The Gulf

Question 1

Why did Saddam Hussein come to power regarding his popularity?

Answer 1

1. In 1972 the government decided to nationalised and take complete control of the Iraqi oil industry, despite the opposition of the British
2. This was a popular move, and Saddam oversaw the nationalisation
3. He used Iraq’s oil wealth to build up health, education and welfare services that were among the best in the Arab world
4. In 1973 the Iraqis joined other Arab oil-producing states in reducing oil production and sales to Western countries
5. This was to punish the West, but drove up oil prices by 400% and Iraq’s income from oil was to rise from $575 million in 1972 to $26,500 million in 1980
6. As the country became richer Saddam improved the national economy:
   - Electricity was extended to the countryside
   - Agriculture was increasingly mechanised
   - Roads, bridges, hospitals, schools and dams were built

Question 2

How did Saddam Hussein come to power regarding his strong power base?

Answer 2

1. He had control of key positions within the ruling Baath Party and he also controlled the most important departments in the government and the army
2. He placed family and friends in positions of power
3. He placed friends and allies in important positions in the Iraq Army (which was a main source of power)
4. He kept military commanders happy by spending on defence

Question 3

How did Saddam Hussein come to power regarding his use of control?

Answer 3

1. Saddam and Baathists became much more powerful, extending their control over Iraqi government and society
2. Trade unions, schools and sports clubs came under state control and membership of the Baath Party determined who was appointed to positions in the government
3. The main aim of education was to immunise the young against foreign culture and promote Arab unity and ‘love of order’

Question 4

How did Saddam Hussein come to power regarding his use of repression?

Answer 4

1. In 1976 Saddam was made general of the army, and by now he was the effective leader of Iraq as the President became increasingly frail
2. Saddam extended government control over the army and the secret police
3. High military spending kept the army happy, but they were also kept under control by indoctrination, by rotating officers (so that none could build up opposition) and by the imprisonment and execution of those suspected of disloyalty

Question 5

How was Iraq ruled after WW1?

Answer 5

1. British were in control after WW1 (Treaty of Sevres)
2. In 1921 the British invited Faisal, who was a member of a leading Arab family in the Middle East, since they realised that they could not run the country on their own
3. He was to become king of Iraq and head of a new government, but the country was not independent and the British still:
   - Kept control of Iraq’s foreign policy and kept two airbases
   - Controlled the oil: they did this through the British-owned Iraqi Petroleum Company which owned, drilled and sold all of Iraq’s oil

Question 6

Why was their discontent from the British rule?

Answer 6

1. The monarchy lasted 35 years
2. There had been economic development and education improved and more people were bale to read and write, however there was much discontent:
   - Inequality: The country was dominated by a small number of big landowners while the vast majority of the population was very poor
   - Israel: Britain supported the new Jewish state of Israel in 1948 against the opposition of the Arab states
   - Control of oil: In 1952, the Iraqi government agreed with the Iraqi Petroleum Company that profits from the Iraqi oil would be shared equally between the Iraqi government and the British-dominated company, however the company still controlled production and prices

Question 7

Why was a republic formed in Iraq?

Answer 7

1. In 1958, the monarchy was overthrown and Iraq became a republic
2. After another coup by the army officers in 1968 the republic was ruled by the Baath Party
3. Most Baathists were Sunnis Muslims, and the Sunnis had been the dominant group in Iraq ever since the state of Iraq was set up in 1921, although the Shiites formed the majority of the population. Many Shiites were now brought into the new government in a show of unity

Question 8

Describe the nature of Saddam’s rule regarding repression

Answer 8

1. 500 members of his own party executed when he came to power
2. Use of chemical weapons against the Kurds in 1988, 180,000 killed
3. Repression of Shiite Muslims

