Iraq
The 2003 invasion and occupation of Iraq killed over a million people, according to estimates by the Lancet Medical Journal. Tragic as this loss of life is, there are a thousand more tragedies to Iraq's story since 2003. The country's health care system, once one of the best in the region, is in shambles. Many hospitals were destroyed in the US bombing campaign and occupation, only a fraction of which have been rebuilt. Many of Iraq's best doctors were lost in the war, either killed or forced to leave the country.
The bombing campaign also left Iraqis with the horrific legacy of depleted uranium and other toxic munitions. The overall cancer rate in the country has increased from 40 cases per 100,000 people in 1991 to 1,600 per 100,000 in 2005, according
LIBYA most horrifying, children being born with grotesque and previously unseen birth defects. Sadly, this toxic legacy will remain in Iraq's soil and water for thousands of years to come.
The overthrow of Saddam Hussein certainly did not bring democracy to Iraq,
organizations and al-Qaeda in Iraq, an organization which had virtually no presence in the secular Iraqi state prior to the 2003 invasion. Now, the US and their allies, including Canada, have begun bombing the country again in the name of fighting ISIS -- the very terrorist force which they helped to create. Libya
NATO countries, including Canada, began bombing Libya in 2011, claiming they were supporting a movement for democracy against Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi. What in fact took place in Libya was one of the biggest blows to democracy, secularism, and human rights in the region. Prior to NATO's intervention, Libya was the wealthiest country in Africa. Education was free right through university. Quality health care was free as well.
SYRIA to Iraqi government statistics. The Iraqi Ministry of Health has also reported a sharp rise in miscarriages, infertility and
either. Twelve years after the invasion, the country has been torn apart by the violent extremists known as ISIS. ISIS was born from various Sunni insurgent FIRE THIS TIME
Today, Libya is a shattered country, ruled by a variety of militias and terrorist organizations, including ISIS. The country's economy is in shambles. The health care system is in crisis as instability has forced hospitals to close and caused many foreign health care workers to leave the country. Women's rights have been eroded as religious fanatics and sectarian of all sorts have taken control in many areas. Vo l u m e 9 I s s u e 5 - M ay 2 0 1 5
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