So, if we left Iraq right now, what would happen there?

Question

what groups will take control and how many troops do they have to gain control?

and please use actual group names and cites to back up any numbers you use...

I would think if our troops left, there would still be a huge flow of money, weapons and supplies from the U.S. to Iraq to help them "get on their feet"...

does anyone have any facts? and if Iran could bomb us, they would be doing so now... our placement in Iraq has nothing to do with that...

Answer 1

I'm sure the tax payers would save a lot of money and Cheney and Halliburton would loose some. America could have protected it's own boarders I'm sure with 700 billion dollars.

Answer 2

The first thing that would happen would be the genocide of all Sunni's in Iraq. The the the elimination of the Kurd's. Finally the Shiite would begin infighting between their different sects.
Once the that stage began Iran would most likely invade and take over the country and control roughly 50% of the world oil.
Before the invasion we here in the United States would be suffering from monthly suicide bomb attacks and they would continue to get worse as Iran would supply them with more advance weapons and since the do possess nuclear material the possibility of a dirty bomb would increase 10 fold.

Answer 3

The Kurds will take action to secure their own part of Northern Iraq and probably attempt to create their own nation (which should encourage this).

The Shiites led by Sadr's militia will make their move to secure domination of the remainder of the country. The Sunnis may or may not receive aid from the Saudi's and other Sunni led nations in the region. The Iranians will obviously throw their support to Sadr's militia.

It's a fair bet that the Shiites would win.

The issue for America is that all of these things will eventually come to pass, it's just a matter of how many more of our citizens have to die before we begin to yield to the reality of the situation.

Answer 4

That is the million dollar question, isn't it? It is widely believed that the Iraqi government can not stand on its own without the continued military aid of the U.S. Take that aid away and the democratically elected government could fall. The newly trained Iraqi forces, both police and army, could split along sectarian lines. If there is not yet a full fledged civil war in Iraq now, there most definitely would be one if we left. This chaos would leave the door open for a Saddam clone, most likely Shia this time, to take over control of the nation.

The internal unrest could spill across the borders into neighboring nations. Iran, backing the Shia, and Saudi Arabia, backing the Sunni, could be pulled into a regional war divided along the same sectarian lines.

While the numbers of al-Qaeda in Iraq remain low, the loss of any real opposition could strengthen their numbers. They could play up to the outnumbered Sunni and offer their assistance in fighting the Shia in return for the freedom to exist and train in Iraq.

The diplomatic, economic, and general unrest that could occur from an immediate U.S. withdrawl could be felt throughout the region and the world.

The groups that are involved in Iraqi violence today are as follows:

Iraqi Army - 138,000 *
Iraqi Police - 188,000 *
Facilities Protection Services - 145,000 *
Mahdi Army - 60,000 **
Badr Organization - 4,000 - 10,000 **
al-Qaeda in Iraq - 1,400 **

* - number subject to decrease upon sectarian lines upon collapse of Iraqi government
** - number subject to increase along sectarian lines upon collapse of Iraqi government

Answer 5

The same thing would happen in Iraq that happened at the end of the Vietnam war. The innocents would be slaughtered by the insurgents, And Al-Qaeda would see that we ran away with our tails between our legs. We could also count on a Terrorist attack on our soil. just a point I want to make, Hillary Clinton says that if she was president in 2003, she wouldn't have invaded Iraq. If this is true, why was she and President Clinton saying that this war was necessary back in 97-99?

Answer 6

The same thing if we leave when The Decider decides we've wasted enough money and lives over there (notice I put money first because money ALWAYS comes first with the Bushies).
Don't matter when we leave, that country will be mired in civil war.

Answer 7

It would become a civil war for several years and then whoever had the best supplies from foreign governments will prevail and then get the contracts.

Answer 8

Bloodshed, lots of bloodshed, no American blood shed but they would sort it out as they have for thousands of years. That is the land of Babylon and Nebuchadnezzar and Hammurabi.

Answer 9

The Sunnies & Shiites would continue to try to kill each other,
the same way they've been trying to kill each other for decades.

Answer 10

people would rejoice, and america would look like a wimp. you see its all a power struggle. bush took down hussein and now everybody is scared at this new power he has inherited