In 1990 Iraq invaded the country of Kuwait in asperation to gain more control over the lucrative oil supply of the Middle East. The US and UN both demanded Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein to back down but he would not. Hussein believed that if he was able to capture Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, Iraq would be able to pay off its massive debt in the war with Iran. The US feared that capturing Kuwait would be the first step for Iraq consolidating power in the Middle East and the possibility of Hussein owning over twenty percent of the world's oil supply if he succeeded in his endeavors. Therefore, both the US and the UN threatened war on Iraq if they should not move out by January 15, 1991. However, Iraq did end up invading Kuwait in August of 1990. Therefore, President Bush unleashed Operation Desert Shield. Operation Desert Shield was essentially a line of troops protecting Saudi Arabia and liberating Kuwait from Iraqi forces. On February 28, 1951 conflict took a drastic change. The President bush unveiled Operation Desert Storm which was the combat portion of his plan. It began with a five-week bombing campaign. In response, Iraq launched ineffective short-range missiles at civilian and military targets in Saudi Arabia and Isreal. After 4 days of fighting on the ground, by February 28, 1991, Iraqi forces had fled Kuwait and President Bush had called a ceasefire. Although Hussein did remain in power Iraq was subject to searches for Weapons of Mass Destruction(WMDs). In the end, the Gulf War was over and Kuwait had been liberated.

Source: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/modern-us/1990s-america/a/the-gulf-war