ON THIS DAY
17 January 1991: ‘Mother of all Battles’ begins. The Gulf War Allies have sent hundreds of planes on bombing raids into Iraq, at the start of Operation Desert Storm. The American, British, French, Saudi and Kuwaiti aircraft took off at 2330 GMT last night. Their bombs were aimed at military and strategic targets, including an oil refinery and Baghdad airport. At least 400 raids took place. Latest reports say all the Allied aircraft have returned home safely, although France says four of its planes were hit. US Defence Secretary, Dick Cheney, said the operation appeared to have gone “very well”. Two hours after the raids began, President George Bush made a televised address. He said the military objectives were clear – force Iraqi troops out of Kuwait and restore the legitimate government. In Baghdad, Saddam Hussein remained defiant. He said the “Mother of all Battles had begun”. He urged the Iraqi people to “stand up to evil”. First news of the bombing came from reporters in Baghdad working for the American TV network, CNN. They reported hearing air raid sirens shortly before the bombs hit. President Bush said: “Our operations are designed to best protect the lives of all the coalition forces by targeting Saddam’s vast military arsenal. “Initial reports from General Schwarzkopf are that our operations are proceeding according to plan.” The British Prime Minister, John Major, came out of Number Ten shortly before 0800 GMT to make a statement to reporters. “No-one wanted this conflict. No-one can be pleased about the fact this conflict has been necessary,” he said. “I hope now it is clear to Iraq that the scale of the Allied operation is such that they cannot win. “I hope that Saddam Hussein will now make a very swift decision that he will do what he’s been invited to do by the world community for a long time, that he should get out of Kuwait and end this matter swiftly and decisively.” He said the attacks would continue until Saddam withdrew his troops. Allied planes have taken off this morning to launch a second round of air strikes. (Source: BBC)
21 January 1981: Tehran frees US hostages after 444 days. The 52 American hostages held at the US embassy in Tehran for more than 14 months have arrived in West Germany on their way home to the United States. The former diplomats and embassy staff stepped from the plane onto the tarmac at Wiesbaden airport looking tired but elated after their 4,000-mile (6,437km) flight from Iran. Some waved to the crowd of well-wishers who had gathered, others gave the V-for-victory sign. Iran finally agreed to release the hostages after the US said it would release assets frozen in American and other banks, including the Bank of England, since the embassy was seized. Former president Jimmy Carter, appointed as President Ronald Reagan’s special envoy, has flown in to welcome home the embassy staff he had hoped would be freed while he was still in charge at the White House. Stories of the “abominable treatment” the men and women suffered at the hands of their Iranian captors are beginning to emerge. Letters from home were burned in front of the hostages, there were regular beatings and some talked of games of Russian roulette. The Americans were flown via Algiers to Wiesbaden, where they will now be cared for at a military hospital while their conditions are assessed. The US government has tried to dissuade families from flying out to Germany for reunions with their loved ones until they have been confirmed fit. Reporters were able to shout a few questions to hostages who appeared briefly on the hospital balcony. One man said they had had no idea they were about to be released. The hostage ordeal began in November 1979 when a group of radical Iranian students stormed the American embassy in Tehran. Everyone inside was taken captive. The students were angered by American support for the Shah, who fled into exile in January 1979 and arrived in the United States in October for cancer t