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The First Battle of al-Faw (Operation Dawn 8) fought from February 9 – March 20, 1986 (with heavy combat operations lasting until early 1988), was a battle of the Iran-Iraq War. The Iranians launched a sophisticated, carefully-planned amphibious attack across the Shatt al-Arab (Arvand Rud) river against the Iraqi troops (mostly Iraqi Popular Army) defending the strategic al-Faw Peninsula, which connects Iraq to the Persian Gulf, capturing the peninsula, including Iraq's main air control and warning center (which was covering Persian Gulf) and outskirts of the primary Iraqi port of Umm Qasr. The Iranians defeated several Iraqi Republican Guard's counter-offensives and managed to remain in to their foothold. Iraq extensively used chemical weapons during the battle. A blow to the Iraqi government prestige, it sent a psychological shock wave throughout the region, primarily in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Iraq started to extensively improve the defenses of the major city of Basra, which was now under threat. ==Prelude== The Iran-Iraq War had been fought for nearly 6 years. While the Iranians had driven the Iraqis off of their soil in 1982, Iranian efforts to invade Iraq and cause the downfall of the regime of Saddam Hussein had been fruitless. Iran (which had the 5th most powerful military in the world prior to the Islamic Revolution) had suffered due to a lack of spare parts and replacement equipment, and relied heavily on human wave attacks and light infantry warfare. Meanwhile, the Iraqs (especially after 1982) were heavily supported by foreign nations, many whom did not want to see an Iranian victory. The war bogged down into a stalemate. In the face of increasing Iraqi armament and manpower, as well as increasing problems on their own side, Iran could no longer rely on outnumbering Iraqi troops.() While the infantry and human wave assaults would remain key to their attacks throughout the war, Iran began to rely more heavily on infiltration and surprise attacks, as a part of limited light infantry warfare (). In contrast to Iraq's static defences and heavy armour, Iran began training troops in infiltration, patrolling, night-fighting, marsh warfare, and mountain warfare.() They also began training thousands of Revolutionary Guard commandos in amphibious warfare,() as southern Iraq is marshy and filled with wetlands. Iran used speedboats to cross the marshes and rivers in southern Iraq and landed troops on the opposing banks, where they would dig and set up pontoon bridges across the rivers and wetlands to allow heavy troops and supplies to cross. Transport helicopters were used as well, ferrying troops to the battlefield.() Iran largely focused on infiltrating through areas that were difficult for Iraqi armour, air power, and artillery to be used, such as valleys, the marshes of southern Iraq, and the mountains of northern Iraq.() Iran began to plan for a major offensive. While deceptively making it seem like the attack was to be against the southern Iraqi city of al-Basra (like most of Iran's attacks had been), the attack was really aimed at the southern al-Faw peninsula, touching the Persian Gulf, and the only area of Iraq that touched the open ocean. 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「First Battle of al-Faw」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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