America - no magic rabbit to pull out of the Iraqi hat By Martin Deane

I heard a story recently. A Labour MP met with Blair over Iraq. Tony asked how things were in his constituency. He replied "I've had 3 letters in support of the war - and 350 against!" Blair, unfazed, said "Don't worry, the people will forget once the war is over."

We want UK troops out of Iraq. Get them out. Bring them home. End this monstrosity of lending credence to Bush's war of blood for oil. By now, by rights, we ought to be in a position to impeach Blair, our own monstrosity of 'moral authority' - and Bush, over their international war crime: actively pursuing Iraq for war, invasion and conquest. It is a deep commentary on the poverty of British democracy that Blair thinks he can ride it out yet again. Blair's arguments have collapsed.

Only the God-like humanitarian intervention is left. So how are Iraqis now? They have an imposed government of American stooges. Present puppet prime minister Ayad Allawi enjoys 5% Iraqi support, perhaps because all Iraq knows he is a CIA and MI6 man, an informant, part of a US-funded exile group. These, the INA and the INC, were responsible for the most of the intelligence, like the 45 minute claim (which appeared in Blair's 'dodgy' dossier 4 times - claiming David Kelly's life). At least Ahmed Chalabi, convicted bank criminal, enjoys more support - ay, a whopping 7%. (1)

Again and again, Blair has squandered any possible humanitarian claim, in the 1990's by sanctions (2), by illegal no fly zones (3), by a trumped-up illegal war(4), by endless civilian deaths(5), maimings(6) and kidnappings(7), by streets becoming rivers of sewage(8), by kids in hospitals dying increasingly from diarrhoea(9), by spying on the UN, by our troops use of humiliation and torture, by the Americans' use too - for yes, being a unitary authority, the CPA means that Britain is also responsible for American crimes!

Unemployment is at 50%, acute malnutrition has nearly doubled, maternal mortality is up(9), only 10% of houses have drinkable water. Meanwhile Christian Aid asks where has $20 billion of Iraqi oil money gone? You guessed it, American bank accounts.

The very first step towards Iraqi freedom now involves the removal of expressly American and British troops from her soil. We have no moral authority there, no acceptance by the Iraqi people. Now Allawi is on the point of instituting martial law. Once again we break the Geneva Conventions by NOT having provided security for the country before 'sovereignty', the job of occupation forces.

Security is the priority for Iraq. Could they do it alone? Not with the present despised leadership. Would an international force - without rogue states America and Britain - help? A UN-led (ditto), multinational, pan-Arabic force? But what chance? Now Allawi is calling for NATO help, in training.. That will really convince the resistance to roll over!

Next priorities are to reduce deaths, kidnappings, release the thousands of detainees held without evidence or charge, increase electricity production, water supplies, sanitation.. Most importantly - and something America will fight all the way - is for control of Iraqi oil production to pass to Iraqi companies. On the same lack of moral grounds, ours and America's big corporations need to leave Iraq, and take the security guys, an army on the cheap, with them. But there is no plan now. There are about 150 American advisers in Iraq's government(10) and no idea except to hang on for grim death (literally in some cases) until elections in January. There is no other magic rabbit, like the handover, so successful it was two days early (*not*) - though perhaps releasing more prisoners and tearing down Abu Ghraib, will provide a few coloured hankies to wave at the crowds.

Iraq needs its national rebuilding properly funded. By the countries which destroyed it! This money is to go to Iraqi companies, to kickstart rebuilding, business and the economy, and not out of the country, not to companies like Bechtel or Halliburton, raking in Iraqi oil revenues or US tax dollars, even illegally, nor to line the pockets of millionaires like VP Dick Cheney.

The Iraqi people need national elections as soon as possible. Gen. Jay Garner, (remember him, on the first spin cycle?), actually resigned because his Washington bosses put off Iraqi elections. Now, just before leaving last month, Bremer put in a raft of laws sewing up the country for the US even more. And with Sooty and Sweep "in charge", exploitation, violence and death are set to continue as usual. There is nothing the Iraqis cannot rebuild on their own, including their lives. They require us to get out of the way. So let's bring our troops home, and ensure that Blair must go.

Martin J Deane Martin is Secretary of Hull Stop the War The complete Hull STW newsletter is available on their website in PDF format at: www.stopthewar.fsnet.co.uk

1. FT poll April 2004, see also FT poll, 31 May 2. Sanctions controlled by US and UK at the UN killed over 1 million, half of them children, in a population of 22 million. See Pilger's New Rulers of the World, Verso, 2002. 3. No-Fly Zones illegal, former UN Secretary-General Boutros-Ghali, in Pilger's NRW. 4. Panorama 11.7.04 was good on this, the BBC rides again, if briefly. It shows unprecedented abuse of the usual intelligence procedures, an often unspoken pressure on officials to make a case for war. 5. See www.iraqbodycount.com for a British led count of verified civilian deaths. Many will be uncounted - women dying in labour, children from malnutrition, from simple diseases but no medicines available. Geneva Convention IV means Britain has responsibility for all this. 6. Pilger reports 1000 children killed by cluster bombs EVERY MONTH, and quotes Robert Fisk's estimate of 500-1000 Iraqis dying indirectly from the American-led conquest EVERY WEEK. From - www.abc.net.au 7. We hear about various foreigners kidnapped but, for ordinary Iraqis, kidnap, ransom and death have been an everyday occurrence since March 2003 when our war destroyed their security. 8. Naomi Klein, Guardian, 26.6.04 9. MEDACT Report, London, Nov 2003. "The most important thing that comes out of the study is that the data are not available." Dr Victor Sidel, a noted US health authority. 10. New York Times, 2 June.

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