Thousands were killed in the US invasion of Iraq— civilians and soldiers.
President Barack Obama was elected on a platform of peace but never delivered on his promises to end the US military intervention in Iraq. Iraq is still in shambles, and Iraqis are still getting killed every day. The least President Obama can do before the end of his tenure is to establish an independent inquiry into the 2003 Iraq invasion, similar to the Chilcot Report.
It is the US, under the Bush administration, that is responsible for disseminating lies, spearheading the invasion, having no post-invasion plan and destroying Iraq. Since 2003, 500,000-1,000,000 Iraqis have been killed, millions more wounded and one in eight have been driven from their homes. Shouldn’t the American people know exactly who led us into the biggest foreign disaster in modern history? If the British people can demand accountability, why can’t we?
- Appoint an independent investigation into the Iraq war: Investigating the Iraq war would be the first step towards holding US officials responsible. We need transparency and accountability more than ever to make sure the next US administration cannot get away with waging more illegal and immoral wars. Sign the petition to President Obama.
- Peoples Tribunal on the Iraq war - November 2016 - Washington DC: The tribunal will take place after the election cycle. It will examine the violations of human rights and rights of the people of Iraq by providing witness testimony from US military personnel, journalists, human rights advocates, legal experts, writers, academics and others. The tribunal will educate and engage the public about the importance of President Obama appointing an independent investigation into the Iraq war before leaving office. Please contact us to list your organization as an endorser or fill out this form.
- The Chilcot Report reveals the rise of ISIL: CODEPINK has partnered with MADRE to open two shelters in Iraq, for Yazidi women who have bravely escaped from sexual enslavement by ISIL. You can contribute to this much-needed work.
- Names of the Iraq war dead: Nearly 500,000 Iraqis have been killed according to a 2013 survey; the study estimates 460,800 died between 2003 and 2011 as a direct or indirect result of the conflict. Over 4000 US military personnel died in the Iraq war.
- Iraq war profiteering: Defense contractors sold billions in arms and military services and received billions from Congress. Companies profit from the growth of military spending in Iraq. Private and public firms received billions of US taxpayer money for government contracts. The Costs of War Project by the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University said the war in Iraq cost $1.7 trillion dollars.
- Legality of the Iraq war: CODEPINK is supporting the efforts of Witness Iraq in bringing a lawsuit against key members of the Bush Administration: Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Powell and Rice.
- Activist Toolkit: CODEPINK is modeling citizen justice (with a splash of pink) by holding the former Bush administration others accountable for leading us into unjust wars. We know that change will not occur unless citizens stand up for their rights under the law.
Resources:
Iraq Body Count
US veterans on Chilcot: we need our own inquiry to avoid repeating mistakes, Guardian UK, July 2016
The US needs its own Chilcot report, Guardian UK, July 2016
Iraq Veterans Against the War
Counting the cost of war: Nearly 500,000 Iraqis have been killed according to new survey, Independent UK, October 2013
The 25 Most Vicious Iraq War Profiteers, Business Pundits, July 2008