USA and the New Middle East

The US illegally invaded and occupied Iraq on false pretenses in an imperial venture which was a disaster for the Iraqi people but reaped enormous profits for US corporations. More than 4000 US soldiers were killed and at least half a million Iraqis. The occupation unleashed a civil war in the country bringing further chaos and bloodshed. The war vastly increased global terrorism and endangered peace in the Middle East and around the world. The war and occupation was not an abberation, but consistent with the historical pattern of US global imperialism and hegemony.