Other Consequences
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Iraq's Deadliest Zone: Schools (November 27, 2006)
More than 250 academics have died in Iraq since the 2003 US-led invasion, making schools one of the most deadly places in Iraq. This Washington Post piece reveals that not one person has been arrested for these murders, despite many fundamentalist groups taking credit for the attacks. Even more disturbingly, students have carried out some of the attacks, using terrorism "as a weapon to murder academics, plunge university life into chaos and threaten learning at its source."
War, Pollution Endangering Iraq River (November 13, 2006)
The once mighty Tigris River that flows through the heart of Baghdad now serves as a makeshift graveyard for hundreds of Iraq's civil conflict victims. This Associated Press piece details the decline of the river, which formerly provided water, food, transportation and recreation to Iraq's citizens. Yet, since the 2003 US-led invasion, police routinely search the river for bodies, and local fishermen avoid the waterways, fearing that Coalition forces will mistake them for insurgents and shoot them.
Traumatised Young Iraqis Turn Increasingly to Hard Drugs (October 11, 2005)
Drug abuse is on the rise in Iraq. Porous borders and growing despair have contributed to an increase in drug consumption. While drug use under Saddam Hussein carried the penalty of execution, prevention and enforcement efforts have become largely ineffective amidst the post-invasion chaos, and little help is available for those seeking rehabilitation. (Integrated Regional Information Networks)
Iraq's Real WMD Crime (October 30, 2003)
US forces used tons of depleted uranium (DU) weapons during the 1991 and 2003 wars in Iraq. According to an Iraqi medical expert, the horrifying effects of DU are already visible in the increase of cancer and fetal deformities. (Aljazeera)
Riot Chases Troops Out of Iraqi Town (May 29, 2003)
In the town of Hit, Iraq civilians rioted forcing US troops to flee. Many Iraqis were reacting to deteriorating living conditions such as widespread lawlessness and lack of essential services including drinking water, electricity and medical supplies.(Los Angeles Times)
Environmental Crisis Worsening in Iraq (April 25, 2003)
The damage to sanitation and worsening of pollution requires immediate action, according to UN Environment Program (UNEP). There is a need to restore Iraq's water system and to give advice on how to avoid areas with depleted-uranium. (Middle East Online)
Iraq War Would Quash Efforts to Fight AIDS, UN Africa
Envoy Says (January 9, 2003)
A war in Iraq will divert resources
and attention from the devastating AIDS epidemic in Africa, according to a UN
representative. "People with HIV/AIDS are in a race against time. What they never
imagined was that over and above the virus itself, there would be a new adversary,
and that adversary would be war." (Los Angeles Times)
Talking
with Friends and Family about Iraq: A Thanksgiving Table Guide (November 25, 2002)
MADRE's
guide to Iraq discusses issues such as the consequences of war on women and children,
the impact of sanctions, the threat to the US posed by Iraq, and alternatives
to war. The "guide is intended to help combat the euphemisms ("collateral damage")
and passive language ("bombs fell") that obscure the suffering that the Bush Administration's
plan will cause."
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