‘Weakened Iraq invaded Kuwait’

‘War with Iran emptied coffers’

“THE State of Kuwait recently marked the painful anniversary of the Iraqi invasion and occupation of the country,” columnist Dr Hamed Al-Humoud wrote for Al-Qabas daily.

“As a matter of fact, the reasons behind this invasion and occupation still represent an enigma for the Kuwaitis, political observers and analysts since a majority of Kuwaitis are born post August 2, 1990.

“However, on this occasion, the Kuwaiti Satellite TV Channel broadcast a film projecting the struggle of Kuwaiti martyr Asrar Al-Qabandi who was arrested, tortured and killed by the Iraqi secret service.

“This film reminded me of my meeting with martyr Asrar in the first week of September 1990 at the home of my friend Khaled Al-Qadhi. This meeting was held one month after my return to Kuwait. The meeting with martyr Asrar concentrated on how to provide hiding places for those who were sought by the Iraqi intelligence complete with telecommunication apparatuses.

“Speaking of ambiguous reasons besetting the Iraqi invasion and occupation of the State of Kuwait, it can be attributed to the fact that the State of Kuwait as a government and people, was prior to such an invasion and occupation, a supporter of the Iraqi war machine. It is the State of Kuwait which opened all of its ports to ‘unload’ all Iraqi needs which arrived from various countries.

“Consequently, many people resorted to conspiring and probing the reasons behind the invasion and occupation, following the meeting that was held between the then US ambassador to Iraq April Glaspie and Saddam Hussein a few days prior to the invasion and occupation.

“At the end of the meeting in question, Glaspie was quoted as saying ‘we hope both Iraq and Kuwait will settle their problems without ‘foreign’ intervention. But it seems that those who resorted to the conspiracy theory had not realized that Ambassador Glaspie was not in a position that can qualify her to level any threat against Saddam. Moreover, she failed to read the mind of Saddam, and we know that his thought was not understood even by those who were working with him. In this case how others could understand him.

“In spite of the above, the reasons for the Iraqi invasion and occupation are clear if we link the same with what was taking place in the region during that time – wars and political events. In the meantime, the ambiguity would have vanished when we recall two significant dates, namely Sept 22, 1980 and August 8, 1988.

“On Sept 22, 1980, the Iraqi troops entered Iran and occupied a vast area in a bid to end the Iranian border encroachment and assure Saddam that no pro-Iran popular Shiite rebellion will erupt against him.

“In this context, we say there were a lot of evidences indicating that Iraq war against Iran was supported by both the Gulf states and the United States of America, as such the first year of Iraq- Iran war, was decorated with fake and easy victories by the Iraqi troops.

“But the situations turned upside down as the war entered the second year war. In other words, during the first year Iraq was in an offensive position but during the second year of the war (which then dragged on for eight years) Iraq for most part was on the defensive and in general this war was fought from the trenches similar to what happened in Western Europe during World War I.

“In other words, the leaders in Iraq and Iran paid no attention to human losses on both sides. In this connection, we elucidate that when Tehran relented and gave consent for the ceasefire between the two countries, Iran found it had lost 730,000 people in addition to 1.2 million injured, while the Iraqi humanitarian losses were 340,000 dead and 700,000 injured.

“But the question here is, what is the relationship between the above and the Iraqi invasion and occupation of the State of Kuwait?

“In response to the above question, we say from the very beginning of the Iraq-Iran war, Iraq had a financial surplus of $60 billion equivalent, less than 200,000 fighters, 1,600 tanks and 150 fighter planes.

“But by the end of this war, Iraq had about one million soldiers with 4,000 tanks, and its air force boasted of 450 warplanes.

“But on the financial front, Iraq from a creditor nation had become a debtor which was estimated at $60 billion.

“Such being the case, we conclude that the idea of the invasion and the occupation of the State of Kuwait had started brewing in the mind of Saddam Hussein in August 1988, following the end of the Iraq-Iran war, because he found himself weak before the State of Kuwait, the other Gulf states and the world at large due to the deterioration of his economic situation, and the responses from the Gulf states to his demands were reduced following the halt of Iranian threats.

“Consequently, the then Iraqi economic problem would have been solved through negotiations with the Gulf states, but Saddam Hussein’s arrogance prevented him from sitting across the table of negotiations and chose to invade and occupy the State of Kuwait.”

Also:

Dr. Al-Humoud

“The day Aug 2, 1990, was a crucial day that changed history and the events that followed changed the shape of the entire world,” columnist Dr Nasser Khamees AlMutairi wrote for Annahar daily.

“This day represents a turning point in the global balances of power. This day brought about a change in international coalitions and the world post this day witnessed the emergence of some powers and the downfall of others. In other words, the face of the world changed and we live this scenario from 1990 until this day.

“It is needless to say the big crime of the invasion and occupation of Kuwait had befallen Iraq which was transformed into a swamp for violence and bloodshed.

“In other words, Iraq today is torn by sectarian struggles and geographically it is suffering from divisions and the flames of doctrinal hell have stretched from Iraq to the entire region and other neighboring countries.

“As a matter of fact, since the invasion and occupation of Kuwait 29 years ago, the entire region has become a subject for international interventions and this has created a state of fear and security.

“It is needless to say the Iraqi invasion and occupation of the State of Kuwait has helped Iran emerge mightier in the region to such an extent at the moment it represents the big security challenge to the Gulf states.

“Not just that, we venture to say if we go through all political and security events and its dimensions and grounds which currently take place in the region, we shall certainly infer that the Iraqi invasion and occupation of the State of Kuwait was directly or indirectly behind these events, because the invasion and occupation actually changed the Arab and the international scenario whose repercussion and associated catastrophe are felt even today.

