The Gulf War and its aftermath, 1990–2000

Abstract

Two major challenges faced the Saʿudi government in the 1990s. Saddam Husayn's invasion of Kuwait on 2 August 1990 proved to be problematic not only for the Kuwaitis but also for their Saʿudi neighbours. The war was an unprecedented event in that, for the first time, Saudi Arabia felt that it was under imminent threat of invasion by a neighbouring Arab state (Al-Rasheed 1996b: 361). Although an ‘annexation’ of Saudi Arabia by the Iraqis was highly unlikely, the Saʿudi government and the United States could not rule out the possibility of military action near the important oil fields of the eastern province. The liberation of Kuwait became a priority for the Saʿudis not only to restore the exiled Kuwaiti ruling family to government but also to push the Iraqi army beyond its immediate borders. Saudi Arabia became the territory from which the liberation of Kuwait was to take place. This liberation was dependent on the assistance of American troops under the umbrella of a multinational force. This important development brought about King Fahd's second problem, the strengthening of Islamist opposition immediately after the Gulf War. The causes of the Islamist opposition predated the Gulf War, but the war itself was a catalyst that the opposition used to voice their general discontent with the government over important issues.