Operation Ramadan was an Iranian offensive in the Iran–Iraq War that consisted of three separate attacks that lasted for 6 weeks. It was launched by Iran on 13 July 1982 near Basra and featured the use of human wave attacks in the largest land battle since World War II. The engagement was a part of the overall stalemate. Prelude By the middle of 1982, Iraq was mostly expelled from Iranian territory, having lost nearly all the gains they made during the invasion in 1980. Saddam Hussein used the Israeli invasion of Lebanon as an excuse to seek an end to the war and send the Palestinians aid. Seyyed Ruhollah Khomeini rejected peace offers from Baghdad and began preparing to expand into Iraq. Initially, some in Tehran rejected the idea of invasion, claiming that such a move would undermine Iran's moral standing and diminish the sympathy gained by Muslim countries as the result of Saddam's invasion. These individuals were backed by Iranian army officers. However, these voices were shut out by pro-war voices in Tehran, who claimed that Baghdad could be defeated with the use of zealous fighters and invoking anti-government sentiment amongst Iraq's Shia. At the time, the Iranian population experienced a euphoria of victory. Thus, plans for invasion included both the silencing of Iraqi artillery that was shelling border towns, destroying the Iraqi Third Corps, and the seizure of Basra (Iraq's third largest city). Iran's ultimate objectives were encapsulated in the popular revolutionary refrain "The road to Jerusalem passes through the Iraqi city of Karbala." Iraq was now regarded as a stepping stone for the export of Iran's revolution across the region. Given that the first day of the operation coincided with the holy month of Ramadan, it was given the name as suited. Preparations Iraq had suffered enormously from the loss. Only a third of Iraq's air force remained intact, but the remaining Iraqi ground forces stayed on the alert, as Iran amassed a number of its troops to the east of Basra, just across the border. In the years prior, Saddam Hussein took the precautions for an Iranian invasion by stationing large numbers of his forces along the borders. Though demoralized due to their recent defeats, the armies of Iraq enjoyed better supplies, training, and information than their Iranian counterparts. The Iraqis also constructed a detailed plan of earthworks and trenches, followed by mine-fields with machine gun,