Question 9

Describe the nature of Saddam’s rule regarding cult leadership

Answer 9

1. Glorified by the media and portrayed and the protector of the Arab world
2. Statues, portraits and national holidays

Question 10

Describe the nature of Saddam’s rule regarding winning genuine support

Answer 10

1. Improvements to health, education and infrastructure

2. Culture flourished

Question 11

Describe the oil issue in Iran

Answer 11

1. At the start of the twentieth century Iran was ruled by the Shah and it was an independent country but tis oil fields were controlled by a British company that paid the Shah’s government for the right to operate them
2. After WW2 an increasing number of Iranians demanded that their government take control of the oil profits
3. In 1951 the Shah made Mohammed Mossadeq Prime Minister as he gained huge popular support
4. The Iranian government then passed a law ti nationalise the oil industry, which was very popular among the Iranians
5. In retaliation the British company withdrew its workforce and refused to allow any of its technicians to work with the new Iranian National Oil Company. The British also persuaded other Western oil companies not to buy Iran’s oil and the British navy imposed a blockade of Iran’s ports, refusing to allow any ships to enter or leave

Question 12

Why was there revolution in Iran in 1979 regarding Western influence?

Answer 12

1. Shah’s close ties with West (1953 oil?) alienated many

2. Western influence in oil industry brought wealth but also alienation

Question 13

Why was there revolution in Iran in 1979 regarding religious opposition to the Shah?

Answer 13

1. Opposition led by mullahs who criticised the wealth, luxury and corruption of the Shah and his supporters
2. In 1971, the Shah held a huge celebration for what he claimed was the 2500th anniversary of the Persian monarchy, very few believed this claim and cost $330 million: too extravagant and in a country were millions struggled to feed themselves
3. Shah’s close relations with the non-Muslim West
4. Mullahs encouraged street demonstrations
5. Shah responded by the secret police arresting, exiling, imprisoning and torturing thousands of the government’s critics including mullahs
6. Ayatollah Khomeni was a leading Muslim scholar and the outstanding leader of the opposition, and he had been forced into exile by the Shah’s government

Question 14

Why was there a revolution in Iran in 1979 regrading the Shah’s mistakes?

Answer 14

1. In 1978 there were huge strikes and demonstrations calling on the Shah to abdicate
2. Shah’s army and police killed people in these protests and this followed with even bigger demonstrations, often a million-strong in the capital, Tehran
3. September 1978, government introduced military rule and the next day, troops killed over 500 people in a massive demonstration
4. October 1978, there was a wave of strikes with brought most industry including oil production to a halt
5. End of 1978, some soldiers were refusing to fire on crowds

Question 15

Describe The Islamic Revolution 1979

Answer 15

1. January 1979, Shah left Iran to receive treatment for cancer but he never returned
2. Khomeini returned in triumph amid huge celebrations and declared an Islamic revolution
3. The Shah’s last Prime Minister fled the country and most of the army declared support for the revolution
4. A national referendum produced a large majority in favour of abolishing the monarchy and establishing an Islamic republic

Question 16

What happened in 1953?

Answer 16

1. Mossadeq remained popular even though Iran’s income form oil dwindled
2. The British persuaded the USA to join them in overthrowing Mossadeq
3. Under pressure from USA and British the Shah dismissed Mossadeq and replaced him with a more pro-Western Prime Minister
4. Mossadeq was put on trial and imprisoned and the Iranian Parliament was closed down

Question 17

What happened after Mossadeq was imprisoned?

Answer 17

1. A group of Western oil companies agreed with the Shah to restart production in return for a 40% share in Iran’s oil profits
2. The Shah’s new government signed a treaty with the USA in 1955 and a year later joined Britain, Turkey and Iraq in an anti-Soviet alliance
3. Iran grew rich on income from the oil industry which was National Iranian Oil Company now controlled adn the Shah made some reforms:
   - Transferred some of Iran’s land from the biggest land owners to the poorer farmers
   - Gave women the vote
   - Increased the number of schools and raised literacy rater
4. But there was still a vast contrast between the rich elite and the poor masses

Question 18

Why did Saddam invade Iran?

