Commentary
The Nassirya massacre occurred during an offensive war that left a million dead
Respect for those who fell at Nassirya, their family members and the younger generations compels us to recall that the Italian military intervention in Iraq in March 2003 was a war mission.
It has become customary at this point: on the anniversary of the Nassirya massacre on Nov. 12, 2003 – in which 19 Italian soldiers and 9 Iraqis lost their lives in a terrorist attack by Iraqi militants – we are subjected to a rhetorical chorus that erases both history and memory.
All the Italian authorities are doing this: whether “institutionally,” like President Mattarella, or with patriotic fervor like Prime Minister Meloni, or like Defense Minister Crosetto, both speaking to the families of the victims and leaving open the possibility of other war adventures in the future. And all are claiming this is important for “the younger generations.”
Their words cast the commemoration of the Nassirya massacre as an unquestionable tribute to those who, “animated by a deep sense of duty, dedication and courage, gave their lives for Italy and for the values of peace and international cooperation.”
However, respect for those who fell at Nassirya, their family members and the younger generations compels us to recall that the Italian military intervention in Iraq in March 2003 was a war mission, not even disguised as a “humanitarian intervention,” alongside the United States, which built a “coalition of the willing” of 48 countries that the Berlusconi government – together with many countries from Eastern Europe, such as Ukraine – joined enthusiastically: a decision that split Europe and blocked and divided the UN Security Council.
Another “world power,” that of millions of pacifists, took to the streets in protest. But the war started anyway, motivated by the lies of the Bush administration, whose Defense Secretary Powell claimed at the UN that there was evidence of Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction (none were ever found), and which also fueled a fake narrative of Iraq having played a role in 9/11.
The only result achieved by the war was a bloodbath of Iraqi civilians – one million dead according to all existing reports (British Iraq Body Count, the journal The Lancet, the Iraqi Ministry of Health, the journal PLOS Medicine, etc.), whom nobody in the West commemorates. Just as there is no recognition for the many Italian servicemen who died as a result of the use of depleted uranium munitions.
Furthermore, the Iraqi crisis has remained unresolved – ISIS was born on the occasion of the war – and remains a dramatic situation. Thousands of people we call “migrants” are fleeing from there, while we, unsurprisingly, want to push them back.
Just like we’re doing with memory.
Originally published at https://ilmanifesto.it/nassirya-litalia-era-in-guerra-non-costruiva-la-pace on 2024-11-13