A Long History of Betrayal

A few weeks later, Shiite rebels in southern Iraq and Kurdish fighters in the north rose up. At the peak of the uprising, 14 of Iraq’s 18 provinces had slipped from government control. And then—nothing. The Bush administration provided no support, actively blocked the transfer of captured Iraqi weapons to rebels, and allowed Saddam to use helicopter gunships to crush the uprising. While Iraq was prohibited from flying fixed-wing aircraft, Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf permitted the use of helicopters. Between 30,000 and 60,000 Shiites and some 20,000 Kurds were killed . Over 1.5 million Kurds were displaced, and thousands died from exposure, disease, and land mines.

On Feb. 15, 1991, as coalition bombs fell on Iraq during Operation Desert Storm, President George H.W. Bush addressed the Iraqi people. “There is another way for the bloodshed to stop,” he declared , “and that is for the Iraqi military and the Iraqi people to take matters into their own hands and force Saddam Hussein, the dictator, to step aside.” Coalition aircraft dropped leaflets calling on Iraqis to “fill the streets and alleys and bring down Saddam Hussein and his aides.”

On Feb. 15, 1991, as coalition bombs fell on Iraq during Operation Desert Storm, President George H.W. Bush addressed the Iraqi people. “There is another way for the bloodshed to stop,” he declared, “and that is for the Iraqi military and the Iraqi people to take matters into their own hands and force Saddam Hussein, the dictator, to step aside.” Coalition aircraft dropped leaflets calling on Iraqis to “fill the streets and alleys and bring down Saddam Hussein and his aides.”

A few weeks later, Shiite rebels in southern Iraq and Kurdish fighters in the north rose up. At the peak of the uprising, 14 of Iraq’s 18 provinces had slipped from government control. And then—nothing.