5 Times America Intervened in the Middle East

1.  In 1953, America and the United Kingdom teamed up to overthrow the democratically elected leader of Iran, Mohammad Modaddegh.  This leader intended to bring the oil profits back to his own country instead of allowing foreign oil companies to control the valuable resource.  America promoted its involvement by connecting the Iranian leader to Communism, but we now know that the true motive was oil profits.  The leader that we put in power, the Shah, held power for over two decades.  He ruled as a tyrant who killed anyone who spoke out against him or his government. 


2.  In the late 70's America helped train and arm the Mujahideen to fight the Russians in Afghanistan.  One of the prominent members was a young Osama bin Laden.  And as we all know, Bin Laden went on to lead one of the largest terrorist groups, Al Qaeda.


3.    In the 1980's, America aided Saddam Hussein in Iraq's war against Iran.  America provided strategic satellite imagery and advice to Saddam, knowing his history of using chemical weapons and intent to use chemical weapons on the Iranians as a result of America's involvement.  Recently declassified CIA documents proved that we were well aware of Iraq's use of chemical weapons, despite what they were telling the American public at the time.  The use of chemical weapons in war has been banned since 1925 under the Geneva Protocol.  Iraq never ratified the Geneva Protocol, but America did in 1975.


4.  In 2011 - 2012, America approved the shipment of arms from Qatar to the Libyan rebels in their fight against Muammar Qaddafi.  Many of these arms were ending up end the hands of Islamic militants, including Al Qaeda.  There was very little oversight of the transfer of arms at the time.    They have since been confirmed to have ended up all across the middle east from Mali to Syria. 


5.  In 2013, America began providing training and arms to the Free Syrian Army in their civil war against the Assad regime in Syria.  The FSA slowly devolved into ISIS, and they turned their efforts to northern Iraq.  As ISIS took city after city in Iraq, it grew stronger and stronger, taking left over American military equipment that was abandoned after the Iraq war.


Maybe it's time we stop intervening in the Middle East.  Just sayin'.