The Incursion of Iraq by the United States - Case Study Example

The Iraq War The incursion of Iraq by the United s is part of the violent history of the Middle East. The regionhas been a ground zero for conflict due to internal and external factors. Tensions between countries in the region have allowed foreigners with vested interests to get involved in the affairs of the region. This has served to advance their ideological and economic interests at the expense of the Middle East people. The Iraq war is the result of the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestines. The creation of an artificial state in 1948 by the Israelis not only violated the rights of the Palestines but also cursed the predominant Arab community to suffering at the hands of the allies of the new nation. Due to its small size, the Israeli nation is severely limited in its ability to stand up to a united Arab aggression. As a result, it encourages conflicts in the region as a means of ensuring that the Arabs are not United. Moreover, it uses Game theory to dupe powerful allies such as the United States of America to get involved in the region1. For example, the incursion of Iraq serves to not only weaken the Iraqi state, but also divides the Arab countries by splitting them between allies of the West and opponents of the war. Furthermore, the Israeli nation benefits from a volatile Middle East. As long as the world is distracted by the conflicts in the region, it will not have time to address the injustices that the Israelis are subjecting their Palestinian neighbors too. Moreover, the existence of peace will allow the region to have a conversation about the legitimacy of the Israeli nation which will harm its interests. In addition, it would allow the world to see through the duplicitous act that the Jewish state puts as a victim when it is in fact the aggressor in its long conflict with the Palestines. In addition, the history of the cold war between the United States and the Soviet Union is responsible for the war. The two nations were interested in securing partnerships with the oil producing countries in the region. This rivalry led to proxy wars which contributed to the volatility in the region. The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in an attempt to support the fledging Communist government. It wanted to protect its ideological and economic interests in the country. This led to the formation of the Mujaheedin movement which launched guerilla warfare on the Soviet invaders. The United States of America provided powerful weapons to the movement as a means of toppling the Communist government, which would hurt the interests of its biggest ideological and geopolitical rival2. However, the Mujaheedin movement led to the rise of terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda, which claimed responsibility for the 9/11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center that led to the incursion of Iraq in a misinformed war on terror. Furthermore, the Americans trained Osama Bin Laden, who was behind the heinous act. As a result, the United States is wrong to launch an aggressive war on terror without appreciating its role in making itself a target of terrorist activities. It is clear that the invasion is a retaliation for the terrorist attack and a means of cutting off the funding of such activities while sending a warning message to other Arab countries such as Iran that may be funding terrorist activities. Any war produces a humanitarian crisis and inevitably delivers a severe blow to both sides regardless of the winner. The Iraq war is not different. The war has cost the United States $ 5 trillion3. This huge financial cost has weakened its financial strength and plunged it into deep national debt. However, the most important effect of the war is the senseless loss of both American and Iraq lives. It is unacceptable in the eyes of Allah that young men and women should die so that the selfish goals of a select few may be achieved. This is because he abors injustices4. The war led to the death of 1,000,000 innocent civilians5. The effect on the American troops is equally horrifying. A total of 4,488 United service personnel died while 33,000 troops were injured6. Survivors of the war have to deal with trauma and PSTD. In addition, some are unable to earn a living due to mental or physical injuries. The military operation was a whole economy of its own. Support services were outsourced to contractors who made a huge profit. The allies fought separately, which may explain the high number of casualties due to friendly fire. Moreover, the deaths of this people were in vain because the nation has been destabilized, which has allowed Al-Qaeda to thrive7 The reason that President George H. W. Bush and Tony Blair, the British Prime Minister gave to support their decision to attack Iraq was the presence of weapons. However, there were no such weapons in the country8. President Saddam Hussein may have encouraged the perception as a means of feeding his ego by bolstering his image and the image of Iraq in the international community as a powerful player that should be feared. However, this gave the proponents of war the ammunition they needed to push their claim which was disproved when there were no weapons found in the country. Given the amount of resources available to the American and British intelligence community it is impossible to understand how they would have failed to provide reliable evidence on the issue. The most logical explanation is that the claims were fabricated and advanced by vested interest groups that stood to benefit from the invasion of Iraq. First, the manufacturers of weapons and contractors who serve the Department of Defense saw an opportunity to their revenues. Second, some people may have supported the war as a means of restoring the military supremacy of the United States following the devastating attack as well as a means of retaliation for the nation, it believed had funded it9. However, these were merely reasons for responding to the rallying cry for help. The United States of America invaded Iraq as a cover for controlling the vast oil reserves in the country10. This was expected to serve two goals. First, it would ensure that the Americans have a sufficient supply of oil to meet their rising energy needs. Second, it would enable them to ensure that the revenues from the oil are not used to fund terrorist activities in the region and in the world. In addition, the United States saw an opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to their alliance with Saudi Arabia by taking out a regime that posed a threat to its interests in the region. Moreover, the latter stood to benefit by increased tension in the region since it would lead to a significant rise in the price of oil. Furthermore, the invasion of Iraq was a means of protecting the Israeli nation11. This is because it would lead to the fall of a hostile regime. In addition, it would weaken Iran, which was close to the Iraq government. This would serve the interests of the Israelis given the strong anti-Israeli rhetoric used by the Iranian regime. In addition, although it is difficult to believe, the Israelis benefit from a volatile Middle East. This is because it weakens its Arab enemies and gives it an opportunity to grow as a nation while the rest of the region is engaged in warfare. The political leadership in Washington heralded the war as a means of bringing salvation to the Iraq people by introducing democracy. It is difficult to believe the genuineness of this reason, given that the United States supports dictators in other countries as long as it serves their economic and military interests. Moreover, the United States government is a strong ally of the monarch in Saudi Arabia.This demonstrates the hypocrisy of the democratization mission. Additionally, the American version of democracy is warped given that they have a political system which allows a duopoly that serves the interests of Wall Street and the military establishment. The fall of Saddam Hussein did not produce a stable state. Instead, it produced an unstable country that is bitterly divided across sectarian lines. This proves that the aim of the war was not to build a strong democratic state otherwise there would have been a deliberate attempt to build strong political and governance institutions. The war was another example of Western imperialism that would jump at any opportunity to grab resources. It is also a demonstration of the power of the Jewish lobby in Washington. The small nation has demonstrated an uncanny ability to manipulate its powerful allies to serve its selfish interests, even if it is at their own expense. The recent Arab spring uprisings are related to the Iraq war. This is a defining nature of conflicts in the Arab region. Most of the conflicts are related and may ultimately be traced back to the differences between those who support Israel and those who oppose it . The failure of the American intervention in Iraq led to a realization among the young Arabs that change could not come from outside forces. As a result, they felt that they had to take matters into their own hands. In conclusion, the war on Iraq was a result of a combination of historical forces with vested interests rather than a genuine desire to rid the region and the world of weapons. The war led to a significant loss of human life on both sides. In addition, the United States government spent enormous financial resources in an ill-fated war that alienated some of their allies and undermined its leadership position in the world. Hopefully, the world will realize that the Israeli nation has to take responsibility for its actions and engage in a genuine peace negotiations with the Palestines. Finally, the destruction caused by the Iraq war should force the region to appreciate the need for peace, the rest of the world to realize that their involvement in the region has served to harm rather than advance their narrow economic and political interests and that peace in the region would serve the interests of every player in the region and the world. Works Cited Kucinich, Dennis.Iraq: Ten Years, a Million Lives and Trillions Of Dollars Later. Washington Report on Middle East AffairsNov/ Dec 2012. Web. 1 July 2014. Read More