'Sound Familiar?' To Historians, Iraq Unrest Does

[Mike in Hilo]

But not quite analagous, since the Brits managed to remain the primary power of influence in Iraq for decades after 1932, which was no mean accomplishment. They turned over sovereignty in 1932, which we did in 2004. But the Hashemite Kingdom, which they had installed in 1922, lasted until the 1958 coup, and so did a long-lived British favorite in the Prime Minister's slot, Nuri AsSaid....Numerous advisers stayed on in government and military, the all-important oil remained firmly in BP hands, and UK military bases remained to keep watch over the oil. It's no stretch to say that Iraq remained a British client state. When Rashid Ali had the temerity to attempt to take Iraq into Hitler's camp in WW II, the Brits reinvaded in 1941 and promptly removed and replaced him with leadership acceptable to the UK. Hardly the "cut and run" policy that would have us irresponsibly wash our hands of the place.