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Islamic Human Rights Commission
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21st March 2003

PRESS RELEASE: First Day of Iraq War Exposes Further Hypocrisy

IHRC condemns the claims of the allies to be concerned with the fate of the Iraqi people, given the release of figures relating to the cost of the war thus far and pledges of aid.

Jon Snow, presenter of ‘Channel 4 News’ noted that $26 million of bombs were dropped on Baghdad on first day of the war in an attempt to assassinate Saddam Hussein, whilst only $34 million has been pledged to the UN Humanitarian Relief project for Iraq so far (20th March 2003).

This disparity in the allocation of Western resources, especially by the American and British governments, is further compounded by the US administration’s decision to award the Israeli regime with an outrageous $10 billion gift, which includes military aid. Allocated from George Bush’s war budget, this gift, on top of the yearly $3 billion the US throws at Israel, mostly in the form of military aid, is to bail Israel out of the economic crisis it has created for itself through its ongoing oppression of the Palestinian people.

It is this inconsistent approach to the Middle East, especially on the behalf of the Bush administration and its predecessors, that informs the glaring lack of international support, if not outright opposition to this debased and profoundly unpopular war currently waged against Iraq.

The illegal American and British war on Iraq and Israel, with its occupation and brutalisation of the Palestinians, are the twin nexuses at the heart of the Middle East’s problems. Both the gratuitous aid to Israel, especially its disproportionate military component and the war on Iraq can only serve to re-enforce the already seemingly implacable differences that myriad the Middle East. Undoubtedly, the immediate losers will be the Iraqi and Palestinian people.

IHRC feels that these figures leave little room for the American led coalition claims of ethical superiority.

For further information please call the press office on (+44) 20 8902 0888 or email info@ihrc.org.

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Islamic Human Rights Commission
PO Box 598, Wembley, London, United Kingdom, HA9 7XH
Telephone (+44) 20 8902 0888
Fax (+44) 20 8902 0889
e-mail: ihrc@dial.pipex.com
web: http://www.ihrc.org/