Editing History of Iran (section)

==== Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988) ====
{{Main|Iran–Iraq War}}
[[File:Chemical weapon1.jpg|thumb|An Iranian soldier with gas mask during the Iran–Iraq War]]

During this political and social crisis, Iraqi leader [[Saddam Hussein]] attempted to take advantage of the disorder of the Revolution, the weakness of the Iranian military and the revolution's antagonism with Western governments. The once-strong Iranian military had been disbanded during the revolution, and with the Shah ousted, Hussein had ambitions to position himself as the new strong man of the Middle East. He sought to expand Iraq's access to the Persian Gulf by acquiring territories that Iraq had claimed earlier from Iran during the Shah's rule.

Of chief importance to Iraq was [[Khuzestan Province|Khuzestan]] which not only boasted a substantial Arab population, but rich oil fields as well. On the unilateral behalf of the [[United Arab Emirates]], the islands of [[Abu Musa]] and the [[Greater and Lesser Tunbs]] became objectives as well. With these ambitions in mind, Hussein planned a full-scale assault on Iran, boasting that his forces could reach the capital within three days. On 22 September 1980, the Iraqi army invaded Iran at Khuzestan, precipitating the [[Iran–Iraq War]]. The attack took revolutionary Iran completely by surprise.

Although Saddam Hussein's forces made several early advances, Iranian forces had pushed the Iraqi army back into Iraq by 1982. Khomeini sought to [[export of revolution|export his Islamic revolution]] westward into Iraq, especially on the majority Shi'a Arabs living in the country. The war then continued for six more years until 1988, when Khomeini, in his words, "drank the cup of poison" and accepted a truce mediated by the United Nations.

Tens of thousands of Iranian civilians and military personnel were killed when Iraq used [[chemical weapons]] in its warfare. [[International aid to combatants in the Iran–Iraq War|Iraq was financially backed]] by [[Egypt]], the Arab countries of the [[Persian Gulf]], the Soviet Union and the [[Warsaw Pact]] states, the United States (beginning in 1983), France, the United Kingdom, Germany, [[Brazil]], and the [[People's Republic of China]] (which also sold weapons to Iran).

There were more than 182,000 Kurdish victims<ref name="r1">Centre for Documents of The Imposed War, Tehran. (مرکز مطالعات و تحقیقات جنگ)</ref> of Iraq's chemical weapons during the eight-year war. The total Iranian casualties of the war were estimated to be between 500,000 and 1,000,000. Almost all relevant international agencies have confirmed that Saddam engaged in chemical warfare to blunt Iranian [[human wave attack]]s; these agencies unanimously confirmed that Iran never used chemical weapons during the war.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/news/iran/1997/970205-480132.htm|title=Iran, 'Public Enemy Number One'|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150620160352/https://fas.org/news/iran/1997/970205-480132.htm|archive-date=2015-06-20}}</ref><!--
--><ref>{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/cw/intro.htm|title=Chemical Weapons Information – Federation of American Scientists|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150620160905/https://fas.org/cw/intro.htm|archive-date=2015-06-20}}</ref><!--
--><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.antiwar.com/glantz/?articleid=2804|title=Winter Soldier: Domingo Rosas – Antiwar.com Original|date=8 November 2008|access-date=29 October 2007|archive-date=6 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606082652/http://www.antiwar.com/glantz/?articleid=2804|url-status=live}}</ref><!--
--><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/Iran/Chemical/2340_2965.html|title=Iran – Countries – NTI|access-date=2007-10-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100408212924/http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/Iran/Chemical/2340_2965.html|archive-date=2010-04-08}}</ref>

Starting on 19 July 1988 and lasting for about five months the [[Islamic Republic of Iran|government]] systematically executed thousands of political prisoners across Iran. This is commonly referred to as the [[1988 executions of Iranian political prisoners]] or the 1988 Iranian Massacre. The main target was the membership of the [[People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran]] (PMOI), although a lesser number of political prisoners from other leftist groups were also included such as the [[Tudeh Party of Iran]] (Communist Party).<ref>[http://www.pww.org/article/view/5754/1/231/ Iranian party demands end to repression] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050924060950/http://www.pww.org/article/view/5754/1/231/ |date=2005-09-24 }}</ref><ref>Abrahamian, Ervand, ''Tortured Confessions'', University of California Press, 1999, 209–228</ref> Estimates of the number executed vary from 1,400<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.holycrime.com/Images/Listof1367Massacre.pdf |title=Massacre 1988 (Pdf) |access-date=2008-07-30 |archive-date=2021-02-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225140452/http://www.holycrime.com/Images/Listof1367Massacre.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> to 30,000.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=160|title=Iran Focus|date=5 September 2004 |access-date=2008-07-30|archive-date=2008-02-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080220155725/http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=160|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2001/02/04/wiran04.xml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060210125211/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fnews%2F2001%2F02%2F04%2Fwiran04.xml|archive-date=2006-02-10|title=News|newspaper=The Telegraph|date=2016-03-15|access-date=2021-08-04}}</ref>