“Meanwhile, we have observed that prior to the Iraqi invasion and occupation of Kuwait, the Palestinian cause represented the first Arab cause, but in the wake of the invasion and occupation, we have observed how this cause has retreated and given priority to local issues and internal struggles.”

“The last serious escalation that we saw at the end of the Arabian Gulf (Hormuz Strait) is in fact the result of the evil attitude of the greedy and arrogant powers. Britain has done its dirty work in seizing an Iranian oil tanker not in the Gulf but in the Strait of Gibraltar under the pretext that Iran violated sanctions imposed on Syria since the oil tanker carried oil for Syria,” columnist Muhammad Al-Qazwini wrote for Al-Anba daily.

“Strangely, Britain did not do the same with the ships which carried weapons from everywhere in the world in favor of the militant groups fighting in Syria. The British move, whatever its motivations, is not absolutely innocent. Iran did not want to make it pass peacefully considering it a part of aggression and provocation. Iran must show its determination to carry out its threat to seize British ships and those under British protection in the Strait of Hormuz.

“It was a foxy exchange of roles between Britain and America when the latter announced it is not willing to launch war against Iran stating that defending the British ships is a British responsibility. Then Britain reacted to the Iranian provocations keeping the door open to negotiations. We can take the American situation as a test of the Iranian readiness and defining the limits of its reactions.

“In this context, Germany announced that it was too early to talk about ship protection. And even America’s approval to send military forces to secure navigation in the Gulf came only when it had to and in order to get the financial return and is not intended to engage in military confrontation with Iran.

“It seems that Iran knows the game and also knows the way the West thinks, so it did not worry due to the British action. Only the Arabs (not all Arabs of course) were terrified of these developments and they started analyzing the situation in a way that sometimes seem funny and naïve just like the way they analyzed Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait. Their analysis was later proven to be totally wrong.

“Recently, a point of view which is considered out of tune started to appear claiming that Israel is better for the Arabs than Iran.

“The West keeps on deepening the disputes between us and creates reasons to enhance troubles. We look as if we are waiting eagerly for any opportunity to start disputes, while the West is laughing and enjoys watching the growing enmity between us.

“And it is a great tragedy to have money, skillful brains and human resources, but we beg the evil West to provide all our needs, even bathroom tools.”

“A well-established fact among all those interested in the political affairs and history of the region is that Britain is the main player which formed the modern Arab world, especially the Arab Orient, borders, its systems and kingdoms,” columnist Abdulmohsen Jumah wrote for Al-Jarida daily.

“The English know in great detail the secrets of the region, as well as its ethnic and religious structures. Their diplomats and intelligence, up to this day, are the best in understanding and analyzing events in the Middle East, although their role has declined significantly for the benefit of the United States and Russia.

“Some wonder why, at the beginning of its crisis with Iran, London rushed to warn its nationals in Egypt and other areas of imminent terrorist attacks and suspended its flights to Cairo? Although the Sunni jihadist movements must be in contrast to the Iranian side, the old English fox knows the secret that these organizations are infiltrated from Iran.

“However, Iranians and their agents have assembled and launched most of them in Iraq and Syria – whether Maliki in Iraq or Bashar in Syria, to act as the magnet attracting the naïve extremists. Iran and the West are launching their war against the Muslim majority, so the minority is able to rule over the majority Muslim Arab, as it is happening now in several Arab countries, and also to destroy the major Sunni cities in Iraq and Syria.”

“For thousands of years, China had been known as a country of tolerance and freedom of religion and belief. This continued until recently when things turned topsyturvy after the communist government in China adopted a new and strange approach that was neither used nor accepted by the previous governments. All followers of religions were forced to remove everything linked with religion, topped by the Muslims in Beijing, and the rest of the provinces,” Mubarak Al-Hajri wrote for Al-Rai daily.

“This decision was not made on the spur of the moment or emerged suddenly in the public, but it was based on a new policy that explicitly rejects the existence of religions in China, and calls for restrictions on its followers, as is the case in East Turkestan, which is called Xinjiang in China. The authorities there arrested nearly one million Muslims and put them in camps to force them to leave their religion, and embrace atheistic communist thought, which does not explicitly recognize the creator of the universe, the Almighty, or any religion or belief.

“Some of them were released after the Western and international human rights organizations protested, but the authorities there continue to follow their own plan, which evidently aims at suppressing other nationalities and religions.

“This is a blatant violation of the charter and principles of the United Nations that call for respect of human rights and freedom of religion, unlike any other country such as China’s neighbor India which has multiple cultures, religions, belief systems and nationalities.

“Will China back down from this policy that has damaged its reputation and international standing, or will it remain stubborn to the international community, and continue its violation of human rights?”

“Kuwait is supposed to be the first democratic and constitutional Gulf country, and the first country in the region to exercise freedom of opinion. It has interest in culture, thought and media. Therefore, it is our right to have a satellite news channel like Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya,” Abdullah Al-Ghareeb wrote for AlQabas daily.

“The question we may ask here is – Shouldn’t Kuwait, considering its democratic and political history and experience, have a strong news channel to highlight its positive role in the region? Kuwait is not lacking money, national cadres, and expertise that qualify us to have such a news channel. Kuwaiti minds are the ones that founded the Al-Arabi magazine, which is still the largest Arab magazine specialized in intellectual and cultural affairs.

“Without a doubt, the existence of a major Kuwaiti satellite channel is in the interest of the country, and will lead to the presence of Kuwait in international forums. There is nothing wrong in benefiting from the experiences of developed countries in the international news media, as Al-Jazeera has benefited from the British BBC experience, and Al-Arabiya benefited from the experiences of other countries.

“In short, I would like to say that the state needs to confront strongly the sponsors of corruption and the elements that fight any progress that Kuwaiti media achieves economically and culturally.”

— Compiled by Zaki Taleb