Iraq - The War on Terrorism

The chaos that erupted across Iraq exposed British and American delusions about what they could hope to achieve. You couldn't simply topple Saddam, purge his supporters and expect democracy to flower. The state was too weak, its population too brutalised. Old entities and jockeying for power broke out into the open while the ruined economy meant theft, bribery and corruption soared. Every time we built an electric, pine on distribution line, the copper wire would be ripped down overnight and sold across the border. A routine press conference was underway in front of the cameras when a hand grenade fell on the middle of the crowd. 58 people died in Baghdad this morning. Some survivors talked of suicide bombers, others of