Thread by @codepink

20 years ago, a US-led coalition invaded Iraq, under the false claim that Saddam Hussien’s government was manufacturing weapons of mass destruction🧵

CONTENT WARNING: torture, violence, death.

https://twitter.com/BTnewsroom/status/1636365371484651520

Over 1,000,000 Iraqis were killed, another 9,000,000+ were displaced, and some 2,000,000 were disabled. People were killed directly by violence, and others by stress-related heart attacks, ruined sanitation, or lack of healthcare because of war.

The US tortured thousands of Iraqis as part of the “War on Terror,” killing many. The lucky survivors face lasting physical & psychological damage. It was authorized by the highest levels of Gov. They recognized torture use but have never formally apologized or paid reparations

The daily lives of Iraqis are still tormented by the invasion and occupation. The US abandoned some 11,000,000 pounds of toxic waste in Iraq. Depleted uranium and dioxin pollute the soil and water. aljazeera.com/news/2010/8/12…

Above all of this, Iraq is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change. A tragic but perfect example of how #WarIsNotGreen: unep.org/resources/repo…

Babies in Fallujah are born w/ birth defects at a higher rate than those in Hiroshima & Nagasaki after WW2 nuclear bombings. Most die in the first 30 mins of their life. The US used depleted uranium & toxic chemicals like white phosphorus, which is illegal domestically in US.

A month after the invasion, Hussein was overthrown and replaced by the Coalition Provisional Authority, made up of US officials. They dissolved the Iraqi Army, banned Baath members from govt, privatized 200 state companies, allowed foreign firms to retain 100% of Iraqi assets...

& allowed US multinationals full access to exploit Iraq’s resources. This was one of the most audacious crimes of theft in modern history. In 2011, when the official occupation of Iraq ended, the country was left decimated, murdered, and looted. opendemocracy.net/en/north-afric…

From 1991 until the invasion, US and UN sanctioned Iraq, severely restricted ability to import food, medicine and essential humanitarian supplies. People suffered the most. Between 500,000 and 1mil Iraqis died, millions of others were afflicted with disease and malnutrition.

Oil was the motivation for invasion. Former head of the US Central Command Military Operations John Abizaid said so: “The Iraq War is largely about oil.” In 2000, Big Oil (Exxon, Chevron, BP and Shell) spent more money to get Bush & Cheney into office than any previous election.

Paul O’Neill, Bush’s First Treasury Sec, said in 2001 the talk was not why to invade but how and how quickly.
edition.cnn.com/2013/03/19/opi…

US always wanted Iraqi oil with international oil companies, but it had to get rid of Hussein and the nation’s legal system. The War on Terror and WMDs have always been the lies to manufacture consent for war.

But this isn’t history and there has been no justice for what the US has done. Many leaders who lied us into the Iraq War are still in government today, and still taking us to war.