This paper examines the humanitarian consequences of the 2003 Iraq War on Basra, Iraq's second-largest city and principal port. Drawing on contemporary news reports and journalistic accounts, the paper surveys Basra's historical and geographic context, the pre-existing hardships caused by international sanctions, and the devastating effects of the conflict on the city's civilian population. Key concerns explored include the destruction of water and electricity infrastructure, the threat of famine and malnutrition, and the risk of epidemic diseases such as cholera and typhus. The paper argues that Basra's strategic location and already fragile conditions made its residents especially vulnerable to the war's immediate and long-term aftereffects.
Since the war in Iraq began, it has become almost impossible to turn on the radio or television without hearing about Saddam Hussein or the troops deployed so many miles from home. Long before the official first shots were fired, the debate over whether the United States should pursue a war with Iraq had been intense. Whether one is for or against the war, most people cannot help feeling a sense of anticipatory anxiety about what will happen next. For Iraqi citizens, however, that anticipation must be deeply frightening. It is hard not to wonder what the long-term effects will be for the people of Iraq.
Other than the city of Baghdad, the average American citizen probably knows very little about the rest of Iraq. Although the United States and coalition forces' ultimate goal is to capture the historic capital city of Baghdad, second on the list of objectives would undoubtedly be the city of Basra. Basra is Iraq's second-largest city and its principal port, with a population of nearly five hundred thousand inhabitants. Its location near major oil fields and only 75 miles from the Persian Gulf gives it enormous commercial and strategic significance.
Basra has many commercial advantages due to its proximity to oil fields and the Persian Gulf. The city supports numerous oil refineries, and petroleum products, grains, wool, and dates are heavily exported through its port. Basra was founded in A.D. 636 by the caliph Umar I and became a cultural center under Harun ar-Rashid, later declining with the decay of the Abbasid caliphate. Possession of the city has been disputed over the centuries by the Persians and the Turks. During World War I, the British occupied Basra and made use of its ports. After World War I, the construction of a heavy rail line to the capital city of Baghdad and the modernization of its harbor restored the city's regional importance. The port was consistently bombed by western coalition forces during the Persian Gulf War in 1991.
In the weeks leading up to the 2003 conflict, media reports confirmed that British forces had surrounded Basra. The city is one of Iraq's southernmost urban centers and is only about an hour's drive from Kuwait. Because of its proximity to the Kuwaiti border and Saudi Arabia, United States and coalition troops secured Basra early in their march toward Baghdad. As one editorial noted, "They will want a continuing presence in the area to keep potential rebellious Iraqi Shi'ites, who are concentrated around Basra, under control" (Editors et al.). Basra's citizens have long faced vulnerability due to their location: "They are strategically positioned on the bank of the Shatt al-Arab, one of the Middle East's busiest waterways. Because of this, for nearly 600 years this city has been the target for raiders, including the Persians, Turks, and British" (Aparisim).
Even before the war began, existing conditions in Iraq were dismal. After eleven years of international sanctions, Iraq began distributing ration cards to its citizens in 2001 to provide them with basic necessities. The citizens of Basra were already bracing for this conflict with the United States to be long-lasting. Even under the rationing system, water had always been more valuable than oil and gas to ordinary citizens. Iraqi doctors at hospitals in both Basra and Baghdad reported confronting daily cases of children suffering from intestinal and urinary tract infections caused by drinking polluted water — illnesses that led to malnutrition and, in many cases, death.
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) estimated that up to 100,000 children under the age of five in Basra were at immediate risk of severe disease from unsafe water. The destruction of the city's electricity during United States and British bombing shut down Basra's water pumping and treatment plants, compounding an already precarious public health situation. As one account noted at the time, "The sewage and electricity is bad in much of Iraq, but especially in Basra" (Traver).
"Stockpiling, fuel shortages, power outages"
"Epidemic disease threats from contaminated water"
Iraq as a whole will suffer. But Basra will be a major casualty of the United States' attempt to remove Saddam Hussein from power. The people of Basra are bracing not only for direct attacks — bombs falling on the city's modernized harbor and residential neighborhoods — but also for the inevitable aftermath of war: starvation, famine, and epidemic disease. The city's strategic importance, long history of conflict, and already fragile infrastructure make its civilian population among the most vulnerable in the entire country. The long-term effects of this war on the citizens of Basra are likely to be severe and enduring.
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