WAR COSTS 400 BILLION: OIL COMPANIES AND DEFENSE CONTRATORS BENEFIT THE MOST

The war is estimated to have already cost Washington more than 400 billion dollars -- making it the most expensive conflict in history. And what have American taxpayer got for their money? Critics say that while the American taxpayer carried the burden of the Iraq war cost, US oil companies (and the American politicians affiliated with them) were the greatest beneficiaries of the invasion (if we exclude the US arms industry).

Brutal war on Iraq enters sixth yearBaghdadis say US invasion brought Iraq types of killings, terrorism country never knew before.

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=24935

BAGHDAD - The US-led war on Iraq that toppled president Saddam Hussein entered its sixth year on Thursday with millions of Iraqis still battling daily chaos and rampant bloodshed.

On March 20, 2003, US warplanes dropped the first bombs on Baghdad to announce an invasion that would within three weeks topple Saddam's regime and leave US forces in charge of a people resentful and rebellious against their occupation.

Five years on, Iraqis are in a state of civil war and US forces face daily attacks from insurgents.
The war has killed more than 4,000 US and allied soldiers and hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians -- between 104,000 and 223,000 died between March 2003 and June 2006 alone, according to the World Health Organisation.

"The war has been an unlimited disaster in terms of US foreign policy, in terms of stability in Iraq and in the Middle East," said Joost Hiltermann, Iraq expert with the International Crisis Group.

"I can only hope the US finds a way to navigate itself out of the mess without allowing Iraq to fall apart."

As the conflict entered its sixth year, US President George W. Bush once again defended his decisions that have already cost the administration more than 400 billion dollars in Iraq.
Bush acknowledged that the war has "come at a high cost in lives and treasure," but defended both the decision to invade and to boost the number of US troops in Iraq last year.
"The answers are clear to me: removing Saddam Hussein from power was the right decision -- and this is a fight America can and must win," he said in a speech at the Pentagon, US military headquarters.

Hours after his speech, Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, in a video message, expressed determination to fight US in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He said the "savage acts" of the US-led military coalition in Iraq and Afghanistan "haven't ended the war, but rather (have) increased our determination to cling to our right, avenge our people and expel the invaders from our country."

Baghdadis too are not convinced of a possible victory in Iraq.

Abu Fares al-Daraji, a tobacco shop owner in Baghdad said Americans "brought our way things we never knew (before) like terrorism and the killings we see on the streets."

Anti-war activists are also not impressed and launched sit-ins and marches across the United States demanding an immediate withdrawal of US soldiers.

"This war needs to end and it needs to end now," said Leslie Cagan, national coordinator of United for Peace and Justice.

Bush has taken heart from signs that the bloodshed in Iraq has fallen, but even the commander of US troops, General David Petraeus, admits that Baghdad has made insuffienct progress towards national reconciliation.

"Scoring a military victory is easy, but a political victory is more difficult to achieve," said Mustapha Alani, director of security studies at the Dubai-based Gulf Research Centre.
He said Washington had dismantled Saddam's regime and was now "unable to put it back together".

The day-to-day reality on the ground is grim.

The International Committee of the Red Cross, in its latest report, said the plight of millions of Iraqis who still have little or no access to clean water, sanitation or health care was the "most critical in the world".

Insurgents continue to carry out spectacular attacks.

On Tuesday, at a national unity conference -- undermined by a boycott from two key parliamentary blocs -- Shiite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki boasted that Iraq's sectarian civil war was over.

On Wednesday he visited, for the first time since becoming premier, Baghdad's Sunni bastion of Adhamiyah. There he promised the Sunni Arabs jobs as a reward for their fight against Al-Qaeda.

Later Wednesday, Iraq's presidency council approved a law to hold provincial elections, a key demand of Washington to boost national unity.

The economy, the main concern of Iraqis after security, is also a wreck. Unemployment is running at between 25 and 50 percent of the workforce, according to government figures.
Oil exports are the country's main money-earner. Iraqi officials say production is at 2.9 million barrels a day, but oil analysts believe it is really around 2.2 million.

Public services like water and electricity have yet to be fully restored, despite billions of dollars having been spent on often badly managed reconstruction projects.

Iraq's parliament has been paralysed by competition between parties driven by sectarian conflicts, as the US-designed parliament was divided according to sectarian lines.
Last year the US embassy in Baghdad documented a high level of corruption at all levels of government, and questioned the Maliki administration's willingness to crack down on crooked practices.

An unusual charge from Washington which critics say is deeply involved – if not in control – of the corruption in Iraq.