I saw America snatch defeat from victory in Iraq

Cheered on by jubilant locals, US soldiers toppled a statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad. (Image: AP)

Sun, 26 Mar 2023

By Bobby Ghosh Twenty years ago this week, I watched the start of the US-led invasion of Iraq on TV in a hotel room in Amman, Jordan, wondering whether it was good or bad luck that I was not in Baghdad to experience the so-called “shock and awe” bombing campaign. I had been forced to leave only a few days before, as the government of Saddam Hussein had begun selectively evicting foreign journalists. The Ministry of Information wanted to reduce the number of unruly cats it would have to herd when hostilities broke out...

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