Last modification: 19/08/08
 
Iraq: 5 years of war
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The surge in US troops and alliances between coalition forces, Iraqi soldiers and Sunni tribal chiefs have helped lower violence in war-torn Iraq. Yet, five years after the start of the US-led invasion, the situation remains fragile.

Five years after the first US bombs landed on Bagdad on March 20th 2003, heralding the start of the US-led invasion of Iraq, President George W. Bush has hailed the prospect of a “strategic victory in Iraq”.

 

With Bush’s mandate at the White House ending in January 2009, criticism of his Iraq policy has extended way beyond opposition Democrats in Congress. Five years on, public opinion has become less inclined to support a war that has cost billions of dollars and claimed the lives of over 4,000 US soldiers.

 

The so-called “surge” in US troops announced in January 2007, along with alliances struck with Arab Sunni Muslim chiefs to fight al Qaeda fighters, appear to have reduced the number of suicide attacks plaguing Iraqi people’s daily life. Since 2007, violence has abated in Bagdad and the country’s west, though a resurgence in deadly attacks at the start of 2008 prompts fears of a return to chaos in the capital.

 

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the violence has caused over 150,000 deaths among Iraqi civilians since March 2003. Amnesty International suggests over 4 million people have been displaced due to the ensuing havoc and insecurity.

  
 

Click here to visit our Observers' page on Iraq

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