The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990 marked a point where bin Laden turned his attention toward the United States. He strongly urged the Saudi regime not to host the 500,000 U.S. soldiers, instead advocating the use of a mujaheddin force to oust the Iraqis. Bin Laden strongly opposed the continued presence of U.S. soldiers in Saudi Arabia. He interpreted the Prophet Muhammad as banning the "permanent presence of infidels in Arabia". This drove bin Laden to attack U.S. military targets in Saudi Arabia. Also, the date chosen for the 1998 Kenyan embassy bombings (August 7), was eight years to the day that American troops were sent to Saudi Arabia.