Iran and Iraq

The Iran-Iraq War ended in 1989 after nearly eight years of bloodshed. When it was over, the conditions which existed at the beginning of the war remained virtually unchanged. Consequently, considerable potential exists for another war. This paper presents the argument that the war was essentially a struggle between two men, Ayatollah Khomeini, and Saddam Hussein. Saddam feared Khomeini because Khomeini threatened Saddam's power base in Iraq. Consequently, he started the war after a cost-benefit calculation convinced him that an attack on Iran could solve his external problem (Khomeini) and shore up internal support for his government.