Benefits..

 


On March 19 2003, Paul Wolfowitz, then deputy defense secretary and a leading proponent of the war, told a Congressional committee: "We are dealing with a country that can really finance its own reconstruction, and relatively soon."

The US has overwhelmingly borne the brunt of both the military and reconstruction costs, spending at least $138bn on private security, logistics and reconstruction contractors, who have supplied everything from diplomatic security to power plants and toilet paper.

None has benefited more than KBR, once known as Kellogg Brown and Root. The controversial former subsidiary of Halliburton, which was once run by Dick Cheney, vice-president, was awarded at least $39.5bn in federal contracts related to the Iraq war over the past decade.

There are still 14,000 contractors, including 5,500 security guards, in Iraq even though the last troops left in December 2011. Just a thought.