s flying against Iranian AH-1 SuperCobra on numerous occasions. The first instance of these helicopter "dogfights" happened when on the starting day of the war (22 September 1980), two Iranian SuperCobras crept up on two Mi-25s and hit them with TOW wire-guided antitank missiles. One Mi-25 went down immediately, the other was badly damaged and crashed before reaching base. The Iranians won another similar air battle on 24 April 1981, destroying two Mi-25s without incurring losses to themselves. According to some unclassified documents, Iranian pilots achieved a 10 to 1 kill ratio over the Iraqi helicopter pilots during these engagements and even engaged Iraqi fixed wing aircraft.^[189]^[190]

As has been the case in many wars,^[191] this war had an impact on medical sciences. A new surgical intervention for comatosed patients with penetrating brain injuries which was created by Iranian physicians treating Iranian wounded soldiers during the war later on helped make new neurosurgical treatment guidelines for use of civilians who have suffered blunt or penetrating skull injuries, thereby greatly improving survival rates. The previously used surgical technique and its resultant guidelines developed by US army during World War II and Vietnam War has been replaced by this new treatment module and it has been reported that US congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords benefited from the new guidelines after she was shot in head.^[192]^[193]^[194]

Human wave [link]

Iran's government is said to have "become famous" for its use of human waves to clear minefields or draw enemy fire during the war. While very costly in human lives, the tactic sometimes worked. Basij volunteers who were used were swept up in the atmosphere of patriotism of the war mobilization and Shi'ite love of martyrdom encouraged by the revolution. The young were encouraged through visits to the schools and an intensive media campaign.^[195]

According to journalist Robin Wright,

During the Fateh offensive [in February 1987], I toured the southwest front on the Iranian side and saw scores of boys, aged anywhere from nine to sixteen, who said with staggering and seemingly genuine enthusiasm that they had volunteered to become martyrs. Regular army troops, the paramilitary Revolutionary Guards and mullahs all lauded these youths, known as baseeji, for having played the most dangerous role in breaking through Iraqi lines. They had led the way, running over fields of mines to clear the ground for the Iranian ground assault. Wearing white headbands to signify the embracing of death, and shouting "Shaheed, shaheed" (Martyr, martyr) they literally blew their way into heaven. Their numbers were never disclosed. But a walk through the residential suburbs of Iranian cities provided a clue. Window after window, block after block, displayed black-bordered photographs of teenage or preteen youths. ^[196]

"War of the Cities"[link]

Bodies of Iranian students killed in an Iraqi Bomber Attack on a school in Borujerd, 10 January 1987.

Toward the end of the war, the land conflict regressed into stalemate largely because neither side had enough self-propelled artillery or air power to support ground advances.

The relatively professional Iraqi armed forces could not make headway against the far more numerous Iranian infantry. The Iranians were outmatched in both towed and self-propelled artillery, which left their tanks and troops vulnerable. This led the Iranians to substitute infantry power for artillery.

Iraq's air force soon began strategic bombing against Iranian cities, chiefly Tehran, in 1985. To minimize losses from the superior Iranian Air Force, Iraq rapidly switched to Scud and Al-Hussein improved Scud launches. In retaliation, Iran fired Scud missiles acquired from Libya^{[citation needed]} and Syria against Baghdad. In all, Iraq launched 520 Scuds and Al-Husseins against Iran and received only 177 in exchange. In October 1986, Iraqi aircraft began to attack civilian passenger trains and aircraft on Iranian soil, including an Iran Air Boeing 737 unloading passengers at Shiraz International Airport.^[171]

In retaliation for the Iranian Operation Karbala-5, an early 1987 attempt to capture Basra, Iraq attacked 65 cities in 226 sorties over 42 days, bombing civilian neighborhoods. Eight Iranian cities came under attack from Iraqi missiles. The bombings killed 65 children in an elementary school in Borujerd alone. The Iranians also responded with Scud missile attacks on Baghdad and struck a primary school there. These events became known as "the War of the Cities".^[159]

Aftermath [link]

Damage to a mosque in Khoramshahr

Iranian Martyr Cemetery in Yazd

An Iraqi Mil Mi-25, brought down during the Iran–Iraq War, on display at a Military museum in Tehran

The Iran–Iraq War was extremely costly in lives and material, the deadliest war ever fought between developing countries.^[38] Both countries were devastated by the effect of the war. It cost Iran an estimated 1 million casualties, killed or wounded, and Iranians continue to suffer and die as a consequence of Iraq's use of chemical weapons.^{[citation needed]} Iraqi casualties are estimated at 250,000–500,000 killed or wounded. Thousands of civilians died on both sides in air raids and ballistic missile attacks.^[159]

The financial loss was also enormous, at the time exceeding US$600 billion for each country ($1.2 trillion in total). But shortly after the war it turned out that the economic cost of war is more profound and long-lasting than the estimates right after the war suggested.^[7] Economic development was stalled and oil exports disrupted. These economic woes were of a more serious nature for Iraq that had to incur huge debts during the war as compared to the very small debt of Iran, as Iranians had used bloodier but economically cheaper tactics during the war, in effect substituting soldiers' lives for lack of financial funding during their defense. This put Saddam in a difficult position, particularly with his war-time allies, as by then Iraq was under more than $130 billion of international debt, excluding the interest in an after war economy with a slowed GDP growth. A large portion of this debt was loaned by Paris Club amounting to $21 billion, 85% of which had originated from seven countries of Japan, Russia, France, Germany, United States, Italy and United Kingdom. But the largest portion of $130 billion debt was to Iraq's former Arab backers of the war including the $67 billion loaned by Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and Jordan.^{[citation needed]}

After the war, Iraq accused Kuwait of slant drilling and stealing oil which led to the invasion of Kuwait, which in turn worsened Iraq's financial situation as the United Nations Compensation Commission awarded reparations amounting more than $200 billion to victims of the invasion including Kuwait, United States, individuals and companies among others, to be paid by Iraq in oil commodity^{[citation needed]}. To enforce payment of these reparations Iraq was put under a complete international embargo. This put further strain on the Iraqi economy, pushing its external debt and international liabilities to private and public sectors including interest to more than $500 billion by the end of Saddam's rule. Combined with negative economic growth of Iraq after the prolonged international sanctions, this produced a Debt-to-GDP ratio of more than 1,000%, making Iraq the most indebted poor country in the world. This unsustainable economic situation compelled the new Iraqi government formed after the fall of Saddam to request the writing off of a considerable portion of loans incurred during the Iran–Iraq war.^[197]^[198]^[199]^[200]^[201]^[202]^[203]^[204]^[205]^[206]

The war and its outcome had a marked effect also on the scientific and technological advancement of the involved countries: Iraq's productivity in the field collapsed and has not yet recovered;^{[citation needed]} Kuwait's scientific output was initially slowed and later on became stagnant;^{[citation needed]} Iran, on the other hand, experienced a scientific revival and as of 2010 has the fastest scientific growth rate in the world.^[207]

Much of the oil industry in both countries was damaged in air raids. Iran's production capacity has yet to fully recover from the damages of the war. 10 million shells had landed in Iraq's oil fields at Basra, seriously damaging Iraq's oil production.^{[citation needed]}

Prisoners taken by both sides were not released until more than 10 years after the end of the conflict.^{[citation needed]} Cities on both sides had also been considerably damaged. Not all saw the war in negative terms. The Islamic Revolution of Iran was strengthened and radicalized.^[208] The Iranian government-owned Etelaat newspaper wrote:

There is not a single school or town that is excluded from the happiness of "holy defence" of the nation, from drinking the exquisite elixir of martyrdom, or from the sweet death of the martyr, who dies in order to live forever in paradise.^[209]

The Iraqi government commemorated the war with various monuments, including the Hands of Victory and the Al-Shaheed Monument, both in Baghdad.^{[citation needed]}

The war left the borders unchanged.^{[citation needed]} Two years later, as war with the western powers loomed, Saddam recognized Iranian rights over the eastern half of the Arvand rud, a reversion to the status quo ante bellum that he had repudiated a decade earlier.^{[citation needed]}

Declassified US intelligence available has explored both the domestic and foreign implications of Iran's apparent (in 1982) victory over Iraq in their then two-year old war.^[210]

On 9 December 1991, the UN Secretary-General reported the following to the UN Security Council:

That [Iraq's] explanations do not appear sufficient or acceptable to the international community is a fact. Accordingly, the outstanding event under the violations referred to is the attack of 22 September 1980, against Iran, which cannot be justified under the charter of the United Nations, any recognized rules and principles of international law or any principles of international morality and entails the responsibility for conflict.

Even if before the outbreak of the conflict there had been some encroachment by Iran on Iraqi territory, such encroachment did not justify Iraq's aggression against Iran—which was followed by Iraq's continuous occupation of Iranian territory during the conflict—in violation of the prohibition of the use of force, which is regarded as one of the rules of jus cogens.

...On one occasion I had to note with deep regret the experts' conclusion that "chemical weapons ha[d] been used against Iranian civilians in an area adjacent to an urban center lacking any protection against that kind of attack" (s/20134, annex). The Council expressed its dismay on the matter and its condemnation in Resolution 620 (1988), adopted on 26 August 1988.^[211]

In 2005, the new government of Iraq apologized to Iran for starting the war.^[212]

Leaked Iraqi intelligence documents [link]

During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, United States forces captured a voluminous archive of documents and recorded meetings that chronicle the deliberations of Saddam Hussein and his inner sanctum. Much of the collection has yet to be made public. But the Conflict Records Research Center, a government archive, has released 20 transcripts and documents in conjunction with a conference on the Iran-Iraq war that was convened by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.^[213]^[214]

The publicized documents can be viewed here:[4]

Notes [link]

