What has caused the humanitarian problems in Iraq?
Whilst war, and inefficiency and neglect by the Iraqi government, have undoubtedly played a significant role in causing the present hardships endured by the vast majority of inhabitants of Iraq, it is also clear that sanctions have significantly deepened the human suffering and have been one of its primary sources. Humanitarian and human rights agencies working with and in Iraq unanimously agree that sanctions have had a considerable impact on the welfare on the Iraqi population. In 1997, the United Nations Human Rights Committee noted that: “the effect of sanctions and blockades has been to cause suffering and death in Iraq, especially to children” (ยง4). In 1998, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child recognized that: “the embargo imposed by the Security Council has adversely affected the economy and many aspects of daily life, thereby impeding the full enjoyment by the States party’s population, particularly children, of their rights to survival, health and education
