Operational Art

<p>This monograph analyzes the Iran-Iraq War from its inception in September of 1980 through the Iranian Faw Counteroffensive of February 1986. It uses the precepts of operational art to examine the performance of the belligerents in this prolonged and bloody conflict. The monograph first reviews the political and historical background leading up to the Iraqi invasion on 23 September 1980. Next it distills the war into its distinctive phases exploring the relationship between political objectives and the military means employed to attain them by phase. It concludes with an analysis of how well Iran and Iraq have applied the precepts of operational art in this ongoing conflict. This monograph concludes that the Iran-Iraqi war has not served the policies of the belligerents well. Their collective failure to implement the principles of operational art coupled with their failure to execute tactical operations in a combined arms fashion have made this war a minion of death. It ends by proffering a possible solution for an Iranian victory using the precepts of operational art and by commenting on Iraq's present efforts to settle the conflict peacefully by drawing in the United States.</p><p>This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore you will see the original copyright references library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world) and other notations in the work.</p><p>This work is in the public domain in the United States of America and possibly other nations. Within the United States you may freely copy and distribute this work as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.</p><p>As a reproduction of a historical artifact this work may contain missing or blurred pages poor pictures errant marks etc. Scholars believe and we concur that this work is important enough to be preserved reproduced and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.</p><br>