February 26, 1991 · Kuwait Theater
February 26, 1991
As coalition forces liberated Kuwait City on February 26, thousands of Iraqi soldiers, conscripts, and civilians fled north on Highway 80 toward Basra in a massive convoy of looted vehicles — military trucks, civilian cars, buses, ambulances, and fire engines crammed with stolen goods from Kuwait. Coalition aircraft detected the convoy and attacked for hours. A-10 Warthogs, F-16s, and AV-8 Harriers struck the head and tail of the column to trap it, then systematically destroyed the vehicles in between. Photographs of the miles-long graveyard of burned-out vehicles shocked the world. The images were so disturbing that President Bush declared a ceasefire the following day, concerned about the perception of 'slaughter.'
Commanders