Iran-Iraq War

As I started Persepolis I was not even aware that there had been a war between Iran and Iraq in the eighties and felt disoriented as the book explores the protests but, when told from ten year old Marjane's view, does not clearly explain what is going on. This website offers an overview of the conflict that could help understanding while reading. Basically on top of religious differences between the two nations (a Sunni Iraqi government and a Shiite Iranian one) a dispute over the ownership of the Shatt al-Arab waterway sparked the war, which lasted eight years.