Bowen: Trump has called for an Iran uprising but the lessons from Iraq in 1991 loom large
Bowen: Trump has called for an Iran uprising but the lessons from Iraq in 1991 loom large
Three decades ago, the decision of a U.S. president to incite an uprising and then withdraw support sparked a chain of events that reshaped the region. The author, recalling that moment, highlights the enduring relevance of the 1991 Gulf War in today’s tensions with Iran. The narrative traces how George H.W. Bush’s rhetoric during that conflict set a precedent for the current geopolitical strategy.
The 1991 Speech and Its Aftermath
In February 1991, President George H.W. Bush visited a Patriot missile factory in Massachusetts, praising its production as a critical tool in the Gulf War. At the time, the war was in its early stages, with coalition forces bombing Iraqi troops and cities. Though the United Nations had authorized the operation, the lack of follow-through on promises to support uprisings would later haunt the U.S. and its allies.
“There’s another way for the bloodshed to stop… and that is for the Iraqi military and the Iraqi people to take matters into their own hands and force Saddam Hussein, the dictator, to step aside…”
Bush’s speech, delivered amid the ongoing air campaign, seemed to embolden Iraqis to act. But when the ground war began, the coalition’s support wavered. Shia rebels in the south and Kurdish forces in the north launched revolts, only to face brutal retaliation. The U.S. and Britain stood by as Saddam’s regime regrouped, using helicopters to massacre thousands of civilians in the north.
A Legacy of Unfulfilled Promises
Three decades later, the echoes of that period are still felt. As Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu urge Iranians to rise against their government, the same pattern emerges: a call for revolution without guarantees of military backing. The author, now stationed in the Kurdish mountains, reflects on the tragic consequences of such pledges. Tens of thousands of Kurds had fled to the hills, bearing tales of violence, while fathers carried the bodies of their children across snowy paths.
Despite the suffering, the coalition eventually intervened, launching a humanitarian mission to save the Kurds. Yet the Shia rebels in the south faced no similar rescue. The war’s legacy included permanent U.S. bases, air patrols, and the rise of Al Qaeda, which Osama bin Laden had begun assembling in Saudi Arabia after the conflict. Each war, the author notes, sowed the seeds for the next.
From the Gulf to the Present
In 2003, the second Bush administration removed Saddam Hussein, completing what the first president had started. Iran benefited, as its regional rival was toppled. Now, the current conflict aims to challenge Iran’s growing influence, with Israel and the U.S. targeting its military and nuclear capabilities. Trump’s decision to join this effort mirrors the 1991 strategy, raising concerns about whether history will repeat itself.
