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IRAQ Sanctions by Jeanne DeSocio August 6, 1990 - UN Security Council passed Resolution 661 and imposed economic and military sanctions on Iraq. Sanctions were initially viewed as a short term penalty to force Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait. January 1991 - Authorized by UN Security Council Resolution 678, the US led coalition forced Iraq, a comparatively weak, poorly trained and equipped army of forced conscriptors, many of whom surrendered without a fight, out of Kuwait. Although Iraq did not use weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and some US troops called the battle against Iraq a "Turkey Shoot", the US Government convinced many people that Saddam Hussein was the most dangerous man in the world.
April 3, 1991 - UN Security Council Resolution 687 states that Iraq must dismantle all WMD and when Iraq complies with the weapons inspection regime the "sanctions shall have no further force or effect." The US based the need for the Gulf Wars and sanctions on the absurd premise that because Saddam Hussein used WMD in the past when he had the support of the US super power during Iraq's unsuccessful war with Iran and Iran's allies, that Hussein had the guts to produce and use WMD in defiance of the US super power and International Community. The US falsely insisted Saddam Hussein was a clear and present danger to the world because he had WMD and would use them. In order for the US to justify the massive human atrocity of US led sanctions, White House leaders deliberately misinformed the public.
Billions of US tax dollars were expended in the effort to prevent Iraq from rebuilding their nation after being bombed into the stone age. Over a million Iraqi civilians, mostly children, died slow, painful, deaths due to the monstrous act of continuing the harshest, most comprehensive, economic sanctions in history on a devastated, war-torn country. The US usurped the authority of the UN Security Council's Resolution 687 by re-defining the conditions for lifting the sanctions on Iraq from the compliance with the weapons inspection regime to the overthrow of the Saddam Hussein regime. May 20, 1991 - President George H. W. Bush stated "At this juncture, my view is we don't want to lift these sanctions as long as Saddam Hussein is in power." In 1997 President Clinton stated "Sanctions will be there until the end of time or as long as he (Hussein) lasts." On Jan 16, 1997 Dr. Almoney asked students at DePaul University to understand "that while Iraqis are very unhappy about their present condition, it is not so easy for them to make a change (of Saddam's regime). Freedom of speech is not so readily enjoyed in Iraq as it is in other countries. When families are worried about where their next meal will come from, they are not likely to involve themselves in organizing political movements. What's more, because of sanctions, almost every family depends on the government (of Hussein) to get whatever meager food supplies they have. And many Iraqis have good reason to fear that if Saddam Hussein's regime were to lose power the country would sink into a bloody civil war. One that could be exacerbated by hostile neighbors." (1) On Jan 2, 2000, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright reaffirmed that "the US is working towards regime change in Iraq." During a rare interview, regarding Iraq's sanctions, when asked on television if the deaths of half a million children was a price worth paying, Albright replied "this is a hard choice, but we think the price is worth it." Albright was not asked to define "it". "It" had been falsely repeated over and over again to the American people that Saddam Hussein has WMD and is capable of using them (otherwise the use of economic sanctions to coerce the Iraqi people to oust their sovereign leader would be an international crime). Since George W. Bush's invasion and occupation of Iraq, the US has spent $300 million searching for any hint of a WMD program but has failed to disclose a single trace of evidence. Bush has asked Congress for an additional $600 million to continue the search for another six to nine months. Prior to the invasion of Iraq, Secretary of State Colin Powell is quoted as saying, "He (Saddam Hussein) has not developed any significant capability with respect to weapons of mass destruction. He is unable to project conventional power (even) against his neighbors". (2) President Bush recently admitted that there is no evidence connecting (Secular) Saddam Hussein with (Islamic Extremist) Osama bin Laden or the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on America. The only Al Qaeda connection found was in Northern Kurdish Iraq which was off limits to Saddam Hussein and protected by US bombers. But with Saddam Hussein gone, Al Qaida is free to operate secretly throughout Iraq. Many Americans, including me, who protested the war, sanctions, invasion and occupation of Iraq, are sick with grief and sadness, not only for the Iraqis who have suffered and died but also for American troops, veterans, the hungry, the sick, elderly and disabled. And all Americans and Iraqis who are denied desperately needed domestic social programs, repaired schools, hospitals and infrastructure due to the war, sanctions, and reconstruction costs that drain US tax revenues. US taxpayers are paying billions of their hard earned dollars to Dick Cheney's Halliburton Corporation to fix the oil facilities in Iraq. But the terrorists are blowing up the oil pipe lines. "Vice President Dick Cheney's former company will retain a no-bid ($1.59 billion so far) contract in Iraq longer than expected, the Bush Administration said Wednesday (10/29/03) blaming sabotage of oil facilities for delays in replacement (bid) contracts." The US is able to secure the oil wells but are unable to secure the miles and miles of pipe lines which are targeted by the saboteurs. "Halliburton's contract will be extended until December or January while the Government receives and evaluates revised bids for replacement work that could total $2 billion". (It's an endless pot of gold for George W. Bush and friends). (3) "Dick Cheney put in just five years as Chairman and CEO of Halliburton Corporation but could be eligible for a retirement package worth at least $2.1 million, financial records show. He also has company stock options worth millions." (4) In my opinion George W. Bush, relatives and friends, who have investments in the production, price, and flow of oil plus reconstruction projects in Iraq, have entrapped Iraqi and US citizens between Iraq and a hard place. Citizens of both nations are quaqmired in an unnecessary war and occupation that is expensive, bloody, illegal, immoral, and a breeding place for terrorism. "President Harry S. Truman considered profiteering from war to be treason, but now it has come to be a prerogative for the connected wealthy. Halliburton and Bechtel, the giant corporations linked to this (Bush) Administration control bidding contracts for reconstructing Iraq and will reap billions of dollars in profits. Iraqi companies and experts who understand the local situation and culture are prevented from assisting in rebuilding their infrastructure." (5) "If you are a child, the villain is not Saddam Hussein and it's not Bill Clinton. If you are a child with a gueasy stomach, nausea and weakness, the villain is diarrhea that might become dysentery and the villain is a terrible sickness you can't control. If you're a child who wears the same clothes every day and sleeps in those clothes and has no shoes, the villain is poverty, relentless, inescapable poverty. I grew very close to little girls with gleaming eyes who upon hearing US warplanes fly overhead, instantly plugged up their ears and shouted out loud to drown out the sound. The villain is panicky fear that the plane will again bomb your street." (6) "The US idea of diplomacy and leadership appears to be bombardment on top of forced starvation and disease to punish the Iraqi people. These are the tactics of thugs, not leaders." (7) On March 20, 2003, President George W. Bush invaded Iraq without UN authorization. On May 22, 2003, UN Security Council under direction of the US, illegal occupiers of Iraq, lifted the economic sanctions. But with the loss of Saddam Hussein's regime Iraq sank into a bloody uncivil war - one that is exasperated by hostile neighbors (See Dr. Almoney's statement Page 2). May 22, 2003 - The UN Security Council Resolved to delink the economic sanctions from the military embargo and lift only the economic sanctions leaving the military embargo on Iraq. -Sources-
(1) Iraq Under Siege - The Deadly impact of sanctions and War Page -
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