Anti-war campaigners called for an immediate withdrawal of British troops from Iraq yesterday as the number of civilian casualties continued to grow to more than 400.
As protesters marched through several towns and cities to express ”mounting anger” at Britain’s involvement in the Iraq war, Andrew Burgin of the Stop the War Coalition said: ”This is a criminal and illegal war and the Prime Minister should call the troops home immediately.”
The peace campaign is, however, becoming divided in its response to the continuing military action. While former British Foreign Office Minister Doug Henderson called yesterday for a ”ceasefire and withdrawal” – warning of the risk of young Arabs from neighbouring countries becoming sucked into the fighting, and of American retaliation against Syria or Iran – other UK Labour MPs who voted against the war are now regrouping instead around the push for humanitarian aid to be delivered swiftly and under United Nations mandate.
Both camps, however, are agreed that, with the war now likely to be more protracted, politicians and peace campaigners cannot simply go to ground.
”When the Americans said that they were going to have this finished by last Tuesday, that was the very strong propaganda line, so people did accept that there was probably not much to be said about the war in that context,” said Tony Lloyd, the former Foreign Office Minister who voted against military action.
”But one concern now is going to be around the delivery of aid. In a prolonged war, if that is what we are going to have, is there really the capacity to prevent massive humanitarian crises building up?”
Iraq is thought to have sufficient food stocks to last only until the end of April. If the regime holds out for another month, the risk of starvation will become acute, he said.
Relief and reconstruction are the most politically acute issues for many of the reawakening rebels because British politician Clare Short specifically backed down on her resignation threat on the ground that she would be best placed directing the aid effort. If that collapses, her last fig leaf would be stripped away. – Guardian Unlimited Â