The repackaged war: what "victory" looks like in Iraq

See also: The Iraq war has been a monstrous crime...

The Iraq war is being repackaged as a “victory” and a "success" with the US and British military now departing, having “liberated” Iraq from tyranny.

The reality is there are no plans to dismantle the huge US military bases and the Pentagon has strongly hinted that, despite Obama’s promise to remove all combat troops by the end of 2010, the US could still retain a large military presence after that date.

Iraq remains one of the most dangerous, devastated and poverty stricken countries in the world.

Meanwhile, Tony Blair tells us that all the death and destruction was worth it and that he knows best how to counter "extremism" around the world. But not of course the extremism he and his mentor George Bush unleashed on Iraq. Instead of being respectfully interviewed by the media, Blair--as one of the worst war criminals of recent times--should be behind bars for his collaboration in an illegal and unjustified war.

And this is what the “victory” of the Bush and Blair extremism in Iraq looks like:

• Over 1 million dead civilians
• 4.5 million displaced from their homes
• 1-2 million widows
• 5 million orphans
• Electricity only available per household for around 4 hours a day
• Iraqis without access to adequate water supplies - 70%
• Homes without sanitation: 63%
• People with no access to clean water: 70%
• Unemployment: 25-70%, depending on the month
• Children suffering from malnutrition: 28%
• 10,000 cases of cholera a year
• 24 car bombs a month

The cost to the USA

• Over 4000 troops killed, tens of thousands seriously injured.
• Financial cost 2003-2009: $800 million, the second most expensive conflict in U.S. history behind World War II.
• Cost of deploying one U.S. soldier for one year in Iraq - $390,000

The cost to Britain

See also:
The Iraq war has been a monstrous crime

Iraq War statistics...

Dahr Jamail reports on Iraq today...