1. Arabian Gulf/Kuwait Spill Iraq invaded oil-rich neighbor Kuwait on August 2, 1990. Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein declared that if he were to be evicted form Kuwait by force, Kuwait would burn—and he did just that. On Jan. 19, 1991, Iraqi troops began to open pipelines, pouring oil into the Persian Gulf. Cargo tankers were spilled into the gulf, and while being pushed back..