Page 317 - Encyclopedia Of Terrorism

P-Kushner.qxd 28-10-02 11:25 AM Page 297

Persian Gulf War———297

Iraq showed, a nation-state could not risk an open regular diplomatic, economic, and military irritant;
attack against the vital interests of the United States the fear is that Iraq may have such weapons and intend
without fear of military reprisal. Independent terrorist to use them against the United States.
organizations, however, were not so constrained. The United States has also maintained “no-fly
An upsurge in anti-U.S. demonstrations, and in ter- zones” over parts of northern and southern Iraq that
rorism directed at U.S. targets, became immediately the Iraqi Army is forbidden to enter. These zones are
evident at the beginning of the military buildup in the intended to protect the Kurds and Shiite Muslims who
Gulf known as Operation Desert Shield. The period of live there. To maintain these no-fly zones, the United
military action, from mid-January 1991 to the end of States has maintained military bases in Saudi Arabia
February, saw hundreds of terrorist incidents against that were established during the Gulf War. The Saudi
U.S. and coalition targets across the globe. Despite government supports these bases, for Iraqi invasion
exhortations from Hussein to fellow Arabs to rise up remains a threat; many within Saudi Arabia, however,
in support of him, the terrorism was not more pro- feel that the use of non-Muslim forces to defend
nounced in the Middle East than elsewhere. The anti- a country with the holiest of Islam’s sites is an insult.
cipated surge in activity of Palestinian terrorist groups The removal of U.S. military presence within Saudi
that had the support of Iraq did not come to pass, per- Arabia has been a primary goal of Osama bin Laden
haps because Yasir Arafat’s vocal support of Hussein and his Al Qaeda organization since its formation
led to a drop in funding from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. in 1989.
Meanwhile, analysts were surprised to discover
See also AL QAEDA; OSAMA BIN LADEN; SADDAM HUSSEIN;
instead an upswing in the activity of European leftist
UNITED NATIONS
terrorist groups that many had thought defunct. Most
of these incidents involved small bombs intended to Further Reading
inflict property damage; the wave of terrorist activity
Aburish, Saïd K. Saddam Hussein: The Politics of Revenge.
subsided almost immediately after the war ended, with
London: Bloomsbury, 2000.
the number of incidents during the rest of 1991 fewer
Garrity, Patrick J. “Implications of the Persian Gulf War
than during the same period in 1990. Several incidents
for Regional Powers.” Washington Quarterly, Vol. 16,
could be attributed to Iraqi agents, however, and the
No. 3, 1993, 150.
Persian Gulf War only increased Iraq’s support of U.S. State Department. Patterns of Global Terrorism,
international terrorism. 1990-1993. Washington, DC: Government Printing
Since the Gulf War, the vast majority of significant Office, 1991-1994.
incidents of international terrorism have been directed
against U.S. targets, the September 11, 2001, attacks
on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon most
PFLP. See POPULAR FRONT FOR THE
prominent among them. Some of the terrorists
involved, particularly those who participated in the LIBERATION OF PALESTINE.
1993 and 2001 World Trade Center attacks, are alleged
to have links to Iraqi intelligence services.
PFLP–GC. See POPULAR FRONT FOR THE
LASTING PROBLEMS LIBERATION OF PALESTINE–GENERAL

The antipathy between Iraq and the United States may COMMAND.
be one of the most lasting effects of the Persian Gulf
War. Although Hussein remains in power, the United
States has continued to attempt to restrain him. The
PIERCE, WILLIAM L. See THE TURNER
surrender agreement between Iraq and the United
Nations, signed at the end of the Persian Gulf War, DIARIES.
requires Iraq to allow international inspectors to eval-
uate its weapons programs and determine whether it is
attempting to manufacture or maintain weapons of
mass destruction. Iraq’s noncompliance has been a PIJ. See PALESTINIAN ISLAMIC JIHAD.