30th anniversary of the end of the Gulf War (Operation Daguet)
February 1991, Rafha (Saudi Arabia) - Pictured against the sunset, a member of the French Marine Infantry Tank Regiment (RICM) stands on the lookout outside his foxhole at Camp Olive, shortly before the land offensive.
Michel Riehl - ECPAD
On 24 February 1991, after several days of intense air strikes, French troops of the Daguet Division launched an attack on the enemy positions. Penetrating 150 km into Iraqi territory, they achieved their objectives in 48 hours and thus played an active part in the liberation of Kuwait, alongside the UN-mandated international coalition.
US general Norman Schwarzkopf, commander-in-chief of the Allied forces in Operation Desert Storm, was to say later:
“Few people know that at the end of the first day of the ground attack, having made a fantastic breakthrough, French forces were located in the most northerly and westerly positions. It was they who had driven deepest into Iraq. They successfully completed the missions assigned to them, and in the most formidable way.”
Click here to watch the video of the ceremony presided over by the Minister for Remembrance and Veterans, to mark the anniversary of Operation Daguet
Access a whole series of resources commemorating the 30th anniversary of the operation
A timeline of operations
General background
Articles:
- 1963 to 2011: 50 years of OPEX, an article by Dominique Guillemin published in the special edition of Les Chemins de la Mémoire on overseas operations (OPEX)
Vidéos:
Articles documenting Operation Daguet
Analyses
Two questions put to General Abrial, Chairman of the Board of the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace, former Chief of Staff of the French Air Force from 2006 to 2009, and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Transformation from 2009 to 2012.
A speech by Maria-Laure Griffaton, senior heritage curator and director of the scientific department and collections of the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace
Archive TV news footage from the period
Web documentaries illustrating the French military intervention
Anecdotes and tesimonials from the protagonists
Spotlight on the hardware employed by the French armed forces
The French Air Force Jaguars
The French Army AMX-30B2 tanks
- Watch episodes 1, 2, 3 et 4 de la web-série on the AMX-30B2 in the Gulf War, on the ANOPEX Facebook page
Exhibitions and round tables
A remembrance site: The Memorial to French soldiers killed in overseas operations
Photographs illustrating the engagement of the troops
