Gulf War Number Three
We declared jihad against the US government, because the US government is unjust, criminal and tyrannical. It has committed acts that are extremely unjust, hideous and criminal whether directly or through its support of the Israeli occupation.
Osama bin Laden
The US invasion of Iraq in 2003 has been the subject of much controversy since it took place. Using the terror attacks of 9/11 as the justification for a ‘war on terror’ against what he called an ‘axis of evil’, President Bush launched a generalized offensive against elements of the Arab world, invading Afghanistan and Iraq. Some argued that, in the case of Afghanistan, this was a legitimate course of action, since the Islamic Taliban regime there was thought to be harbouring Osama bin Laden, who had been identified as the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks. However, in the case of Iraq, no such obvious link between the government and the terrorists appeared to exist; indeed, Saddam Hussein and the Islamic fundamentalists who were behind the 9/11 attacks appeared to be polar opposites in terms of Arab culture. (Hussein’s regime was firmly secular, with strong links to the West, while bin Laden’s followers were entirely separatist and fundamentalist in outlook.)
Support For Terror Attacks
Even so, President Bush managed to persuade the American public that Hussein and his regime were linked to the attacks, and that Hussein had funded terrorist organizations to commit such atrocities as 9/11. The USA, aided by the UK, thus launched an invasion of Iraq, citing Hussein’s flouting of international laws regarding weapons of mass destruction, human rights abuses and alleged support of terrorist organizations, as reasons for doing so. Many critics felt that the US behaved opportunistically in this instance, arguing that the real reason for the invasion was to do with seizing control of the oil fields of Iraq.
Whatever the truth of the matter, there is little doubt that the invasion of Iraq provoked many of the Arab nations to regard the USA and the West with tremendous hostility, and that it has had the effect of ratcheting up the tension between the cultures to an alarming degree. This has shown itself in increased support for terrorist attacks among Islamic peoples who had not, before, espoused terrorist violence as a means to protecting Muslim culture and its way of life.
It is also clear that the US invasion of Iraq has done a great deal of damage to relations between the Islamic world and the West. Some commentators go further and claim that the invasion itself was a terrorist attack: that it had no legitimacy and was a form of state terrorism itself. This argument holds that the invasion of Iraq was an unprovoked attack on an independent country, and that as such it was a breach of international law.
Weapons of Mass Destruction
The invasion of Iraq began on March 20, with a coalition force of American, British and Kurdish troops, as well as involvement from other nations in the form of equipment, security forces and troops. The given reason for the invasion was that the government of Iraq had not complied with international law, which required them to reveal their weapons arsenal to UN inspectors. The theory was that Iraq had a powerful arsenal of nuclear, biological and other weapons that could be used at any time to launch an attack on the USA or the UK, and that Hussein was planning to do so. As such, Hussein’s regime posed an intolerable threat to the West, which needed to be dealt with by invading the country as soon as possible.
As it transpired, these weapons of mass destruction were never found, and it is doubtful whether they ever existed. Prior to the invasion, UN inspection teams were asking for more time to find these supposed weapons, but their requests were ignored by the US and UK governments.
There was a massive worldwide demonstration on February 15, 2003, protesting against the imminent invasion, in which around 10,000,000 people took to the streets in more than 60 countries, demanding peace. However, the voices of the people went unheard, and the invasion went ahead, despite the enormous opposition that it generated around the world.
Creation of a Tyrant
One of the most disturbing aspects of the invasion was that it was not ratified by the United Nations (UN) Security Council. It had become clear that France, Russia and China would block any attempt by the USA to gain permission to launch the invasion. France in particular had strong links with the Iraqi government, having helped to arm Saddam Hussein in the first place. The irony of the situation was that Saddam Hussein had established a strong regime in Iraq with the help of the Western powers, who had seen his secular, modernizing government as a bulwark against anti-Western, anti-capitalist, fundamentalist elements in the Arab world. Moreover, during that time, the Western powers had turned a blind eye to Hussein’s many appalling human rights abuses, especially regarding his treatment of the Kurds in the north of the country. Now, having supported Saddam’s regime from its inception, the Western powers found that they had created a tyrant who would no longer do their bidding.
In October 2002, the United States Congress authorized the invasion of Iraq, citing Hussein’s refusal to abide by UN resolutions on weapons of mass destruction, human rights, terrorism and treatment of prisoners of war. The following month, the UN offered Iraq a final chance, under resolution 1441, to comply with its disarmament obligations and reveal its weapons of mass destruction. The resolution warned that there would be grave consequences if this were not done.