^ Iranian perspectives on the Iran-Iraq war, Ed. Farhang Rajaee.
^ Country Study: Iran. Library of Congress. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/irtoc.html.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988)". Globalsecurity.org. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/iran-iraq.htm.
^ http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.TAB15.1D.GIF
^ "Twentieth Century Atlas – Death Tolls". Users.erols.com. http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/warstat2.htm#Iran-Iraq. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
^ Pike, John. "Iran-Iraq War (1980–1988)". Globalsecurity.org. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/iran-iraq.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Iran-Iraq War – MSN Encarta". Iran-Iraq War – MSN Encarta. Encarta.msn.com. 20 August 1988. http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761580640_2/Iran-Iraq_War.html. Retrieved 1 March 2009.
^ "Iran Chamber Society: History of Iran: Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988". Iranchamber.com. http://www.iranchamber.com/history/iran_iraq_war/iran_iraq_war3.php. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
^ "Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988". Historyofwar.org. http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/wars_iraniraq.html. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
^ http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.TAB14.1C.GIF
^ http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.TAB14.1C.GIF
^ http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.TAB15.1D.GIF
^ "Iran-Iraq War". Infoplease.com. 1980-09-22. http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0825449.html. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
^ "The Iran-Iraq War". Jewishvirtuallibrary.org. http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/arabs/iraniraq.html. Retrieved 2009-03-01.
^ "Customer Reviews: The Longest War: The Iran-Iraq Military Conflict". Amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/Longest-War-Iran-Iraq-Military-Conflict/product-reviews/0415904072. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "The Longest War-Never Again". Iranian.com. http://www.iranian.com/main/blog/fair/longest-war-never-again. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "War of Blackmail | Martin Weiss". Safehaven.com. http://www.safehaven.com/article/7228/war-of-blackmail. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ See, for instance, Carlisle and Bowman, Persian Gulf War, 2003.
^ ^a ^b Molavi, Afshin (2005). The Soul of Iran. Norton. p. 152.
^ Fathi, Nazila (14 March 2003). "Threats And Responses: Briefly Noted; Iran-Iraq Prisoner Deal". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0DEFDC113EF937A25750C0A9659C8B63.
^ Abrahamian, Ervand, A History of Modern Iran, Cambridge, 2008, p.171
^ "IRAQ vii. IRAN-IRAQ WAR". Encyclopædia Iranica. 2006-12-15. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/iraq-vii-iran-iraq-war.
^ Hiltermann, Joost (2003-01-17). "America Didn't Seem to Mind Poison Gas". International Herald Tribune. http://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/169/36403.html.
^ King, John (2003-03-31). "Arming Iraq and the Path to War". U.N. Observer & International Report. http://www.unobserver.com/index.php?pagina=layout5.php&id=815&blz=1.
^ Fisk, Robert. The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005, p. 219. ISBN 1-84115-007-X.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 7
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 8
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 7–8
^ Bulloch, John and Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, London: Methuen, 1989 page 37.
^ Fendereski, Guive (2005). "2005: Tonb (Greater and Lesser)". www.iranica.com.
^ Westcott, Kathryn (2003-02-27). "Iraq's rich mosaic of people". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2783989.stm.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 260.
^ ^a ^b Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 298.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 13
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 13–14
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 14
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 16
^ ^a ^b Fürtig, Henner (2012). "Den Spieß umgedreht: iranische Gegenoffensive im Ersten Golfkrieg [Turning of the Tables: the Iranian counter-offensive during the first Gulf War]" (in German). Damals (5): 10–13.
^ ^a ^b Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 261.
^ Speech made by Saddam Hussein. Baghdad, Voice of the Masses in Arabic, 1200 GMT 2 April 1980. FBIS-MEA-80-066. 3 April 1980, E2-3. E3
^ Khomeini, Ruhollah and Algar, Hamid (translator) (1981). Islam and Revolution: Writing and Declarations of Imam Khomeini. Mizan Press. p. 122.
^ Mackey, Sandra (1996). The Iranians: Persia, Islam and the Soul of a Nation. Dutton. p. 317.
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 12–13
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 27
^ ^a ^b ^c Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 19
^ ^a ^b Cruze, Gregory S. (Spring 1988). Iran and Iraq: Perspectives in Conflict. research. report. U.S. Marine Corps Command and Staff College. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/1988/CGS.htm
^ Karsh, Efraim (2002). The Iran–Iraq War, 1980–1988. Osprey Publishing. p. 22.
^ Eckholm, 2011: 42 "Invading forces would need to be prepared for a deeply embedded and enduring insurgency, due to extreme challenges presented by terrain, and resolve…"
^ (Abraham, 1990: 102)
^ (Hekmatpanah, 2011: 3020) "Iran and its oil industry play a major role in the Middle East and in the global economy."
^ (Wright, 1942: 369)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e The Iran–Iraq War: 1980–1988. p. 22.
^ Cordesman, Anthony and Wagner,Abraham R. (1990). The Lessons of Modern War: Volume Two – The Iran-Iraq Conflict. Westview. p. 102.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 27
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f The Iran–Iraq War: 1980–1988. p. 23.
^ ^a ^b The Iran–Iraq War: 1980–1988. p. 27.
^ The Iran–Iraq War: 1980–1988. p. 25.
^ ^a ^b "Modern Warfare: Iran-Iraq War" (Film Documentary)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f The Iran–Iraq War: 1980–1988. p. 29.
^ ^a ^b Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 30
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 31–32
^ ^a ^b ^c Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 32
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 71
^ Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, Bloomsbury: London, 1989 pages 250-251
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 33
^ ^a ^b Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 34
^ ^a ^b Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 35
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 36
^ John Keegan:The Iraq War
^ ^a ^b Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 68
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 263.
^ ^a ^b Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 160
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 69
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 pages 162-163
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 163
^ ^a ^b ^c Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 147
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 pages 11 & 147.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 38
^ Abrahamian, History of Modern Iran, pp. 171, 175.
^ Majd, Hooman, The Ayatollah Begs to Differ: The Paradox of Modern Iran, by Hooman Majd, Doubleday, 2008, page 146
^ ^a ^b ^c Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 265.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 37
^ King, John (March 2003). Arming Iraq: A Chronology of U.S. Involvement. Iran Chamber Society. http://www.iranchamber.com/history/articles/arming_iraq.php
^ Statement by former NSC official Howard Teicher to the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida. Plain text version
^ The Iran–Iraq War: 1980–1988. p. 41.
^ ^a ^b ^c Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 43
^ ^a ^b Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 40
^ ^a ^b Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 41
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 42
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 171.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 50
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 51
^ Dugdale-Pointon, TDP (27 October 2002). "Tanker War 1984–1988". http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/wars_tanker.html
^ Wars in Peace: Iran-Iraq War (Documentary Film)
^ http://www.jag.navy.mil/library/investigations/USS%20STARK%20BASIC.pdf
^ Desert Storm at sea: what the Navy really did by Marvin Pokrant, P 43.
^ Stephen Andrew Kelley (June 2007) (PDF). Better Lucky Than Good: Operation Earnest Will as Gunboat Diplomacy. Naval Postgraduate School. http://www.ccc.nps.navy.mil/research/theses/kelley07.pdf. Retrieved 9 November 2007
^ ^a ^b Formal Investigation into the Circumstances Surrounding the Attack of the USS Stark in 1987^{[dead link]}
^ ^a ^b ^c Kelley, Stephen Andrew (June 2007). Better Lucky than Good: Operation Earnest Will as Gunboat Diplomacy. Master's Thesis. U.S. Naval Postgraduate School
^ Iran. "AllRefer.com - Iran - Gradual Superpower Involvement | Iranian Information Resource". Reference.allrefer.com. http://reference.allrefer.com/country-guide-study/iran/iran172.html. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "Seawise Giant (Happy Giant) (Jahre Viking) (Knock Nevis) (Mont)". Relevantsearchscotland.co.uk. http://www.relevantsearchscotland.co.uk/ships/jahre.html. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 47
^ "Further on Khomeini 4 April Speech on War", broadcast 4 April 1985, quoted in Reinventing Khomeini: The Struggle for Reform in Iran by Daniel Brumberg. University of Chicago Press, 2001, pages 132–34
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 48
^ ^a ^b Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 240.
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 242.
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 241.
^ ^a ^b Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 49
^ John Pike. "Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988)". Globalsecurity.org. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/iran-iraq.htm. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 57
^ ^a ^b ^c Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 264.
^ ^a ^b Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 253.
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 57–59
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 59–61
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 79
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 1.
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 79–80
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 80–81
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 81
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 81–82
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 1.
^ ^a ^b Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 67
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 67–68
^ ^a ^b ^c Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 68–69
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 70
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 pages 75-76
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 76
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 pages 77-78
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 pages 75-77
^ "CRS Report for Congress: The Kurds in Post-Saddam Iraq(Page 2)" (PDF). http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RS22079.pdf. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 72
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 72–73
^ Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 pages 74–75
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 74
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 239.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 75
^ ^a ^b Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War 1980–1988, London: Osprey, 2002 page 73
^ Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 250.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 251.
^ ^a ^b ^c Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts, London: Bloomsbury, 1989 page 252.
^ Julian Borger in Washington (31 December 2002). "Rumsfeld 'offered help to Saddam'". London: The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2002/dec/31/iraq.politics. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "The Great British Arms Industry | Open Veins". Openveinsblog.wordpress.com. 2010-11-15. http://openveinsblog.wordpress.com/2010/11/15/the-great-british-arms-industry/. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "The Arming, and Disarming, of Iran's Revolution," The Economist, International Edition, 19 September 1987, 56–57.
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 119.
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 pages 119 & 198-199.
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 185.
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 197.
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 pages 142-143.
^ "Like the Iran-Iraq war. | Goliath Business News". Goliath.ecnext.com. 30 April 2007. http://goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/gi_0199-6662950/Like-the-Iran-Iraq-war.html. Retrieved 1 March 2009.
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 page 178.
^ ^a ^b Bulloch, John and Morris, Harvey, The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 pages 184-185
^ Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War, Methuen: London, 1989 pages 185, 187, 188 & 192-193.
^ perspectives on the Iran-Iraq war. Books.google.ee. http://books.google.ee/books?id=BABAZqVgfq0C&pg=PA17#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ Jessup, John E. (1998-08-30). An encyclopedic dictionary of conflict and conflict resolution, 1945-1996. Books.google.ee. http://books.google.ee/books?id=jh3Q5F7BaB8C&pg=PA368#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ Fisk. The Great War for Civilisation, p. 221.
^ ^a ^b ^c Martins, Mark S. (Winter 1994). "Rules of Engagement for Land Forces: A Matter of Training, Not Lawyering" (PDF). Military Law Review 143: 43–46. http://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/Military_Law/Military_Law_Review/pdf-files/27687D~1.pdf
^ Peniston, Bradley (2006). No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf. Persian Gulf: Naval Institute Press. pp. 61–63. ISBN 1-59114-661-5.. http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-stark.shtml
^ See Fisk. The Great War for Civilisation, pp. 260–273.
^ ^a ^b ^c Rajaee, Farhang. The Iran–Iraq War: The Politics of Aggression. University Press of Florida.
^ United Nations Special Commission. "Annex D: Actions by Iraq to Obstruct Disarmament" (^{[dead link]}). UNSCOM's Comprehensive Review. James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies. http://cns.miis.edu/research/iraq/ucreport/dis_acti.htm
^ "Iran–Iraq War," Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2008 encarta.msn.com 1997–2008 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved
^ El Mundo (Spain) book. El Camino de la Libertad. La democracia año a año. 1986 ISBN 978-84-92540-09-9. Page 27-32.
^ Fuller, Graham E. 2008 "The new Turkish Republic, Turkey as a pivotal state in the Muslim world" ISBN 978-1-60127-019-1 Page 40,98
^ "Iraq debt: non-Paris Club creditors". http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/report/2004/isg-final-report/ch2_anxd_img06.jpg. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ Lantos, Tom (19 May 1992). The Administration's Iraq Gate Scandal, by William Safire. Congressional Record. http://www.fas.org/spp/starwars/congress/1992/h920519l.htm
^ "Annex D, Iraq Economic Data (1989–2003)". Comprehensive Report of the Special Advisor to the DCI [Director of Central Intelligence] on Iraq's WMD. 1 of 3. GlobalSecurity.org. 30 September 2004. http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/report/2004/isg-final-report/isg-final-report_vol1_rfp-anx-d.htm
^ Wright, Robin, Dreams and Shadows : the Future of the Middle East, Penguin Press, 2008, p.438
^ History's Greatest War by Terry Bryant, 2007
^ The Iran-Iraq War: The Politics of Aggression by Farhang Rajaee, University Press of Florida
^ Fassihi, Farnaz (27 October 2002). "In Iran, grim reminders of Saddam's arsenal". New Jersey Star-Ledger. http://www.nj.com/specialprojects/index.ssf?/specialprojects/mideaststories/me1209.html
^ ^a ^b Center for Documents of The Imposed War, Tehran. (مرکز مطالعات و تحقیقات جنگ)
^ [51] S/17911 and Add. 1, 21 March 1986. Note that this is a "decision" and not a resolution.
^ Tyler, Patrick E. (18 August 2002). "OFFICERS SAY U.S. AIDED IRAQ IN WAR DESPITE USE OF GAS". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/18/world/officers-say-us-aided-iraq-in-war-despite-use-of-gas.html.
^ Galbraith, Peter W.; Van Hollen, Christopher Jr. (21 September 1988). Chemical Weapons Use in Kurdistan: Iraq's Final Offensive. staff. report to the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. p. 30
^ Pear, Robert (15 September 1988). "U.S. Says It Monitored Iraqi Messages on Gas". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=940DE6DC1E3BF936A2575AC0A96E948260
^ Fisk. The Great War for Civilisation, p. 214.
^ Potter, Lawrence; Sick (2004). Iran, Iraq, and the legacies of war. MacMillan. p. 153. ISBN 1-4039-6450-5
^ Potter, Lawrence; Sick (2004). Iran, Iraq, and the legacies of war. MacMillan. p. 156. ISBN 1-4039-6450-5
^ Tragert, Joseph (2003). Understanding Iran. Indianapolis., Indiana: Alpha. p. 190. ISBN 1-59257-141-7.
^ Rasheed, Ahmed (19 December 2006). "Saddam admits Iran gas attacks". The Australian. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20950607-1702,00.html
^ Sidell, Frederick R.; Urbanetti, John S.; Smith, William J.; Hurst, Charles G.. "Chapter 7: Vesicants". Medical Aspects of Chemical and Biological Warfare. Office of The Surgeon General, Department of the Army, United States of America. http://www.sc-ems.com/ems/NuclearBiologicalChemical/MedicalAspectsofNBC/chapters/chapter_7.htm
^ "IRAN: Eyes on the Skies Over Bushehr Nuclear Reactor - IPS". Ipsnews.net. 2010-08-06. http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=52412. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ ^a ^b "McNair Paper 41, Radical Responses to Radical Regimes: Evaluating Preemptive Counter-Proliferation, May 1995". Au.af.mil. 1980-09-30. http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/mcnair41/41irq.htm. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ ^a ^b "McNair Paper 41, Radical Responses to Radical Regimes: Evaluating Preemptive Counter-Proliferation, May 1995". Au.af.mil. http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/mcnair41/41not.htm#39. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "Osiraq - Iraq Special Weapons Facilities". Fas.org. http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/iraq/facility/osiraq.htm. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ ^a ^b http://google.com/search?q=cache:ZlBdwCEy9yAJ:www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/IMG/pdf/Osirak.pdf+osirak+repair+after+iranian+attack&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=ca&client=firefox-a
^ [1]
^ "پايگاه هشتم شكاري". Airtoair.blogfa.com. http://airtoair.blogfa.com/post-18.aspx. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "Fire in the Hills: Iranian and Iraqi Battles of Autumn 1982". Acig.org. http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_214.shtml. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "Hind In Foreign Service / Hind Upgrades / Mi-28 Havoc". Vectorsite.net. http://www.vectorsite.net/avhind_2.html. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "Medscape: Medscape Access". Emedicine.medscape.com. http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1238278-overview. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ Healy, Melissa (24 January 2011). "Advances in treatment help more people survive severe injuries to the brain". Los Angeles Times. http://www.latimes.com/health/la-he-medical-advances-20110124,0,3062896.story.
^ "Advances in treatment help more people survive severe injuries to the brain". Quedit.com. 2011-01-22. http://www.quedit.com/detail/advances-in-treatment-help-more-people-survive-severe-injuries-to-the-brain-5128922.html. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ Healy, Melissa (2011-01-24). "Brain injuries: Changes in the treatment of brain injuries have improved survival rate". baltimoresun.com. http://www.baltimoresun.com/health/la-he-medical-advances-20110124,0,1844181.story. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ [2]
^ Wright, Robin, Sacred Rage, Simon and Schuster, (2001), p.37
^ Docs.Google.com
^ "Op-ed: The Right Way to Ease Iraq's Debt Burden". Iie.com. 2003-04-28. http://www.iie.com/publications/opeds/oped.cfm?ResearchID=249. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ Mees.com^{[dead link]}
^ "UAE waives billions of Iraqi debt". BBC News. 6 July 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7492115.stm.
^ "Iraq war reparations to Kuwait could be reduced: UK". Reuters. 4 August 2009. http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE5736M320090804?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0.
^ JubileeIraq.org
^ "Western Countries Cancel Iraqi Debt, Gulf Countries Don't". Probe International. http://www.probeinternational.org/odious-debts/western-countries-cancel-iraqi-debt-gulf-countries-dont. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "Ramadan Sermon From Iraq". Memri.org. http://www.memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Area=ia&ID=IA43808&Page=archives. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ "Iraq's debt. Saudi Arabia backed away from it's [sic] obligations & claims contrary to assurances of Kuwait". Investorsiraq.com. 2008-08-13. http://www.investorsiraq.com/showthread.php?p=679658. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
^ [3]
^ http://www.science-metrix.com/30years-Paper.pdf
^ Nasr, Vali, The Shia Revival, Norton, (2006), pages 140
^ Column in Etelaat, 4 April 1983, quoted in Molavi, Afshin, The Soul of Iran (Norton), (2006)
^ SNIE 34/36.2-82 link: Intelligence Reports on Saddam's Reign
^ See items 6, 7, and 8 of the UN Secretary General's report to the UN Security Council on 9 December 1991: Iranian.com
^ Black, Ian (23 September 2010). "Iran and Iraq remember war that cost more than a million lives". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/23/iran-iraq-war-anniversary.
^ Gordon, Michael R. (2011-10-25). "Papers From Iraqi Archive Reveal Conspiratorial Mind-Set of Hussein". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/world/middleeast/archive-offers-rare-glimpse-inside-mind-of-saddam-hussein.html?_r=1. Retrieved 2011-12-28.
^ "Inside the Iraqi command". New York Times. 2011-10-25. http://documents.nytimes.com/transcripts-of-conversations-between-saddam-hussein-and-his-advisors?ref=middleeast. Retrieved 2011-12-28.

References [link]

Brogan, Patrick World Conflicts Why and Where They Are Happening, Bloomsbury: London, 1989, ISBN 0-7475-0260-9.
Bulloch, John & Morris, Harvey The Gulf War Its Origins, History and Consequences, Methuen: London, 1989, ISBN 0-413-61370-4.
Karsh, Efraim The Iran-Iraq War, 1980-1988, Osprey: London, 2002, ISBN 1-84176-371-3.
Wright, E,M (1942). Iran as a Gateway to Russia. Foreign Affairs. pp. 367–372.
Abraham, R (1990). The Lessons of Modern War: Volume Two – The Iran-Iraq Conflict.. Westview. pp. 102.
Eckholm, L (2). "Ìnvading Iran: Lessons From Iraq". Policy Review.

External links [link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Iran-Iraq War

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Video archive of Iran–Iraq War
Discussion About the Iran - Iraq War from the Dean Peter Krogh Foreign Affairs Digital Archives
Documentary about the war (on Google Video)
Iran–Iraq War at the Open Directory Project
FMFRP 3-203 – Lessons Learned: Iran–Iraq War, 10 December 1990.
Dutchman charged for selling chemicals to Saddam, BBC, 18 March 2005.
Sasan Fayazmanesh, Historical Amnesia: The Shoot Down of Iran Air Flight 655, Counterpunch, 11 July 2008, Counterpunch.org.
Global Security: Iran-Iraq war
Bibliography: The Iran-Iraq War, and U.S. Involvement in It.

