Causes of iran - iraq war Flashcards
what religious differences were there between iran and iraq?
Iran wa shia after the iranian revolution
Iraq was secular
What did Khomeini accuse the iraqi government of being?
corrupt and aetheist
What was the shia population like in Iraq?
large shia population
excluded from top jobs
What did Iraq wish to gain?
Iraq wanted to gain control of the Shatt al-Arab waterway in order to gain a secure outlet to the sea.
wanted to gain control of south-west iran. Oil rich area
If iran was defeated Iraq would become the leading power in the gulf
which western powers supported Iraq and why?
USA,France, Germany and the SU
didn’t like the iranian revolution
Who supplied the most arms to Iraq?
SU and France
What technology did USA provide Iraq with?
Satellite technology to keep Iraqi forces informed of the movement of Iranian troops
Who did most Arab states support and why?
Iraq
they feared Iran the Iranian revolution would spread and they would try to set up more Shiite states
Which arab countries supplied Iraq with arms and money?
Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan
which arab state supported iran and why?
syria because it had an intense rivalry with Iraq
which route was supplied for Iraq to import and export?
Port aqaba
supplied by Jordan
why was it hard for Iraq to push deep into iran?
Iranian soldiers were willing to become martyrs
large amounts of Iranian recruits
What was the situation after a year?
Iraq had been pushed back to its border?
What was the situation after 2 years?
Iran had recaptured all of its land and cut of iraq from sea ports
how many iranians died?
1 million