evidence: The departure of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi from Iran in January 1979 and the subsequent establishment of the Islamic Republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini marked a profound ideological shift in Iran.8 This transformation represented not just a change in governance but a radical re-orientation of the country’s political, social, and international identity, from a secular, pro-Western monarchy to a theocratic, anti-Western regime.9 Saddam Hussein’s rise to power as the President of Iraq in 1979 further intensified these dynamics.10 In January of 1980, Abolhassan Bani-Sadr was elected as Iran’s first president.11 That same year, a diplomatic rift started on March 8 when Iran withdrew its ambassador from Iraq.12 In April, assassination attempts on Iraq’s Foreign Minister Tariq Aziz and Minister of Culture and Information Latif Nusseif al-Jasim—both attributed to Iranian agents—further inflamed the situation.13 Between May and August, clashes along the Iraq-Iran border intensified, signaling a clear escalation in hostilities.14 A critical turning point came on September 17 when Iraq abrogated the 1975 Algiers Agreement by declaring full sovereignty over the Shatt al-Arab waterway.15 This move effectively dismantled the fragile peace established by the agreement.