AllMovie

On March 21, 2003, United States military forces launched an all-out offensive against Saddam Hussein's forces in Iraq, signaling the beginning of the second War in the Gulf, with an attack strategy known as "Shock and Awe." Rather than bombing the entire city, this technique was based around a large number of "surgical strikes" which pinpointed specific crucial targets with sharp focus and deep force, in the hope that the precision assault would intimidate the enemy into surrender without the need to level all of Baghdad. National Geographic: Inside Shock and Awe is a documentary which examines the military strategy behind the launch of the war in Iraq, how the Shock and Awe technique had been used in the past, and the high-tech weapons that allowed American forces to destroy important buildings and military facilities while leaving civilian areas untouched.