How Iraq’s invasion changed Kuwait

Many felt a sense of fear and uncertainty even after liberation

By YASMENA AL MULLA | Correspondent

Kuwait City: On February 28, 1991, Kuwait was liberated from Iraq, with the help of the allied forces, with the United States spearheading a multinational coalition.
The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait had a significant impact on Kuwait socially, politically, economically and environmentally. While the liberation gave Kuwaitis back their freedom, a sense of fear and hopelessness still lingered in the air.

Political impact

The Emir at the time, Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah, returned to Kuwait on March 14, 1991, after more than seven months in exile in Saudi Arabia.
“One of the main things that changed is that people do not respect those in power anymore, whether it was a minister or the prime minister,” Abdullah Al Bader, a Kuwaiti national, told Gulf News, “And it is because many people blamed the government for the invasion.”
Al Bader added, “It is important that we go back to how it was before the invasion and respect those who are running the country, so that they feel a sense of responsibility and take the right decisions.”
The invasion had an impact on the 1992 parliamentary elections, where the opposition won significant amount of seats in the National Assembly; 31 of the 50 parliamentary seats were won by candidates with ties to the conservative Islamic groups. The election was the first after the invasion, as the National Assembly had been suspended between 1986 and 1992.
“The Islamists saw an opportunity and took advantage of it. They deemed that the invasion happened as a punishment because we forgot about Islam,” Alia Al Khaled, a researcher in development affairs, told Gulf News. “The fear people felt gave the Islamists strength and influence.”
Although Iraq accepted a ceasefire on August 2, 1991, in 1994, Saddam sent in a huge number of troops into Kuwait, threatening another attack. The United States rushed 30,000 troops to prohibit another act of aggression on Kuwaiti soil. Many Kuwaitis were still scared after the invasion, worried that they would experience the events of 1990 again.
“After the liberation, more people started to buy homes abroad, around 50 per cent of Kuwaitis, although only 5 per cent of Kuwaitis had homes abroad before the invasion,” Al Khaled explained. “What does this say? Kuwaitis have lost trust in the ability of their country to protect them.”
The sense of fear and uncertainty lingered in Kuwait for a few years, as Saddam was still in power and the Baathist regime ruled over Iraq. But those feelings went away in 2003 when the United States and the United Kingdom invaded Iraq. The western coalition used Kuwaiti air bases and military camps to launch attacks into Iraq.
“There was widespread support for the war due to the real threat Kuwaitis felt from Saddam. Many also believed that Iraq would stabilise post Saddam which would not only help Iraqis but also be of great benefit for Kuwait,” Saleh Al Nafisi, professor of political science, told Gulf News.

Social impact

The majority of Kuwaitis were abroad when the invasion happened, as it was summer vacation; only around 100,000 of the 600,000 Kuwaitis were in the country. Those that stayed back found themselves alone, thus they did everything from setting up makeshift schools to cooking and cleaning.
“Kuwait had a historic opportunity to rebuild the society with a new mode of thinking, especially since the invasion gave us an opportunity to break the bond of dependence. Young people carried out different professions during the invasion, and it was a golden opportunity for the government to invest in the minds of young people,” Dr. Ali Al Tarrah, professor of sociology at Kuwait University, explained.
“Kuwait became more of a rentier state after the invasion. As people grew more dependent on the government, they also lost faith in the security of their country and so they did not feel the need to become active citizens within the community,” Al Khaled said.

Arab soldiers, including Kuwaitis and Saudis, celebrate in the streets of Kuwait City following the liberation of the city from Iraqi forces during the Gulf War, in this 1 March, 1991 file photo.

Although Kuwait was liberated on February 28, thousands of Kuwaitis did not return home until May 1991. Upon returning home, many Kuwaitis found demolished vehicles and weapons belonging to the Iraqi forces lying on Highway 80, otherwise known as the ‘Highway of Death’.
“Before the invasion, many Kuwaitis had never experienced a war and so it was the first time that they picked up a weapon,” Al Bader explained. “Then, once the Iraqis left, there was an abundance of weapons left which led to an increase in killings because many people took the weapons and stored them in their homes.”
Dr. Al Tarrah said: “After the invasion, the society became more fragmented, there is anxiety and fear amongst people, even until this day.”
Al Nafisi explained: “Even people’s behaviour, ethics and attitudes towards society and the development of its economy changed.”

Economic impact

In 1989, Kuwait’s GDP was $24 billion, which fell to $10 billion a year later. In addition, the country endured a 200 per cent debt, owing $20 billion to the allied forces. The impact of the invasion put an enormous economic strain on the government.
“The government had a chance after the invasion to create a free market, empower local production and attract foreign investment, yet unfortunately that never happened,” Al Khaled pointed out.
The looting by the Iraqi forces left a significant economic effect on the government, citizens and residents. They stole everything from personal goods like cars and jewellery to governmental belongings like computers and documents. The Los Angeles Times reported on August 14, 1990, that one billion Kuwaiti dinars ($3.26 billion) in gold, cash and military and civilian goods were appropriated by the Iraqis.
“Out of the 600,000 Kuwaitis only 100,000 were in Kuwait and so 80 per cent of those that were abroad saw their belongings destroyed or looted. The Iraqi forces would go into homes and steal everything from TVs to washing machines,” Al Bader explained, adding that, “the Iraqis took many boats and the boats that they didn’t take they drilled holes in them so that they sink and could not be used.”
According to a report by the New York Times, the Iraqi forces looted and destroyed records of Kuwaiti citizens, cancelled all Kuwaiti drivers’ licenses and ordered the removal of the Emir’s photographs from homes and public buildings.
“It was very scary the Iraqi people were entering houses randomly and they were pulling things out. They were searching the house and looting,” explained Savio Dias, an Indian national who was in Kuwait during the invasion.
“Yes there was major looting during the invasion, but there was also some looting after the invasion,” pointed out Al Nafisi.
Yet, within five years the Kuwaiti economy recovered to surpass where it was before the invasion. Then after the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, there was a boom in the Kuwaiti economy. “There was a boom in Kuwait around that time because people believed that Kuwait was poised to be the primary beneficiary of the reconstruction of Iraq and a stable Iraqi economy,” Al Nafisi said.

Environmental impact

The largest impact on the Kuwaiti environment came as a result of one million barrels of oil being set on fire by retreating Iraqi soldiers. The burning of the oil fields had an effect on both the air and land in Kuwait.
“When Iraqi soldiers left they burned all the wells and the sky was so dark. On the windows, we could see layers of gasoline and dirt,” Vartan Daghlian, a Lebanese national, told Gulf News. “It stayed like that for 3-4 months, we couldn’t see the sun. They told us not to go out a lot because you would be breathing chemicals. We used to clean the windows every 2 hours.”
Al Bader said: “For a few months we didn’t know if it was night or day because the sky was so black. Also, the clouds were full of smoke and so when it rained the water that fell on us was black.”
“Many children born after the invasion had heart, immune and lung problems because of the burning of oil wells,” Al Khaled said, adding “when the residues fell on to the ground, they did not melt; instead they seeped into the soil. Therefore even the food that we ate after the invasion was bad for us because the soil was polluted.”
In addition, 10 million barrels of oil were poured into the sea by the Iraqi forces, resulting in the loss of thousands of birds and sea creatures.
“The Iraqis thought that the allied forces were going to attack from the sea and so they opened the oil valves into the sea directly to delay the attack,” Al Bader explained.