The Second Persian Gulf War bred an odd assortment of half-truths and mis-
statements; most are simply harmless misinterpretations of fact - others are
deliberate misrepresentations in order to serve political agendas on both sides.
Here are some of the more common misconceptions, many of which have found
their into the miniatures wargaming hobby.
1. "The Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait was accomplished without resistance."
At least one of Kuwait’s four active duty Brigades did, in fact, offer heavy
resistance to the Iraqis on the ground. This was the 35th Brigade, an armor
heavy mechanized brigade which later earned the nickname “The Martyr
Division” for its sacrifices at the Battle of the Jahra Bridge. During this
engagement, the 35th Brigade successfully slowed the advance of the
elements of two Republican Guard Divisions for several hours on 2nd August
1990. In addition, Kuwaiti aircraft did make sporadic (but largely disorganized)
attempts to resist the Iraqis.
2. “Reports of Iraqi atrocities were falsified by a war-hungry US
media.”
While the tales of Iraqi soldiers tearing babies from incubators and raping
nurses were actually falsified by those who presented them to the United
States Congress, other tales are in fact true. Iraqi soldiers looted, pillaged,
raped, and did enormous damage upon seizing control of the country. Iraqi
troops freely loitered in the Emir’s palace, damaged or destroyed cultural
treasures, and forcibly barracked themselves in the homes of innocent Kuwaiti
civilians.
3. "Kuwait was occupied by the Republican Guard."
While Kuwait was conquered by the Republican Guard, all four divisions had
largely been withdrawn months before the start of the Ground War. Many of the
troops sent to the defense of occupied Kuwait were, in fact, conscripts (at
least two of whom were U.S. Citizens).
4. “The Ground War began on February 24th and ended on February
27th.”
The Coalition ground offensive, “Operation Desert Saber”, did, in fact, officially
begin on February 24th. Operations, however, began as early as 20th February
when a diversionary attack was launched by the U.S. “Blackjack” Brigade and
met an Iraqi ambush at Wadi al-Batin. At least one prong of the Coalition
offensive - part of the US Marine Corps - had advanced 18km into Kuwait
undetected as of February 22nd. Special Forces were quite active in Iraq for
many months prior to the official commencement of operations, and numerous
Iraqi cross-border operations did occur, most notably at Al’Khafji on January
30th. The final battles were actually fought in March.
5. "The Air War destroyed the Iraqi military before the Ground War
began."
While the air war certainly wrecked Iraqi morale, the actual equipment and
manpower eliminated is a highly controversial subject. Most Iraqi divisions lost
perhaps no more than 10% of material and personnel to the air war. Some
suffered mightily, but most were still combat effective when Desert Sabre
began. Far more were lost to desertion, the Ground War, and to enormous over-
estimations of troop strength by intelligence agencies.
6. "More than five hundred thousand Iraqis defended Kuwait at the
start of the Ground War."
The actual number was probably closer to 200,000 or less. In most
engagements, numerical parity was reached, and in many cases, the Coalition
actually had more men available in a given theatre.
7. "The Ground War was over as soon as it began. Iraqi forces ran for
home as soon as the first shots were fired."
Though many regular army units (mostly conscripts) did, in fact, desert or run
for dear life, there were numerous incidents of resistance. At 73 Eastings, Iraqi
lines held for twelve hours against repeated American attacks; at Objective
Tungsten, Iraqi tankers resisted the British (the finest tankers in the world) for
more than four hours. These were hampered by abysmal command and control,
poor maintenance standards, and Saddam's constant meddling. Coalition victory
was anything but inevitable - it was the failure of Iraqi command and the
supreme bravery of Coalition troops that won the war so handily.
7. “American tank crews scored amazing results against Iraqi forces.
Many kills were accomplished at ranges of 4-5,000 meters.”
While the accomplishments of American (and Coalition) tankers
can’t be overstated enough, super-human feats were not the order of the day.
There is not a single shred of evidence to substantiate any kills at the ranges
quoted in some tall tales; further, making kills at such ranges is nearly
impossible, as thermal sites provide few benefits beyond ranges of 2,000
meters. While there are lots of stories about “the majority of kills being executed
at x range”, it is a sure bet that -none - of them occurred much beyond 2,000
meters. Fancy thinking, but highly unlikely (unless the Yanks managed to weld
tracks to the USS Wisconsin).
8. “The T-72 was the most common Iraqi vehicle faced.”
While the T-72 was encountered by the Coalition, the most commonly
encountered Iraqi was, in fact, the Type 69 - a Chinese modernization of the T-
55. Second most common vehicle was probably the T-62. The T-72 was
encountered, but never in the numbers claimed by some reports. The Iraqis had
a few hundred; they most certainly did not have more than perhaps one
thousand, total - and they were almost always in Republican Guard service.
9. “No Abrams or Challenger tanks were lost to Iraqi action.”
At least eighteen Abrams tanks were lost in combat (at least nine were
permanent losses) and at least one Challenger was confirmed lost. Higher
numbers are more likely, though it’s entirely feasible, given the design of both
vehicles, that the crews survived. Numbers of Bradleys, Warriors, and M60
tanks (among others) are unknown at present, though losses of all have been
reported in numerous sources.
10. "Iraqi defeat was inevitable".
Perhaps this is true, in the long run. However, in the short term, the Coalition
was prepared for massive casualties, and even the most optimistic estimates
called for breaching units to receive upwards of forty percent casualties.
Victory was seen as anything but bloodless to most Coalition planners. That the
campaign ended as it did was close to a genuine military miracle.
In the words of one veteran and friend, “The Iraqis had some very nice toys; it’s
unfortunate for them that most of them didn't know how to use them; it’s very
fortunate for us that the guys who did were few and far between.”
