NEW YORK, August 8 (RIA Novosti) – US airstrikes on militants from the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq marks a re-starting of a war that was unpopular with Americans, peace activist Paul Kawika Martin told RIA Novosti Friday.
“Americans want the Iraq War finished, not started anew. Dropping humanitarian aid is a wise investment in humanity. But we cannot afford the likely bad consequences of bombing Iraq again,” said Paul Kawika Martin, the political and policy director of Peace Action.
“We applauded President Obama for doing what he said on his first presidential campaign trail, bring the troops home from Iraq. It’s time to remember what some would claim how he got elected to the White House; his opposition to the Iraq War,” the activist added.
The Pentagon said American aircraft attacked artillery that was being used against Kurdish forces defending the Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, on Friday – hours after US President Barack Obama had authorized air strikes and aid drops.
The Sunni militant group IS, formerly the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS), now controls swathes of Iraq and Syria. The rebels took control of Mosul in June and seized Bakhdida, also known as Qaraqosh, the largest Christian city of Iraq, this week, forcing tens of thousands of Christians to flee into the mountains.
