Operation Iraqi Freedom: The Invasion Of Iraq

The Iraq War, also known as Operation Iraqi Freedom, took place in 2003 and dragged on for almost nine years, until the withdrawal of US troops in December 2011. The invasion was justified by the US using the new National Security Strategy that was proposed by the Bush administration. One of the key features of the National Security strategy was the justification that the US could preemptively strike targets nations that it deemed a threat to the security of the US. In order to justify the invasion of Iraq, the governmental leaders in the US claimed that Saddam Hussein had ties to Al-Qaeda and other terror groups, as well as using Saddam’s use of chemical weapons as legitimization for the war. Once the war began on March 20, 2003, the original

* The removal of Saddam Hussein and a U.S. backed Iraqi government was considered proof of political stability, especially in the Kurdistan area, which was considered safer than the rest of Iraq.

Well before the war, in the 1970s and 1980s, Iraq was a wealthy nation despite their 8 year long war with Iran; however, a steady decline was recorded as this war began. But America reinforced the country with very public financial and political support. This aid eventually led to the invasion of Iraq by American forces shortly after the 9/11 tragedy in an attempt to rid the country of their tyrannical leader, Saddam Hussein and restore the country to its former glory. This, however, was never accomplished. An Iraqi citizen, Wael Al-Sallami, who lived through both the Hussein tyranny and the American invasion voiced his opinion of the American forces on his blog, he believed

On March 19, 2003, the United States along with forces from the United Kingdom, initiate a war on Iraq. U.S. President George W. Bush announced that American and coalition forces are beginning military operations to disarm Iraq, “free it's people and defend the world of grave danger”. President Bush believed Iraq, under the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein, had in their possession or were building weapons of mass destruction. The U.S. had given Saddam Hussein time to leave Iraq or face war.

The disbanding of the Iraqi army and “debathification” or dismantling of the government in place only served to increase the casualties of American troops and Iraqi civilians as the radical Sunni insurgency expanded. This point of cause and effect, clash of two distinct political and cultural worlds, defined this war for the generation serving, at home and the future generations. The threat of increasing terrorism after the attack of September 11, 2001 was one of the driving force of invasion of Iraq. However, in one analysis the increase of global terrorism today is told to be well contributed by the conflicts that were fueled by the western presence in Iraq and the surrounding

Iraq and Iran have been subjected to a civil war since the seventh century (Murphy 1). This existing problem began because of political and theological divergence, but with the help of outside forces such as Britain, Russia, and North America, it developed into a more complex crisis.

…The U.S. began the Iraq war with the goal of ridding the region of a tyrannical government that didn’t protect its people. However, a decade later, at the conclusion of the U.S. military mission in Iraq, the people are perhaps worse off than they were before the

The United States has been at war since its creation in 1776. It has battled confrontation 222 out of 239 years or, 93% of its existence. Notably, one of the most crucial wars is the War on Terror. Beginning in March of 2003, this war initially served the purpose of getting rid of the country's leader Saddam Hussein to prevent his use of suspected stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction. Hussein has the questionable refinement of being the best known Middle Eastern ruler. He governed Iraq from 1979 until his capture in 2003. President Bush presumed he was harboring many chemical weapons such as synthetic warheads, shells, or aviation bombs. While politics justified this war the real war between Iraq and the U.S. began long before what recognized.

The U.S lost nearly 4,500 soldiers, and had 45,000 injured. Refugees fleeing the worn torn country rose to 2.5 million, and caused a refugee crisis for Syria whom took on the most refugees. After the initial invasion, the country saw a rise in terrorist attacks, and the international community saw terrorists attacks attributed to the invasion like the July 2005 terrorist bombings of London. The war also cost more than 600 billion dollars, that’s not including interest on debts, and veteran benefits. The cost will also rise due to the fighting that is currently happening with the terrorist group ISIS. ISIS was formed from different groups of terrorists like Al-Qaeda. The withdraw of U.S forces (in a still unstable region) left a Vacuum that was filled by ISIS. The group has caused problems for Syria, Iraq, France, Tunisia, and many more countries. ISIS’s strongholds, Iraq and Syria, are seeing a genocide of Shiites in the region, and countless executions of civilians, and prisoners of war. ISIS also had a hand in destabilizing Syria further after the breakout of Civil War in the country. The fight against ISIS is currently making ground, but it will be years before their ideology is rooted