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Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq محمد ضياءالحق

Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (right)
President of Pakistan
In office 16 September 1978 – 17 August 1988
Prime Minister	Muhammad Khan Junejo
Preceded by	Fazal Ilahi Chaudhry
Succeeded by	Ghulam Ishaq Khan
Minister of Defence
In office 26 February 1985 – 24 March 1985
Preceded by	Ali Ahmed Khan Talpur
Succeeded by	Muhammad Khan Junejo
In office 14 January 1978 – 27 August 1978
President	Fazal Ilahi Chaudhry
Preceded by	Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
Succeeded by	Ali Ahmed Khan Talpur
Chief of Army Staff
In office 1 March 1976 – 17 August 1988
Deputy	Sawar Khan Khalid Mahmud Arif Mirza Aslam Beg
Preceded by	Tikka Khan
Succeeded by	Mirza Aslam Beg
Personal details
Born	(1924-08-12)12 August 1924 Jalandhar, British Raj (now India)
Died	17 August 1988(1988-08-17) (aged 64) Bahawalpur, Pakistan
Political party	Independent
Spouse(s)	Shafiq Jahan
Alma mater	St. Stephen's College, Delhi United States Army Command and General Staff College
Military service
Nickname(s)	Tanker
Allegiance	Pakistan
Service/branch	Pakistan Army
Years of service	1943–1988
Rank	General
Unit	Guides Cavalry, Army Armoured Corps (PA – 1810)
Commands	2nd Independent Armoured Brigade 1st Armoured Division II Corps Chief of Army Staff
Battles/wars	World War II Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Black September in Jordan Operation Fair Play Operation Cyclone Soviet war in Afghanistan

General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (Punjabi, Urdu: محمد ضياء الحق; August 12, 1924 – August 17, 1988), was the 4th Chief Martial Law Administrator and the sixth President of Pakistan from July 1977 to his death in August 1988. Distinguished by his role in the Black September in Jordan military operation in 1970, he was appointed Chief of Army Staff in 1976 by Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto after Bhutto forcefully retired seven senior lieutenant-generals who were tainted with their role in the East-Pakistan war in order to bring and promote Zia to four star rank.^[1] After widespread civil disorder, he planned and overthrew ruling Prime Minister Bhutto in a bloodless coup d'état on July 5, 1977, code name Fair Play, and became the state's third military ruler to impose martial law.^[2] Zia's idea of religious conservatism in Pakistan became the primary line of his military government.^[3] Throughout the 1980s, Zia managed to consolidate more and more power in his hands, gradually putting down all opposition groups in Pakistan.^[4]

He initially ruled as Chief Martial Law Administrator (CMLA), but later installed himself as the President of Pakistan in September 1978.^[5] As both President and CMLA, Zia forcefully crushed the secular-communist and socialist democratic struggle led by the eldest daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Benazir Bhutto. Zia abandoned the previous economical policies of Bhutto, and replaced them with capitalism and privatization of the major industries of Pakistan that had been nationalized by Bhutto in 1970s. The Pakistan economy became one of the fastest growing economies in South Asia.^[6] However, during this period of economic and social change, Zia curbed and violently dealt with the political rivals in 1980s.^[7] His reign is often regarded as a period of mass military repression in which hundreds of thousands of political rivals, minorities, and journalists were executed or tortured, including Pakistan Army's senior general officers convicted in coup-d'état plots against his regime.^[7]

Zia's major domestic initiatives included the consolidation of the nuclear development, which was initiated by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto; the restarting of the space program as spin-off of the nuclear project, denationalization and deregulation and the state's Islamization.^[7] His tenure saw the disbanding of the Baloch insurgency. His endorsement of the Pakistan Muslim League (the founding party of Pakistan) initiated its mainstream revival.^[1] However, he is most remembered for his foreign policy; the subsidizing of the Mujahideen movement during the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan which led to the Soviet-Russian withdrawal from Afghanistan Socialist Republic. Zia entered into an undeclared secret war with Soviet Afghanistan and its ally Soviet Union. Zia authorized secret funding and expansion of intelligence operations in Pakistan and abroad, initially focusing on anti-communist operations. He was described by some as a "fundamentalist Sunni dictator".^[8]

Zia died along with several of his top generals and admirals and the then United States Ambassador to Pakistan Arnold Lewis Raphel in a suspicious air crash near Bahawalpur (Punjab) on 17 August 1988.

1 Early life
2 Army career
3 Planning of coup
4 Reign as Chief Martial Law Administrator
5 Appointment of Martial Law Governors
6 Reign as President of Pakistan
7 Involvement in the Soviet-Afghan War
- 7.1 The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan
8 Economic reform
9 'Islamisation' of Pakistan
10 Dismissal of the Junejo government and call for new elections
11 Political Purge
12 Death
13 Funeral and burial
14 Honours
15 Books about Haq's time period
16 Portrayals in popular culture
17 See also
18 References
19 External links

Early life [link]

Zia was born in Jalandhar, British India,^[9] in 1924 as the second child of Muhammad Akbar, who worked in the Army GHQ in Delhi and Simla, prior to the partition of Pakistan from British colonial rule in 1947.

He completed his initial education in Simla and then attended St. Stephen's College, Delhi for his graduate degree. After graduation from St. Xavier College, Zia joined the British Indian Army in 1943.

He married Shafiq Jahan in 1950–51.^[10]

Shafiq Zia died on January 5, 1996.^[11] Zia is survived by his sons, Muhammad Ijaz-ul-Haq,^[12] (born 1953), who went into politics and became a cabinet minister in the government of Nawaz Sharif, and Anwar-ul-Haq (born 1950)^[13]^[14]^[15] and his daughters, Zian^[16]^[17] (also Zain)^[18] (born 1972),^[19] a special needs child, and Rubina Salim, who is married to a Pakistani banker and has been living in the United States since 1980,^[20]^[21] and daughter Quratulain Zia who currently lives in London, and is married to Pakistani doctor, Adnan Majid.^[22]

Army career [link]

Zia was commissioned in the British Indian Army in a cavalry regiment on May 12, 1943 and served against Nazi Germany and its allies in World War II. After Pakistan gained its independence, Zia joined the newly formed Pakistan Army as a Major. His regiment was now the Guides Cavalry Frontier Force Regiment. He was trained in the United States in 1962–1964 at the US Army Command and General Staff College Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. After that, he returned to take over as Directing Staff (DS) at Command and Staff College, Quetta.^[23] During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Zia was a tank commander.^[24]

Zia was stationed in Jordan from 1967 to 1970 as a Brigadier, helping in the training of Jordanian soldiers, as well as leading the training mission into battle during the Black September operations as commander of Jordanian 2nd Division, a strategy that proved crucial to King Hussein's remaining in power. By 1973, then Major General Zia was commanding the 1st Armoured Division at Multan.^[23]

He was then promoted as Lieutenant General and was appointed commander of the II Strike Corps at Multan in 1975. It was during this time that Zia invited Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto as the Colonel-in-Chief of the Armoured Corps at Multan, using his tailor to stitch the Blue Patrols of his size. The next day, Bhutto was requested to climb a tank and engage a target, where the target was quite obviously hit. After the function, Zia met Bhutto, placed his hand on the Qur'an and said, "You are the saviour of Pakistan and we owe it to you to be totally loyal to you".^[1]

On March 1, 1976, Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto approved then-3 star general Lieutenant-General Zia as Chief of Army Staff and to be elevated to 4 star rank.^[25] This promotion was ahead of a number of more senior officers.^[26] This promotion was highly controversial but had political motives for Bhutto, who saw Zia as firmly religious and an apolitical military figure who had distaste of politics.^[27] This was the same motives and move made by future Prime minister Nawaz Sharif who promoted Pervez Musharraf based on his political ambitious, as Chief of Army Staff, but met the same fate as Bhutto in 1999 (although he was not executed).^[27]

At the time of his nominating the successor to the outgoing Chief of Army Staff General Tikka Khan, the Lieutenant Generals in order of seniority were, Muhammad Shariff, Muhammed Akbar Khan, Aftab Ahmed Khan, Azmat Baksh Awan, Agha Ibrahim Akram, Abdul Majeed Malik, Ghulam Jilani Khan, and Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq. But, Bhutto chose the most junior, superseding seven more senior lieutenant-generals.^[28] However, the senior most at that time, Lieutenant-General Mohammad Shariff, though promoted to General, was made the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, a constitutional post akin to President Fazal Ilahi Chaudhry.^[29] Zia never called Bhutto as "Mr. Prime Minister", but relied on the term Sir while referring to Bhutto.^[26]

Planning of coup [link]

Prime Minister Bhutto began facing considerable criticism and increasing unpopularity as his term progressed, the democratic socialists alliance who had previously allied with Bhutto began to diminish as time progresses.^[2] Initially targeting leader of the opposition Vali Khan and his opposition National Awami Party (NAP), also a socialist party. Despite the ideological similarity of the two parties, the clash of egos both inside and outside the National Assembly became increasingly fierce, starting with the Federal governments decision to oust the NAP provincial government in Balochistan Province for alleged secessionist activities^[30] and culminating in the banning of the party and arrest of much of its leadership after the death of a close lieutenant of Bhutto's, Hayat Sherpao, in a bomb blast in the frontier town of Peshawar.

Civil disorders against Bhutto [link]

Dissidence also increased within the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), and the murder of a leading dissident Ahmed Raza Kasuri's father led to public outrage and intra-party hostility as Bhutto was accused of masterminding the crime. Powerful PPP leaders such as Ghulam Mustafa Khar openly condemned Bhutto and called for protests against his regime. The political crisis in the NWFP (now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and Balochistan intensified as civil liberties remained suspended, and an estimated 100,000 troops deployed there were accused of abusing human rights and killing large numbers of civilians.^[31]

1977 Parliamentary elections [link]

On January 8, 1977 a large number of opposition political parties grouped to form the Pakistan National Alliance^[31] (PNA). Bhutto called fresh elections, and PNA participated fully in those elections. They managed to contest the elections jointly even though there were grave splits on opinions and views within the party. The PNA faced defeat but did not accept the results, alleging that the election was rigged. They proceeded to boycott the provincial elections. Despite this, there was a high voter turnout in the national elections; however, as provincial elections were held amidst low voter turnout and an opposition boycott, the PNA declared the newly-elected Bhutto government as illegitimate.

Staged a Coup d'état [link]

General Zia had been long planning to impose the Martial law and end of Bhutto's government since 1976, soon when he became chief of army staff.^[32] On multiple occasions, Zia deliberately conceal intelligence information and misguided Bhutto on various political matters.^[32] Soon, all the opposition leaders called for the overthrow of Bhutto's regime.^[2] Political and civil disorder intensified, which led to more unrest.^[33] Bhutto imposed martial law in major cities including Karachi, Lahore and Hyderabad. However, a compromise agreement between Bhutto and opposition was ultimately reported.^[26] This compromise theory was however probably a later day addition as a major PPP armed rally was in the offing.^[26] Zia planned a the Coup d'état carefully as he knew Bhutto had integral intelligence in the Pakistan Armed Forces, and many officers, including Chief of Air Staff General Zulfiqar Ali Khan and Major-General Tajammul Hussain Malik, GOC of 23rd Mountain Division, Major-General Naseerullah Babar, DG of Directorate-General for the Military Intelligence (DGMO) and Vice-Admiral Syed Mohammad Ahsan, were loyal to Bhutto.^[26] Meanwhile, intelligence unit and army formations were placed in Prime minister secretariat who kept an eye on Bhutto's movement, tapping the phone calls and keeping the records of invitees of Prime minister secretariat.^[26] General Zia's closest ally, General K.M. Arif had tried to meet with Bhutto on various attempts, but such actions were thwarted by Zia.^[26] Finally, on April 5, 1977, Arif succeeded to secretly meet with Bhutto, revealing the plot against Bhutto. Bhutto remained unconvinced and did not believed and reportedly said: "How could his protege General Zia would do such things to him?", Bhutto dismissed General Arif later.^[32]

“	Zia's planning was excellent and well-rehearsed from every inch of the situation... Zia wanted to became an undisputed leader... Bhutto was tied up and had given no single chance to protect himself from Zia's planning and his motives....	”
—Fakhruddin Ebrahim, ^[26]

To remove this intelligence, Zia secretly contracted with the active duty British SAS army officers to maintain a staff course for the Army personnel while Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Mohammad Shariff quietly removed naval personnel loyal to Bhutto and his government from the Navy's active duty.^[26] Zia ordered Bhutto's loyal officers to attend a staff and command course and none of the officers were allowed to leave the course until the midnight.^[26] Meanwhile, Zia with his close officers, including Admiral Mohammad Shariff, then-Chaiman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, arranged the coup in the evening.^[26] On July 5, 1977, before the announcement of any agreement, Bhutto and members of his cabinet were arrested by troops of Military Police under the order of Zia by the evening.^[31] Bhutto tried to call Zia but all telephone lines were disconnected and an army officer appeared in the Prime minister secretariat to arrest Bhutto.^[32] After realizing General Arif's warnings were no hoax and the coup had been taken place, the weeping officer reportedly told Bhutto that he was sorry but has been forced to perform such "unpleasant task".^[32]

General Zia and his military government portrayed the coup as a "spontaneous response to a difficult situation", but his response was a complete contradiction. Soon after the coup, General Zia told the British journalist Edward Behr of Newsweek:

I (Zia) am the only man who took this decision [Fair Play] .... And I did so on 1700Hrs on 4[th] July after hearing the press statements that talks and negotiation between Mr. Bhutto and the opposition had broken down. Had an agreement been reached between them, I certainly would never had done it....

—General Zia-ul-Haq, statement given to Newsweek, ^[27]

However, General Zia's Chief of Army Staff General Khalid Mahmud Arif contradicted Zia's statement when Arif noted that the coup was planned already, and the senior leadership of Pakistan Armed Forces had solid information.^[27] Therefore, Arif met with Bhutto on emergency basis, stressing and urging Bhutto to "rush the negotiation with the opposition".^[27] By General Arif and independent expert's accounts, the talks were not broken down even though the coup was very much offing. General Zia further argued that Fair Play against Bhutto had been necessitated by the prospect of civil war that Bhutto had been planning to distribute the weapons to his supporters.^[27] However, General Arif strongly rejected Zia's remarks on Bhutto and citing the evidences that no weapons were found or recovered at the any of party's election office, therefore the military junta did not prosecute Bhutto on the charge of planning civil war.^[27]

Immediately, the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Mohammad Shariff validated the coup, announcing his and the navy's strong support for General Zia-ul-Haq and his military government.^[27] But, the Chief of Air Staff General Zulfikar Ali Khan remains unsupported while the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Muhammad Shariff remains neutral, while he silently expressd his support to Prime minister Zulfikar Bhutto.^[27] In 1978, Zia pressured President Fazal Ilahi Chaudhry to appoint General Anwar Shamim as Chief of Air Staff; and Admiral Caramatt Nazi as Chief of Naval Staff in 1979.^[34] On Zia's recommendation, President Illahi appointed Admiral Mohammad Shariff as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, hence making the Admiral the highest ranking officer and principle military adviser who overlooks the all inter-services, including the Chiefs of Staff of the respected forces.^[34] In 1979, the Chiefs of Army, Navy, and the Air Force, including the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff validated the coup as constitutional and legal under the war-torn circumstances, pledging their support to General Zia-ul-Haq as well.^[27]

United States sponsorship [link]

The United States, notably the President Ronald Reagan's Administration, was a staunch sponsor of Zia's military regime and was the major ally of Pakistan's conservative military.^[35] Reagen administration declared Zia's regime as the "Front-line" ally of the United States in the fight against the Communism.^[35] American legislators and senior officials most notable were Zbigniew Brzezinski, Henry Kissinger, Charlie Wilson, Joanne Herring, and the civilian intelligence officers Michael Pillsbury and Gust Avrakotos, and senior U.S. military officials General John William Vessey, General Herbert M. Wassom, and had been long associated with the Zia military regime where they had made frequent trips to Pakistan advising on expanding the idea of establishment in the political circle of Pakistan.^[35] Nominally, the American conservatism influenced General Zia-ul-Haq to adopt his idea of religious conservatism as the primary line of his military government, forcefully enforcing the Islamic and other religious practices in the country.^[35]

The socialist orientation had greatly alarmed the capitalist forces in Pakistan and as well as brought a clinging bell tolls alarm to the United States who feared the loss of Pakistan as an ally in the cold war.^[27] Many of Pakistan's political scientists and historians widely suspected that the riots and coup against Zulfi Bhutto was orchestrated with help of Central Intelligence Agency and the United States Government because United States growing fear of Bhutto's socialist policies which were seen as sympathetic towards the Soviet Union and had built a bridge that allowed Soviet Union to involved in Pakistan, and had access through Pakistan's warm water port; something that the United States was unable to gain access since the establishment of Pakistan in 1947.^[35]^[36] Former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark widely suspected the United States' involvement in bringing down the Bhutto's government, and publicly accused the United States' Government after attending the trial.^[36] On other hand, the United States refused any involvement in Bhutto's fall, and argued that it was Bhutto who had alienated himself over the five years.^[27] While witnessing the dramatic fall of Bhutto, one U.S. diplomat in American Embassy in Islamabad wrote that:

During Bhutto's five years in Pakistan's helm, Bhutto had retained an emotional hold on the poor masses who had votoed him overwhelmingly in 1970s general elections. At the same time, however, [B]hutto had many enemies. The [socialist economics] and nationalization of major private industries during his first two years on office had badly upsets the Business circles... An ill-considered decision to take over the wheat-milling, rice-husking, sugar mills, and cotton-gaining, industries in July of 1976 had angered the small business owners and traders. Both leftists— socilists and communists, intellectuals, students, and trade unionists— felt betrayed by Bhutto's shift to centre-right wing conservative economics policies and by his growing collaboration with powerful feudal lords, Pakistan's traditional power brokers. After 1976, Bhutto's aggressive authoritarian personal style and often high-handed way of dealing with political rivals, dissidents, and opponents had also alienated many....

