Zim: Chew on this.
Ten Years On: The Iraq War Was Justified
http://www.aawsat.net/2013/03/article55297424
Asharq Al-Awsat Debate
The debate over the 2003 international intervention in Iraq is ongoing, and many people continue to express the view that the toppling of the Ba’athist regime by the US and its allies was an example of foreign occupation. Some of those espousing this view rely on the definition put forward by the UN Security Council, while others use the classical understanding of toppling regimes via foreign military intervention.
However, the majority of the Iraqi people cooperated with the international coalition to topple the regime, viewing this military intervention as part of the process of liberating a country that suffered more than three decades of Ba’athist rule. The Ba’ath in Iraq were a party that established a militaristic and chauvinistic regime based primarily on a totalitarian and sectarian ideology.
Saddam Hussein’s regime persecuted Shi’ites, Kurds advocates for democracy, and even the Sunni nationalists who put forward views that contradicted those of the Ba’athist authorities. His regime used all means of persecution against the Iraqi people—the violence was not limited to utilizing chemical weapons against Iraq’s own unarmed citizens in Halabcheh. Another example is the Al-Anfal genocide campaign against Iraq’s Kurds, which saw more than 100,000 Kurdish civilians killed. These Kurds were buried in mass graves, many of which remain undiscovered.
. . . .
In the case of Iraq, the priority was to topple the regime and remove its evil oppression of large segments of the population. This was achieved when the international coalition entered Iraq and was welcomed by the majority of the Iraqi people. The moment that the regime was toppled was a moment of joy for all Iraqis, with the exception of the Ba’athists and their followers. This is because the people experienced and understood the meaning of “freedom” for the first time, and they thanked all those who helped them throw off their fetters. There is a very simple reason for this joy: prior to the liberation of Iraq, the Iraqi people truly felt that they had reached the end of the road and would never be rid of Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship. They had tried everything they could, and had sacrificed everything.
I believe that the majority of the Iraqis do not think about the meaning of words like “freedom” and “dignity” as much as they think and deal with the freedom and dignity they gained following the toppling of the despotic regime that was persecuting and killing them.
On the tenth anniversary of the collapse of the regime, I conclude my contribution to this debate by saying: Long live freedom!
(Portions were skipped. Entire article is available at the link. Zim.)
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