12. The US Provided Iraq With Weapons And Information During The 1980s... In Order To Help Hussein Defeat Iran
Before the First Gulf War, the US was far-more receptive to Hussein's regime in Iraq - and even actively helped prop it up with finances and weaponry during the 1980s. While Hussein fought his Middle-Eastern rivals during the Iran-Iraq War from September 1980 to August 1988, the USA saw him as the lesser of two evils in the regions - and so provided him with weaponry and aid. Ironically, that weaponry was then used against the US and Commonwealth forces during both the first Gulf War and the Iraq War...