Timeline: 1990 Gulf War

May 28-30, 1990: Saddam Hussein, the then Iraqi president, says oil overproduction by Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates is “economic warfare” against Iraq.

July 15-17: Iraq accuses Kuwait of stealing oil from the Rumaylah oil field on the Iraq-Kuwait border and warns of military action.

July 22: Iraq begins a military buildup.

August 2: Iraq invades Kuwait and seizes Kuwaiti oil fields. Kuwait’s emir flees. Iraq masses troops along the Saudi border. The UN security council condemns Iraq’s invasion and demands its withdrawal.

August 6: The UN security council imposes a trade embargo on Iraq.

August 7: Saudi Arabia requests that US troops defend it against a possible Iraqi attack.

August 8: Saddam Hussein proclaims the annexation of Kuwait.

August 9: The first US military forces arrive in Saudi Arabia. The UN security council declares the Iraqi annexation of Kuwait void.

August 10: The Arab League demands Iraq withdraw from Kuwait.

August 12: A naval blockade of Iraq begins. All shipments of Iraqi oil are halted.

August 28: Iraq declares Kuwait its 19th province and renames Kuwait City al-Kadhima.

September 14-15: The UK and France announce the deployment of 10,000 troops to the Gulf.

December 17: The UN sets a deadline for Iraqi withdrawal on January 15, 1991. Saddam Hussein rejects all UN resolutions.

January 10, 1991: Talks between James Baker, the then US secretary of state, and Tariq Aziz, the then Iraqi foreign minister, end in stalemate.

January 12: The US congress grants George H.W. Bush, the then US president, authority to wage war against Iraq.

January 16: Operation Desert Storm begins at 1130 GMT.

January 18: The first Iraqi scud missiles strike Israel’s largest city, Tel Aviv, and Haifa.

January 22 -25: Iraq begins blowing up Kuwaiti oil wells. Iraq begins ‘environmental war’ by pumping millions of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf.

January 30: Iraqi and coalition forces engage in the first important ground battle in Khafji, Saudi Arabia.

February 1: Dick Cheney, the then US secretary of defence, warns that the US will retaliate if Iraq uses chemical or unconventional weapons.

February 8: The total number of US troops in the Gulf reaches over half a million.

February 13: Air bombardment of Baghdad destroys three major bridges and kills Iraqi civilians.

February 19: A Soviet-Iraqi peace plan is rejected by Bush. Oil spill in the Gulf now estimated at 1.5 million barrels.

February 22: Bush issues a 24-hour ultimatum: Iraq must withdraw from Kuwait to avoid the start of ground war.

February 24: Allied ground campaign begins.

February 25: Iraqi scud missile hits US barracks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing US soldiers.

February 26: Saddam Hussein announces Iraq’s withdrawal from Kuwait. Iraqi troops flee Kuwait City.

February 28: Coalition forces enter Kuwait City. Bush declares Kuwait liberated.