Iran launches Operation Muslim ibn Aqil near Mandali

Iran announced that Mohamed Seddik Benyahia had died while flying to Tehran and accused Iraq of downing the plane. His visit had been connected with mediation efforts.

In a broadcast interview, Ariel Sharon defended Israeli arms sales to Iran and rejected U.S. criticism. His remarks made the wartime supply relationship a matter of public ministerial debate.

Iraq’s Arab allies urged Iran to consider an apparent reparations offer. Iran continued to demand withdrawal, compensation and an investigation into the war’s origins.

Iran said acceptance of an Iraqi ceasefire offer depended on permission for its forces to cross Iraq toward Lebanon. The condition connected Gulf diplomacy with the Lebanon crisis.

Iraq accepted moving the planned Non-Aligned summit away from Baghdad as war and Iranian objections undermined its proposed role as host.

Resolution 522 renewed calls for a ceasefire and withdrawal to internationally recognized boundaries. For Iran, these demands arose after its recovery of occupied territory and the expansion of combat...

The offensive near Mandali failed to achieve a breakthrough. Iran’s continued attacks inside Iraq raised the human and material costs of the war and did not trigger the expected popular uprising...

An Islamic goodwill mission led by Senegal’s Moustapha Niasse arrived in Tehran in another effort to end the war. The delegation’s arrival did not establish an agreed settlement.

Iran launched another offensive on the southern-central front. The operation formed part of a shift from expelling Iraqi forces from Iranian territory to applying pressure inside Iraq, a strategic...

The campaign produced only small gains at heavy cost. Its outcome illustrated the growing difficulty Iran faced in attacking prepared Iraqi defenses and the widening gap between revolutionary...