Back معارضة حرب العراق Arabic مخالفت با جنگ عراق Persian Irakin sodan vastustus ja kritiikki Finnish Opposition à la Guerre d'Irak French

Opposition to the Iraq War

This article is about parties opposing the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the Iraq War from outside Iraq. For opposition rationales, see Criticism of the Iraq War. For more information see Views on the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

A woman in San Francisco raises her fist, as people in over 60 countries took to the streets on February 15, 2003, in opposition to the imminent invasion of Iraq.

Opposition to the Iraq War significantly occurred worldwide, both before and during the initial 2003 invasion of Iraq by a United States–led coalition, and throughout the subsequent occupation. Individuals and groups opposing the war include the governments of many nations which did not take part in the invasion, including both its land neighbors Canada and Mexico, its NATO allies in Europe such as France and Germany, as well as China and Indonesia in Asia, and significant sections of the populace in those that took part in the invasion.[1][2] Opposition to the war was also widespread domestically.[3]

Rationales for opposition include the belief that the war is illegal according to the United Nations Charter,[4] or would contribute to instability both within Iraq and the wider Middle East. Critics have also questioned the validity of the war's stated objectives, such as a supposed link between the country's Ba'athist government and the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, and its possession of weapons of mass destruction "certified" by the Niger uranium forgeries. The latter was claimed by the United States during the run-up to the war, but no such weapons were ever found.

Within the United States, popular opinion on the war has varied significantly with time. Although there was significant opposition to the idea in the months preceding the attack, polls taken during the invasion showed that a majority of US citizens supported their government's action. However, public opinion had shifted by 2004 to a majority believing that the invasion was a mistake, and has remained so since then. There has also been significant criticism of the war from US politicians such as Bernie Sanders, national security and military personnel, including generals such as Anthony Zinni and Paul Eaton who served in the war and have since spoken out against its handling, including calling for former Secretary of Defense's Donald Rumsfeld resignation.[5] Lieutenant General Gregory S. Newbold, openly critical of Rumsfeld's plans for the invasion of Iraq, resigned in protest prior to the invasion.[5]

Worldwide, the war and occupation have been officially condemned by 54 countries and the heads of many major religions. Popular anti-war feeling is strong in these and other countries, including the US' allies in the conflict, and many have experienced huge protests totalling millions of participants.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference autogenerated2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "China condemns U.S. for Iraq war" Archived October 6, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. The Star (from Associated Press). March 7, 2007.
  3. ^ "Poll Shows View of Iraq War Is Most Negative Since Start". The New York Times. May 25, 2007. Archived from the original on March 31, 2017.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference wcc was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b David S. Cloud and Eric Schmitt (April 14, 2006). "More Retired Generals Call for Rumsfeld's Resignation". New York Times. Archived from the original on April 13, 2016. Retrieved March 17, 2007.

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