Death and suffering in Iraq a painful legacy of 9/11 attacks

By QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA and ZEINA KARAM
Associated Press

BAGHDAD (AP) — Not long after 9/11, the Bush administration shifted its attention to Iraq, saying it was part of an “axis of evil” that pursued anti-American policies. In subsequent months, the U.S. asserted that brutal Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was armed with weapons of mass destruction and had ties to al-Qaida, which carried out the 9/11 attacks. No evidence of either was found. The U.S. launched its invasion of Iraq on March 20, 2003, unleashing a war that led to an insurgency and sectarian violence. Tens of thousands of Iraqis were killed. Car bombs, suicide attackers, death squads and rival militias became a part of everyday life, and Iraq is still struggling with the aftermath.