Relatives Recall Those Killed When Iraq Occupied Kuwait
Relatives of Kuwaitis killed during Iraq’s seven-month occupation remembered their dead Wednesday as Kuwait marked the 10th anniversary of the invasion that still haunts the Gulf Arab states.
“I miss my father a lot . . . but at the same time I am very proud of him as he dedicated himself to defend his country,” said 16-year-old Dhuha Mouhammad, whose father died during the invasion.
About 100 Kuwaitis attended a gathering organized by the Martyrs’ Bureau, an office set up by the Kuwaiti government in 1991 to care for the families of the thousands killed during the occupation.
Apart from the low-key event, which was marked by a display of paintings and booklets at the bureau, there was little public commemoration of the day when Iraqi tanks rolled almost unopposed into Kuwait and seized it in about a day.
A U.S.-led international alliance drove Iraq’s troops out of the oil-rich emirate seven months later, but many scars remain.
Hundreds of people packed a courthouse Wednesday to file claims because of rumors that Aug. 2 would be the last day to apply for compensation for damage incurred during the invasion.
Others remembered about 600 missing people who Kuwait says are still being held by Iraq. Baghdad denies the allegation.
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