Timetable for U.S. 'victory upset by Iraqi resistance

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Il you want to understand the stakes in the U.S.

war against Irag read this pamphlet for a Marxist analysis. Find out why the U.S. Is flexing its muscles now and how we can build an antiwar movement to Bring the Troops SOCIALIST ACTION FEBRUARY 1991 3 Washington's objectives in the Persian Gulf are becoming clearer day by day, as the most massive bombing campaign ever is leveled against the Iraqi people.

The bombing missions average roughly one a minute, according to the U.S. high command. This has left a wide path of destruction ("softening up" and "collateral damage," in military jargon), and deaths probably in the thousands. The raids have cut off basic necessities—including bottled water, bread, milk, and heating oil.

George Bush's goal is not the liberation of Kuwait. Washington seeks the total destruction of one of the oldest civilizations in the Arab world—Iraq. The aim is to impose a pro-U.S. puppet regime in Baghdad, build-up a permanent U.S. military presence in the Middle East, and establish a "new world order" based on U.S. political and economic domination in the region as a stepping stone for the entire world The U.S. government has already assembled the biggest military force since the Vietnam War. Some 500,000 troops and support personnel are now in the Persian Gulf region. These are backed by allies from France, Britain, Canada, and other imperialist countries. There are also modest forces from traitor Arab regimes and neo-colonial capitalist governments in the region.

Israel, supposedly sitting on the sidelines, has launched the largest bombing raids in years against the Palestinians in Lebanon. BBC radio commented (Feb. 5, 1991) that the Israeli raids looked to be "part of a revitalized campaign to undermine the PLO ... by linking it with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

At the very beginning of the Gulf war, Israel imposed a harsh 20-day curfew on the West Bank and Gaza, which has caused the shutdown of Palestinian-owned factories and farms. The Israeli military warns that Palestinians will be confined to their homes once again if they continue demonstrating support for Iraq.

And yet, in return for its pledge to not bomb Iraq directly, the Israeli government is asking Washington for $13 billion in aid over and above the $3 billion in economic and military assistance it already gets from the U.S. government.

Impending ground war

The U.S.-led force is readying for the biggest ground war since World War II. Initial skirmishes and artillery fights along the Saudi Arabian border have already led to the deaths of Iraqi and U.S. soldiers.

Even some liberals, who had expressed concern that the limited aim of the United Nations mandate to "liberate Kuwait" not be overstepped, are now openly talking about "getting Hussein."

On Feb. 4, ABC News "Nightline" ran a program that focused on whether the U.S should try to assassinate Hussein. Ted Koppel asked if it wouldn't be better to kill Hussein than have thousands of soldiers die in a ground war.

At the same time, some imperialist commentators are urging caution. Zbigniew Brzezinski, ex-President Carter's national security adviser, calls on Bush to limit Washington's Persian Gulf goal to the liberation of Kuwait. The longer the conflict, he says, the higher the political costs to the United States around the world and at home.

Brzezinski says a limited war would bring the most long-term results for world imperialism. The total war policy, he says, could lead to a "bitter historical irony."

"The victor in the cold war," he says, "instead of shaping a new world order, would thus become the entangled victim of an endless regional conundrum."

But Bush and his advisers have other ideas. Bush strongly indicated in his State of the Union address that the war cannot be limited to pushing Iraq out of Kuwait. It must now be, he said, a war to destroy Iraq's ability in the future to ever fight again as a military power in the region.

Furthermore, Bush called -thi U.S. Marine after the battle to retake Khafji do what was necessary to win the war. He then offered up a $1.4 trillion deficit budget, excluding most of the Persian Gulf costs, and demanded that Congress cut back on social programs that benefit working people the most.

The well-orchestrated daily military briefings in Saudi Arabia barely conceal the theme of a total war to defeat Hussein's army and dismantle Iraq's industrial and social infrastructure.

"The Iraqi army is for the most part sitting here, waiting to be attacked, and attacked it on the n th Guiddle East var, Carole Seligman Nat Weinstein Jett Mackler will be. First we are going to cut it off. Then we are going to kill it," said the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Colin Powell.

Many civilian casualties The bombings have included the use of shells containing a white phosphorous chemical that sticks to the skin, burning deep wounds. The Pentagon is also preparing to use "nonlethal" gases, exposing the lie that it is Iraq that plans to use chemical weapons.

Because of Pentagon censorship, the media has rarely dared to speculate how many Iraqis have been killed. (The number of allied deaths is also a tight secret.) The Iraqi government claims that several hundred civilians have died in the bombings, but reports by refugees indicate the toll might be far higher.

U.S. Secretary of Defense said he "would expect there would be a lot of casualties. Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, head of all the U.S.-led forces, added that any civilian deaths were accidental. "You know these things happen," he told reporters.

Videotapes carried out of Iraq show the amount of destruction in Baghdad, Basra, and other cities and towns. Schools, hospitals, homes, and warehouses containing food and medicine have all been hit. The Pentagon claims Irag is hiding military targets in these residential areas.

Worldwide antiwar protests

Meanwhile, Washington's dirty war against Iraq has had repercussions in other parts of the world.

Huge antiwar protests have taken place in Europe and in the United States. The Jan. 19 and Jan. 26 demonstrations in San Francisco and Washington, D.C., were the biggest since the Vietnam war. At the same time, more than 200,000 marched in Bonn, Germany.

Over 300,000 pro-Iraqi demonstrators rallied in Morocco on Feb. 3, causing the government to draw back from its initial decision to send troops to Saudi Arabia. Jordan's King Hussein, responding to numerous demonstrations in his country, said that he sides with Iraq in the war.

Among the Palestinians, Iraq's ability to shoot SCUD missiles into Israel has been hailed. Hatred against Washington continues to grow. The determination of the Iraqi people to stand firm despite the military odds is giving encouragement to oppressed people throughout the world.

The utter arrogance of the U.S. military and the resourcefulness of the Iraqi troops was shown in the battle for the Saudi Arabian town of Khafji. Initially, the Pentagon said that their "ally" Saudi Arabia scored an easy victory without U.S. help. That disinformation was loyally reported by the American press.

But later reports indicated that it took heavy Marine artillery, helicopters, and tactical fighters to save the situation.

Another Pentagon distortion concerns the oil spill off the shores of Kuwait. The Pentagon charged that Iraq deliberately opened the spigots as a form of ecological terrorism. Iraq denied it and charged that the spill was caused by U.S. and allied bombings. Even the Saudi Arabian government was forced to admit that one source of the oil pollution was an Iraqi tanker that had been hit by U.S. planes.

The Iranian government, which fought an eight-year war against Iraq from 1980-88, has condemned Washington's build-up in the region. While opposing Iraq's occupation of Kuwait, Iraq calls for a cease-fire and has offered to "mediate" the conflict. Washington, of course, has said no. It continues to demand Saddam Hussein's total capitulation and trial as a war criminal.

The Iraqi people are determined to protect their homes and their country against the U.S. Goliath. Working people in this country should rally in solidarity with the Iraqi people and demand an immediate end to Washington's war.

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