—U.S. Embassy, Pakistan, U.S. commenting of Bhutto's fate, ^[27]

Postponement of elections and call for accountability [link]

After assuming power as Chief Martial Law Administrator, Zia shortly appeared in national television, PTV promising to hold new and neutral parliamentary elections within the next 90 days^[27] and to hand over power to the civilian representatives of the nation.^[27] He also stated that the Constitution of Pakistan had not been abrogated, but temporarily suspended.^[27] Zia did not trusted the civilian institutions and legislators to ensure country's integrity and sovereignty^[27] therefore, in October 1977, he announced the postponement of the electoral plan and decided to start an accountability process for the politicians.^[37] In television, Zia strongly defended his decision for postponing the elections and demanded that "scrutiny of political leaders who had engaged in malpractice in the past".^[37] Thus, the PNA adopted its policy of "retribution first, elections later".^[37] Zia's policy severely tainted his credibility as many, both domestically and internationally, saw the broken promise as malicious.^[26] Another motive was that Zia widely suspected that once out of power the size of PPP rallies swell and a better performance in elections was possible.^[27] This led to request for postponement of elections by the right-wing militarists as well as left-wing intellectuals, formerly allied with Bhutto, which displaced Bhutto in the first place.^[27] Zia dispatched an intelligence unit, known as ISI's Political Wing, sending Brigadier-General Taffazul Hussain Siddiqiui, to Bhutto's native Province, Sindh, to asses whether people would accept a martial law.^[27] The Political Wing also contacted the several right-wing militarists and conservatives, promising an election, with PNA power-sharing the government with Zia.^[27] Zia successfully divided and separated the secular forces from right-wing militarists and conservatives, and later purged each member of secular front.^[27] The election was imaginably formed with two active-duty generals ad two retired generals, one of them being infamous Major-General (retired) Rao Farman Ali who used the same genocidal practices on secular intellectuals as he did in 1970s.^[27]

A Disqualification Tribunal was formed, and several individuals who had been Members of Parliament were charged with malpractice and disqualified from participating in politics at any level for the next seven years.^[37] A white paper document was issued, incriminating the deposed Bhutto government on several counts.^[37]

It is reported by senior officers that when Gen. Zia met federal secretaries for the first time as leader of the country after martial law, he said that "He does not possess the Charisma of Bhutto, personality of Gen. Ayub or the legitimacy of Liaquat Ali Khan" thereby implying how can he be marketed.^[27]

Reign as Chief Martial Law Administrator [link]

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (October 2008)

The Doctrine of Necessity [link]

Main article: Zia-ul-Haq's Islamization

Nusrat Bhutto, the wife of the deposed Prime Minister, filed a suit against Zia's military regime, challenging the validity of the July 1977 military coup. The Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled, in what would later be known as the Doctrine of Necessity (not to be confused with the 1954 Doctrine of necessity) that, given the dangerously unstable political situation of the time, Zia's overthrowing of the Bhutto government was legal on the grounds of necessity. The judgement tightened the general's hold on the government. When Bhutto appeared personally to argue his appeal in the supreme court, he almost affirmed his concurrence with the judges present for not letting off a judgement without imposing some conditions on ruling military government.

Assumption of the post of President of Pakistan [link]

Despite the dismissal of most of the Bhutto government, President Fazal Ilahi Chaudhry was persuaded to continue in office as a figurehead.^[38] After completing his term, and despite Zia's insistence to accept an extension as President, Chaudhry resigned, and Zia took the office of President of Pakistan on September 16, 1978. Thus his position was cemented as the undisputed ruler of the country. Over the next six years, Zia issued several decrees which amended the constitution and greatly expanded his power. Most significantly, the Revival of Constitution of 1973 Order granted Zia the power to dissolve the National Assembly virtually at will.

Soon the martial law was imposed, Zia called for a meeting of senior statesmen and officers of Pakistan Armed Forces.^[38] On his first day of meeting which was called at an early morning, statesmen and officers were shocked when looking at him and described Zia as lacked of intelligence, and had possessed no "personality charisma" as compared to Bhutto and had "no intellectual property" that would gravitate people towards him like Bhutto, who would attract people's attention by his intellectual, physical appearance, and Bhutto's Westernized dressing.^[38] Unlike Bhutto who would appeared in decent Westernized clothing and always had joy in his face while meeting the journalists, state officials and members of society; General Zia would appeared in a well ironed military uniform which he wore on a regular basis, military badges that was conferred to him during his long service, and a strict face posture while giving interviews.^[38] General Zia rarely smiled and, often seeing saluting at the people while attending the public or political functions.^[38] Comparing Bhutto to Zia, Bhutto always chaired meetings with good mood, no matter how serious the situation was, and often seen cared about family matters of others, while serious decision would also be made.^[38] With Zia, meetings were often short but intense and decisions would he made in matter of minutes, although Zia was a good listener.^[38] Nonetheless, Zia's image was perfected as "tyrant, cold person" and was best suited as an "ideal military dictator", often perpetrated in Western movies.^[38] Roedad Khan's book "Pakistan- A Dream Went Sour", Roedad Khan, who served as Secretary-General for the Internal Security summed up that:

(Zia).. wanted to become an Amir, a ridicule concept which died centuries ago. 'If he (Zia) had his way, (Zia) would have taken [Pakistan] back to the Middle Ages.... [Zia] had no idea of law or [constitution] or the requirements of a [modern] governments'.

—Roedad Khan— Secretary of Internal Security, 1978-1988, ^[38]

The trial of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto [link]

In the words of Aftab Kazie and Roedad Khan, Zia hated Bhutto and had used inappropriate language and insults to describe Bhutto and his colleagues.^[39]^[40]^[41] On April 4, 1979, the former elected Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was hanged, after the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence as passed by the Lahore High Court.^[42] The Supreme Court ruled four to three in favor of execution. The High Court had given him the death sentence on charges of the murder of the father of Ahmed Raza Kasuri, a dissident PPP politician.^[42] Despite many clemency appeals from foreign leaders requesting Zia to commute Bhutto's death sentence, Zia dismissed the appeals and upheld the death sentence.^[42] The hanging of an elected prime minister by a military was condemned by the international community and by lawyers and jurists across Pakistan.^[42] Bhutto's trial was highly controversial.^[42]^[42]

Bhutto's last personal appearance and utterances in the supreme court were not merely a long defence of his conduct he also made some matters clear.^[26] He mentioned the words of "heir" for his son "Mir Murtaza Bhutto".^[26] He made some remark which indicated that he has views similar to a Sunni, though he was Shia albeit a non-practicing one. He also effectively cast doubt on the reliability of star witnesses against him i.e. Masood Mahmood who was a UK-trained lawyer and not merely a police officer and FSF chief. He mentioned repeatedly Lahori Ahmedi connection of Masood Mahmood in his testimony.^[26] He repeatedly brought the subject of his maltreatment in the death cell.^[26] Bhutto made it abundantly clear, even though indirectly that he wanted either freedom or death, not some thing in between, and appreciated Khar and his lawyer Yahya Bakhtiar.^[26]

Bhutto's another lawyer Abdul Hafiz Pirzada filed a petition for the release of Bhutto's colleague Mubashir Hassan and Bhutto itself.^[26] The Supreme Court concluded that Bhutto's execution can be revered by the President, and Hassan's case is being dealt with by Military Justice Court led by Zia; therefore, the civilian courts have no jurisdiction over that hearing.^[26] Pirzada submitted the request to Chief of Army Staff Directorate, but Zia claimed that the request application had been gone missing.^[26] Therefore, Zia upheld the sentence and Bhutto was executed. Shattered and disturbed Pirzada departed to United Kingdom and did not returned to Pakistan until the democracy was returned in 1988.^[26] It was not until 2000, when the Pakistan media published its report that the application was found in the record section (Directorate-General for the Military History) at the Generals Combatant Headquarter (GHQ).^[26] The application was made public domain when General Pervez Musharraf declassified much of the 1970s secret documentations.

Appointment of Martial Law Governors [link]

The Zia regime largely made use of installing high-profile military generals to carte blanche provincial administration under martial law. Zia's Guides Cavalry comrade and foul-mouth Lieutenant-General Fazhle Haque was appointed Martial Law Administrator of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province.^[43] Lieutenant-General Fazle Haque was considered a strong vocal General and a strong man. General Haque was the commander of the XI Corps, and commanding-general officer of the Army elements responsible for fighting a secret war against Soviet Union.^[43]

The second appointment was of Lieutenant-General S.M. Abbasi who was appointed Martial Law Administrator of Sindh Province; his tenure too saw civil disorder amid student riots.^[43] By contrast, third martial law administrator appointment of Lieutenant-General Ghulam Jilani Khan to the Punjab Province made much headway in beautifying Lahore^[43] extending infrastructure, and muting political opposition.^[43] The ascent of Navaz Sharif to Chief Minister of Punjab was largely due to General Jilani's sponsorship.^[44] Perhaps most crucially, final and fourth martial law administrator appointment was then-Lieutenant-General Rahimuddin Khan.^[43] Lieutenant-General Rahimuddin Khan was appointed to the post of Martial Law Administrator of Balochistan Province saw the disbanding of the Baloch insurgency, the containment of Afghan Mujahideen, as well as the construction of nuclear test sites in the Chagai District.^[43]

Zia's tenure saw the influx of heroin,^[43] sophisticated weaponry, and countless refugees in from neighbouring Afghanistan.^[43] Law and order deterioration was worse after he appointed Mr. Junejo as Prime minister in 1985.^[43]

General Zia was highly benefited with the extremely capable martial law administrators who previously had worked with the military governments of General Yahya Khan and Field Marshal Ayub Khan. One of the notable officers that had worked with him were General Khalid Mahmud Arief, Chief of Army Staff, and Admiral Mohammad Shariff, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee.^[34] Admiral Shariff and General Arif were highly capable and had experience in military government-ruling operations in General Yahya Khan's regime who remained General Zia' confidential members.^[34]^[45] Both Admiral Sharif and General Arif handled the matters efficiently if the matters were out of control by General Zia. In 1979, General Zia influenced on Navy's Promotion Board several times after he succeeded first in the appointment of Admiral Caramatt Nazi as Chief of Naval Staff in 1979, and Admiral Tarik Kamal Khan, also Chief of Naval Staff, in 1983.^[34] On his request, then-President Fazal Illahi Chaudhry approved the appointment of General Anwar Shamim as Chief of Air Staff and following President's resignation, General Zia appointed Shamim as the Deputy Chief Martial Law Administrator.^[34] In the matters of serious national security, General Zia had take the Chief of Air Staff and Chief of Naval Staff in confidence after he discussed the matters with the respected chiefs of Staff.^[34] General Zia's appointment in inter-services were highly crucial for his military government and pre-emptive measure to ensure the continuous loyalty of Navy and Air Force to General Zia-ul-Haq and his new military government, with many naval and air force officers were given high government position by General Zia.^[34]

Reign as President of Pakistan [link]

Formation of Majlis-e-Shoora [link]

Main articles: Parliament of Pakistan, Technocracy, and Bureaucracy

As like the previous military governments, General Zia completely disbanded the idea of "Parliamentary democracy" after he banned all political parties in Pakistan; and many political infrastructure built by Zulfikar Bhutto was destroyed, hampered, and non-existed by the 1980s. However, a new system was still needed to administer the country where issues of government policies were demanding speeding solutions. In the absence of a parliament, Zia decided to set up an alternative system, Majlis-e-Shoora, in 1980. Most of the members of the Shoora were intellectuals, scholars, ulema, journalists, economists, and professionals in different fields. The Shoora was to act as a board of advisors to the President. Zia decided to replace "Parliamentary democracy" system to Soviet-like mind idea of "technocracy" and all 284 members of the Shoora were to be nominated by the President, also known as a technocracy or government of technocrats.

Amongst technocrats included in Zia's cabinet was Dr. Asad who increased the oil production of the country manyfold. Many members of this Shoora later joined other parties after his death. Zia's parliament and his military government reflect the idea of "military-bureaucratic technocracy" (MBT) where professionals, engineers, and high-profile military officers were initially part of his military government. His strong hate for the politicians led the promotion of bureaucratic-technocracy which was seen a strong weapon of countering the politicians and their political strongholds. Senior statesman and technocrats were included physicist-turned diplomat Agha Shahi, jurist Schariefuddin Perzada, corporate leader Navaz Scharif, economist Mahbub ul Haq, and senior statesman Aftab Kazie, Roedad Khan, and chemist-turned diplomat Ghulam Ishaq Khan were a few of the leading technocratic figures in his military government.

