Iran-Iraq War

I haven't blogged about ancient Gaul in a long time, have I? Most recently the Iran-Iraq War has been taking up my time. Here's some stuff I betcha didn't know about that charming little matchup:

1. A million deaths resulted from the Iran-Iraq War.
2. It lasted a month short of eight years (September 1980 to August 1988), making in the longest conventional war of the twentieth century
3. Iraq's President, Saddam Hussein, invaded Iran at the beginning of the war, thinking that the new leadership of the country (the Ayatollah--remember him?) was not ready to fight a war. Was he wrong! Never underestimate the power of religious fanaticism.
4. Iraq ended the war $80 BILLION in debt. That's one big reason why Iraq invaded Kuwait two years later and started the Gulf War.
5. In Iran, volunteer soldiers as young as 9 years old--yes, NINE--were joining the army and "clearing fields of mines" (I think that means they got blown up.)

What a fun topic. But two weeks ago it was Guernica and the Spanish Civil War. We just never learn.