Battle of Dasman Palace

The Battle of Dasman Palace, also called the Battle of Dasman, was a battle that broke out between the Kuwaiti and Iraqi forces during the Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait on August 2, 1990.

On the early morning of August 2 (01:30) the Iraqi special forces infiltrators in civilian clothes and airborne units launched a surprise attack on Dasman Palace, the residence of the Emir of Kuwait, less than half an hour after the Emir had been evacuated. After the arrival of reinforcements from the Emiri Guard Brigade, the attack failed and the Emiri Guard and the police took control of the areas in and around the palace.

At 05:00 the Iraqi Army launched a new attack on the palace which is located on the coast. Iraqi marines carried out a mechanized attack which was successful despite the absence of the occupation of the palace, but more Emiri Guard arrived quickly with reinforcements from the Kuwaiti National Guard.

After several hours of fighting the Iraqi Republican Guard reached Kuwait City with tanks after crossing the international borders at 00:00 of August 3, 1990. By the end of the day the badly-damaged palace had been occupied and looted.

This is one of the few instances where Kuwait put up a stiff resistance to the Iraqi invasion. The fighting went on for two days, and when this battle was over, the Kuwaiti resistance fell for the time being.

See also

• The Battle of the Bridges