Answer 18

1. Khomeini had called on Iraqis to overthrow Saddam
2. Saddam also had evidence that leading members of his party were plotting overthrow him
3. Saw a valuable opportunity to gain access to sea (as Iran had a long coastline and several ports through which to export oil) and territory (oil-rich)
4. Iran was weak:
   - Economy chaos after fall of Shah’s regime, so seemed like an ideal time to attack
   - Iranian armed forces were demoralised
   - The country was facing a western boycott of its trade because of the capture of the US embassy

Question 19

Describe the Iran Iraq War

Answer 19

1. 1980-1988
2. Saddam had planned a short limited War
3. September 1980: little resistance
4. Within a month Iraqi forces were halted in the Iranian desert and resorted to firing missiles at Iran’s cities in order to terrorise the civilian population
5. War of the Cities began in which both sides bombed and killed hundreds of thousands of civilians
6. Iraq had superior firepower
7. Iran had much bigger population and sent in hundreds of thousands of new recruits in ‘human waves’, many willing to become martyrs

Question 20

Why and what did some Arab states do in the Iraq-Iran War?

Answer 20

1. Most of Arab states supported Iraq, in particular the Sunni rulers of the Gulf states because:
   - They were opposed of the spread of Iran’s revolutionary, Shiite version of an Islamic State
   - Feared that Iran might liberate the Iraqi Shiites and establish an Iraqi state loyal to Khomeini
   - Feared they would stir up the Shiite minorities in their own countries
   - Believed Iran posed a threat to their oil fields
2. Saudi Arabia and the smaller oil-rich Gulf states, together with Egypt and Jordan supplied:
   - Money and arms to Iraq
   - Jordan also provided a route for Iraq’s imports and exports through the port of Aqaba. This was vital for when access to the Gulf was cut off by Iranian forces

Question 21

Why and what did the USA do in the Iran-Iraq War?

Answer 21

1. Supported Iraq because:
   - Bitterly opposed to the new regime in Iran
   - The thought of the revolutionaries Iranian controlling so much of the oil in the Gulf terrified the Americans
   - An Iranian victory might lead to the collapse if pro-Western regimes in the Gulf
2. Americans provided and used:
   - Satellite technology to keep Iraq informed of Iranian troop movements
   - Equipment which was later used to make chemical weapons

Question 22

Why and what did European powers do in the Iran-Iraq War?

Answer 22

1. Supported Iraq because:
   - Bitterly opposed to new regime in Iran
2. France was main non-Arab supplier of arms to Iraq
3. When Iranians began to attack Kuwaiti ships in retaliation for Kuwait’s support for Iraq, the Soviet Union offered to help the Kuwaitis

Question 23

Why and what did Syria do in Iran-Iraq War?

Answer 23

1. Supported Iran because:
   - Intense rivalry with its neighbour Iraq
2. Syrians:
   - Shut the Iraqi pipelines which passed through its territory to the Mediterranean and in return Syria received free Iranian oil

Question 24

What were the consequences for Iran due to the Iraq-Iran War?

Answer 24

• Positive:
  1. Khomeini still revered by millions of Iranians for his proud, defiant stand after years of humiliation by stronger powers
  2. Although Iran suffered widespread destruction and hug loss of life, it had a population of 55 million and was still a major power
• Negative:
  3. It had not succeeded in exporting its revolutionary Shiite brand of Islam

Question 25

What were the consequences for Iraq due to the Iran-Iraq War?

Answer 25

• Positive:
  1. Now had fourth largest army in the world and by 1990 he had more aircraft and tanks than Britain and France combined
• Negative:
  1. Iraq’s economy and society had suffered extensive damage
  2. Half a million people killed and health and education of the entire population suffered
  3. During the war, more and more was spent of weapons, accounting for 93% of all imports by 1984, so that less and less was spent on hospitals and schools
  4. Life expectancy fell and infant mortality increased
  5. Faced debts of $80 billion, yet instead of rebuilding the country, Saddam kept a million men in arms and poured money into developing the most advanced weapons
  6. Economy in tatters and no post-war recovery, and the value of Iraq’s oil exports had declined because of war damage
  7. Lots of unemployment
  8. Riots and strikes but the main threat to Saddam came from his army