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The December 1998 bombing of Iraq (code-named Operation Desert Fox) was a major four-day bombing campaign on Iraqi targets from December 16, 1998, to December 19, 1998, by the United States and United Kingdom. The contemporaneous justification for the strikes was Iraq's failure to comply with United Nations Security Council resolutions and its interference with United Nations Special Commission inspectors. The operation was a major flare-up in the Iraq disarmament crisis. The stated goal of the cruise missile and bombing attacks was to strike military and security targets in Iraq that contribute to Iraq's ability to produce, store, maintain and deliver weapons of mass destruction. The bombing campaign had been anticipated since February 1998 and incurred wide-ranging criticism and support, at home and abroad.〔(Headlines of February 16, 1998 ) ''Democracy Now!''〕 Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates initially announced they would deny U.S. military the use of local bases for the purpose of air strikes against Iraq.〔(The Possibility of "Mini-Nukes" On Iraq ), ''Democracy Now!'', February 17, 1998〕 It became one of the roots of the 2003 invasion of Iraq which resulted in the deposition of the Ba'athist Iraqi government. ==Background== U.S. President Bill Clinton had been working under a regional security framework of dual containment, which involved punishing Saddam Hussein's regime with military force whenever Iraq was challenging the United States or the international community. On October 31, 1998 Clinton signed into law H.R. 4655, the Iraq Liberation Act.〔(Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 ) The Library of Congress.〕 The new Act appropriated funds for Iraqi opposition groups in the hope of removing Saddam Hussein from power and replacing his regime with a democracy. The Act also said that: Nothing in this Act shall be construed to authorize or otherwise speak to the use of United States Armed Forces (except as provided in section 4(a)(2)) in carrying out this Act. Section 4(a)(2) states: The President is authorized to direct the drawdown of defense articles from the stocks of the Department of Defense, defense services of the Department of Defense, and military education and training for (democratic opposition ) organizations. Just prior to Desert Fox, the U.S. nearly led a bombing campaign against Saddam called Operation Desert Thunder. It was abandoned at the last minute when the Iraqi leader allowed the UN to continue weapons inspections.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Operation Desert Thunder / Desert Viper )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Bombing of Iraq (1998)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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