Mission Not Accomplished: Iraqi victims of war toxins deserve justice.

• Date: 01 April 2023
• Author: Krakow, Carly A.
• Published date: 01 April 2023
• Author: Krakow, Carly A.

On February 7, just a month before the twentieth anniversary of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq, President Joe Biden delivered his 2023 State of the Union address. He featured the PACT Act, which helps approximately 3.5 million U.S. veterans who have suffered from various medical conditions linked to military burn pits, including in Iraq and Afghanistan (see story on page 32). Biden celebrated bipartisan support for "the most significant law ever helping victims exposed to toxic burn pits."

But there is a problem with the U.S. government's declaration of something akin to "mission accomplished" regarding burn pits and other toxins in Iraq. It is similar to former President George W. Bush's infamous 2003 declaration that "major combat operations in Iraq have ended" while standing in front of a "Mission Accomplished" banner, just six weeks into a war that, in fact, would not be over for many years. Iraqi civilians have been left to cope with health devastation linked to war...