Chaos in Iraq: The US and UK’s Invasion Process
The occupation launched by the coalition led by the US and UK 21 years ago on the grounds that Saddam Hussein was producing weapons of mass destruction in Iraq brought great chaos, the price of which civilians would pay, instead of the promised “democracy”. According to a study conducted by “Iraqcountybody”, an independent organization affiliated with the Iraqi Ministry of Health, approximately 120,000 civilians lost their lives in Iraq between 2003 and 2011 due to conflicts.
After the US invaded Iraq, it withdrew most of its troops on December 18, 2011. However, the massacres and human rights violations that took place during this period have left deep wounds on the Iraqi people. For example, during the Haditha massacre, in 2005, US soldiers brutally killed 24 civilians, including women and children, in the Haditha district of Iraq’s Anbar province. Photographs of this massacre, which had not been made public before, have come to light for the first time as a result of a lawsuit filed by the American New Yorker magazine. The lifeless bodies of the victims, the youngest 3 and the oldest 76, are covered in blood.
Torture and Violations in Abu Ghraib Prison
The torture and sexual abuse committed by US soldiers against Iraqi prisoners in Abu Ghraib Prison became a major scandal worldwide in 2004. The inhumane treatment experienced in the prison left deep scars on the lives of the prisoners. The Abu Ghraib Prison incidents became a symbol of the crimes committed by US soldiers against the civilian population in Iraq.
One of the victims of Abu Ghraib, Iraqi Talib, stated in an interview with a press organization that he bears the marks of the trauma he experienced and that he has to wear long-sleeved clothes even in the scorching heat to hide the marks of torture ten sense body Talib stated that he thinks about suicide when he remembers the torture and mistreatment he faced in prison.
One of the witnesses to the torture at Abu Ghraib, 51-year-old Hasan Abdussettar Mashhadani, was arrested in 2005 and sent to Abu Ghraib before being released. Mashhadani described the raid on his home by US forces in 2005 and the torture that followed.
Bloody Clashes in Fallujah
Following the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, the bloodiest fighting took place in Fallujah, in Anbar province. Thousands of Iraqi civilians lost their lives during the siege of Fallujah in 2004. This siege, called “Operation Phantom Fury”, also saw the accusation that American soldiers used controversial chemical agents against civilians.
In May 2004, more than 40 civilians were killed in an airstrike by US troops on a village near the Iraq-Syria border. This incident is just one example of the crimes committed by the US against civilians in Iraq.
Other Human Rights Violations
- Death of Husam:Hüsam, who graduated from university in 2006, was killed by gunfire from US soldiers while having dinner with his friends on the banks of the Tigris River.
- Mahmudiye Massacre:In 2006, US soldiers, who were allegedly drunk, raped 14-year-old Abir Qasim Janabi in a house in the Mahmudiyah district, south of Baghdad, and then killed her family.
- Massacres in Saladin:In the same year, American soldiers raided a house in the Beled region of Salahuddin province and killed 4 women and 5 children.
- Nisour Square Massacre:In 2007, 14 civilians were killed and at least 18 people were injured in an attack by members of the US-based armed private security company Blackwater.
Conclusion
The US military presence in Iraq has not only led to armed conflict, but has also created great anger and distrust among the Iraqi people towards American soldiers. This has also fueled sectarian conflict and instability in the country. This tragic process that Iraq is going through contains important lessons for both the region and the world.
