Operation Desert Fox | |
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Part of the prelude to the Iraq War | |
![]() A Tomahawk cruise missile is fired from an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer during Operation Desert Fox in December 1998 | |
Location | |
Commanded by | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Date | 16–19 December 1998 |
Executed by | United States Armed Forces![]() |
Outcome | Coalition military success[1] Politically inconclusive[1]
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Casualties | 242–1,400 Iraqi soldiers killed or wounded all targets were destroyed or suffered varying levels of damage (United States claim) |
The 1998 bombing of Iraq (code-named Operation Desert Fox) was a major bombing campaign against Iraqi targets, from 16 to 19 December 1998, by the United States and the United Kingdom. On 16 December 1998 Bill Clinton announced that he had ordered strikes against Iraq. The strikes were launched due to Iraq's failure to comply with United Nations Security Council resolutions and its interference with United Nations inspectors that were searching for potential weapons of mass destruction. The inspectors had been sent to Iraq in 1997 and were repeatedly refused access to certain sites.
The operation was a major flare-up in the Iraq disarmament crisis as it involved a direct attack on Iraq. The aim of the bombing was to disable military and security targets which may have enabled Iraq to produce, store, maintain, and deliver weapons of mass destruction. The bombing campaign had been anticipated earlier in the year and faced criticism both in the U.S. and from members of the international community.[2] Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates initially announced they would deny the U.S. military the use of local bases for the purpose of air strikes against Iraq.[3]
The bombing was criticized by Clinton's detractors, who accused him of using the bombing to direct attention away from the ongoing impeachment proceedings he was facing.
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