Referendum of 1984 [link]

This article or section appears to contradict itself. Please see the talk page for more information. (January 2011)

After Bhutto's death, the momentum for holding the elections began to mounted, and the international pressure further forced General Zia to hold elections in the country. But before handing over the power to the public representatives, Zia-ul-Haq decided to secure his position as the head of state. A referendum was held on December 19, 1984 and the option was to elect or reject the General as the future President. According to the official result, more than 95% of the votes were cast in favour of Zia, thus he was elected as President for the next five years. However, they were marred by allegations of widespread irregularities and technical violations of the laws and ethics of democratic elections^{[citation needed]}. Also, despite pressure from the government to vote, only 10% of those eligible to vote did so^{[citation needed]}. Zia had the overwhelming majority of the votes cast, but in reality the referendum was an embarrassing failure.^[46]

The Eighth Amendment and elections of 1985 [link]

After being elected President, Zia decided to hold elections in the country in February 1985 on a non-party basis.^[4] Most of the opposing political parties decided to boycott the elections but election results showed that many victors belonged to one party or the other. To make things easier for himself, the General nominated the Prime Minister from amongst the Members of the Assembly. To many, his nomination of Muhammad Khan Junejo as the Prime Minister was because he wanted a simple person at the post who would act as a puppet in his hands.^[4] Before handing over the power to the new Government and lifting martial law, Zia got the new legislature to retroactively accept all of Zia's actions of the past eight years, including his coup of 1977^{[citation needed]}. He also managed to get several amendments passed, most notably the Eighth Amendment, which granted "reserve powers" to the president to dissolve the National Assembly.^[4] However, this amendment considerably reduced the power he'd previously granted himself to dissolve the legislature, at least on paper.^[4] The text of the amendment permitted Zia to dissolve the Assembly only if the Cabinet had been toppled by a vote of no confidence and it was obvious that no one could form a government or the government could not function in a constitutional manner.^[4]

Involvement in the Soviet-Afghan War [link]

The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan [link]

Main article: Soviet war in Afghanistan

Further information: Establishment (Pakistan)

On December 25, 1979, the Soviet Union (USSR) intervened [in Afghanistan]].^[47] Following this invasion, Zia chaired a meeting and was asked by several cabinet members to refrain from interfering in the war, owing to the vastly superior military power of the USSR.^[47] Zia, however, was ideologically opposed to the idea of communism taking over a neighboring country, supported by the fear of Soviet advancement into Pakistan, particularly Balochistan, in search of warm waters, and made no secret about his intentions of monetarily and militarily aiding the Afghan resistance (the Mujahideen) with major assistance from the United States.^[47]

During this meeting, Director-General of the ISI then-Lieutenant-General Akhtar Abdur Rahman advocated for the idea of covert operation in Afghanistan by arming the Islamic extremist.^[47] During this meeting, General Rahman was heard saying: "Kabul must burn! Kabul must burn!",^[47] and mastered the idea of proxy war in Afghanistan.^[47] After this meeting, Zia authorized this operation under General Rahman, and it was later merged with Operation Cyclone, a programme funded by the United States and the CIA.^[47]

In November 1982, General Zia traveled to the Soviet Union to attend the funeral of Leonid Brezhnev, then-General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.^[26] Soviet President Andrei Gromyko and the new Secretary-General Yuri Andropov met with Zia where a brief meeting took place at the Kremlin.^[26] The Soviet Union and the new Secretary General Yuri Andropov were angry at Pakistan's covert involvement in the support of Afghan resistance against the Soviet Union and her satellite state, Afghanistan, and expressed his indignation to the General.^[26] Then General Zia took his hand and told him that, "Mr. Secretary General... Believe me, Pakistan wants nothing but good and healthy relations with the Soviet Union".^[26] According to Andrei Gromyko, Zia's sincerity had caught off guards and in the meeting, everyone believed him but sadly found out that his words were not followed by his actions.^[26]

While there, Indira Gandhi compared the personality of Zia to Bhutto's while she summed up that Bhutto was intelligent, caring, and global experience that would reflect in his face.^[26] But with Zia, the tyranny could easily been seen on his face.^[26]

Zia reversed many of Bhutto's foreign policy initiatives by first establishing stronger links with the United States, Japan, and the Western world.^[48] Zia broken off relations with the Socialist state and State capitalism became his major economic policy. Ironically, Zia directly dealt with the Israel, working to build covert relations with Israel, allowing the country to actively participate in Soviet war in Afghanistan. Helped by ISI, the Mossad channeled Soviet reversed engineered weapons to Afghanistan.^[48] In Charlie Wilson's own word, Zia reported to have remarked to Israeli intelligence service: "Just don't put any stars of David on the boxes".^[48]

Economic reform [link]

Under Zia, the previous ruler Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto's nationalisation policies were slowly reversed^{[citation needed]}, and gradual privatisation took place^{[citation needed]}. Zia greatly favoured egalitarianism and industrialisation. Between 1977 and 1986, the country experienced an average annual growth in the GNP of 6.8%, one of the highest in the world at that time.

Consolidation of atomic bomb programme [link]

One of the earliest initiative took by General Zia in 1977, was to militarized the integrated atomic energy programme which was founded by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in 1972.^[49] During the first stages, the programme was under the control of Bhutto and the Directorate for Science, under Science Advisor Dr. Mubashir Hassan, was heading the civilian committee that supervised the construction of the facilities and laboratories.^[49] This atomic bomb project had no boundaries with Munir Khan and Abdul Qadeer Khan leading their efforts separately whom they had report to Bhutto and his science adviser dr. Mubashir Hassan who had little interest in this atomic bomb project.^[49] Major-General Zahid Ali Akbar, an engineering officer, had little role in the atomic project; General Zia responded by taking over the programme under the military control and disbanded the civilian directorate when he ordered the arrest of dr. Mubashir Hassan.^[49] This whole giant nuclear energy project was transferred into the complete administrative hands of Major-General Akbar who was soon made the Lieutenant-General and Engineer-in-Chief of Corps of Engineers to deal with the authorities whose cooperation was required.^[49] General Akbar consolidated the entire project by placing the scientific research under the military control, setting boundaries and goals.^[49] General Akbar proved to be an extremely capable officer in the matters of science and technology when he aggressively led the development of nuclear weapons under Munir Ahmad Khan and Abdul Qadeer Khan in matters of five years.^[49]

By the time, Zia assumed the control, research facilities fully became functional and the 90% of the work on atom bomb project was completed^[49] Both the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) and the Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) had ingeniously built the extensive research infrastructure initiated by Bhutto.^[49] General Akbar's office was soon shifted at the Army Combatant Generals Headquarter (GHQ) and guided General Zia on key matters of nuclear science and the atomic bomb production, and was the first engineering officer to have acknowledge General Zia about the success of this energy project into the fully matured programme.^[49] On the recommendation of Akbar, Zia approved the appointment of Munir Ahmad Khan as the scientific director of the atomic bomb project, as Zia was convinced by Akbar that civilian scientists under Munir Khan's directorship were at their best to counter the international pressure.^[49]

This was proved when the PAEC conducted the cold-fission test of a fission device, codename Kirana-I on March 11, 1983 at the Weapon-Testing Laboratories-I, under the leadership of weapon-testing laboratory's director dr. Ishfaq Ahmad.^[49] Lieutenant-General Zahid Akbar went to GHQ and notified General Zia about the success of the this test.^[49] The PAEC responded by conducting several cold-tests throughout the 1980s, a policy also continued by Benazir Bhutto in 1990s.^[49]

Nuclear diplomacy [link]

Unlike Bhutto who faced rogue criticism and faced a heated diplomatic war with the United States throughout the 1970s, General Zia took different diplomatic approaches to counter the international pressure.^[49] From 1979 to 1983, the country was made a subject of attack by international organization for not signing the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT); General Zia deftly neutralized international pressure by tagging Pakistan's nuclear weapons programme to the nuclear designs of neighboring Indian nuclear programme.^[49] General Zia, with the help of Munir Ahmad Khan and Agha Shahi, Foreign Minister, drew a five-point proposal as a practical rejoinder to world pressure on Pakistan to sign the NPT; the points including the renouncing of the use of nuclear weapons.^[50]

“	(sic)...Either General Zia did not know the facts about country's atomic bomb project... Or General Zia was the "most superb and patriotic liar I have ever met...."	”
—Vernon Walters, 1981, ^[51]

Following the success of Operation Opera— an Israeli Air Force strike to sabotage the Iraqi nuclear programme in 1981— amid suspicion grew in Pakistan that Indian Air Force had similar plans for Pakistan.^[52] In private meeting with General Anvär Schamiem, then-Chief of Air Staff, General Zia had notified General Schamiem that Indian Air Force had plans to infiltrate in Pakistan's nuclear energy project, citing the solid evidences.^[52] Due to weak Air Force, General Shamim felt that the air force was unable to divert such attacks, therefore, General Shamim advised General Zia to use diplomacy through Munir Ahmad Khan to divert the attacks.^[52] At Vienna, Munir Ahmad Khan met with Raja Ramanna notified his counter-part that such attack would provoked a nuclear war between two countries.^[53] In meantime, General Shamim decided to start the program to acquire the advanced F-16 Falcons and A-5 Fanton jets for Pakistan Air Force.^[52] General Shamim launched the Operation Sentinel- a counter operation that thwarted the Israeli Air Force attempt to sabotage Pakistan's nuclear energy project— forced Indian Premier Indira Gandhi to held talks with Pakistan on nuclear issues and directed a high delegation to Pakistan where both countries pledged not to assist or attack each others facilities.^[52] In 1985, following the induction of F-16 Falcons and A-5 Fantons, General Shamim commissioned the Air Force Strategic Command to protect and battle the weapons of mass destruction.^[52]

In 1977, Zia ultimately adopted the policy of "Nuclear opacity" to deliberately denied the sensitive atomic bomb programmes.^[51] This policy of nuclear ambiguity was adopted after witnessing the success of Israel's nuclear program and on multiple occasions Zia's break his words and promises concerning the nature of country's atomic bomb project.^[51] On nuclear policy issues, Zia deliberately misguided the United States and concealed classified information from the outside world.^[51] The United States trusted Zia's sincerity and his promises made by him to United States; Zia gave his words and assurances to the United States not to produced weapon-grade plutonium and highly-enriched uranium (HEU) above a 5% level.^[51] However, the Deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency Vernon Walter confronted Zia on his secret trip to Pakistan in October 1981. Confronted with the evidences, General Zia acknowledged that the information "must be true," but then denied everything, leading Walters to conclude that: "either Zia "did not know the facts" or was the "most superb and patriotic liar I have ever met...".^[51]

Nuclear proliferation [link]

Soon after the coup, the clandestine nuclear energy project was no longer a secret to the outside world.^[49] Part of his strategy was to promotion of nuclear proliferation in anti-western states (such as North Korea, Iran, and communist China) to aid in their own nuclear ambition, in order to divert the international attention which was difficult.^[49] In 1981, General Zia contracted with China when he sent the sensitive weapon-grade uranium to China and also built the centrifuge laboratory which increasingly enchanced the Chinese nuclear programme.^[49] This act encouraged dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan who allegedly tried to aidin Libyan nuclear program but because the ties were strained, Khan was warned of serious consequences.^[49] This policy was envisaged that this would deflect international pressure on these countries and Pakistan would be spared the international community's wrath.^[54]

After General Zia's death, his successor General Mirza Aslam Beg, as Chief of Army Staff, encouraged Khan and gave him a free hand to work with some like-minded nations such as North Korea, Iran and Libya which also wanted to pursue their nuclear ambitions for a variety of reasons. In 2004, Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan's dismissal from the nuclear weapons programme was considered a face saving exercise by the Pakistan Armed Forces and political establishment under the then Chief of Army Staff and President General Pervez Musharraf.^[55] Zia's nuclear proliferation policy had deep impact on the world, especially anti-western states, most nominally North Korea and Iran. In the 2000s (decade), North Korea soon would followed the same suit after it was targeted by international community for its on-going nuclear program. In the 2000s (decade), North Korea attempted to aid in Syrian and Iranian nuclear program in 1990s.^[49] The North Korean connection to Syrian nuclear program was exposed in 2007 by Israel in its successful strategic operation, Orchard, which resulted in sabotaging the Syrian nuclear program as well as death of 10 senior North-Korean scientists who were aiding to build the nuclear program.

Expansion [link]

Even though General Zia had removed the Bhutto sentiment in the nuclear energy project, General Zia did not completely disband Bhutto's policy on nuclear weapons.^[49] After the retirement of General Akbar, General Zia transferred the control of the nuclear weapons program to Bhutto's close aide Munir Ahmad Khan, Chairman of Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission.^[49] Soon, General Zia promoted Khan as the technical director of the entire programme as well as returned to post of Science Adviser by appointing Munir Ahmad Khan as his adviser.^[49] With the support of handpicked civilian Prime minister Muhammad Juneijo, General Zia sanctioned the launch of the 50MW heavy water plutonium production reactor, known as Khushab-I, at Khushab in 1985.^[49] General Zia also took initiatives to launched the space projects as spin-off to nuclear project.^[49] Zia appointed nuclear engineer Salim Mehmud as the Administrator of the Space Research Commission.^[56] Zia also launched the work on country's first satellite, Badr-1, a military satellite.^[56] In 1987, General Zia launched the clandestine aerospace project, Integrated Missile Research Programme General Anwar Shamim in 1985 and later under Lieutenant-General Talat Masood in 1987.^[57]

International standing enhancement and resumption of aid [link]

Zia's international standing greatly rose after his declaration to fight the Soviet invaders. Pakistan – United States relations took a much more positive turn. U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his Secretary of State, Cyrus Vance, cut off U.S. aid to Pakistan on the grounds that Pakistan had not made sufficient progress on the nuclear issue. Then, on December 25, 1979, the Soviets invaded Afghanistan, and Carter offered Pakistan $325 million in aid over three years. Zia rejected this as "peanuts."^[58] Carter also signed the finding in 1980 that allowed less than $50 million a year to go to the Mujahideen. After Ronald Reagan came to office, defeating Carter for the US Presidency in 1980, all this changed, due to President Reagan's new priorities and the unlikely and remarkably effective effort by Congressman Charles Wilson (D-TX), aided by Joanne Herring, and CIA Afghan Desk Chief Gust Avrakotos to increase the funding for Operation Cyclone. Aid to the Afghan resistance, and to Pakistan, increased substantially, finally reaching $1 billion. The United States, faced with a rival superpower looking as if it were to create another Communist bloc, now engaged Zia to fight a US-aided war by proxy in Afghanistan against the Soviets.

Fighting the war by proxy [link]

Zia now found himself in a position to demand billions of dollars in aid for the Mujahideen from the Western states, famously dismissing a United States proposed $325 million aid package as "peanuts". Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence and Special Service Group now became actively involved in the conflict, and in cooperation with the Central Intelligence Agency and the United States Army Special Forces supported the armed struggle against the Soviets.

In 1981, Ronald Reagan succeeded Jimmy Carter as President of the United States. Reagan was completely against the Soviet Union and its Communist satellites, dubbing it "the evil empire". Reagan now increased financial aid heading for Pakistan. In 1981, the Reagan Administration sent the first of 40 F-16 jet fighters to the Pakistanis. But the Soviets kept control of the Afghan skies until the Mujahideen received Stinger missiles in 1986. From that moment on, the Mujahideen's strategic position steadily improved.

The Soviets declared a policy of national reconciliation. In January they announced that a Soviet withdrawal was no longer linked to the makeup of the Afghan government remaining behind. Pakistan, with the massive extra-governmental and covert backing from the largest operation ever mounted by the CIA and financial support of Saudi Arabia, therefore, played a large part in the eventual withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan in 1988.

The war legacy [link]

The war left deep scars to the Pakistan's society with the menace of Kalashnikov (AK-47 assault rifle) culture spreading all over the country.^[59] It is estimated that there are currently 20 million firearms in Pakistan, which has a population of about 175 million (as of July 2010) i.e., almost every ninth person has a firearm, most likely an automatic one.^[60] The rise of the illicit drug trade and its spread through Pakistan to the rest of the world increased tremendously during the Soviet-Afghan war. Afghanistan's drug industry began to take off after the Soviet invasion in 1979. Desperate for cash with which to buy weapons, various elements in the anti-Communist resistance turned to the drug trade. This was tolerated if not condoned by their American sponsors such as the CIA.^[61]

It was thought by some leading ISI officials then assisting Mujaheedin led war that converting raw opium to heroin is a technology which was not known to illiterate Afghans and was taught by CIA or some others with advanced technology as later was easy to smuggle and earn cash for resistance.

Two Afghan Mujahideen groups later morphed into Jihadist outfits in the shape of Taliban and Al-Qaeda in the early 1990s. The Pakistan and United States trained Arab and Afghan fighters later in 2001 initiated a Jihad against United States in 2001 and against Pakistan in 2004. The links of the spectacular and deadly events of September 11 were deeply rooted in the Soviet-Afghan war. Osama bin Laden invested his inherited money into the Soviet-Afghan war to fight the 'infidel communist power' and was abetted by CIA, ISI, US and Pakistani military establishments for over 10 years.^[62] For its turn in Pakistan, the war in West Pakistan, hampered the Pakistan's economy, dismantle the civil society, and as well as resulted 3,000 deaths for Pakistan's Armed Forces. General Zia's morphed Jihadist furthered shocked country's pillars, and faced a wave of suicide bombings from the period 2007 to 2011, resulting in more than 30,000 civilian deaths in Pakistan.

'Islamisation' of Pakistan [link]

Main article: Zia-ul-Haq's Islamization

The Islamic conservatism and the Islamic state became Zia's primary policy of his military government.^[27] Intensified Islamic policies to radicalize the country had The West worried.^[27] The secular-socialist orientation and socialist economics process was an attempt to upset to Pakistan's order of operation on a routine life, as Zia maintained.^[27] General Zia rejected Bhutto's philosophy and was reported to highly hostile of Bhutto's philosophical rationale, "Food, clothing, and shelter".^[27] General Zia defended his policies in an interview in 1979 given to British journalist Ian Stephens, as he puts it.

