War and the Public Health Disaster in Iraq

Abstract

This chapter addresses the systemic health and social consequences of the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. The war and subsequent destabilization of Iraqi society represent a continuation of structural violence against Iraqis initiated in the 1990s via economic sanctions. US military operations, and subsequent ethnic cleansing and other targeted violence by Iraqis, undermined local communities, created widespread suffering, and produced a significant human toll. While violence remains pervasive in Iraq, it accounts for only one aspect of a broader public health disaster. The conflict led to the “sectarianization” of public services, including healthcare, a brain drain of health professionals and educators, and the disintegration of one of the best healthcare systems in the Middle East. The deterioration of education and health systems, and more than two decades of forced migration of Iraqis to other countries, impede its long-term stability and reconstruction.