Iran–Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was a war between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran lasting from September 1980 to August 1988. It began when Iraq invaded Iran on 22 September 1980, after a long history of border disputes and after Iran demanded the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime. Iraqi forces did well at the beginning of the war, taking Iranian Khuzestan province, but they were stopped and forced out of Iran before long. The war continued for years, and neither side gained much ground in the resulting trench warfare. About a million soldiers died, and a similar number of civilians. Both sides used blockade, which other countries opposed. Despite several calls for an end to the fighting by the United Nations Security Council, the two countries fought until 20 August 1988; the last prisoners of war were exchanged in 2003. The war changed politics in the Middle East and worldwide.