Tanker War: America’s First Conflict with Iran, 1987–88

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Tanker War: America’s First Conflict with Iran, 1987–88
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In May 1987 the US frigate Stark, calmly sailing the waters of the Persian Gulf, was suddenly blown apart by an Exocet missile fired from a jet fighter of Iraqâ€™s Saddam Hussein. A fifth of the shipâ€™s crew were killed and many others horribly burned or wounded. This event jumpstarted one of the most mysterious conflicts in American history: â€œThe Tanker War,â€ waged against Iran for control of the Persian Gulf.

This quasi-war took place at the climax of the mammoth Iran-Iraq War, during the last years of the Reagan administration. Losing on the battlefield, Ayatollah Khomeiniâ€™s Iran had decided to close the Persian Gulf against shipping from Iraqâ€™s oil-rich backers, the emirate of Kuwait. The Kuwaitis appealed for help and America sent a fleet to the Gulf, raising the Stars and Stripes over Kuwaitâ€™s commercial tankers.

The result was a free-for-all, as the Iranians laid mines throughout the narrow passage and launched attack boats against both tankers and US warships. The sixth largest ship in the world, the tanker Bridgeton, hit an Iranian mine and flooded. The US Navy fought its largest surface battle since World War II against the Ayatollahâ€™s assault boats.

Meanwhile, US Navy Seals had arrived in the Gulf, setting up shop aboard a mobile platform from which they would sally out in fast craft to combat the Iranians. As Saddam Hussein, who had instigated the conflict, looked on, Iranian gunners fired shore-based Silkworm missiles against US ships, actions which, if made known at the time, would have required the US Congress to declare war against Iran.

In July 1988, nervous sailors aboard the cruiser USS Vincennes shot an Iranian airliner out of the sky, killing 300 civilians. This event came one month before the end of the war, and may have been the final straw to influence the Ayatollah to finally drink from his â€œpoisoned chalice.â€
In Tanker War, Lee Allen Zatarain, employing recently released Pentagon documents, firsthand interviews, and a determination to get to the truth, has revealed a conflict that few recognized at the time, but which may have presaged further battles to come.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION

1: THE STARK DISASTER
2: TARGET: KUWAIT
3: RAISING QUESTIONS
4: OPERATION EARNEST WILL
5: AMBUSH
6: RETHINKING
7: THE INVISIBLE HAND STRIKES AGAIN
8: IN FLAGRANTE
9: FORT APACHEâ€”THE GULF
10: â€œTURN AND ENGAGEâ€
11: â€œWE WILL COMMENCE FIRINGâ€
12: â€œWE ARE THE BIG WINNERS IN THE GULF NOWâ€
13: â€œNO HIGHER HONORâ€
14: â€œA ONE-DAY WARâ€
15: â€œSTOP, ABANDON SHIP, I INTEND TO SINK YOUâ€
16: â€œNONE OF THESE LADIES HAS A SCRATCH ON HERâ€
17: â€œMULTIPLE SILKWORMS INBOUNDâ€
18: POLICEMAN OF THE GULF?
19: â€œUNKNOWN, ASSUMED HOSTILEâ€
20: â€œI DEEPLY REGRET THE RESULT, IF NOT THE DECISION
21: SEA OF LIES?
22: â€œGIVE ME THE KEY. GIVE ME THE KEY.â€
23: â€œTHEY DONâ€™T FIGHT LIKE IRANIANS ANYMOREâ€

END NOTES
INDEX
Country USA
Brand Casemate
Manufacturer Casemate
Binding Hardcover
UnitCount 1
EANs 9781932033847
ReleaseDate 0000-00-00

Country	USA
Brand	Casemate
Manufacturer	Casemate
Binding	Hardcover
UnitCount	1
EANs	9781932033847
ReleaseDate	0000-00-00