Kuwait Heritage Society marks 32nd anniversary of ‘brutal’ Iraqi invasion
Participants in symposium stress importance of lessons learned from ordeal
KUWAIT CITY, Aug 3, (KUNA): Participants in a symposium organized by the Kuwait Heritage Society on the occasion of the 32nd anniversary of the brutal Iraqi invasion of Kuwait at the dawn of August 2, 1990, which coincided Tuesday, stressed the importance of lessons learned from this ordeal, perhaps the most prominent of which is the unity and affiliation of the people of Kuwait to their land and rally around their leadership in the darkest conditions.
The participants in the symposium reviewed their bitter experiences with the occupation army forces and the types of torture and violations they were subjected to, while a set of documents related to this difficult period in the history of the country and the Arab nation were presented.
The seminar was initiated by retired Colonel Nasser Salmeen, who was captured and transferred to Iraqi detention centers on the second day of the treacherous aggression, noting that he and “635 officers of various military ranks were taken to Iraqi detention centers” before they were released in March 1991.
Salmeen recalled the harsh conditions he experienced during his transfer to Iraqi prisons at a time when he saw banners raised on the borders of Iraq calling for ‘Arab unity’, pointing to the
attempts to destabilize their souls.
He recounted some stories of psychological and physical torture used by the Iraqi regime at the time, in the hope of obtaining military or security information concerning the State of Kuwait.
Salmeen, who has two publications
about his experience and the experience of many Kuwaiti heroes in resisting the occupation, said that what happened cannot be forgotten, as the righteous martyrs sacrificed and resisted in various ways for the survival of the country, stressing that “despite the pain of the experience, remembering and sharing it with the new generations is important to inform them of what he was exposed to for the sake of reclaiming their homeland.
In turn, retired Lieutenant-General Musaed Al-Ghuwaim shared his experience as a member of the Kuwaiti Special Forces during the Iraqi invasion and his implementation of a number of commands from the leadership, including working for the Kuwait Airways fleet to continue its work abroad, as well as training the Special Forces to protect the fleet’s aircraft.
Homeland
For his part, Acting Secretary-General of the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters, Dr. Issa Al-Ansari, affirmed in a similar speech that the Iraqi invasion proved the Kuwaiti people’s loyalty to their homeland, leadership and steadfastness in the face of the treacherous occupier.
Al-Ansari praised the role of public benefit associations in documenting this important event in the history of the State of Kuwait and the world at large, pointing to consultations with the Ministry of Education on the importance of naming a number of government schools after the names of the righteous Kuwaiti martyrs in honor of their sacrifices for the survival of the nation.
The symposium was accompanied by a documentary exhibition that included documents and publications related to this historical ordeal, as well as press releases that dealt with the issue and various holdings of what happened 32 years ago.