Ba'athist Iraq facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Republic of Iraq
جمهورية العراق
Jumhūriyat Al-Irāq (Arabic) |
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| 1968–2003 | |||||||||
_of_Iraq_1991-2004.svg) Coat of arms
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Motto: Allāhu Akbar
(1991-2003) |
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Anthem: Ardulfurataini Watan
("The Land of The Two Rivers", 1979-2003) |
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Map of Iraq.
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| Capital and largest city
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Baghdad | ||||||||
| Common languages | Arabic, Kurdish | ||||||||
| Government | Dominant-party system | ||||||||
| President | |||||||||
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• 1968-1979
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Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr | ||||||||
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• 1979-2003
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Saddam Hussein | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
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• Coup and overthrow of Abdul Rahman Arif
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17 July 1968 | ||||||||
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• Creation of the Coalition Provisional Authority
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17 April 2003 | ||||||||
| Currency | Iraqi dinar | ||||||||
| ISO 3166 code | IQ | ||||||||
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Ba'athist Iraq refers to Iraq during the rule of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party from 1968 to 2003. Ba'athist rule in Iraq began after Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr and the Ba'ath Party overthrew Abdul Rahman Arif and Ba'athism became entrenched in Iraq's government as a dominant-party system committed to pan-Arab unification, state socialism, and secularism. Al-Bakir resigned as President in 1979 and was replaced by Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti. The Ba'athist regime was overthrown in 2003 after the invasion of Iraq by a multinational coalition, and formally dissolved by the Coalition Provisional Authority that year.
Contents
Territory
From 1968 to 2003, Iraq officially maintained most of the territory currently part of Iraq. A border dispute existed with Saudi Arabia until 1981. From 1980 to 1988, during the Iran-Iraq War, Iraq occupied and attempted to annex portions of Iran. From 1990 to 1991, Iraq occupied and annexed Kuwait. The annexation of Kuwait was not recognized and was declared an illegal violation of Kuwait's sovereignty by the United Nations. A UN-authorized international military coalition forced Iraqi military forces to retreat from Kuwait during the Gulf War and subsequently Kuwait's sovereignty was restored.
History
Presidency of Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr
Upon taking power, al-Bakir established a government dominated by the Ba'ath Party in alliance with the Iraqi Communist Party.
Presidency of Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti
After pressuring al-Bakir to resign, Saddam Hussein rose to power as President. Hussein radically altered the Ba'athist party. The party became militarized and party members took on uniforms.
Iran-Iraq War
Shortly after gaining power, Saddam Hussein waged war on Iran. The Iran-Iraq War occured from 1980 to 1988.
Gulf War
In August 1990, Saddam Hussein declared war on Kuwait, basing the attack on the claim that Kuwait was illegally slant-drilling its oil wells into Iraqi territory. Upon occupying Kuwait, Hussein declared that Kuwait was annexed to Iraq. The United Nations denounced the occupation as illegal and repeatedly ordered Iraq to withdraw its military forces from Kuwait and recognize Kuwait's sovereignty. Sanctions were imposed on Iraq by the UN to pressure Iraq to withdraw. In 1991, The UN Security Council approved international military action to restore Kuwait's sovereignty. The coalition led by the United States attacked and defeated Iraqi forces in Kuwait, inflicting serious casualties on Iraq. Retreating Iraqi forces sabotaged Kuwaiti oil wells causing massive fires across Kuwait's oil fields. Coalition forces inflicted serious damage on both the state and civilian infrastructure of Iraq.
Disarmament, United Nations weapons inspections, sanctions
Upon being militarily defeated in the Gulf War, Saddam Hussein submitted to allow UN weapons inspection, disarmament of Weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), and no-fly-zones over northern and southern areas of Iraq.
In 1998 Iraq accused UN weapons inspections of being infiltrated by spies and forced UN weapon inspectors to leave Iraq.
Images for kids
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Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr was de jure leader of Iraq from 1968 to 1979.
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Adnan Khairallah, Iraqi Defense Minister, meeting with Iraqi soldiers during the Iran-Iraq war.
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Retreating Iraqi forces sabotaged Kuwaiti oil wells, causing massive fires across Kuwait's oil fields.
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Alexei Kosygin (left) and Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr signing the Iraqi–Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Co-operation in 1972.
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GNP per capita in Iraq from 1950 to 2008.
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28 February 2003: Iraqi soldiers ride an MT-LB armored vehicle on an Iraqi highway, one month before the start of the Iraq War.
See also
In Spanish: Irak baazista para niños