In response, Iraq claimed that it had abided by the resolution and had disarmed as required. Hans Blix, the head of the UN weapons inspectors team, asked the UN for more time to check whether this was actually the case. Meanwhile, the USA and UK were demanding a further resolution authorizing the use of force in Iraq if, as they believed, there were still weapons of mass destruction there. They never received this final resolution, and the invasion began without it.
‘Operation Iraqi Freedom’
The USA and UK defended themselves by claiming that the use of force was implicit in resolution 1441. However, the UN Security Council pointed out that it was not up to individual members of the council to determine how resolutions were enforced. Several years after the event, the legality of the Coalition invasion under the terms of resolution 1441 is still being disputed, especially as after the invasion, no weapons of mass destruction were ever found.
The invasion of Iraq was conducted under the code name of ‘Operation Iraqi Freedom’, and ir deployed 100,000 soldiers and marines from the USA. The UK sent more than 26,000 troops, and there were also forces from other nations, such as Australia. A large force from Iraqi Kurdish militia was also present, numbering more than 50,000. The Coalition forces had hoped to set up a base in Turkey, but in the event, the Turkish government refused to allow this.
On the other side of the conflict, the combined Iraqi armed forces numbered over 300,000, but they were poorly equipped and managed. For many years before the invasion, there had been sanctions against Iraq, and the entire infrastructure and organization of the country was extremely poor. The Iraqi troops had also been fighting low-level battles against US and UK air patrols for several years, in the aftermath of the 1991 Gulf War. These hostilities were stepped up in the months prior to the invasion, to allow Coalition forces to enter Iraq without detection.
Hussein Captured
The formal attack on March 20, 2003, was marked by a series of explosions in Baghdad in the early hours of the morning. Meanwhile, Coalition troops were swarming into Iraq from Kuwait and elsewhere. Their aim was to destroy the Iraqi military and to secure the Iraqi oilfields rather than to decimate cities and harm civilians. Within about three weeks, they achieved their aim; the Iraqi military, and with it the Iraqi government, had completely collapsed. US forces then moved into Baghdad, launching an attack on the Palaces of Saddam Hussein and taking control of the city. On April 9, 2003, the city was formally declared occupied by the USA.
When Saddam Hussein was eventually captured on December 13, 2003, it became clear that his brutal regime was over for good. In a matter of weeks, with relatively little loss of civilian life, the Coalition forces had managed to overrun the country, take over the government and win the war. At the time, this seemed like a triumph, and the USA and UK were jubilant at their victory.
However, once the war was over, the picture began to cloud. As it transpired, it was not so easy to quell the many conflicts that ensued once the regime had fallen. With the collapse of the government, Iraqi tribes began to fight among themselves to establish their dominance in the new order. Thus, the Coalition troops now found themselves involved in constant fighting between different factions in various cities, all taking place in a run-down country ravaged by sanctions and war. The Coalition invasion may have been a success, in military terms, however, the aftermath of the war proved to be a long and tortuous ordeal.
Guerrilla Warfare
Iraq was a country in disarray, with rogue elements from the military still fighting and looting; in addition, the hospitals, water supply and basic amenities had broken down, or were at breaking point. Not only this, the country’s great museums, housing ancient treasures of immense cultural significance, in a region once held to be the cradle of civilization, had been ransacked, while other important historical buildings had been permanently damaged.
There was a threat to the Coalition soldiers as well as to the local population. Dangerous weapons and ammunition were stashed all over the countryside, hidden by insurgents. In a guerrilla war that included improvised explosions, suicide bombing, sabotage of oil wells, water and electricity, and grenade attacks, the opposing ethnic and political factions of Iraqi society continued to do battle with each other.
To date, the problems in Iraq continue to beset its inhabitants, both local people and foreign troops. Many critics point out that, although the invasion itself was carefully planned, the USA did not give a great deal of thought as to how post-war unrest in Iraq could be controlled, and they have not deployed enough troops or resources to rebuild the country in a viable way. Thus, with Iraq still in crisis, and its people still suffering the ravages of war, not to mention the increasing threat of terrorism around the world that many feel has been the result of the invasion, it seems that the winning of Gulf War Three has, in many ways, been a hollow victory for the West.