The U.S. Military officially ended the Iraq War today, December 15, 2011 - nearly nine years after it began on March 20, 2003 as a a "Shock and Awe" campaign. Also known as the Occupation of Iraq, the Second Gulf War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, it was launched by U.S. President George W. Bush and United Kingdom Prime Minister Tony Blair in response to assertions of Iraq employing Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD).
"After a lot of blood spilled by Iraqis and Americans, the mission of an Iraq that could govern and secure itself has become real," Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said at the ceremony at Baghdad's still heavily-fortified airport.
Almost 4,500 U.S. soldiers and tens of thousands of Iraqis lost their lives in the war that began with a "Shock and Awe" campaign of missiles pounding Baghdad and descended into sectarian strife and a surge in U.S. troop numbers.
U.S. soldiers lowered the flag of American forces in Iraq and slipped it into a camouflage-colored sleeve in a brief outdoor ceremony, symbolically ending the most unpopular U.S. military venture since the Vietnam War of the 1960s and 70s.
The remaining 4,000 American troops will leave by the end of the year.
Were you yourself, or any of your loved ones, directly involved in this almost decade-long war? We would like to invite you, your family, or your friends, to share your stories in our iBakitWhy section by writing a blog about your experiences. We'd love to know how it has affected and changed you and those around you.
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By Frederick_Alain on December 15, 2011 - 4:02pm
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The costs of the Iraq War are steep; over 34,000 Americans killed or wounded, more than 150,000 Iraqi casualties, and roughly $1 Trillion spent.
While the official war is over, the effects of this man-made catastrophe will continue to be felt for decades and generations to come...