Iraq 20 years on: death came from the skies on March 19 2003 – and the killing continues to this day

[Still Waters]

The mass killings of Iraqis started on the night of March 19 2003 with the US-led coalition’s “shock and awe” bombing of Baghdad. They called it “Operation Iraqi Freedom”.

Millions around the world sat transfixed in front of their TV screens, watching as bombs and missiles exploded. The reports came with the warning that they “contained flashing images”. True enough, the sky over Baghdad flashed orange and golden – but those were bombs, not flash photography.

The narrative of terror which began that day was to last for years. Terror from the sky, terror on the ground, terror from the foreign soldier, terror from one’s neighbour. By the time the invasion was completed, some 7,500 Iraqi civilians had been killed in the air strikes.

https://theconversation.com/iraq-20-years-on-death-came-from-the-skies-on-march-19-2003-and-the-killing-continues-to-this-day-201988

[+joc]

What is the definition of a 'civilian' in that part of the world?   Innocent people who were killed as casualties of war?  

[lightly]

Around 300,000 Iraqi civilians were killed during the whole fiasco? . . and not enough  WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION !!!  were found to blow up a chicken coop ?

Edited March 19 by lightly

[acidhead]

War Crimes Tribunal should be set up for Bush and Cheney.  

[acidhead]

September 19, 2021 

 

[acidhead]

Liars and Murderers

 

[acidhead]

 

[acidhead]

Bush joking about not finding WMD's in Iraq. 

(.....and THEY laughed for him)   Pathetic 

Way back to 2004 when most Democrats had a back bone and were anti war. How times have changed.  

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/wbna4608166

President Bush’s humorous references to the hunt for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq have drawn criticism from Democrats as inappropriate for wartime. The White House and Republicans contend the president was just poking fun at himself.

“This is a very serious issue,” Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe said Friday on “Good Morning America” on ABC. “We’ve lost hundreds of troops, as you know, over there. Let’s not be laughing about not being able to find weapons of mass destruction.”

Edited March 20 by acidhead

[lightly]

We will all remember Bush’s glorious hook tail jet landing on a carrier deck in war torn SAN DIEGO BAY!  to announce the “MISSION ACCOMPLISHED”!*     and   “the Tyrant has fallen” !    It was Cheney and Rumsfeld’s oil war…bush just did the photo ops for them.  (puke)    

 

Edited March 20 by lightly

[Orphalesion]

I was a kid when this all happened...so a lot of context from that time is missing to me. Because of this I never quite understood *why* the US invaded Iraq in the post 9/11 years. I mean yeah, Saddam Hussain was a horrible dictator, but as far as I understand (and I will be willing to admit I'm wrong if it is otherwise) he didn't have anything to do with Al-Qaeda? And since the US had already their hands full with their war in Afghanistan, I never got why they chose to invade Iraq too...
Isn't that kinda like invading Spain because you have a quarrel with Bulgaria?  

[lightly]

On 5/15/2023 at 5:37 PM, Orphalesion said:

I was a kid when this all happened...so a lot of context from that time is missing to me. Because of this I never quite understood *why* the US invaded Iraq in the post 9/11 years. I mean yeah, Saddam Hussain was a horrible dictator, but as far as I understand (and I will be willing to admit I'm wrong if it is otherwise) he didn't have anything to do with Al-Qaeda? And since the US had already their hands full with their war in Afghanistan, I never got why they chose to invade Iraq too...
Isn't that kinda like invading Spain because you have a quarrel with Bulgaria?  

Good question..    the stated reasoning for the invasion and temporary takeover of Afghanistan!  was that Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeada were there.  ?  Of course they never found him there…they eventually found him in Pakistan.   But, in the meantime,  Saddam (was suckered into) invaded Kuwait ,just below Iraq, and at the northern tip of the Persian Gulf!  The easiest route to move most of what needed to be moved by SHIP , rather than by AIR, to ‘save’ both Kuwait AND Iraq. !     I think all of it was War of Opportunity…$$$$$$$$$$$ FOR the military/industrial Industry and it’s investors during the entire ‘process’.. and the REAL reason$ & resource$ in those areas involved  Just imagine how much OIL we the people paid for to fuel every ship,plane,tank,jeep etc.etc.etc. Involved? .. And for all of the other supplies and suppliers and $ub-Contractors involved???     ..food for thought.

Edited May 16 by lightly

[Alchopwn]

On 5/16/2023 at 7:37 AM, Orphalesion said:

I mean yeah, Saddam Hussain was a horrible dictator, but as far as I understand (and I will be willing to admit I'm wrong if it is otherwise) he didn't have anything to do with Al-Qaeda?

The reason for the CotW invasion of Iraq was due to Saddam's unwillingness to allow UN investigations of alleged Weapons of Mass Destruction sites.  Saddam had tried to develop nuclear weapons, super cannons, and he definitely used gas weapons on civilians in Iraq's north to quell uprisings.

It is a little known fact that WMD were found in Iraq.  Specifically a number of poison gas shells were found among artillery shells used as IEDs by insurgents. Somehow the world media decided that wasn't newsworthy.

 

[lightly]

     This long article explains that old stockpiles of  “WMD’s”,left over from the Iraq/Iran war, were found eventually… At the time of the invasion they made the WMD’s sound much more frightening and Powerful than they actually were..  as if they may actually be some sort of unknown weapons capable of international Mass Destruction . (Fear is a time tested motivator for public support of wars?)
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/10/14/world/middleeast/us-casualties-of-iraq-chemical-weapons.html#:~:text=In all%2C American troops secretly,the Freedom of Information Act.

Edited May 17 by lightly

[Alchopwn]

On 5/17/2023 at 11:50 PM, lightly said:

     This long article explains that old stockpiles of  “WMD’s”,left over from the Iraq/Iran war, were found eventually… 

Poison gas militarized in artillery shells qualifies as a WMD according to the UN.  As WW1 and the 1995 Tokyo Subway attack showed us, poison gas is an extremely ugly and indiscriminate weapon.

Edited May 22 by Alchopwn