Cruise missile strikes on Iraq ( 1996 ) The 1996 cruise missile strikes on Iraq ( Operation Desert Strike ) occurred in September 1996 during the Kurdish Civil War . It involved a joint United States Navy - United States Air Force strike against air defense targets in southern Iraq . Iraqi offensive . On 31 August 1996 , the Iraqi military launched its biggest offensive since 1991 against the city of Irbil in Iraqi Kurdistan . This attack stoked American fears that the Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein intended to launch a genocidal campaign against the Kurds similar to the campaigns of 1988 and 1991 . It also placed Saddam in clear violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 688 forbidding repression of Iraqs ethnic minorities . Cruise missile strike . The cruise missile strike was preliminarily planned to be by aircraft launched from the aircraft carrier , including aircraft from Fighter Squadron 11 ( VF - 11 ) and Fighter Squadron 31 ( VF - 31 ) , both operating F - 14D Tomcats , Electronic Attack Squadron 139 ( VAQ - 139 ) , operating EA - 6B Prowler s , Attack Squadron 196 ( VA - 196 ) , operating A - 6E Intruder s equipped with the Target Recognition and Attack Multi - Sensor ( TRAM ) system , and Strike Fighter Squadron 113 ( VFA - 113 ) and Strike Fighter Squadron 25 ( VFA - 25 ) , both operating F / A - 18 Hornet s . However , the strike instead was launched by U . S . Navy surface warships and U . S . Air Force bombers . On 3 September 1996 , ships from the " Carl Vinson " Carrier Battle Group , including the guided - missile cruiser and the guided - missile destroyer , in conjunction with U . S . Air Force B - 52 Stratofortress bombers escorted by F - 14D Tomcat fighters from " Carl Vinson " , launched 27 cruise missile s against Iraqi air defense targets in southern Iraq . A second wave of 17 missiles was launched later that day . The missiles hit targets in and around Kut , Iskandariyah , Nasiriyah , and Tallil . Aftermath . The attacks were primarily aimed at retaliation for the targeting of USAF fighters in the Northern and Southern no - fly zones , and were targeted at surface to air missile sites and command , control , and communication locations , with the intention of degrading the Iraqi air defense infrastructure . These strikes , along with follow - on deployments of troops , aircraft , and the addition of a second aircraft carrier to the region , achieved their desired results . It is debatable whether the attacks did or did not have a substantial effect on Iraqs northern campaign . Once they installed the Kurdistan Democratic Party ( KDP ) in control of Irbil , Iraqi troops withdrew from the Kurdish region back to their initial positions . The KDP drove the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan ( PUK ) from its other strongholds , and with additional Iraqi help , captured Sulaymaniyah . The PUK and its leader , Jalal Talabani , retreated to the Iranian border , and American forces evacuated 700 Iraqi National Congress personnel and 6 , 000 pro - Western Kurds out of northern Iraq . In response to Iraqs moves , the United States and United Kingdom also expanded Operation Southern Watch and the southern Iraqi no - fly zones from the 32nd parallel to the 33rd parallel , bringing it to the edges of Baghdad itself .