The basis of Pakistan was Islam. The basis of Pakistan were Muslims in the subcontinent are a separate culture. It was the [Two-Nation Theory] that carved out of the Subcontinent as Pakistan.... Mr. [Zulfikar] Bhutto's way of flourishing way of This Society was by eroding its moral fiber. Mr. Bhutto.. eroded the moral fiber of the society by pitching students against teachers, children against their parents, landlord against tenants, workers against mill owners. Pakistan is not incapable of economic production. It is because Pakistanis have been made to believe that one can earn without working.... We are going back to Islam not by choice but by the force of circumstances. It is not I or my [military] government that is imposing Islam. It was the 99 percent of people wanted; the street violence against Bhutto reflected the people's desire of wanting— just as the campaign for Pakistan Movement. I am just giving the people [of Pakistan] what they want.

—General Zia-ul-Haq interview giving in 1979 to Ian Stephens, ^[27]

On December 2, 1978, on the occasion of the first day of the Hijra to enforce the Islamic system in Pakistan in a nationwide address, Zia accused politicians of exploiting the name of Islam: "Many a ruler did what they pleased in the name of Islam."^[3] After assuming power, the government began a program of public commitment to enforce Nizam-e-Mustafa (Islamic System), a significant turn from Pakistan's predominantly Anglo-Saxon law, inherited from the British. As a preliminary measure to establish an Islamic society in Pakistan, Zia announced the establishment of Sharia Benches.^[3] To many secular and communist forces, Zia cynically manipulated Islam for the survival of his own regime.^[3] In 1983, Nusrat Bhutto reasoned General Zia's policies as she puts it:

The (scream) and the horrors of 1971 war..... are (still) alive and vivid in the hearts and the minds of people of [Pakistan]...Therefore, General Zia insanely.... used the "Islam [Card]".... to ensure the survival of his own regime....

—Nusrat Bhutto, former First Lady of Pakistan, ^[3]

Islamic Ordinances [link]

The hybridization of Pakistan penal code with Islamic laws was not an easy work.^[7] Two very different logics lay underneath both.^[7] PPC was kingly law, Haddood is a religious and community-based law. Under the Offenses Against Property (Hudood Ordinance) Ordinance 1979, the punishment of imprisonment or fine, or both, as provided in the existing Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) for theft, was substituted by the amputation of the right hand of the offender from the joint of the wrist by a surgeon.^[7] For robbery, the right hand of the offender from the wrist and his left foot from the ankle should be amputated by a surgeon. Hudood (حدود, also transliterated Hadud, Hudud; plural for Hadh, حد, limit, or restriction) is the word often used in Islamic social and legal literature for the bounds of acceptable behaviour. Although the punishments were imposed, the due process, witnesses and prosecution system remained un-Islamic Anglo-Saxon.^[7] As in Islamic law Hudud can only be given if four witnesses saw the crime happen, in reality hardly anyone can be punished by Islamic Hud laws as very rarely can the conditions for punishment be met.^[7]

“	If we are not "Muslims", then what are we? Second-rate Indians?	”
—General Zia-ul-Haq, 1981.^[27]

Under the Zina Ordinance, the provisions relating to adultery were replaced so that the women and the man guilty will be flogged, each of them, with one hundred lashes, if unmarried.^[7] And if they are married they shall be stoned to death provided the proof required for hadd is met.^[7] That is four Muslim adult male witnesses of good repute to the act of penetration or a voluntary confession in a competent court of law.^[7] The Zina Ordinance is fraught with legal ambiguities and the major flaw in this law is the fact that no distinction is made between adultery and rape. Rape is considered no more heinous a crime than zina.^[7] The demarcation line between the two offences is so thin in practice, that when a woman comes into the court with a case of rape, she risks being convicted of zina herself, if she cannot prove the rape.^[7] The onus of providing proof in a rape case rests with the woman herself.^[7] If she is unable to prove her allegation, bringing the case to court is considered equivalent to a confession of sexual intercourse without lawful marriage.^[7] Thus this ordinance has been criticized by human rights and women's rights activists, lawyers and politicians over the years, but so far no attempt at repeal has been successful.^[63]

Sharia laws [link]

In legal terms, (Islamic law being usually referred to as Sharia, شريعة) the term is used to describe laws that define a certain level of crime classification.^[7] Crimes classified under Hudud were the most severe of crimes, such as murder, theft, and adultery.^[7] There were minor differences in views between the four major Sunni madh'habs about sentencing and specifications for these laws. It is often argued that, since Sharia is God's law and states certain punishments for each crime, they were immutable. It has been argued by some that the Hudud portion of Sharia is incompatible with humanism or human rights. Although the Hud punishments were imposed, the Islamic law of evidence was not implemented and remained British in origin.^[7]

Drinking of wine (i.e. all alcoholic drinks) was not a crime under the PPC.^[7] In 1977, however, the drinking and selling of wine by Muslims was banned in Pakistan and the sentence of imprisonment of six months or a fine of Rs. 5000/-, or both, was provided in that law. This ban on drinking was promulgated by Bhutto as he tried to soothen the tide of street Islamization drive called Nizam-e-Mustafa in his last days.^[7]

Penal Code [link]

Pakistan's college of unreliable witnesses and unscientific manner of investigations and very young secular law judges meant that Haddood too did not work like the secular PPC law before it. The Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) were amended, through ordinances in 1980, 1982 and 1986 to declare anything implying disrespect to the Islamic prophet Muhammad, Ahl al-Bayt (family members of Muhammad), Sahabah (companions of Muhammad) and Sha'ar-i-Islam (Islamic symbols), a cognizable offence, punishable with imprisonment or fine, or with both.

Pseudoscience and Metaphysics [link]

Main article: Science and religion

Zia attempted to Islamize science in Pakistan and appointed Muslim fundamentalist administrators to enforce the pseudo-science.^[64] At first, the policy was changed by Zia on nuclear development.^[64] Zia argued that Pakistan's atomic bomb is a property of Islamic Ummah, a theory that Bhutto had earlier avoided to keep the Pakistan sentiment strong and alive in scientists while developing the program.^[64] Saudi Arabia was the sole financier of the program, and Zia unofficially told Saudis that "Our achievements are your achievements", and later helped building the Saudi nuclear programme. This prompted Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan to send the designs of centrifuges to Libya to aide in their nuclear program as part of Zia's vision.^[64] Mainstream Islamic theories became common part in Science lectures rather than mathematically given prove, as Hoodbhoy noted.^[64] Even in 1979, Salam used the Islamic theories while explaining the forces of nature and Zia's regime supported the scientific community to promote science more theoretically using Islamic theories rather than actual mathematical proving of the scientific problems.^[64]

Zia changed the entire educational system in the country, under a general drive towards Islamization, started the process of historical revisionism in earnest and exploited this initiative. 'The Pakistan's establishment taught their children right from the beginning that this state was built on the basis of religion – that's why they don't have tolerance for other religions and want to wipe out all of them.'.^[65]

At the end, Zia's controversial policies slowed down the progress of science in the country and attributed his dearth to militant Islam in Pakistan and the promotion of pseudoscience by Muslim fundamentalists in Pakistani schools and universities.^[64]

Laws against Ahmadiyya community of 1984 [link]

Another addition to the laws was Ordinance XX of 1984.^[7] Under this, the Ahmadiyya were barred from calling themselves Muslims, or using Islamic terminology or practising Islamic rituals. This resulted in classifying the Ahmadiyya Community of Pakistan into a minority group in law. Zia was also considered anti-Shia,^[66] as Zia’s regime saw vicious persecution unleashed against the Shias, who form 20 percent of Pakistan's population in addition to the persecution levied against smaller sects such as the Ahmadiyyas.^[67] Further during his reign many Shia Muslim personalities and politicians were killed, most prominently the judicial killing of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.^[68]

Zia did not throw Ahmedis from Army but Ahmedis who were declared minority in Bhutto's era were unhappy and regained prominent positions after Zia's death as PPP got power again.^[7] Zia's only open clash with Shia Ulema was over Zakat (charity) distribution related issues. A book called "Profiles of intelligence" documents that event as written and resolved by a Shia military officer of ISI by the regime.^[7]

Ordinance XX [link]

Zia promulgated Ordinance XX on April 26, 1984, banning members of the Ahmadiyya community from performing some of their religious ceremonies and prayers.^[69] He declared "This Ordinance may be called the Anti-Islamic Activities of the Ahmadis (Prohibition and Punishment) Ordinance, 1984". Although before Zia's rule, in 1974 Pakistan's National Assembly under Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, it was declared that Ahmadis are classified as non-Muslims for the definition of the law.^[70] But it was not sufficient in stopping the missionary activities of the Ahmadiyya community. Article 298-C of the new law states "Any person of the Quadiani group or the Lahori group (who call themselves 'Ahmadis' or by any other name), who, directly or indirectly, poses himself as Muslim, or calls, or refers to his faith as Islam, or preaches or propagates his faith, or invites others to accept his faith, by words, either spoken or written, or by visible representations, or in any manner whatsoever outrages the religious feelings of Muslims, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine."^[71]^[72]

Violence against Ahmadiyya Community [link]

Ironically, Zia had deep respect for Abdus Salam— a Nobel Laureate in Physics— and had conferred with him with Order of Imtiaz in 1979. Zia also allowed Salam to have deliver lectures in Physics at the Islamabad University, and sanctioned an Award as national decoration after his name. Salam continued his ties with Pakistan's nuclear weapons programme and its associated personalities, but Zia had refrained Salam from participating in any experiment in the laboratories of Pakistan.^[73] Since the military regime of Zia unleashed a wave of persecution in the 1980s, violence against the Ahmadiyya community has never really ceased.^[7] Ahmadis continue to be killed and injured, and have their homes and businesses burned down in anti-Ahmadi attacks. The authorities continue to arrest, jail and charge Ahmadis for blasphemy and other offenses because of their religious beliefs. In several instances, the police have been complicit in harassment and the framing of false charges against Ahmadis, or stood by in the face of anti-Ahmadi violence.^[74]

Lal Masjid of Islamabad [link]

The land of Lal Masjid (Red Mosque) was awarded to the occupants by Zia ul Haq. The controversial figureheads Abdul Aziz Ghazi and Abdul Rashid Ghazi of Jamia Hafsa had special relations with Zia ul Haq and those links were further enhanced by his son Muhammad Ijaz-ul-Haq during his term as a minister of religious affairs. The former head of Lal Masjid, Maulana Abdullah who was famous for speeches on Jihad (Holy war), is said to be very close to Zia ul Haq.^[75]

Dismissal of the Junejo government and call for new elections [link]

As time passed, the legislature wanted to have more freedom and power and by the beginning of 1988, rumors about the differences between Prime Minister Muhammad Khan Junejo and Zia were rife.

It is said by some that Zia-Junejo rift was encouraged by late Mahboob-ul-Haq and Junejo's insistence on signing Geneva pact without deciding the composition of next government of Afghanistan before Soviet withdrawal. Junejo also gave Benazir a seat next to him in parleys before that. Junejo did not strengthen the Islamization drive and rather weakened it. His era led to serious disturbances in Karachi and ultimately Karachi went into Shia control of MQM from clutches of Sunnis Jamaat-e-Islami.

Ojhri Camp blast had irreversibly weakened Zia versus Junejo. Junejo with western support could not strike Zia. Zia struck first.

On May 29, 1988, Zia dissolved the National Assembly and removed the Prime Minister under article 58(2)b of the amended Constitution. Apart from many other reasons, Prime Minister Junejo's decision to sign the Geneva Accord against the wishes of Zia, and his open declarations of removing any military personnel found responsible for an explosion at a munitions dump at Ojhri Camp, on the outskirts of army headquarters in Rawalpindi, earlier in the year, proved to be some of the major factors responsible for his removal.

Zia played the Islam card to defend himself and the generals against any accusations of misrule and corruption^{[citation needed]}. However since the media in Pakistan was brutally gagged in his days^{[citation needed]}, none of his corruption could be documented and brought to the limelight by the print media. When accused of trying to cover-up the Ojhri Camp incident, on May 29, 1988, he invoked an amendment that he had recently added to the Pakistani Constitution that allowed him to dismiss the Prime Minister, dissolve the National Assembly and all provincial assemblies – basically, the entire legislative portions of the government outside of the Presidency. Zia's loyalists in the military were called to form an interim government. Zia justified his actions and diverted attention from his corruption^{[citation needed]} by focusing on how the further Islamization of Pakistan had been negligently delayed by Junejo and his government.

Zia promised to hold elections in 1988 after the dismissal of Junejo government. He said that he would hold elections within the next 90 days. The late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's daughter Benazir Bhutto had returned from exile earlier in 1986, and had announced that she would be contesting the elections. With Bhutto's popularity somewhat growing, and a decrease in international aid following the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, Zia was in an increasingly difficult political situation.

Political Purge [link]

Main articles: Oppression under the regime of General Zia-ul-Haq, Zia-ul-Haq torture, and Movement for Restoration of Democracy

General Zia as Chief Martial Law Administrator and later President, consolidated near-absolute power in 1970s and 1980s. The Purge that occurred in 1977 to 1979 and re-started in 1983, as a reaction to Zia's policies, the populist Movement for the Restoration of Democracy was born and soon gained popularity in Pakistan's smaller, poorer provinces, especially in Bhutto's home province, Sindh. General Zia responded by violently dealing with his political opponents and journalists as well as minorities. Indira Gandhi, Indian PM raised concerns over this brutality and violation of human rights at the hands of Pakistan's military dictatorship (Dawn August 14, 1983).^[22]

Many senior military officers such as General Zulfikar Ali Khan and Major-General Tajammul Hussain Malik were convicted for treason, followed a small scale purging of Pakistan Army officers sympathetic to Bhutto. Zia curbed the Communist Party by illegally abducting Jam Saqi and Nazeer Abbasi for a secret trial. Both Abbasi and Saqi were tortured and killed while interrogating process into the hands of ruthless Brigadier-General Imtiaz Ahmad. The public lynching and flagellation became common for senior journalists and politicians who suffered at the hands of General Zia. This absolute act further radicalized the society where intolerance for other people was reached to maximum. Zia's torture and purge forced minorities to fled the country such as Major-General Eric Hall, director of Pakistan's space weapons program. The senior leadership of People's National Party took the refuge in neighboring Afghanistan and India, while many political workers went missing and either killed. One of the notable case was the hijacking of Pakistan International Airlines's Boeing 720 in 1981. ISI quickly founded that the Al-Zulfikar was behind this plot which resulted in killing of one military pilot. The leaders of this ring Salamullah Tipu was murdered in Kabul Prison; others were abducted by the ISI. The head of the KHAD, Mohammad Najibullah was also involved in this plot, but soon paid the price at the hands of the Taliban in 1996 when he was brutally beaten and publicly hanged in the roads of Kabul.

Soon this incident, Zia also began to hunt down the Al-Zulfiqar— a leftist organization founded by Bhutto's children. The brutal poisoning and death of Shahnawaz Bhutto, Bhutto's youngest son, is widely suspected to done under Zia's orders, though there are no evidences for this claim. Zia's persecution of Bhutto's family, forced Benazir, Sanam and Murtaza Bhutto to hide in Arab world, notably Syria who provided the government-sanctioned houses to the Bhutto family.

