On 26 February 1991, the Battle of 73 Easting was fought between the United States under H.R. McMaster and the Iraqis under Salah Aboud Mohammed during the Gulf War.
Why did it happen?
On 2 August 1990, Saddam Hussein invaded and occupied Kuwait to gain access to its oil fields and pay off his debts accumulated during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-88). This move was met with international condemnation around the world, and the United Nations subsequently imposed economic sanctions on Iraq. On 8 August, US President George Bush implemented Operation Desert Shield, which involved the formation of an international coalition of 31 nations to send soldiers and vehicles to Saudi Arabia to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi occupation. When Saddam Hussein refused to withdraw by the deadline of 15 January 1991, George Bush began Operation Desert Storm on 17 January, which involved 700 aircraft and helicopters conducting a five-week bombing campaign against targets inside Iraq. On 24 February, 700,000 Coalition soldiers and 2,000 tanks began the ground campaign by entering Iraq just to the west of Kuwait. By 26 February, while most Iraqi soldiers had begun to withdraw or surrender, the Republican Guard divisions stood their ground and engaged US forces near the Wadi-el-Batin.
Who was involved?
The US forces at 73 Easting numbered 120 infantry, 9 tanks, and 12 Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs). The tanks were all M1 Abrams, divided into three platoons of 3 tanks each, while the IFVs were all M2 Bradleys and followed behind the tank platoons. Despite being outnumbered by the Iraqis, the US VII Corps was equipped with GPS technology, which allowed them to know where they were, regardless of the weather and terrain. The Iraqi forces at 73 Easting numbered 3,000 infantry, 58 tanks, and 25 APCs. As stated by H.R. McMaster, “The enemy commander, Major Mohammed, and his soldiers knew the ground well. The unit had used the village for billets as they conducted live fire training. Mohammed, who graduated from the Infantry Officer Advanced Course at Fort Benning, Georgia thought it was the ideal ground from which to defend” (McMaster, 2016). Iraqi infantry positions were arrayed in a local Iraqi village and behind an imperceptible rise in the terrain that ran perpendicular to the road to the east of the village. About 40 tanks and 16 APCs were arrayed behind this crest, with Mohammed entrenching 18 more tanks to the northeast.
What happened?
At 3.56pm on 26 February, as the US VII Corps advanced past an Iraqi village and several bunkers, the Iraqi soldiers stationed in the bunkers surrendered at 4.10pm. Eight minutes later, the nine M1 Abrams tanks destroyed eight Iraqi T-72 tanks stationed in front of them, while two M2 Bradley IFVs drove north and engaged 13 Iraqi tanks, which the IFVs destroyed with TOW missiles. However, one of the IFVs was destroyed by enemy fire at 4.22pm. H.R. McMaster then drove his tank platoons over a low rise in the terrain and spotted 18 Iraqi tanks in a defensive position under Salah Aboud Mohammed. Despite standing their ground, the Iraqi tanks were destroyed, and at 4.40pm, H.R. McMaster halted his troops and vehicles to rest. US casualties were minimal, with 1 killed, 3 wounded and 1 IFV destroyed. In contrast, the Iraqis lost 600 killed, 1,300 captured, 28 tanks and 16 APCs destroyed.
What changed as a result?
The Battle of 73 Easting was a US victory. Dubbed “the last great tank battle of the twentieth century”, the Battle of 73 Easting was one of several tank battles fought on 26-27 February. However, at 8am on 28 February, the ground campaign ended with a ceasefire, and coalition forces refused to press on towards Baghdad due to fears of heavy casualties that would be sustained. Indeed, Saddam Hussein remained in power despite continuing economic sanctions and UN weapons inspectors destroying his Weapons of Mass Destruction. It would not be until 2003 that Saddam Hussein was overthrown by US forces and subsequently executed for war crimes in 2006. However, the United States failed to create a viable government to replace Saddam’s Baath Party, and when the last US troops were withdrawn in 2011, Iraq descended into lawlessness with the Islamic State, or ISIS, gaining large amounts of territory in 2014.
Bibliography
Cold War Warriors. “M1 Abrams Battle of 73 Easting, Gulf War 1991.” YouTube video, 3:20. February 5, 2009. www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBG_G678Trg
David, Saul. War: The Definitive Visual History. New York, Dorling Kindersley, 2009.
Green, Trevor. Line of Fire: The Gulf War. UK, Cromwell Productions, 2002. DVD.
McMaster, H.R. “Eagle Troop at the Battle of 73 Easting.” The Strategy Bridge. Last revised February 26, 2016. www.thestrategybridge.org/the-bridge/2016/2/26/eagle-troop-at-the-battle-of-73-easting
Zimmerman, Dwight Jon. 3,000 Years of War. New York, Tess Press, 2012.