Coalition of the Willing
Coalition Of The Willing
It was a merciless day,
A Day of Infamy.
The Coalition of the Willing: the United States,
Great Britain, Australia, and Poland,
Disrespectful of international law
And the United Nations,
Attacked Iraq on March 19, 2003,
Claiming that the country, led by Saddam Hussein,
Had in its possession
Weapons of mass destruction.
The use of military force by the Coalition
Was not sanctioned by the United Nations,
Nor were weapons of mass destruction discovered
Before or after the invasion.
George W. Bush and his cohorts
Took it upon themselves to act with impunity
And waged a war of aggression
Against Iraq without provocation,
To murder innocent, defenseless Iraqi citizenry
And Iraqi troops defending their country.
And the world cried not for accountability
Nor sought to bring to justice
The perpetrators responsible
For war crimes and crimes against humanity.
***
Notes:
On March 19, 2003, the United States carried out air attacks on Iraq, followed by a troop invasion of Iraq on March 20, 2003, by the “Coalition of the Willing” (America, Great Britain, Australia, and Poland), based on US intelligence that Iraq possessed “weapons of mass destruction,“ despite repeated warnings by the United Nations that Iraq possessed no such weapons. The military assault ended on May 1, 2003 (“Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed…”, as stated by George W. Bush in his “Mission Accomplished” speech aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.
Following the end of military combat operations, the United States and the Coalition found no evidence of “weapons of mass destruction”, and as to date, the United States of America and the Coalition of the Willing (Great Britain, Australia, and Poland) have not been prosecuted for “war crimes” nor “crimes against humanity.”
American President: George W. Bush (2001–2009).
British Prime Minister: Tony Blair (1997–2007).
Australian Prime Minister: John Howard (1996–2007).
Polish President: Aleksander Kwasniewski (1995–2005).
President of Iraq: Saddam Hussein (1979–2003).
“Coalition of the Willing”: comprised of 31 countries, and later extended to 44. Their aim “to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction.” However, the vast majority offered moral support.
Reference: ://web.stanford.edu/class/e297a/The%20Coalition%20of%20the%20Willing.htm
Initial First Phase of Combat: March 19 & 20, 2003, to May 1, 2003.
Reference: ://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq
://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Iraq_War
United States: 130.000 troops.
Great Britain: 42,0000 troops.
Australia: 2,000 troops.
Poland: 194 troops.
Iraq Body Count project (IBC project): civilian death count during initial phase, 7,269.
Iraqi soldiers: killed in action; estimates range from 7,600 to 11,000.
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