Death [link]

Zia died in a plane crash on August 17, 1988. After witnessing a US M1 Abrams tank demonstration in Bahawalpur, Zia had left the small town in the Punjab province by C-130 Hercules aircraft. Shortly after a smooth takeoff, the control tower lost contact with the aircraft. Witnesses who saw the plane in the air afterward claim it was flying erratically, then nosedived and exploded on impact. In addition to Zia, 31 others died in the plane crash, including Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Akhtar Abdur Rahman, close associate of Zia, Brigadier Siddique Salik, the American Ambassador to Pakistan Arnold Lewis Raphel and General Herbert M. Wassom, the head of the U.S. Military aid mission to Pakistan.^[76]^[77] Ghulam Ishaq Khan, the Senate Chairman announced Zia's death on radio and TV. The manner of his death has given rise to many conspiracy theories.^[78] There is speculation that America, India, the Soviet Union (as retaliation for US-Pakistani supported attacks in Afghanistan) or an alliance of them and internal groups within Zia's military were behind the attack.^[79]^[80]

A board of inquiry was set up to investigate the crash. It concluded 'the most probable cause of the crash was a criminal act of sabotage perpetrated in the aircraft'. It also suggested that poisonous gases were released which incapacitated the passengers and crew, which would explain why no Mayday signal was given.^[81]

Maj Gen (retd) Mahmud Ali Durrani, claimed later that reports of Israeli and Indian involvement in Ziaul Haq’s plane crash were only speculations and he rejected the statement that was given by former president Ghulam Ishaq Khan that the presidential plane was blown up in the air. Durrani stated that Zia's plane was destroyed while landing.^[82]

Funeral and burial [link]

Zia's Tomb

Grave stone of Zia's grave

His funeral was held on August 19, 1988 in Islamabad. Also in attendance was his successor President Ghulam Ishaq Khan, who had earlier officially announced Zia's death in a nationwide address.

Honours [link]

Knight of the Order of the Rajamitrabhorn (Thailand).

Books about Haq's time period [link]

The Leopard and the Fox by Tariq Ali (2007)
Breaking the Curfew by Emma Duncan (1989) ISBN 0-7181-2989-X
Working with Zia by General Khalid Mahmud Arif
Khaki Shadows by General Khalid Mahmud Arif
Desperately Seeking Paradise by Ziauddin Sardar
Waiting for Allah by Christina Lamb
Ayub, Bhutto, and Zia by Hassan Iftikhar
Journey to Disillusionment by Sherbaz Khan Mazari
Ghost Wars by Steven Coll
General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq Shaheed: A Compilation by various authors
Charlie Wilson's War by George Crile
The Bear Trap: Afghanistan's Untold Story by Mohammed Yousaf, Mark Adkin (1992) ISBN 0-85052-267-6
A Case of Exploding Mangoes by Mohammed Hanif
Pakistan's Politics The Zia Years by Mushahid Hussain Syed
Pakistan Under Martial Law 1977-1985 by Muhammad Waseem

Portrayals in popular culture [link]

Zia has been portrayed in English language popular culture a number of times including:

In the comic Shattered Visage, it is implied that Zia's death was orchestrated by the same intelligence agency that ran The Village from the show The Prisoner.
Zia was portrayed by Indian actor Om Puri in the 2007 film Charlie Wilson's War.
Zia is caricatured as one of the main protagonists in Mohammed Hanif's 2008 satirical novel A Case of Exploding Mangoes which is loosely based around the events of his death.^[83]

Zia is the basis for the character General Hyder in Salman Rushdie's novel Shame (1983), which describes Zia's long-lasting relationship with Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (here known as Iskander Harrapa), the president whom he would later overthrow and "put to death".

Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq's takeover of Pakistan and circumstances of his death were referenced in the Star Trek novel The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume One. In a prelude to the fictional Eugenics Wars, it is implied that genetically engineered "superman" Khan Noonien Singh arranged the crash.^[84]

References [link]

^ ^a ^b ^c Amin, Abdul Hafiz. "Remembering Our Warriors: Babar The Great". Interview with Major-General baber. Defence Journal of Pakistan. http://www.defencejournal.com/2001/apr/babar.htm. Retrieved 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c Story of Pakistan. "Ouster of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto" (PHP). http://www.storyofpakistan.com/articletext.asp?artid=A143. Retrieved November 7, 2006.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Haqqani, His Excellency and State Amabassador of Pakistan to the United States of America, dr. Hussain (2005). Pakistan: between mosque and military. Washington D.C.: United Book Press. pp. 400. ISBN [[Special:BookSources/978-0-87000-214-1|978-0-87000-214-1]]. http://books.google.com/books?id=nYppZ_dEjdIC&pg=PA132&dq=zia+ul+haq&hl=en&ei=y1vDTv2NE4aSiALKppTYCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=2&ved=0CEAQ6wEwAQ#v=onepage&q=zia%20ul%20haq&f=false.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f GoPak, Government of Pakistan. "The Eight Amendment". Constitution of Pakistan. http://www.pakistani.org/pakistan/constitution/amendments/8amendment.html. Retrieved November 16, 2011.
^ Rafiq Dossani (2005). Prospects for Peace in South Asia. Stanford University Press. pp. 46–50. ISBN 978-0-8047-5085-1.
^ Khanna, Sushil Khanna. "The Crisis in the Pakistan Economy". Sushil Khanna. http://www.revolutionarydemocracy.org/rdv8n1/pakistan.htm. Retrieved November 16, 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x Michael Heng Siam-Heng, Ten Chin Liew (2010). State and Secularism: Perspectives from Asia§General Zia-ul-Haq and Patronage of Islamism. Singapore: World Scientific. pp. 360. ISBN [[Special:BookSources/978-981-4282-37-1|978-981-4282-37-1]]. http://books.google.com/books?id=9cCtsWb9hoYC&pg=PA202&dq=zia+ul+haq&hl=en&ei=y1vDTv2NE4aSiALKppTYCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=10&ved=0CGkQ6wEwCQ#v=onepage&q=zia%20ul%20haq&f=false.
^ "Pakistan's abused Ahmadis". The Economist (London). January 13, 2010. http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15266768. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ Ḥaqqānī, Husain (2005). Pakistan: between mosque and military. Washington: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. p. 112. ISBN 0-87003-214-3.
^ Khalid Hasan (March 16, 2008). "POSTCARD USA: The Pakistani flying carpet". Daily Times (Lahore). http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008%5C03%5C16%5Cstory_16-3-2008_pg3_3. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Gone but not forgotten". The News. http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/spedition/sp_news15/p58_2.htm. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq". Nndb.com. http://www.nndb.com/people/443/000111110/. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ Over 80 killed in Lahore attacks F.P. Lahore Office^{[dead link]}
^ Book: President of Pakistan, General Mohammad Zia-ul-Haq: January–December 1985
^ "Funeral of Zia ul Haq". Storyofpakistan.com. June 1, 2003. http://www.storyofpakistan.com/articletext.asp?artid=A112&Pg=3. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Zia's daughter is here". The Tribune (Chandigarh). http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20040628/edit.htm#7. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Shatrughan reminisces ties with Zia". The Tribune (Chandigarh). March 21, 2006. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20050804/world.htm#5. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Umeed-e-Noor's efforts for special children lauded". Paktribune.com. http://www.paktribune.com/news/print.php?id=177902. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "In Mumbai, she sends out a prayer for peace". Cities.expressindia.com. http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=89332. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "US eliminated my father, charges Zia’s daughter". Fact.com.pk. http://www.fact.com.pk/archives/may/feng/zia.htm. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Zia through a daughter’s eyes". Khalidhasan.net. March 28, 2004. http://www.khalidhasan.net/2004/03/28/zia-through-a-daughter%E2%80%99s-eyes/. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq". Ijazulhaq.com. http://ijazulhaq.com/zia/biogrophy1.html. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ ^a ^b A.H. Amin. "Interview with Brig (retd) Shamim Yasin Manto" Defence Journal, February 2002
^ The Consequences of Nuclear Proliferation: Lessons from South Asia By Devin T. Hagerty Published by MIT Press, 1998, ISBN 0-262-58161-2, pp 114
^ In the summer of 1976, General Zia, who had superseded seven senior senior lieutenant-generals, told Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto: "Sir, I am so grateful to you for appointing me Chief of Army Staff. Not only myself, but may future generations will be eternally grateful to you for singling me out for such a great honor, and this is a favour which I can never forget." The Herald, July 1992
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac Anthony Hyman, Muhammed Ghayur, Naresh Kaushik (1989). Pakistan, Zia and after§Zia The Ringmaster. New Delhi: Abhinav Publications. pp. 130. ISBN 81-7017-253-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=cjPgESaC-7sC&pg=PR5&dq=zia+ul+haq&hl=en&ei=8lvDTvaqJKORiALZg9ncCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=9&ved=0CF4Q6wEwCDgK#v=onepage&q=zia%20ul%20haq&f=false.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac ^ad Haqqani, Hussain (2005). Pakistan:Between Mosque and Military; §From Islamic Republic to Islamic State. United States: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (July 2005). pp. 395 pages. ISBN 978-0-87003-214-1. http://books.google.com/books?id=nYppZ_dEjdIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Pakistan:Between+Mosque+and+Military&hl=en&ei=wc78TunTDOSpiQKV7OjgBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CDgQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=true.
^ Ardeshir Cowasjee, "The general's generals" Daily Dawn, June 29, 1995
^ A.H. Amin "Remembering Our Warriors: Maj Gen (Retd) Tajammal Hussain Malik" Defence Journal, September 2001
^ Militarism and the State Pakistan: Military Intervention by Eqbal Ahmed (Le Monde Diplomatique, October 1977)^{[dead link]}
^ ^a ^b ^c US Country Studies. "Zulfikar Ali Bhutto" (PHP). http://countrystudies.us/pakistan/20.htm. Retrieved November 7, 2006.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Anthony Hyman (1988). Pakistan: Zia and After..... London U.K.: Asia Publishing House (September 1988). pp. 30-50; 160. ISBN 978-0-948724-12-1. http://books.google.com/books?id=cjPgESaC-7sC&pg=PA30&dq=General+Zia+planning+was+excellent+to+remove+Bhutto&hl=en&sa=X&ei=poePT4GeEc3ZiQLCpaWDAw&ved=0CD0QuwUwAA#v=onepage&q=General%20Zia%20planning%20was%20excellent%20to%20remove%20Bhutto&f=true.
^ Mazari, Sherbaz(2000) A Journey into disillusionment
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses (1980). Strategic analysis: The Naval dictatorship. University of California: Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses., 1980. http://books.google.com/books?id=zTcsAAAAIAAJ&q=admiral+karamat+rehman+niazi&dq=admiral+karamat+rehman+niazi&hl=en&ei=XUXsTtbvCbHMiQKn3Mn_Aw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=2&ved=0CD8Q6wEwAQ.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Coll, Steve (2004). Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001. Penguin Press. pp. 695 pages. ISBN 1-59420-007-6. http://books.google.com/books?id=ToYxFL5wmBIC&dq=%22ghost+wars+the+secret+history+of+the+cia+afghanistan+and+bin+laden+from+the+soviet+invasion+to+september+10+2001%22&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0.
^ ^a ^b Panhwar, Member of Sindh Provincial Assembly., Sani (April 5, 1979). "CIA Sent Bhutto to the Gallows". The New York Time (article published in 1979) and Sani H. Panhwar, member of Sindh Provincial Assembly and Party representative of Pakistan People's Party.. http://sixhour.com/cia_sent%20bhutto_to_the_gallows.htm. Retrieved August 23, 2011. ""I [Ramsey Clark] do not believe in conspiracy theories in general, but the similarities in the staging of riots in Chile (where the CIA allegedly helped overthrow President Salvadore Allande) and in Pakistan are just too close, Bhutto was removed from power in Pakistan by force on July 5, after the usual party on the 4th at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, with U.S. approval, if not more, by General Zia-ul-Haq. Bhutto was falsely accused and brutalized for months during proceedings that corrupted the Judiciary of Pakistan before being murdered, then hanged. As Americans, we must ask ourselves this: Is it possible that a rational military leader under the circumstances in Pakistan could have overthrown a constitutional government, without at least the tacit approval of the United States?"."
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e PML. "Pakistan Muslim League". PML Public Press. Pakistan Muslim League. http://elections.com.pk/candidatedetails.php?id=6887. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Khan, Roedad (1997). Pakistan - A Dream Gone Sour. Oxford University Press. p. 263. ISBN 978-0-19-577776-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=sHbw0pX9tLIC&q=Zulfikar+Ali+Bhutto&dq=A+dream+gone+sour&source=gbs_word_cloud_r&cad=6.
^ Khan, Roedad. "Pakistan- A Dream Gone Sour". Colonel Athar Hussain Ansari, PAF. Roedad Khan. http://www.defencejournal.com/dec98/pakdream.htm. Retrieved November 16, 2011. ""What is a constitution? It is a booklet with twelve or ten pages. I can tear them away and say that tomorrow we shall live under a different system. Today, the people will follow wherever I lead. All the politicians including the once mighty Mr. Bhutto and his [Scumbag] friends will follow me with tails wagging...." General Zia-ul-Haq in 1977"
^ "Zia describing Bhutto.". Saudi Press Agency. Saudi Press Agency. http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Muhammad_Zia-ul-Haq. Retrieved November 16, 2011. ""I hate anybody projecting as a leader ... if you want to serve the Islamic Ummah and Humanity, do it as a humble person. Amongst Muslims we are all Muslim brothers ... not leaders..."
^ Khan, Roedad. "Zia's attitude towards Bhutto and his friends". ""It is either his neck or mine! ... I have not convicted him or his friend [Mubashir Hassan], and if they hold him guilty, my God, I am not going to let him off!"
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Lyon, Peter Lyon (2008). Conflict between India and Pakistan: an encyclopedia. California: Library of Congress, United States. pp. 276. ISBN 978-1-57607-713-9. http://books.google.com/books?id=vLwOck15eboC&pg=PA177&dq=zia+ul+haq&hl=en&ei=y1vDTv2NE4aSiALKppTYCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CDoQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q=zia%20ul%20haq&f=false.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j Arif, PA, General (retired) Khalid Mahmood (1995). Working with Zia: Pakistan's power politics, 1977-1988. United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, 1995. pp. 435 pages. ISBN 978-0-19-577570-9. http://books.google.com/books?id=26TjAAAAMAAJ&q=working+with+Zia&dq=working+with+Zia&hl=en&ei=LFrDToOWKsnjiALez8TTCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDgQ6AEwAA.
^ Nawaz Sharif Profile on WikiMir source of original citation
^ Shahid Javed Burki. "Pakistan: Fifty Years of Nationhood (Westview Publishers, 1999)"
^ The History and Culture of Pakistan, Nigel Kelly ISBN 1-901458-67-9
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Yousaf, PA, Brigadier General (retired) Mohammad (1991). Silent soldier: the man behind the Afghan jehad General Akhtar Abdur Rahman. Karachi, Sindh: Jang Publishers, 1991. pp. 106 pages. http://books.google.com/books?id=cAoNAAAAIAAJ&q=Silent+soldier:+The+man+behind+the+Afghan+Jehad+by+Mohammad+Yousaf&dq=Silent+soldier:+The+man+behind+the+Afghan+Jehad+by+Mohammad+Yousaf&hl=en&ei=q3bDTuTyK473sQKDy_GZCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CDQQ6wEwAA.
^ ^a ^b ^c Editorial. "Tricky diplomacy". Jul 31st 2003. The Economist. http://www.economist.com/node/1957930. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z Rahman, Shahidur (1999). Long Road to Chagai§ The General and the Atomic Toy. Oxford, Islamabad, and New York: Printwise Publications. pp. 135–144. ISBN 969-8500-00-6.
^ Mia, Zia. South Asian cultures of the bomb: atomic publics and the state in India and Pakistan. New York: Oxford Press University.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Wikileaks. "Reagan admin swallowed Gen Zia’s lies on nuclear weapons". Apr 27, 2012-- declassified information archive, 1981. First post. http://www.firstpost.com/world/regan-admin-swallowed-gen-zias-lies-on-nuclear-weapons-291618.html. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Shamim, Anwar (2010). Cutting Edge PAF: A Former Air Chief's Reminiscences of a Developing Air Force§ Critical Years: Intelligence and Deception. Islamabad, Islamabad Capital Territory: Vanguard Books. pp. 320–351. ISBN 978-969-402-540-7..
^ Schbir, Usmann. "Munir Ahmad Khan: Pakistan's nuclear supremo". Pakistan Military Consortium.
^ Proliferation Unbound: Nuclear Tales from Pakistan, Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan. by Gaurav Kampani,February 23, 2004
^ The Man Who Sold the Bomb, Time.com Sunday, Feb 6, 2005
^ ^a ^b Mehmud, PhD (Nuclear Engineering), Salim. "Pakistan and Earth Observational System (EOS(". Dr. Salim Mehmud, former administrator of Space Research Commission. Salim Mehmud (Nuclear engineer, PhD).
^ Lodi, Lieutenant General Safdar F.S. (May 1998). "Pakistan's Missile Technology". Head of Integrated Missile Research and Development Programme (IMRDP). Defence Journal of Pakistan.
^ The Bear Trap, Brig. Muhammad Yousuf
^ Pakistan's Kalashnikov Culture and the CIA-ISI-Saudi Axis, By Alex Constantine
^ Guns in Pakistan
^ The Afghanistan Drug Trade, Forbes.com by Richard McGill Murphy October 16, 1997
^ US lowers net worth of Osama bin Laden, By Katherine Pfleger Shrader, Associated Press writer, September 2, 2004
^ "Rape of the Law". Newslinemagazine.com. October 5, 2003. http://www.newslinemagazine.com/2003/10/rape-of-the-law/. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Hoodbhoy, PhD (Nuclear physics), Pervez Amerali. "The Islamic Failure". Dr. Prof. Pervez Hoodbhoy. Dr. Prof. Pervez Hoodbhoy, Professor of Particle and Nuclear physics at the Quaid-e-Azam University and senior scientist at the National Center for Nuclear Physics. http://www.prospect-magazine.co.uk/article_details.php?id=4244. Retrieved August 10, 2011.
^ Khan, Afnan (May 18, 2009). "The threat of Pakistan's revisionist texts". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2009/may/18/pakistan-textbooks-religious-extremism.
^ "Shia Power and the West". Prospect.org. http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=shia_power_and_the_west. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Shia-Sunni Tensions Surface on Campus". Ipsnews.net. http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39432. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "The Martyrdom of Benazir Bhutto". Huffington Post. January 3, 2008. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/parvez-sharma/the-martyrdom-of-benazir-_b_79560.html. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Pakistan Penal Code, Religious and Ahmadi-specific Laws". Thepersecution.org. http://www.thepersecution.org/50years/paklaw.html. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, PART XII – Miscellaneous, Chapter 5. Interpretation, Article 260(3)". Thepersecution.org. May 23, 2001. http://www.thepersecution.org/50years/constatus.html. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ SOAS: The case of Zaheer-ud-din v. The State and its impact on the fundamental right to freedom of religion^{[dead link]}
^ Banyan (June 10, 2010). "'We decide whether you're Muslim or not'". The Economist (blog) (London). http://www.economist.com/blogs/banyan/2010/06/state_persecution_and_pakistans_ahmadi_sect?page=1. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ Shahidur Rahman (1999). Long road to Chagai§ Professor Abdus Salam and Zia. Islamabad, Oxford: Printwise Punblications. pp. 132–135.
^ Ali Dayan Hasan, senior South Asia researcher (May 31, 2010). "Human Rights Watch: Pakistan: Massacre of Minority Ahmadis". Hrw.org. http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/05/31/pakistan-massacre-minority-ahmadis?tr=y&auid=6441196. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ "Profile: Islamabad's Red Mosque". BBC News. July 27, 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/6503477.stm.
^ Foreign affairs Pakistan by Pakistan. Ministry of Foreign Affairs, (MOFA, 1988)
^ "Plea in court to revive C-130 crash case" Business Recorder, April 22, 1996
^ "Editorial: Another clue into General Zia's death". Daily Times (Lahore). December 4, 2005. http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2005%5C12%5C04%5Cstory_4-12-2005_pg3_1. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
^ Bone, James; Hussain, Zahid (August 16, 2008). "As Pakistan comes full circle, a light is shone on leader's death". The Times (London): p. 40.
^ Hamilton, Dwight. "Terror Threat: International and Homegrown terrorists and their threat to Canada", 2007
^ The History and Culture of Pakistan by Nigel Kelly. ISBN 1-901458-67-9
^ Durrani, Mahmud Ali (September 14, 2009). "Pakistan started war with India in 1965". Daily Times (Lahore). http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009%5C09%5C14%5Cstory_14-9-2009_pg7_25. Retrieved November 3, 2011.
^ Mohammed Hanif (May 2008). A Case of Exploding Mangoes. Knopf. ISBN 0-307-26807-1.
^ Greg Cox (July 2001). The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume One. Pocket Books. ISBN 0-671-02127-3.

