It is vital that everyone who wants peace with justice raise their voices against another new war on Iraq. This means no troops, no military ‘advisors,’ no drones, no air strikes, no weapons shipments and no financial aid packages. For the last 20-plus years the U.S. government has been either waging a war on Iraq or preparing to wage a war – it time for this to stop once and for all.

In response to the turmoil that is spreading across Iraq, the White House and Pentagon are deploying military advisors. Washington has also made it clear that it is mulling over a number of other options, including air strikes. In the past sending military advisors has been the first step to large and prolonged wars – like in Vietnam. The time to put an end to this latest round of U.S. military intervention is now.

Some argue that past U.S. wars laid the basis the current conflict in Iraq and say that U.S. should try “fix things.” In the real world that’s like calling on an arsonist to put out a fire. It is a really bad idea.

The U.S. did destroy the independent-minded government of Iraq, headed by Saddam Hussein, in 2003. It did so get Iraqi oil and to dominate the Middle East. Afraid to openly declare its aims, the White House used the pretext of “weapons of mass destruction.” That’s what liars do, they tell lies, and we need to be ready for more of them.

We will no doubt hear that people in this country have some sort of ‘interest’ in the U.S. having a role in Iraq. That’s not true. The big corporations that dominate the economic and political life of U.S. have an economic and strategic interest in controlling the Middle East, but for working and oppressed people in this country that is not the case at all. The rich and powerful want to take from the peoples of the Middle East and want to take from us here at home. We have nothing in common with these empire builders.

The situation in Iraq is extremely complex, with many political and social forces in motion. Some of these forces are outsiders like the U.S., Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states. Groups like the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIS, have been used by the West to savage the anti-imperialist government of Syria. The yardstick that should be used to judge all the different forces at work is this: who is helping to free the Middle East from imperialism and who is assisting the domination by imperialism.

The Iraqi people have a right to determine their own destiny. The U.S. has no right to say what the composition of the Iraqi government must be, or how the Iraqi people should organize their lives. More than a million people have died because of U.S. wars on Iraq over the past decades. U.S. intervention needs to be ended. Not one cent should be spent on another round of destruction in Iraq. No troops and no weapons should be sent either.

Money for human needs, not for war! Hands off Iraq!

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