Trench Warfare
The Iran-Iraq War was not a stalemate in the same way that many think of the Western front during World War I, but still featured the use of trench warfare. Iraq frequently used the defense in depth method where it would allow Iranian troops to assault a position and sustain heavy casualties before falling back to a secondary defensive line, yielding ground in order to cause as much damage to the enemy as possible. Iran on the other hand relied on human wave attacks to overwhelm the Iraqi defenders in the early stages of the war.
While tanks, artillery, helicopters and jets were used frequently during the war they were not used to their full potential and thus man power played a huge role on the war. This can be seen in several ways. Iraqi jets were only effectively used in the beginning and at the end of the war and during the tanker war. This is due to Iraq's preference for jet fights and not bombers as well as the extremely effective Iranian use of anti-air defenses and its own air force which was constantly struggling at staying operational due to a lack of spare parts. It was fairly common to see tanks dug into the trenches to add extra protection and were then used as stationary weapons but this severely decreased their offensive ability. Furthermore Soviet tanks featured advanced adjustable sights which were poorly utilized by the Iraqi forces operating them.
Evidence for the importance of rank and file infantry is easy to see however. At the onset of the war the Iraqi army outnumbered their Iranian counterparts two-to-one; about 350,000 to, at the most, 150,000. This enabled the quick Iraqi offensive that is characterized as the first stage of the war. When Iran was given time to respond, their armed forces were able to push Iraq out of Iran and by 1982 Iranian forces numbered 350,000 and Iraqi forces only 175,000. Faced with a prolonged Iranian occupation of Iraq and the possibility of the Iranian presence causing a Shia uprising in Iraq, Saddam increased the draft and the Iraqi army swelled. At the end of the war the Iraqi forces were composed of around 900,000 men while the Iranian forces increased in response to 1,500,000. The difference was, however, that the Iranian army was heavily reliant on the Basij to act as a vanguard and take enemy fire before the much more experienced Revolutionary Guard attacked while the Iraqi troops were much more experience and better equipped.
While tanks, artillery, helicopters and jets were used frequently during the war they were not used to their full potential and thus man power played a huge role on the war. This can be seen in several ways. Iraqi jets were only effectively used in the beginning and at the end of the war and during the tanker war. This is due to Iraq's preference for jet fights and not bombers as well as the extremely effective Iranian use of anti-air defenses and its own air force which was constantly struggling at staying operational due to a lack of spare parts. It was fairly common to see tanks dug into the trenches to add extra protection and were then used as stationary weapons but this severely decreased their offensive ability. Furthermore Soviet tanks featured advanced adjustable sights which were poorly utilized by the Iraqi forces operating them.
Evidence for the importance of rank and file infantry is easy to see however. At the onset of the war the Iraqi army outnumbered their Iranian counterparts two-to-one; about 350,000 to, at the most, 150,000. This enabled the quick Iraqi offensive that is characterized as the first stage of the war. When Iran was given time to respond, their armed forces were able to push Iraq out of Iran and by 1982 Iranian forces numbered 350,000 and Iraqi forces only 175,000. Faced with a prolonged Iranian occupation of Iraq and the possibility of the Iranian presence causing a Shia uprising in Iraq, Saddam increased the draft and the Iraqi army swelled. At the end of the war the Iraqi forces were composed of around 900,000 men while the Iranian forces increased in response to 1,500,000. The difference was, however, that the Iranian army was heavily reliant on the Basij to act as a vanguard and take enemy fire before the much more experienced Revolutionary Guard attacked while the Iraqi troops were much more experience and better equipped.
Chemical Weapons
Chemical weapons were used with increased frequency and effectiveness towards the end of the war and were seen as a vital aspect of every major Iraqi offensive. Tabun, mustard gas, sarin, and tear gas was made in huge quantities and delivered using a variety of methods including missiles, helicopters, and artillery shells.
Iraq pursued both chemical and nuclear weapons during the war to be used to turn the tide of battle. Iraq bought a thermonuclear reactor from France in 1976 and continued to buy uranium from France and Portugal. Nuclear weapons were seen as redundant by Saddam after the success of the Iraqi chemical weapons program. Components for chemical weapons came from many countries, mostly Europe and the United States, but principally from Germany. West German chemical firms assisted Iraq in the development of Iraq's initial chemical weapons facilities under the guise of producing pesticides or other commercial chemicals while the use of chemical weapons was tacitly accepted by the United States during the war with CIA agents assisting in planning Iraqi defenses.
Between 1983 and 1988 Iraq used approximately 19,500 bombs, 27,000 rockets and over 54,000 artillery shells all carrying chemical weapons. About 140 tons of Tabun gas, over 600 tons of Sarin gas and 1,800 tons of mustard gas were used in this time period, almost two thirds of which were used in the last 18 months of the Iraq-Iran War against not only the Iranian military, but also against Iranian and Iraqi civilians.
Early in the war chemical weapons were used with limited effectiveness against what some describe as Iranian wave infantry attacks. Chemical weapons would either delay the attack long enough for the Iraqi forces to regroup or cause serious harm to anyone that proceeded. As the war dragged on and Iraq returned to the offense chemical weapons weapons were used to try to break through Iranian defenses. Iraqi use of chemical weapons was crude at first but experience and additional training soon allowed for effective and widespread use of chemical weapons.
Iraqi use of chemical weapons was so widespread that Iran began its own chemical weapons program in retaliation although the Iranian chemical program came towards the end of the war and did not have nearly the same impact as their Iraqi counter parts.
Iraq pursued both chemical and nuclear weapons during the war to be used to turn the tide of battle. Iraq bought a thermonuclear reactor from France in 1976 and continued to buy uranium from France and Portugal. Nuclear weapons were seen as redundant by Saddam after the success of the Iraqi chemical weapons program. Components for chemical weapons came from many countries, mostly Europe and the United States, but principally from Germany. West German chemical firms assisted Iraq in the development of Iraq's initial chemical weapons facilities under the guise of producing pesticides or other commercial chemicals while the use of chemical weapons was tacitly accepted by the United States during the war with CIA agents assisting in planning Iraqi defenses.
Between 1983 and 1988 Iraq used approximately 19,500 bombs, 27,000 rockets and over 54,000 artillery shells all carrying chemical weapons. About 140 tons of Tabun gas, over 600 tons of Sarin gas and 1,800 tons of mustard gas were used in this time period, almost two thirds of which were used in the last 18 months of the Iraq-Iran War against not only the Iranian military, but also against Iranian and Iraqi civilians.
Early in the war chemical weapons were used with limited effectiveness against what some describe as Iranian wave infantry attacks. Chemical weapons would either delay the attack long enough for the Iraqi forces to regroup or cause serious harm to anyone that proceeded. As the war dragged on and Iraq returned to the offense chemical weapons weapons were used to try to break through Iranian defenses. Iraqi use of chemical weapons was crude at first but experience and additional training soon allowed for effective and widespread use of chemical weapons.
Iraqi use of chemical weapons was so widespread that Iran began its own chemical weapons program in retaliation although the Iranian chemical program came towards the end of the war and did not have nearly the same impact as their Iraqi counter parts.