.
.
statements; most are simply harmless misinterpretations of fact - others are
deliberate misrepresentations in order to serve political agendas on both sides.
Here are some of the more common misconceptions, many of which have found
their into the miniatures wargaming hobby.
1. "The Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait was accomplished without resistance."
At least one of Kuwait’s four active duty Brigades did, in fact, offer heavy
resistance to the Iraqis on the ground. This was the 35th Brigade, an armor
heavy mechanized brigade which later earned the nickname “The Martyr
Division” for its sacrifices at the Battle of the Jahra Bridge. During this
engagement, the 35th Brigade successfully slowed the advance of the
elements of two Republican Guard Divisions for several hours on 2nd August
1990. In addition, Kuwaiti aircraft did make sporadic (but largely disorganized)
attempts to resist the Iraqis.
2. “Reports of Iraqi atrocities were falsified by a war-hungry US
media.”
While the tales of Iraqi soldiers tearing babies from incubators and raping
nurses were actually falsified by those who presented them to the United
States Congress, other tales are in fact true. Iraqi soldiers looted, pillaged,
raped, and did enormous damage upon seizing control of the country. Iraqi
troops freely loitered in the Emir’s palace, damaged or destroyed cultural
treasures, and forcibly barracked themselves in the homes of innocent Kuwaiti
civilians.
3. "Kuwait was occupied by the Republican Guard."
While Kuwait was conquered by the Republican Guard, all four divisions had
largely been withdrawn months before the start of the Ground War. Many of the
troops sent to the defense of occupied Kuwait were, in fact, conscripts (at
least two of whom were U.S. Citizens).
4. “The Ground War began on February 24th and ended on February
27th.”
The Coalition ground offensive, “Operation Desert Saber”, did, in fact, officially
begin on February 24th. Operations, however, began as early as 20th February
when a diversionary attack was launched by the U.S. “Blackjack” Brigade and
met an Iraqi ambush at Wadi al-Batin. At least one prong of the Coalition
offensive - part of the US Marine Corps - had advanced 18km into Kuwait
undetected as of February 22nd. Special Forces were quite active in Iraq for
many months prior to the official commencement of operations, and numerous
Iraqi cross-border operations did occur, most notably at Al’Khafji on January
30th. The final battles were actually fought in March.
5. "The Air War destroyed the Iraqi military before the Ground War
began."
While the air war certainly wrecked Iraqi morale, the actual equipment and
manpower eliminated is a highly controversial subject. Most Iraqi divisions lost
perhaps no more than 10% of material and personnel to the air war. Some
suffered mightily, but most were still combat effective when Desert Sabre
began. Far more were lost to desertion, the Ground War, and to enormous over-
estimations of troop strength by intelligence agencies.
6. "More than five hundred thousand Iraqis defended Kuwait at the
start of the Ground War."
The actual number was probably closer to 200,000 or less. In most
engagements, numerical parity was reached, and in many cases, the Coalition
actually had more men available in a given theatre.
7. "The Ground War was over as soon as it began. Iraqi forces ran for
home as soon as the first shots were fired."
Though many regular army units (mostly conscripts) did, in fact, desert or run
for dear life, there were numerous incidents of resistance. At 73 Eastings, Iraqi
lines held for twelve hours against repeated American attacks; at Objective
Tungsten, Iraqi tankers resisted the British (the finest tankers in the world) for
more than four hours. These were hampered by abysmal command and control,
poor maintenance standards, and Saddam's constant meddling. Coalition victory
was anything but inevitable - it was the failure of Iraqi command and the
supreme bravery of Coalition troops that won the war so handily.
7. “American tank crews scored amazing results against Iraqi forces.
Many kills were accomplished at ranges of 4-5,000 meters.”
While the accomplishments of American (and Coalition) tankers
can’t be overstated enough, super-human feats were not the order of the day.
There is not a single shred of evidence to substantiate any kills at the ranges
quoted in some tall tales; further, making kills at such ranges is nearly
impossible, as thermal sites provide few benefits beyond ranges of 2,000
meters. While there are lots of stories about “the majority of kills being executed
at x range”, it is a sure bet that -none - of them occurred much beyond 2,000
meters. Fancy thinking, but highly unlikely (unless the Yanks managed to weld
tracks to the USS Wisconsin).
8. “The T-72 was the most common Iraqi vehicle faced.”
While the T-72 was encountered by the Coalition, the most commonly
encountered Iraqi was, in fact, the Type 69 - a Chinese modernization of the T-
55. Second most common vehicle was probably the T-62. The T-72 was
encountered, but never in the numbers claimed by some reports. The Iraqis had
a few hundred; they most certainly did not have more than perhaps one
thousand, total - and they were almost always in Republican Guard service.
9. “No Abrams or Challenger tanks were lost to Iraqi action.”
At least eighteen Abrams tanks were lost in combat (at least nine were
permanent losses) and at least one Challenger was confirmed lost. Higher
numbers are more likely, though it’s entirely feasible, given the design of both
vehicles, that the crews survived. Numbers of Bradleys, Warriors, and M60
tanks (among others) are unknown at present, though losses of all have been
reported in numerous sources.
10. "Iraqi defeat was inevitable".
Perhaps this is true, in the long run. However, in the short term, the Coalition
was prepared for massive casualties, and even the most optimistic estimates
called for breaching units to receive upwards of forty percent casualties.
Victory was seen as anything but bloodless to most Coalition planners. That the
campaign ended as it did was close to a genuine military miracle.
In the words of one veteran and friend, “The Iraqis had some very nice toys; it’s
unfortunate for them that most of them didn't know how to use them; it’s very
fortunate for us that the guys who did were few and far between.”
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Gulf War Myths
