Chilcot: The Iraq war was a failure but we still need a debate
The key findings of the Chilcot report show that the 2003 war on Iraq was a strategic failure and a war that was unnecessary and based on flawed intelligence. As Caabu warned at the time, it was a war for which Britain was ill-prepared and the government under Tony Blair woefully underestimated the challenges.
The long-awaited results of the Iraq Inquiry, also known as the Chilcot Inquiry, have been published. The unanimous conclusion drawn is that there was no need to go to war in 2003.
It has Chilcot saying war was “not a last resort”. The UK decided to invade before the peaceful options had been exhausted. Tony Blair committed to an invasion of Iraq almost eight months before receiving parliamentary and legal backing, and began military action before diplomatic alternatives were exhausted, a much-awaited inquiry into the conflict has concluded.
The destruction of Iraq 1990-2016
The key aim of the Iraq inquiry is to examine the lessons of the Iraq war.
This paper briefly summarises Iraq’s journey from being one of the most advanced states in the Middle East to a country that only exists on paper, fragmented and crushed by the cumulative impact of a brutal regime, three wars, a harsh sanctions regime, failing and corrupt post-war governance and extremist Islamist insurgencies.
The run up to the 2003 war
Questions to look out for in the Chilcot report
Here are some questions to look out for upon publication of the Chilcot report. See Caabu's briefing document on the Inquiry here.
Background
On 20 March 2003 a coalition of UK and US forces invaded Iraq to overthrow Saddam Hussein and his Ba’athist government over claims that he possessed weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). The initial success of the invasion in fulfilling its goals marked the start of a protracted armed conflict which was largely unsuccessful. Extreme Islamist insurgencies grew, the country’s infrastructure was decimated and no WMDs were found.
UPDATED ON 1st July
Caabu is deeply distressed by the increase in incidents of hate crime in the UK since the results of the EU referendum.
There have been mixed reactions from the Middle East since the UK’s decision to leave the European Union. This includes both official congratulations on the outcome of the vote to derision. There appears to be a general consensus in the Arab media that the vote will lead to the further disintegration of the Union.
Gulf States
On 21 June, Zaytoun and Caabu hosted a briefing on the situation of Palestinian farmers, with Mamoun Derra, Chair of the Palm Farmers’ Cooperative in the Occupied Territories. Mamoun is one of the farmers supported by Zaytoun. The cooperative which he oversees supports 120 members, including farmers and packing houses, of the date sector in the Jordan Valley.
Caabu was shocked and appalled to learn of the murder of Jo Cox MP. She was a tireless campaigner on many issues including Palestine and Syria before and during her Parliamentary career. She spoke in debates on Syria and Palestine, pushed for a no-bombing zone in Syria, and put down an EDM on Gaza to mark the first anniversary of the 2014 bombing.
