The Desert Shield and Desert Storm Memorial is an oasis-like place for honoring the Americans who served and lost their lives in combat to liberate Kuwait in the early 1990s

October 27, 2026 8:25 a.m.

The memorial features a 125-foot bas-relief created by sculptor Emily Bedard that moves chronologically from the buildup of the operation to the conflict and liberation. National Park Service

In 1990 and 1991, nearly 700,000 American troops took part in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm, a multinational effort to drive Iraqi forces out of Kuwait. Now, 35 years later, those veterans have a memorial on the National Mall.

Over the weekend, officials in Washington, D.C.…