Congress Authorizes Gulf War: Force Against Iraq
Twelve days after Iraq's brutal invasion, Congress finally gave President Bush the green light to unleash American military might. But this wasn't just political paperwork—it was the trigger for Operation Desert Storm. Saddam Hussein had miscalculated badly, thinking the U.S. wouldn't respond. Instead, he'd provoked the most technologically advanced military response in modern warfare: 34 nations, 540,000 U.S. troops, and a 100-hour ground war that would reshape Middle Eastern geopolitics forever.
January 12, 1991
35 years ago
Key Figures & Places
Gulf War
Wikipedia
Iraq
Wikipedia
Kuwait
Wikipedia
Gulf War
Wikipedia
Ba'athist Iraq
Wikipedia
Kuwait
Wikipedia
United States Congress
Wikipedia
United States Armed Forces
Wikipedia
Iraq
Wikipedia
Nasser al-Mohammed al-Sabah
Wikipedia
Iraqi invasion of Kuwait
Wikipedia
1990
Wikipedia
إقبال نعيم
Wikipedia
أرشد ياسين
Wikipedia
What Else Happened on January 12
A nobody from Thrace just muscled his way onto the Byzantine throne—and everyone knew it. Basiliscus wasn't royal blood, but a military commander with serious p…
Basiliscus was the uncle of a dead emperor, and now he wanted the whole throne. He'd schemed and maneuvered until Zeno—a former military commander from Isauria—…
The rebel turned monarch arrived with a vengeance. Gustav Vasa didn't just become king—he dismantled the Danish stranglehold on Sweden that had lasted generatio…
A former Danish soldier turned rebel, Gustav Vasa didn't just become king—he rewrote Sweden's entire power structure. After leading a peasant uprising against D…
The peace treaty was less about peace and more about catching their breath. Francis and Charles - two of Europe's most competitive monarchs - had been slugging …
He was just 24, but Bayinnaung would become a military tornado that swept across mainland Southeast Asia. Crowned in Toungoo, he'd spend the next three decades …
Talk to History
Have a conversation with historical figures who witnessed this era. Ask questions, explore perspectives, and bring history to life.