DID WAR ON IRAQ PASS THE MESSAGE?

The Iraq War began on March 20, 2003 with the
invasion of Iraq by troops from the United States and
Great Britain. This war has also come to be known by
several other names including Operation Iraqi Freedom
and the Second Gulf War.
Before the invasion, the government of the United States
claimed that there was a possibility that Iraq was
storing weapons of mass destruction that posed a
threat to the wellbeing of the United States and other
nations. The United Nations asked Iraq to cooperate
with weapons inspectors and verify their possession of
cruise missiles and other weapons, but the nation's
officials were noncompliant. Surprisingly, none of these
weapons were ever discovered following the invasion.
This, along with several other incidents, has led to a
great controversy regarding the necessity of the Iraq
War.
Following the invasion of Iraq, the goals of the United
States and Britain changed somewhat. The invasion led
to an occupation by American and British troops and
the eventual capture of Saddam Hussein, the leader of
the Iraqi government at the time. Efforts were also
made to improve the quality of life of the people of Iraq
by removing the oppressive government and replacing it
with a democratic government that was more or less set
up by United States' officials.
Over 300,000 American and international troops were
involved in the invasion and matched up against an
Iraqi army of about 375,000. Thousands have lost their
lives on both sides. Over 16,000 Americans have lost
their lives and between 98,000 and 107,000 Iraqi
civilians have also been killed. This is one of the main
reasons why so many people have been opposed to the
war.
Human rights have been a very controversial issue
throughout the duration of the war. Both sides have
been accused of violating basic human rights with their
practices. The Iraqi government is criticized for their use
of torture and death squads and massacres of their
people. Many supporters of the war rally behind the
effort to end these practices. However, others argue
against the war because the other side has also been
using practices that could be considered inhumane.
White phosphorus was used in Iraq and has had
negative effects on the health of civilians. Many
bombings of American troops have also resulted in
civilian deaths.
Public Opinion of the War
The public Iraq War debate appears to resound largely
with disapproval. In 2007, BBC World Service polled over
26,000 people in 25 nations. They found that 73 percent
were opposed to the way the United States handled the
Iraq invasion. Another survey conducted in 2007 showed
that over two-thirds of people internationally believed
that the United States should withdraw from Iraq.
Withdrawals have since been initiated and President
Barack Obama supports the removal of troops in as
timely a manner as possible.
Citizens of nations in the Middle East also have mixed
opinions of the war. Over 60 percent of Saudi people
have a negative view of the war and ninety-six percent
of Jordan was opposed to the war as of 2007. The
majority of people in France, Jordan, Lebanon, China,
and Spain all believe that the world was safer before
the Iraq War.
Did the United States make a bad move in its invasion
of Iraq? Public opinions vary. The war has led to a large
number of casualties, but the Iraq War debate still
lingers on whether or not the invasion was ultimately
justified.