Editorial - Iraq bombing: Clinton's deadly diversion
The four-day US bombardment of Iraq was engineered in a criminal and cynical attempt by President Clinton to save himself from impeachment, by intimidating Congress and manipulating patriotic fervour. This is the second time that Clinton has launched a military attack on Iraq to try to save his skin.
He was happy to manipulate Richard Butler, head of UNSCOM into submitting his unconvincing report direct to him, rather than to the UN Security Council. No wonder previous US puppet, Un Secretary-General Kofi Anan, has been so non-plussed.
But this cynical ruse appears to have failed, and may even be strengthening the resolve of some Republicans to remove him.
Those Republicans who stated they could not support his action did so not only because of their deep hatred of the man they believe has usurped their God-given right to the Presidency, but also because their own war aims would be far more through-going than anything envisaged by Desert Fox.
Blair and the Labour government were almost Clinton’s sole allies. They offered uncritical support when the rest of the world saw through the US President’s ploy. Blair’s role as Clinton’s lap dog marks a further shift to the right in the politics of New Labour.
Opposition within the Labour Party has been limited. In an unprecedented move MPs were denied a vote in the House of Commons, though it appears that about 20 would have opposed the attack. Liz Davies and Mark Seddon of the Grass Roots Alliance were active in opposition to this murderous assault and other party members have had critical letters published in the press.
The attack on Iraq is a further blow to this devastated country. More cruise missiles were used than during Desert Storm - though the fire power was considerably lower.
Despite pious statements about military targets, it is clear that civilian sites such as oil refineries and television stations have been deliberately attacked. Although casualty figures are not available, it is clear that these included huge numbers of civilians. Clinton and Blair stated that 10,000 Iraqi deaths would be acceptable.
This is on top of the vicious sanctions, which according to UN figures have led to 1½ million deaths in the past seven years. Having installed, supported and built up Saddam Hussein, western imperialism is now punishing the Iraqi people for failing to remove him.
This onslaught on Iraq is about more than US domestic politics. The underlying causes remain the same as previous imperialist attacks on Iraq: the US drive to retain political hegemony in the Middle East, the determination to ensure that oil resources are exploited for the benefit of western companies rather than that of the people of the region, and the necessity for the political and economic stability of the US regime of the existence of an external enemy.
These factors led the US to arm and support Saddam in his long and bloody war against Iran in the 1980’s. At the end of that war, when Saddam had gained stature in the region, the US manoeuvred him into invading Kuwait, and then used that as a pretext for an attack on Iraq.
The country’s infrastructure has been devastated, and its people are starving, but the hold of the brutal regime has not weakened. In fact, each western attack seems to increase, rather than weaken, support for Saddam Hussein among his subjects.
The balance sheet at the end of the four days seemed clear enough. Saddam’s position is more secure than Clinton’s. The only forces that can remove Saddam are the Iraqi people – and they will never receive the support of the British or American establishment in doing so.
In the meantime, the left needs to be on the alert for further military action against the Iraqi people and prepared to respond with our solidarity.
Our opposition to impeaching Clinton because of his sex life is not at all based on any illusions in him – but rather in our understanding that such a victory by the Republican party would lead to further dangerous assaults against working people in America, in Iraq and throughout the globe.
At the same time this degenerate and murderous adventure reminds us once again why socialists in the US need so desperately to build their own workers’ party, to lead the long-overdue break from the bankrupt Democrats and Republicans.