U.S. Invasion of Iraq

U.S. Invasion of Iraq

In an April 6, 2003 Washington Post article, Libby Copeland writes about the striking historical parallels between the 1917 British-led invasion of Iraq and this year's joint British- and United States-led attack. In the early twentieth century, Iraq was ruled by the Ottomans, who like Saddam Hussain, ruled with an iron fist. The Iraqi people wanted the Ottomans out, enabling the Brits to capitalize on the propaganda of "liberation." In fact, the rhetoric in 1917 was the same as it is in 2003. British General Stanley Maude used the word "liberators" to justify the British cause. Similarly, President Bush, Vice President Cheney and most other government officials call the invasion an effort to "liberate" the Iraqi people.

However, the Iraqis don't see it that way, especially since their own history points to the truth. The Brits remained in Iraq for decades after they captured Baghdad, using the nation as a stronghold for their burgeoning oil interests and as a strategic passage to India. Of course, things haven't changed much in nine decades: Iraqi oil is high on the agenda of both Great Britain and the United States in their most recent attempt to "liberate" Iraq. The key word in both the British invasion of 1917 and the 2003 invasion is control, according to James Zogby, President of the Arab-American Institution. The recent invasion of Iraq is just one more attempt by the Western powers to control the region to serve their own interests. The well-being of the Iraqi people isn't as much a consideration as these governments would like us to believe.

Once the British ousted the Ottomans, they installed a puppet regime that allowed the Brits to have control over Iraq for four decades. The League of Nations gave Great Britain a mandate to rule Iraq in 1920, and the Iraqis revolted. In 1921, the British government placed King Faisal I in power, establishing a constitutional monarchy with strong ties to Great Britain. Iraq gained independence in 1932, but the British remained in indirect control until 1958, after a coup of the British-allied government.

The 1914 British invasion of Iraq progressed along remarkably similar lines to today's war. British troops first entered Basra in the south and proceeded north to seize Baghdad. "Coalition" troops followed a similar path. Furthermore, Iraq was just as divided along ethnic and tribal lines then as it is now. The Shiite majority is dominated by a substantial elite Sunni minority. Copeland notes that these divisions exist even within the exiled Iraqi community.

The Iraqi community learned to mistrust the intentions of the Western powers. According to Copeland's sources, the Iraqi people don't want non-Muslim rule of their country. Any government installed by the Americans will be resented and rejected. Currently, the Iraqi National Congress is touted as the new regime. However, any leader associated with the Congress will be associated with the invasion.