IRC in the News

SAN DIEGO — The Iraq War has been officially over for nearly a year and a half. But refugees from the conflict are still being admitted to the United States by the thousands, and many of those continue to settle in the city of El Cajon, east of San Diego.

Exactly 10 years ago, he was a draftee in Saddam Hussein’s army stationed in Basra when he heard a radio broadcast announcing the U.S. invasion.  He left his uniform and weapon behind and walked all the way home to Baghdad, where he later became a translator for the U.S. Army.
 

In 2003 Saddam Hussein was said to have weapons of mass destruction. There were hints he was tied to September 11th. Eighty percent of Americans supported the U.S. invasion. Ten years later 58 percent say it was not worth years of unexpected combat, more than $2 trillion, and the deaths of 4,500 Americans and more than 100,000 Iraqis. Today we'll focus on the human consequences.