The Iraqi War started for allegations the U.S. had against Iraq with the United Nations. Even though Saddam Hussein, the President of Iraq gave a report to the United Nations of all the arms he possessed, the United States decided to take action superceding the United Nation’s diplomatic process

The relationship between the United States and Iraq has been a rather complicated relationship. This relationship can be classified as a roller coaster ride that last through out history. The United States and Iraq relationship became rocky in 1958 when King Faisal was overthrown and Iraq signed with the Soviet Union. Because of the relationship that the United States had with the Soviet Union this made Iraq and the United States relationship a little questionable. In 1967 Iraq broke all ties with the United States when they decided to join ranks in the protest of the United States and Israeli strategic alliance. This decision that the Iraqi made once a country we were allies to a country we do not trust but we will deal with, a country

Iraq has been involved with civil unrest and war for decades. I believe that the physical, economical, political, social and psychological effects of this ongoing conflict have perpetuated a cycle of conflict through insurgency groups such as ISIS. The citizens of Iraq grew up in an era of conflict, I believe that as a result of this, they have been desensitized to war and conflict, and instead of a rare occurrence, they view it as a necessary means for survival, a way of life.

The 2003 U.S. led invasion removed Saddam Hussein, an authoritarian from the Sunni minority who governed over a Shia-majority country. After the American invasion, Phase IV, the occupation of Iraq was established to aid Iraq in developing a new democratic regime. Iraqi inhabitants were strongly opposed to having American forces rehabilitate their country, especially after Operation Peninsula Strike. The operation involved the U.S. troops pursuing members of the Fedayeen Saddam militia, an aggressive power devoted to Hussein alongside high-ranking members of the Baath Party and former Iraqi security agencies. Together policy and actions dictated by the U.S. civil and military agents alongside Iraq’s preexisting social conditions, communitarian

The war against Iraq began on March 20, 2002, when the U.S lunched “Operation Iraqi Freedom”. This was after President Bush called Iraq part of an “axis of evil”, also calling the country dangerous which is threatening U.S with the world’s most destructive weapons. The major phase of the war began when U.S troops marched within 50 miles of Baghdad with heavy aerial attacks on Baghdad and other cities. After the attack on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon which was believed to be the work of Al Qaeda, U.S was concerned about the security of the Untied States which lead to the war in Iraq. Even though U.S officials felt the war in Iraq is the main priority, but many people in U.S opposes the war which brings up a lot of controversial issues.

SOCIALLY, following the war with Iran in 1988, Iraq was ranked 50 in the 1990 UNDP Human Development Index, which measures national success in education, GDP, and health. Iraq was nearing the top of the middle range of countries in regard to the implementation of basic social services and infrastructure. However, under Saddam’s rule, the prosecution of Shiites and Kuwaitis was a normal occurrence. Called by some a genocide, the period of murder, terror, and persecution faced by these groups was the foundation for a long-lasting unrest within the hearts and minds of Iraqi citizens. The rest of the Iraqi citizens, however, lived normal, comfortable lives. In the late 20th century, many traveled from afar to utilize and learn from Iraq’s intricate network of hospitals and social centers regarded as the best in the region. (CIA 2) However, constant war drained Iraq’s wealth and decimated its people. In the Iraq-Iran War, Saddam Hussein unwillingly forced Iraq into a disastrous attempt to overthrow the Islamist government in Iran. When the dust settled, over 200,000 Iraqis were dead, and more than twice this number were wounded. Iraq’s increasing debt, nearing about 75 Billion, soon had the Arab