External links [link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq

Annotated Bibliography for Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq from the Alsos Digital Library for Nuclear Issues
"Who Killed Zia?" by Edward Jay Epstein for Vanity Fair, September 1989
Official profile at Pakistan Army website
The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
General Zia-ul-Haq’s plane crash due to mechanical problem (Times of London)

Military offices
Preceded by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto	Colonel Commandant of Army Armoured Corps 1974–1978	Succeeded by Ali Jan Mehsud
Preceded by Tikka Khan	Chief of Army Staff 1976–1988	Succeeded by Mirza Aslam Beg
Political offices
Preceded by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto	Minister of Defence 1978	Succeeded by Ali Ahmed Khan Talpur
Preceded by Ali Ahmed Khan Talpur	Minister of Defence 1985	Succeeded by Muhammad Khan Junejo
Preceded by Fazal Ilahi Chaudhry	President of Pakistan 1978–1988	Succeeded by Ghulam Ishaq Khan

The Regime of General Zia-ul-Haq

Domestic
initiatives

Ascent by coup · 1980 counter-coup attempt · Islamization · Trial of elected Prime minister · '80s economic boom · General Rahimuddin's Balochistan Governorship · 8th Amendment (Absorbing more Political power) · Nuclear development consolidation · Ojhri Army Cantonment disaster · Assassination of Zia · 1988 parliamentary elections · missile programme initiation · anti-communism policies

Administration

Gen. Zia-ul-Haq · Muhammad Khan Juneijo · Ghulam Izhaq Khan · Gen. Mirza Aslam Baig · Gen. Akhtar Abdur-Rähmann · Gen. Hamid Gül · Gen. Yakob Khan · Adm. Mohammad Schärief · Gen. Khalid Mahmüd Arief · Gen. Ghulam Jilani Khan · Sharifüddin Per-Zadah · Agha Schahi · Näväz Scharief · Roedad Khan · dr. Mahbüb-ül-Haqüe · Aftäb Käzie · Gen. Anvär Schamiem · Adm. Tärik Kämäl Khan · Adm. Iftikhär Ahmäd Sirohey · Brig. Imtiäz Ahmäd · Gen. Rähimüddin Khan · Gen. Zähid Ali Acbar · Gen. Fäzhl Häque · Adm. Caramät Nyäzie

National
parties

Allies	Pakistan Muslim League · Jamaat-e-Islami · Mohajir Qaumi Movement

Opposition	Pakistan Peoples Party · Al-Zulfiqar · Movement for Restoration of Democracy · Communist Party of Pakistan · Pakistan Socialist Party · People's National Party · Tehrik-e-Istiqlal

Platform successors	Pakistan Muslim League (N) · Pakistan Muslim League (Q) · Pakistan Muslim League (Z) · Islami Jamhoori Ittehad now defunct

Foreign
front

Involvement in events	Soviet war in Afghanistan · Subsidization of mujahideen · Siachen conflict · Indian allegations of aiding Khalistan · Refusal to sign Non-Proliferation Treaty · Geneva Accords signing · Theories of external involvement in Zia crash

Opposition	Pakistan Peoples Party · Al-Zulfiqar · Movement for Restoration of Democracy

Aligned entities	United States · Carter administration · Reagan Administration · Central Intelligence Agency · United Kingdom · Thatcher government · Saudi Arabia · People's Republic of China · Afghan mujahideen

Pakistan

v t e Martial Law Administrators of Pakistan

Chief Martial Law Administrators	Gen Ayub Khan · Gen Yahya Khan · Zulfikar Ali Bhutto · Gen Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq · Gen Pervez Musharraf (unstyled)

Punjab	LGen Attiqur Rahman · LGen Ghulam Jilani Khan

Balochistan	LGen Rahimuddin Khan · LGen F.S. Khan Lodhi · LGen K.K. Afridi · LGen Abdul Qadir Baloch

Sindh	LGen Rakhman Gul · LGen S.M. Abbasi

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	LGen Khwaja Mohammad Azhar Khan · LGen Fazle Haq · LGen Jahan Dad Khan

East Pakistan (former)	LGen Azam Khan · MGen Muzaffaruddin · VAdm Syed Ahsan · LGen Yacob Khan · LGen Tikka Khan · LGen A.A. Khan Nazi

West Pakistan (former)	LGen Attiqur Rahman · LGen Tikka Khan · Air Mshl Nur Khan

v t e Presidents of Pakistan (List)

I.Mirza A.Khan Y.Khan Z.A.Bhutto F.I.Chaudhry Z. ul-Haq G.I.Khan W.Sajjad (Acting) F.Leghari W.Sajjad (Acting) M.R.Tarar P.Musharraf M.M.Soomro (Acting) Zardari

Italics indicate military rulers

v t e Cold War

Participants and notable figures ANZUS NATO Non-Aligned Movement SEATO Warsaw Pact

1940s	Yalta Conference Operation Unthinkable Potsdam Conference Gouzenko Affair War in Vietnam (1945–1946) Iran crisis of 1946 Greek Civil War Corfu Channel Incident Restatement of Policy on Germany First Indochina War Truman Doctrine Asian Relations Conference Marshall Plan Czechoslovak coup d'état of 1948 Tito–Stalin split Berlin Blockade Western betrayal Iron Curtain Eastern Bloc Chinese Civil War (Second round)

1950s	Korean War 1953 Iranian coup d'état Uprising of 1953 in East Germany 1954 Guatemalan coup d'état Partition of Vietnam First Taiwan Strait Crisis Geneva Summit (1955) Poznań 1956 protests Hungarian Revolution of 1956 Suez Crisis Sputnik crisis Second Taiwan Strait Crisis Cuban Revolution Kitchen Debate Asian–African Conference Bricker Amendment McCarthyism Operation Gladio Hallstein Doctrine

1960s	Congo Crisis Sino–Soviet split 1960 U-2 incident Bay of Pigs Invasion Berlin Wall Portuguese Colonial War (Angolan War of Independence Guinea-Bissau War of Independence Mozambican War of Independence) Cuban Missile Crisis Vietnam War 1964 Brazilian coup d'état United States occupation of the Dominican Republic (1965–1966) South African Border War Transition to the New Order Domino theory ASEAN Declaration Laotian Civil War Greek military junta of 1967–1974 USS Pueblo incident Six-Day War War of Attrition Cultural Revolution Sino-Indian War Prague Spring Goulash Communism Sino-Soviet border conflict Bunkers in Albania

1970s	Détente Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Black September in Jordan Cambodian Civil War Realpolitik Ping Pong Diplomacy Four Power Agreement on Berlin 1972 Nixon visit to China 1973 Chilean coup d'état Yom Kippur War Carnation Revolution Strategic Arms Limitation Talks Rhodesian Bush War Angolan Civil War Mozambican Civil War Ogaden War Sino-Albanian split Cambodian–Vietnamese War Sino-Vietnamese War Iranian Revolution Operation Condor Bangladesh Liberation War Korean Air Lines Flight 902

1980s	Soviet war in Afghanistan 1980 and 1984 Summer Olympics boycotts Solidarity Soviet reaction Contras Central American crisis RYAN Korean Air Lines Flight 007 Able Archer 83 Star Wars Invasion of Grenada People Power Revolution Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 United States invasion of Panama Fall of the Berlin Wall Revolutions of 1989 Glasnost Perestroika

1990s	Democratic Revolution in Mongolia Breakup of Yugoslavia Dissolution of the Soviet Union Dissolution of Czechoslovakia

Foreign policy	Truman Doctrine Marshall Plan Containment Eisenhower Doctrine Domino theory Kennedy Doctrine Peaceful coexistence Ostpolitik Johnson Doctrine Brezhnev Doctrine Nixon Doctrine Ulbricht Doctrine Carter Doctrine Reagan Doctrine Rollback

Ideologies	Capitalism Chicago school Keynesianism Monetarism Neoclassical economics Reaganomics Supply-side economics Thatcherism Communism Marxism–Leninism Castroism Eurocommunism Guevarism Hoxhaism Juche Left communism Maoism Stalinism Titoism Trotskyism Liberal democracy Social democracy

Organizations	ASEAN CIA Comecon EEC KGB MI6 Stasi

Propaganda	Active measures Izvestia Pravda Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Red Scare TASS Voice of America Voice of Russia

Races	Arms race Nuclear arms race Space Race

See also	Brinkmanship NATO–Russia relations Soviet and Russian espionage in U.S. Soviet Union–United States relations US–Soviet summits

Category Portal Timeline

v t e Pakistan Armed Forces

Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee	Chairman Joint Chiefs Joint Staff Headquarters National Defence University Paramilitary Force Command National Command Authority Military history (Air Force history) UN peacekeeping missions Weapons of mass destruction Awards and decorations Nuclear doctrine Inter-Services Intelligence Arms Industry Inter Services Public Relations Nuclear industry Missiles programme Judge Advocate General Branch Establishment University Department of Defence and Strategic Studies

Army	General Headquarters Azad Kashmir Regiment Baloch Regiment Frontier Force Regiment Northern Light Infantry Punjab Regiment Sind Regiment Governor General's Bodyguard Military Academy Command and Staff College Army Special Service Group Army Rangers Chief of Army Staff Serving and active-duty generals Army Cantonments Pakistan Army Museum Army Strategic Forces Command Army Educational Establishment

Air Force	Air Headquarters Air War College Air Force Academy Special Service Wing Air Force Bases List of combat aircraft Combatant Air Force Squadrons Chief of Air Staff Pakistan Air Force Sherdils PAF Museum Aeronautical Complex Air Force Institute of Aviation Technology Air Force Education and Development Command Air Force Strategic Command

Navy	Naval Headquarters Naval War College Naval Special Service Group Chief of Naval Staff Naval Strategic Forces Command Active ships Naval Engineering College Naval Academy Pakistan Maritime Museum PNS Ghazi PNS Hangor Naval School of Logistics and Management Strategic Institute for Naval Affairs Makran Naval Base Qasim Naval Base Kalmat Naval Base Naval hospitals (P.N.S. Shifa P.N.S. Rahat) Naval Air Station (Mehran Naval Air Base Ahsan Naval base Jinnah Naval Base) Research vessel (PNS Behr Paima) Marines Naval Air Arm Coast Guard Naval Education Establishment

Wars and conflicts	Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 / 1965 / 1971 1970s Baloch insurgency Siachen conflict Kargil War War in North-West Pakistan

Portal Category (Army Air Force Navy)

Persondata
Name	Zia Ul-Haq, Muhammad
Alternative names
Short description	Pakistani politician
Date of birth	August 12, 1924
Place of birth	Jalandhar, Punjab, British India
Date of death	August 17, 1988
Place of death	Bahawalpur, Punjab, Pakistan

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