Conflicted: A History Podcast
Untangling history’s greatest controversies. Every month, we take a hard look at the historical conflicts that raise difficult questions, stoke controversy, and send our moral compasses spinning.
The Gulf War 1991 – Part 3: Land of Darkness
On January 17th, 1991, Operation Desert Storm begins. As President Bush braces for high casualties, Saddam Hussein desperately seeks a path to survival. In Baghdad, Coalition air forces rain hell on Iraqi soldiers and civilians alike, while American diplomats scramble to defuse a potential crisis in Israel. US infantrymen come face-to-face with the fourth largest army in the world…with surprising results. As oil wells burn and journalists jockey for access, the war reaches a bloody climax at the “Highway of Death”.
SOURCES:
Aburish, Said K. Saddam Hussein: The Politics of Revenge. 2000.
Atkinson, Rick. Crusade: The Untold Story of the Gulf War. 1993.
Al-Radi, Nuha. Baghdad Diaries. 1998.
Baudrillard, Jean. The Gulf War Did Not Take Place. 1991.
Bergen, Peter L. The Rise and Fall of Osama bin Laden. 2021.
Charles Rivers Editors. The Gulf War. 2018.
Coll, Steve. Ghost Wars. 2004.
Coll, Steve. Branigin, William. “US scrambled to shape view of ‘Highway of Death’”. 3.11.1991.
Corrigan, Jim. Desert Storm Air War. 2017.
Coughlin, Con. Saddam: His Rise and Fall. 2005.
DeGhett, Torie Rose. “The War Photo No One Would Publish”. 8.8.2014.
Dunnigan, James F. Macedonia, Raymond M. Getting It Right. 1995.
Engel, Jeffrey A. When the World Seemed New.
Finlan, Alastair. The Gulf War 1991. 2003.
Gordon, Michael R. Trainer, Bernard E. The General’s War. 1995.
“The Gulf War” / FRONTLINE. PBS. Jan 9, 1996.
Hallion, Richard P. Desert Storm 1991. 2022.
Hiro, Dilip. Desert Shield to Desert Storm: The Second Gulf War. 1991.
Hiro, Dilip. Cold War in the Islamic World. 2018.
Karsh, Efraim. The Iran-Iraq War, 1980-1988. 1989.
Karsh, Efraim. Rautsi, Inari. Saddam Hussein. A Political Biography. 1991.
Khadduri, Majid. Ghareeb, Edmund. War in the Gulf, 1990-1991. 1999.
Jarecke, Kenneth. Cervenka, Exene. Just Another War. 1991.
Lockwood, Stuart. 2015 June 5. “That’s Me In The Picture”. The Guardian.
MacArthur, John R. Second Front: Censorship and Propaganda in the 1991 Gulf War. 1992.
Mufson, Steven. 1990 Aug 6. “Kuwait Assets Form Vast, Frozen Empire”. The Washington Post.
Murray, Williamson. Woods, Kevin M. The Iran-Iraq War. 2014.
Meacham, Jon. Destiny and Power. 2015.
Morris, David J. Storm on the Horizon. 2004.
Riedel, Bruce. Kings and Presidents: Saudi Arabia and the United States. 2019.
Swofford, Anthony. Jarhead. 2003.
Woodward, Bob. 1991, May 4. “Regal Audience for a Forceful Presence”. The Washington Post
Wyndham, Buck. Hogs in the Sand. 2020.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Podcast Episodes
The Panama Canal – Part 2: I Took The Isthmus
After the French project to build a canal through Panama collapses in 1889 amidst disease and financial scandal, US President Teddy Roosevelt resolves to pick up where they left off. However, powerful interests in Washin…
The Panama Canal – Part 1: Le Piège Mortel
In August of 1914, the United States of America completed a man-made waterway through the Panamanian isthmus, linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans for the first time in history. But that engineering triumph was the cu…
The Tokyo Subway Sarin Attacks 1995 – Part 2
As the Japanese police prepare for a raid on the Aum Shinrikyo compound, cult leader Shoko Asahara launches a desperate chemical weapons attack in downtown Tokyo. During the height of Monday morning rush hour, Aum terror…
The Tokyo Subway Sarin Attacks 1995 – Part 1
On March 20th, 1995, the Tokyo subway system was flooded with sarin nerve gas in a coordinated terrorist attack by the religious cult Aum Shinrikyō. Led by the charismatic new-age guru, Shoko Asahara, the well-funded and…
Get Eichmann – Israel’s Hunt For A Nazi War Criminal - Part 3
In the summer of 1960, all eyes are on Israel. As the Jewish nation unveils its capture of Adolf Eichmann to the world, a bitter controversy swirls around the notorious SS officer. Eichmann’s lawyer, Dr. Robert Servatius…
Get Eichmann – Israel’s Hunt For A Nazi War Criminal - Part 2
Adolf Eichmann has been found. In the spring of 1960, Mossad launches a daring operation to kidnap “Ricardo Klement” and smuggle him back to Israel to face judgement. SOURCES: Aharoni, Zvi. Dietl, Wilhelm. Operation Eich…
Get Eichmann – Israel’s Hunt For A Nazi War Criminal - Part 1
When World War II ended, SS officer Adolf Eichmann disappeared. As a key organizer of Nazi Germany’s Final Solution, the genocidal program that murdered 6 million European Jews, Eichmann became one of the most hunted men…
When Justinian Met Theodora – Part 4
In the conclusion of the series, Justinian and Theodora face a cascade of setbacks and disasters. The Empress hatches a plan to destroy John the Cappadocian. Belisarius learns of Antonina’s serial infidelity. A deadly Pl…
When Justinian Met Theodora – Part 3
With the Nika Riots behind them, Justinian and Theodora rebuild Constantinople and pursue a bold new agenda for the Byzantine Empire. Belisarius sails to war against the Vandal Kingdom. John the Cappadocian seeks to driv…
When Justinian Met Theodora – Part 2
After being crowned Emperor and Empress of the Byzantine Empire, Justinian and Theodora face their first major test as rulers, the deadly Nika Riots of 532 AD. SOURCES: Bridge, Antony. Theodora: Portrait in a Byzantine L…
